Thoughts on purchasing a used pro team frame?

[s3si1u]

Hi y'all,

Currently looking for a new (better fitting) road bike frame. I'm riding a Velobuild 177 with SRAM AXS and although it's been very good to me, I've had it for nearly two years and caught the itch to sidegrade. Also, the reach is still a hair too long for me even after going to a 90mm stem and 0 offset seatpost. I'm debating between another open mold frame that fits me better, or splurging for a new brand name frame or complete bike.
I've purchased and ridden enough open molds to know what's of decent quality and what to avoid, my question is specifically regarding used UCI pro team framesets. I have the opportunity to purchase one that's a relatively good fit for me although it shows evidence of being well used, it's in fairly good condition and the price is pretty great. There's minor scuffs and scratches here and there, evidence of chain suck but nothing major. Cosmetic imperfections don't really bother me as I have a thing for custom paint and will repaint the frame regardless of what I purchase. Has anyone purchased a used pro frame? Any first hand experiences? How beat up are these bikes by the time they end up on the resale market?
I haven't discounted the option of a new brand name frameset or complete bike if a good deal pops up.

[micky]

If you do a quick search in this forum, there's multiple topic with this same exact question; long story short, depends who you're getting it from.
It could be either a spare frame that has never even seen a groupset, or a trashed one.

As you mentioned you would purchase with the idea to do a custom job, I wonder why you should get an ex pro team bike in first place.
They aren't any cheap than the ones you find in the second hand markets.

[s3si1u]

If you do a quick search in this forum, there's multiple topic with this same exact question; long story short, depends who you're getting it from.
It could be either a spare frame that has never even seen a groupset, or a trashed one.

As you mentioned you would purchase with the idea to do a custom job, I wonder why you should get an ex pro team bike in first place.
They aren't any cheap than the ones you find in the second hand markets.

Of course I searched. I did several searches for similar posts and found no results. Anything you can link me to?
Don't really care that it's a team bike honestly. The price really is good, otherwise I wouldn't be interested. I'm just not familiar with the kind of abuse something like a Pro or Conti team would inflict on a bike that saw action.

[RTW]

You're in the heat of a race and your bike has a mechanical. Be it a puncture, gears stop working etc. Your mechanic has another bike for you. Do you....

1. Gently rest your broken bike down on the floor treating it like a baby
2. Throw / Drop / Abandon the bike which is costing you the race with no thought for it or any of the components

Team bikes are tools. That's it.

[MilesG813]

You're in the heat of a race and your bike has a mechanical. Be it a puncture, gears stop working etc. Your mechanic has another bike for you. Do you....

1. Gently rest your broken bike down on the floor treating it like a baby
2. Throw / Drop / Abandon the bike which is costing you the race with no thought for it or any of the components

Team bikes are tools. That's it.

That's a great point, I can't tell you how many times I have seen riders toss their bikes aside in disgust after a mechanical. I get nervous leaning mine against the gas station wall, lol.

[Maddie]

There's a multitude of things that can go wrong on a pro bike:
- crashes
- mechanicals
- the occasional bike throws
But also mechanics themselves often don't treat these bikes extra carefully. If you have to check and clean 8 bikes after a stage, then every second counts...

Best summary as mentioned before: for pros/mechanics, bikes are tools

I personally wouldn't buy a used ex-pro bike

[s3si1u]

As someone who doesn't really watch the pro's race outside of the occasional Youtube clip of a close finish or crash, I didn't know the temper tatrums and bike tosses were so prevalent. Also, I guess the crashes should be obvious, probably best not to risk it.
I'll probably think twice about this one and go for something else. Thanks, y'all.

[Nickldn]

It'd be like buying a former taxi cab with 200k on the clock.

[TobinHatesYou]

It'd be like buying a former taxi cab with 200k on the clock.

As someone who bought an EF-TIBCO-SVB bike with R9200 Di2 for $5000 at the end of 2022, this is as false as it is true. Especially for a team like EF which has novel paintjobs every year, you can be assured that a bike has just one year of service time, if that. The bike I got was Abi Smith's, it seems to have been one of her primary race bikes and has some obvious signs of heavy-handed washing and wheel changes, but that's about it. And then there will be a backup bike and also a training bike also for sale, both of which will likely be in even better shape.

There are, of course, hidden costs. I did not receive a Di2 charger. The brake hoses were cut to a very exacting length for a slammed 110mm stem. I needed a 140mm stem, so I had to buy one new hose and a replacement stem. Luckily Abi used a 38cm Vision Metron bar, so I didn't need to swap that out. She also ran 170mm cranks, but I can deal with an extra 5mm in crank length...

Of course I benefitted from attending an in-person sale, so I had the opportunity to inspect it before buying.

[s3si1u]

It'd be like buying a former taxi cab with 200k on the clock.

I bought an old interceptor Crown Vic once with way over 200k for dirt cheap. That thing ran like a champ with virtually zero maintenance

[outnumbered]

The steerers are often cut to minimum height, so make sure you can cope with a slammed setup. Not much point in riding a "pro" bike but having to fit an upward pointy stem

[wheelsONfire]

I doubt any privately owned bike is as abused as an ex pro team frameset.

[RTW]

I don't know if it is abuse. I just don't think they are cared for. Its different. They might be hardly used.

[TobinHatesYou]

I doubt any privately owned bike is as abused as an ex pro team frameset.

Pro team bikes get lubed and also get their moving parts replaced often. The same can’t be said for a good percentage of bikes owned by hobbyists. Plenty of skipping chains, squeaky hubs and chains caked in grinding paste even on the local hammerfests. Non-pros also crash their bikes too.

The parts of a pro team frame that get a bit beat up are the chainstays, rear dropouts and forks from haphazard wheel changes, but like I said you typically get a bike with a partial season of service time.

[NSWCruiser]

I bought a pair of roval alpinist clx from ebay before, thought I had a good deal. The seller also sold lots branded items of Bora Hansgrohe.
The wheelset came with minor scratches but ran perfectly overall. Later I even sold the wheelset to another cyclist at a profit.

Usually these second hand used items would come with detailed photos. And I would see if that seller is reputable. Dont afraid to ask about the functionality of the item as an honest seller should not keep any secrets from you. If everything looks alright, just take the deals.