[Closed] Pure vanity purchases

I had 3 plain matching bottles for the tandem ( it has 3 cages) all the same. I lost one and couldn't get a matching one therefore had to buy 3 more plain ones that matched

My bike was £280 new, its now a bit battered, but very functional, it has an upgraded mech and shifters which by most standards are mid range.

Then I got a tax rebate, so it's now rocking carbon rims and hope hubs.and a £230 set of forks.

Do I win? 😀

tjagain - Member
I had 3 plain matching bottles for the tandem ( it has 3 cages) all the same. I lost one and couldn't get a matching one therefore had to buy 3 more plain ones that matched

Capitalist pig! 😉

I put a red and black ti railed Fizik on my Brompton. Because it matched the paint job. Then I realised that the stock grips simply didn't look good enough. So I put red ones on.

I bought green ss spacers because reasons..........

A carbon fibre bottle cage for £35. Not because it was light but because it was the best colour match!

£30 or thereabouts on some red anodized jockey wheels for the xtr mech on my Stumpjumper...pointless.

Gold Hope QRs for my Barry White Inbred.....the ones they replaced were fine...

Top cap here too - ordered a skull design one from a firm in the states, thought I'd get one (different design) for my sister at the same time. £16 for both which is not cheap for a couple of small bits of alloy. Then got hit with VAT and RM's handling fee which brought it to £30! Ooof. Not doing that again.

Also have sets of Hope headset spacers in red, gold and gunsmoke. And others in black, silver and green. Blue, need blue now. And mango. And purple.

CFH - surely "running dog"?

maserati - just to fit in on here

Paid more to get a Charge spoon saddle made with the custom options so it had the right black/green combination for my bike.

I ordered a pair of white Endura Mullets the other day. Not because I'd consider them better than my go to radars, in fact I sold some of the same last year. Nope, I bought them because I feel they make me look more angry, and that this might have some psychological disdvantage amongst my peers when racing. 😳

What was I thinking...

NOt a purchase but I have grown my hair long because I at 55 have a full head of dark hair and all my friends are balding and / or grey. I have only done it to show off. How shallow is that?

So long as you're not sporting a ponytail...

Or a topknot.

A deep V T shirt.

Respray and a custom headbadge. Not cheap, not necessary!

I got a stainless hip flask cage in a trade that I've put on my SS. The black plastic bottle cage for my Kleen Kanteen bottles now looks crap. So I'm trying to find a stainless King Cage Iris to match that will work with the Kleen Kanteens.

🙄

I made a coffee tamper out of a lump of stainless, a Campagnolo hub, and a spare black stem top cap. It really needs a Campagnolo top cap. Just because.

🙄 🙄

I have 3 pairs of Oakley Radars just to match different bikes/kit - black, white and green.

Pretty much all my bikes.

Sterling Silver headset spacers...

Three sets of hope grip doctors in different colours to complement specific colours on different bikes: red to match hope hubs & anodised dustcaps, black to match hubs and logo on frame, gold to match hubs/headset/anodised dustcaps.
Don't ask why; pointless, definitely unnecessary but i think they....look nice

Njee wins hands down. All the others are reasonable.

I came very close to buying the Salsa seat clamp with rack mounts on it for £28, despite being hard up at the time, to go with my Salsa. Saw sense in the end and bought a £7 generic one.

Silliest thing I actually bought was a Powertap front hub, to match the rear... and had it built up too ofc.

Sterling Silver headset spacers...

Brilliant!

A small CNC piece to cover the direct mount (front derailleur) on my fatty 🙂

All the shiny Hope stuff on my bikes. 🙂

My mini monos have my name on them 😀 Master cylinder covers say ANDY in place of Hope, inside the ellipse.
Usual engravings around it- dot 4/5.1 etc.

Im rather chuffed to have them as theyre an ebay find.

Titanium bolts for my carbon bottle cage

Rim tape on the fatbike. I went through 3 different brands and loads of different widths of PVC tape to get it right, and then more hassle to make it seal tubeless. But it does look damn fine.

Gold hope bar plugs to match the hubs and rotors, also the thomson gold stem plate and top cap.

77 Euros on a carbon BK Composites SRAM Shifter Clamp

Saved 12g

Titanium bolts for my carbon bottle cage

Should've gone aluminium. Half the weight, a quarter of the cost and available in pretty colours.

Gold plated Elite bottle cages to match the gold CK hubs and accessories on my Seven Sola. Only problem was the endless rattling made the gold start to flake off usually resulting in me having bloody hands every time I went for a swig of water!

A second road helmet from Mavic - purely because it perfectly matches the colour scheme on my road bike & tyres.
Absolutely nothing wrong with the Giro helmet I had before..
Now I have a Summer Road Kit all perfectly colour matched, and a Winter Road Kit the same. Strangely enough, MTB is whatever is closest to hand at that moment.

A Surly chain tug but it doubles as a bottle opener.

I *may* have had some XTR Yumeya reservoir covers a few years ago, saved 3g... And a Yumeya chain. Did come in a lovely box though.

Tomhoward +1

Every bike or bit of kit I've ever purchased have been a desperate attempt to make me feel better about my poor skills and fitness, hence my username.

I've now run out of cash though.....

I want this Kashima stem top cap, but will probably never part with the cash (£24.99) for it..

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I had one of them 😆

I put one of those top caps that holds a bottle top into a Charlie the Bikemonger basket to make up the value of the order above the free postage rate.

Was way more expensive than paying the postage, and I think more expensive than the thing I was buying.

Who has EVER broken, worn out or lost the original top cap that came with their bike?

I've also been hankering after a 1" CK headset for my Park tools toilet roll holder for some years. One day....

I like to have headset spacers the same brand as my stem.

So ridiculously overpriced Hope spacers on the hardtail, and ridiculously overpriced Syntace ones on the full sus. Seriously considering a Syntace top cap too.

This week I ordered this [img] [/img]

because the colour matched my green Gabba better than the yellow mechanical ultegra version.

+1 njee wins. Matching Oakleys is pure class.

I had one of them

I hate you... 😆

Just to annoy a riding buddy who likes everything to match, right down to valve caps, I splashed out on a red thomson face plate and top cap to go on my lime green FF29. I also installed it upside down. It is highly amusing to see how many people actually get upset about it.

Just like njee...I have a large collection of Oakleys (Radar EV's and Jawbreakers) that have been custom made to match. I have a pair of 'urban camo' Radar EV's that I had made by Optiek Van Gorp in Belgium just so that they matched my Northwave shoes and matching gloves.

I also once drove to Belgium for the day to visit a store that sold a t-shirt that matched the brand of bike I rode, just because I couldnt get it in the UK and didnt want to wait for the delivery

gazhurst is the new [s]absolute mentalist[/s] leader....drove to Belgium for a T-shirt!

bloody hell you lot. 😯

I'm in awe, I think.

I can't think of a single example. 🙄

Recent purchases include-

Ti rotor bolts for my Arkose as the black bolts looked a bit scabby and were starting to corrode.

Engraved top caps from Kustom Kaps for both my road bikes.

I'm just about to order some Ti calliper bolts for the Arkose as the steel ones don't look very nice, and are starting to corrode.

The chain is also starting to look a bit scabby so a nice Gold KMC one might be on the cards.

A spurcycles bell.

Well 2 of them one in black one in silver. I only needed a bell for my commuter but couldn't make up my mind which one to get, in reality a £2.99 one form Halfords would have done fine.

Silver one is sat in my spares box for when the black one dies. Both were purchased at the same time from the states and delivery and tax came to half as much as the cost of the bells.

i was going to say the Thompson Elite seatpost that is on my ratty fixed gear commuter, just because i needed a seatpost to fonosh the buils and that was the one in my spares box that was the right size..

but some of these ones are pure class and beat me hands down

I put matching Deda kit throughout on my old commuter, it was nice enough that when I built up a nice genesis steel road frame i just transfered it all over. Far too nice for a crappy cyclocross commuter.

None of my finishing kit matches on my MTB and that's my favourite bike

Arundel carbon bottle cages#. OK, they are light, beautifully made and I've never had a bottle come loose. But they are three times the price of Elite Ciussi gel cages, that work just as well. Degenkolb won Paris Roubaix with those alloy cages.

Green valve caps from my latex inner tubes to match the green Pave tyres to match the green highlights on my Defy SL.

Ritchey carbon top cap to match the forks, bars, stem and seatpost.

#And I have SIX of them - two on each carbon road bike in different shades 😳

I recently put a dropper post on one of my bikes....but I found I couldn't ride it until I had bought a bolted seat clamp to replace the QR one. Why is this!!!

Anyone who's bought a full sus and doesn't do DH or jumps. Mincers the lot of you 😉

Well I'm glad I'm not on my own 🙂
There are some proper OCD gimps out there!

I recently put a dropper post on one of my bikes....but I found I couldn't ride it until I had bought a bolted seat clamp to replace the QR one. Why is this!!!

Because you're a silly, that's why. When (not if, when) you send your dropper off for a service you'll need the QR to make do with a rigid seatpost while you wait. Also you want a QR for the extra double drop when it gets [i]reeeeallly[/i] steep.

Oh, and you lot make me feel [b]so much[/b] better about myself, thank you

Erm, I sold some green pedals and replaced them with gold ones when I changed bikes once.

Bit lame compared to most of you though.

You can spot the people in here that don't have kids a mile away.

You can spot the people in here that don't have kids a mile away.

Yep - you are dead right there.
Hence why my bike spending is restricted to a few bolts and other trinkets rather than carbon everything.

The money we spend every year on Dance/Gymnastics/swimming/piano lessons would buy me a good few pairs of Oakleys!

The money we spend every year on Dance/Gymnastics/swimming/piano lessons

You should take the kids, they'd love it

A set if gunmetal Hope jockey wheels to match all the other Hope bits on my BFe. Most of the time they are so covered in crap the colour is hidden. Utterly pointless but oddly satisfying to know they match.

I guess you could call my Tripster a vanity build seeing as i cannot even manage to cycle the 4 miles to work on it these days, (no muscle power/spinal injury), thank god for my Scott E-Genius. I guess i should really consider selling it as it's not turned a pedal in over 6months.

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Doesn't every have Oakley's in various colours to match stuff? Oh!

The story of the expensive free stickers....

Have singlespeed jump bike. It's a bit small for rides of more than a few miles
Bought on one inbred, while drunk.
Swapped all bits to inbred
Swapped no name seat post to Thomson masterpiece (possibly the only bike with a rigid, metal seat post that costs more than the frame it sits in)
Swapped no name headset to Chris King
Swapped spank stem for Thomson
Swapped Thomson stem bolts to gold Ti ones to match headset and hubs
Swapped chain to gold halflink to match above
Swapped marz shiver SC for reba, because flex.
Swapped Hayes 9 brakes for hope tech x2. Because CNC.

Text message from Stif

'Your replacement stickers for your wheels are in'
'I notice you have chameleon frames on offer...'

Swapped Inbred for chameleon
Needed new dropouts, rear axle and headset
120mm Rebas won't really cut it on a chameleon
Swapped rebas for 150mm pikes
Swapped 711 carbon bars for 750 carbon bars
Swapped masterpiece for reverb.
Tyres are a bit skinny
Swapped 2.25 Nobby nics for 2.4 HRIIs
Bored of singlespeed
Swap drivetrain for X1 1x11
Don't need clips anymore
Swap xt trail spds for burgtec penthouse mkIV

Keep for 18 months, don't ride it that much, Mstomhoward needs a new frame, but none of her components will fit anything new.

Swap chameleon frame for banshee rune. Give to mstomhoward.

I just bought 2 pairs of decathlon clear glasses, one for the camelbak I use with the fatbike, and the other for the camelbak I use for the normalbike. They're both exactly the same, and clear, which means they match.

Shameless upgraditis...

2013 Trek Madone 5.2, bought in end of season sale (August) as a summer bike, mechanical ultegra, decent enough spec.
Swapped to full DA9000 Di2 after 6 months, having done less than 100 miles.
Swapped wheels to DA9000 C50, same weight, just moar aero and, mainly, matches the drivetrain.
Swapped saddle for pardigm rxxxl
Swapped stem for same but carbon
Swapped bars for same but aero carbon
Swapped tyres for GP4000s.

Plus a ton of kit to match (helpfully, black)

Since all these upgrades, I've ridden it another 150 miles, but nothing since last July.

Chainring worn on the commuter. Thought cranks were a bit rubbish. perused eBay.

FS K Force carbon cranks and new chainring.
Then Selle Italia carbon saddle.
Then Bontrager carbon seat post.
Then Bontrager carbon bars.
Then Bontrager carbon stem.

Total number of commutes this year? 0 😆

I spent many, many, many hundreds of pounds "refurbishing" my battered Condor Pista. When it was resprayed I had them remove the bottle bosses and fill in the rear brake bridge so it wouldnt take a rear brake and could only be ridden fixed. Nice Halo wheels and cranks, Brooks Swift saddle, Paul Components brake lever. Shit I even put a Super Record brake on it. The whole thing was one great vanity project. It thought it was so pretty I stopped riding it in foul weather and bought another bike for commuting.

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Three helmets in colours to match the appropriate jerseys.

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and
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?

I've also been hankering after a 1" CK headset for my Park tools toilet roll holder for some years. One day....

There's one in the bog at work and the bearings are disappointingly rough in the stock one,so I'm considering an upgrade too. I might try making a better one out of the old Colnago frame in the shed though.

Stand up like in an Aa meeting

My OCD level hurts so both my rides are the same colour same tyres same wheels brakes and cranks, same saddle dropper and bars, and I'd do it again,,

Crush and Five 🙂

All the XTR bits on my bike, when XT or even Deore would do perfectly well...

I scraped some paint off a new Mojo HD leaning it up a wall, so sold the frame and bought another (identical) one and swapped everything over. 😳

Set of XTR brakes for my Big Top. I mean, an XTR crankset and Avid brakes? Just won't do!
I did buy a Thomson top cap for the Tripster too cos it has Thomsom bars and stem. A minor indulgence.

@stevedoc, know what you mean. The only difference between my Newmad and 5010 are the frames (and shock, same colour though), rear tyre, stem and grips.

I know what I like and like what I know.

Pretty much everything on my two full suss bikes is a vanity purchase. I've the riding skills of a freshly greased walrus and the co-ordination most people possess after pint number eight.

But I feel better riding my bikes with Pikes, shiny Hope kit and other bits of bling.

bueller - Member

I scraped some paint off a new Mojo HD leaning it up a wall, so sold the frame and bought another (identical) one and swapped everything over

I fancy a Remedy 29 Carbon, don't suppose you fancy buying one and leaning it against a wall?