Inflation upon us?

[norcalbiker]

I rather buy things from my LBS rather than the big chain internet retailer. Definitely avoid amazon at all cost. But $8.99 each for a 26" rim tape is a little much for me to swallow. So I did used gorilla tape instead.
Also, 26" tube is $13.99 each. Are these due to Pandemic?

[AngryScientist]

it's not just bike crap. i'm quickly learning building materials are way up too. i suspect most things are these days. it sucks.

[norcalbiker]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

it's not just bike crap. i'm quickly learning building materials are way up too. i suspect most things are these days. it sucks.

That reminds me that my neighbor had his 5ft fence done for $45 per linear foot. YIKES!!!

[jtakeda]

Originally Posted by norcalbiker

I rather buy things from my LBS rather than the big chain internet retailer. Definitely avoid amazon at all cost. But $8.99 each for a 26" rim tape is a little much for me to swallow. So I did used gorilla tape instead.
Also, 26" tube is $13.99 each. Are these due to Pandemic?

I’m with you.

Even locally/regionally sourced materials and goods shot up like crazy. I’m not sure what market force could describe the sudden increase besides inflation

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

it's not just bike crap. i'm quickly learning building materials are way up too. i suspect most things are these days. it sucks.

Building materials are one category that has experienced a particular spike during the pandemic, but to say "most things are" is not the case. Overall, the consumer price index is around its pre-pandemic trend.

[merlinmurph]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

it's not just bike crap. i'm quickly learning building materials are way up too. i suspect most things are these days. it sucks.

Man, building materials were crazy all winter, and really crazy now. A builder friend simply cannot give somebody a hard quote on a job - totally dependent on price of materials.

[Hilltopperny]

You can’t print trillions out of thin air without the cost of everything skyrocketing. Groceries, gas and just about everything else have gone up substantially.


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[unterhausen]

Lumber futures are experiencing something of a bubble right now, I think.

The demand for tubes is through the roof, and there are definitely shortages. Especially 26", since nobody has built a 26" bike in production for quite some time, and all the old 26" bikes are coming out of storage and need tubes.

People also point to gas as an indicator of inflation, but it was at a low because nobody was using it for a while. I imagine there is a bit of a shortage there too.

[54ny77]

just cover yourself with stan's sealant, you'll be protected.

[homagesilkhope]

Originally Posted by unterhausen

Lumber futures are experiencing something of a bubble right now, I think.

While timber prices - at least in the SE - are flat to down.

[dbh]

A lot of it stems from spikes in consumer demand coupled with supply chain disruption (bike tubes). Earlier in the pandemic many bike shops around me couldn’t even order tubes from their distributors. With building materials, there’s a lot of supply chain disruption issues still playing out, coupled with fallout from tariffs on Canadian wood products, plus the spike in remodeling as the economy kicks back in gear. Here in Boston, lots of folks are choosing to remodel after being cooped up in their homes for a year as well as realizing that it makes more sense to stay and renovate rather than sell and move up to larger and more expensive home. Just trying to find skilled trades people is a challenge with the demand for renovation projects.

[spoonrobot]

Here's some stuff I bought last year that I also purchased or shopped recently. Going to the store or logging into eBay is a real adventure, in our current year.

[yinzerniner]

Originally Posted by Hilltopperny

You can’t print trillions out of thin air without the cost of everything skyrocketing. Groceries, gas and just about everything else have gone up substantially.


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This is statement is completely false and utterly absurd

Groceries experienced a spike due to the supply hoarding and transportation issues of the pandemic

Gas was near an all-time inflation-relative price low during most of the pandemic due to the implementation of stay at home rule for the general public. They only recently started coming back up due to the winter storm in Texas and opening of commutes.

Building materials were similarly affected by the same external influences of groceries. But the other factor that wasn’t foreseen was the widespread single family household building boom, where people of means fled their urban homes for suburban locales and similarly skyrocketed the demand for residential building materials. Steel and concrete didn’t have nearly as much a price increase as wood, paint, nails, plywood and Sheetrock.

Another good example of societal demands shifting prices quickly is cars. Vehicles had a huge down tick in prices when the pandemic first hit, then skyrocketed as new stock couldn’t be fulfilled and people shifted away from public transportation. In my case the vehicle I purchased las may increased in price ~1500 in a week, and the next week was going for 3000 more.

As for the injection of trillions - does this include the quantitative easing that helped keep the investors on even keel while working income was decimated?

[Hilltopperny]

Originally Posted by yinzerniner

This is statement is completely false and utterly absurd

Groceries experienced a spike due to the supply hoarding and transportation issues of the pandemic

Gas was near an all-time inflation-relative price low during most of the pandemic due to the implementation of stay at home rule for the general public. They only recently started coming back up due to the winter storm in Texas and opening of commutes.

Building materials were similarly affected by the same external influences of groceries. But the other factor that wasn’t foreseen was the widespread single family household building boom, where people of means fled their urban homes for suburban locales and similarly skyrocketed the demand for residential building materials. Steel and concrete didn’t have nearly as much a price increase as wood, paint, nails, plywood and Sheetrock.

As for the injection of trillions - does this include the quantitative easing that helped keep the investors on even keel while working income was decimated?

Basic economics says if you increase the supply of money without anything backing it then it becomes less valuable. Literally economics 101, but hey you heard a bunch of stuff from mainstream news sources that are funded by big corporate interests so it must be true...


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[reuben]

Originally Posted by norcalbiker

I rather buy things from my LBS rather than the big chain internet retailer. Definitely avoid amazon at all cost. But $8.99 each for a 26" rim tape is a little much for me to swallow. So I did used gorilla tape instead.
Also, 26" tube is $13.99 each. Are these due to Pandemic?

Well, you can look at the price difference between your LBS and amazon or another online retailer, or you can decide whether or not $8.99 for rim tape which can be amortized over years will break your budget.