I am not sure if irony is the right word here, but I was looking at a bike on eBay that really was a bit too big to seriously contemplate, and I had this thought: most of the bikes I look at are high end bikes that would have been carefully fitted to the original owners, but I am willing to consider bikes that are somewhat too big or somewhat too small for me, because there is a limited supply and it that makes the consideration set larger. My first pro bike was a 23" Atala that was definitely too large for me, but was a good deal, and I wanted it. Two years later I was glad to get rid of it in favor of a bike that fit better.
So, a couple of questions: Do you ever buy bikes with no intention of riding them? Of the bikes you buy with the intent to ride, how far from your nominal frame size do you deviate? Do you buy bikes that don't fit well with the thought that you can ride it for awhile, until something better comes along? What is the range of sizes of your regular riders?
As ever,
Marcus Helman
Huntington Woods, MI