Hey Listies:
I submit that the KOF has a very real and purposeful market niche,and it ain't the moneyed spoiled child.
A custom builder of bespoke bicycles serves the matured committed cyclist.This person knows what he/she would really like and gets it made new and right.There is also the kind of committed rider who's got the special body,and can't buy an uncompromised bike off the peg.
Even with the huge USA population,we still don't have the strong,old cycling culture of Europe,so the hardcore non-racing cyclists are few.Even on the list here,I perceive that many people only regard racing as real cycling.Racers need the new stuff.
I know of custom builders who will build a very tidy tigged steel bike for special needs,a truly elegant tool.Same guy will put on the glitz if the rider has money and aesthetic needs.
Louis Schulman has a point about how the new steel bikes are especially effective compared to revived classcs.I also hate to flog my oldies hard,and reserve the hammering for my newer stuff,or the Dutch utility bike.
Seth Finkelstein,Santa Cruz,CA