I just got up to speed on the Confente on Ebay by reading the item description. I am new to the bike collecting thing and have always thought of them as something to ride, race and mostly likely to have fun with. What makes a bike like this worth so much? You could contact a current frame builder and have one created just like it for far less. If it were a car it would depend on who owned it or raced it -- this bike has not been raced it did not win the Tour D' France no one famous owned it. The equipment on it is nothing special - the owner is going to throw in the old worn out chain, bar tape and brake hoods, again it was never raced they are old worn-out parts - so Confente touched them is he some demi God now or something? In my mind this is not worth any more than a Masi built in the US. I guess some of you are going to get pissed off at me but I think this group likes it when someone starts arguments. Sam DiBartolomeo