Originally Posted by
frantik
I mean if you had bikes with identical geometry, wheels and tires, but one was made in Italy with Columbus and another made in Japan with Tange, would they ride significantly differently, so much that one might be able to tell in a blind test?
Most likely not, but that's not the difference between Asian and European bikes, at least from the C&V era. The significant differences were in the frames, IMO. High-end Euro bikes (Columbus or Reynolds tubing, but production-line built) tended to have lighter tubing and better frame geometries, at least outside the 54-56 cm range that everyone in Japan seems to ride. Especially in my size range (63-66cm) the geometry differences can be huge. 74 degree seat and 72 head angles may work on a 54, but scale that up to 64, and you've got something that handles like a shopping cart. And a 56cm top tube? Anybody know where I can get a 170mm stem??
And then you've got the Brits: Reynolds tubing, but again with the weird geometry. F'rinstance a 65cm (25.5") Raleigh Competition GS had 74 degree parallel angles and a 57cm top tube. Oh good. Now I only need a 150mm stem and a seatpost with about 6 inches of setback. Sheesh.
But getting back to the original question: for my money, the difference in C&V bikes from Europe and Asia comes down to tubing and geometry, with the Euros winning hands down.
SP
OC, OR