Mountain Biking - China bikes????

I seen a sticker on my buddies new specialized that said manufactured in China.... WTF

How many top of the line bikes are made in the US???

I know cannondale and Trek are made in the US and always thought specialized bikes were made in the US also. Glad I stuck with an American made product.

yeah dude.. suprising a high-end american brand manufactures in china..

Glad I stuck with an American made product.[/QUOTE]


Um, my Trek 4500 says "Made in China" on the headtube. Don't you have a 4300?

Most Treks are made overseas. If you have a 4300 it is made in China. Cannondale is the only company(big) to make ALL frames on US soil.

Trek's hand built frames are made in the US, everything below them is made in China. I think (could be wrong) that the 6500 is the first one made here in the US. But maybe the 6700..

you are shocked that bikes are made in China?

Whats next, cars being made in Japan?

Where is your quad made?

Even if your TREK frame was from the US (which it is not as pointed out above) most if not all of the components are made overseas.

My bike has a big metal tab on the front Head tube that says made in Waterloo, WI. I"ve yet to see a sticker that says made in China. ;) I understand lots of other parts are from other countries and that there's no bike fully made with parts from american soil. I'm very new to mountain bikes and just was thinking lots of the bikes were made in the US. Guess I still have a lot to learn.


My quad is a Honda and it's made in NC. Yes it's a japanese company but made by americans in america.

Hey Quad, big difference. The Trek head badge is the Trek Logo and lists where the companies HQ is, which is Waterloo, it doesn't list where it was made. Whether it was removed before purchase or not is another question but below that Trek logo was a black sticker that simply said "Made in China".. I have a 4300 as well so I'm not guessing here.

Their website lists the factory is waterloo and that's were bikes are made. You can even tour the facilities, so I"m kind of confused I guess. Looks like more than just mail goes thru the location in waterloo.

Is it possible that they now produce all bikes out of the US???

what year bike do you have gorsar??

Their website lists the factory is waterloo and that's were bikes are made. You can even tour the facilities, so I"m kind of confused I guess. Looks like more than just mail goes thru the location in waterloo.

Is it possible that they now produce all bikes out of the US???

what year bike do you have gorsar??


Not for Trek. Bulk of their stuff is made by one of last I checked 3-4 big factories in china that make bikes for a lot of other brands. Yeah, I avoid the chinese made stuff, just because if I'm gonna be paying some good coin for a frame, I want it made in a better location. Just feels cheap to have a made in china product. Colnago is supposed to be making bikes there as well, just makes me want one less. I'll stick with my cannondale super v active, cannondale road, Magmaa road ti, and schwinn straight six/yeti dh 6. :)

hey quadzone, not to sound like an *******, but just because something is made by the chinese (which i am) doesn't mean its inferior. the locale of where something is made means nothing. most of the bikes you see around are made in asia, simply because the quality is higher and prices are cheaper. Betcha didn't know the Santa Cruz Jackal is made in taiwan, did ya? As a matter of fact, all the single pivot and hardtail santa cruz's are made in asia.

hey quadzone, not to sound like an *******, but just because something is made by the chinese (which i am) doesn't mean its inferior. the locale of where something is made means nothing. most of the bikes you see around are made in asia, simply because the quality is higher and prices are cheaper. Betcha didn't know the Santa Cruz Jackal is made in taiwan, did ya? As a matter of fact, all the single pivot and hardtail santa cruz's are made in asia.

It has nothing to do with quality.

It has 100% to do with the fact that you can work people to death in China for pennies. To boot, you don't have to worry about disposing of those "pesky chemicals" properly.

China is the worlds largest gulag. The addition of capitalism just means people are now forced to FIND a gulag rather than being assigned one.

I checked into the Trek situation, and some of thier bikes are made in the USA, but most are overseas, here is what a TREK rep told me, (verbatim):
"The only hardtails that are made in the US for 2006 are the 9.8 and 9.9 carbon hardtails(starting @ approximately 3850$). Nearly all of the full suspension bikes are made here, starting @ approximately - 1540$
Pete Kohner
Tech Support
Trek, Lemond, Klein and Fisher
peter_kohner@trekbikes.com
X12084"

If you really want to support a MADE IN USA company buy Cannondale. I am usually a stickler on choosing USA products if given a choice, just to support the homeland, but I am buying a specialized becuase I prefer the bike and the frame is warrantied for life and the parts are warrantied as well through my LBS.
It sucks if you want to support US workers, but, welcome to planet earth 2005, not much we can do about it.

I seen a sticker on my buddies new specialized that said manufactured in China.... WTF

How many top of the line bikes are made in the US???

I know cannondale and Trek are made in the US and always thought specialized bikes were made in the US also. Glad I stuck with an American made product.

Welcome to the modern economy?

...

Nearly all, and I actually mean ALL bikes are made overseas. I actually thought most frames were built in Taiwan?

Your 4300 is definitely not an "American made product."

hey quadzone, not to sound like an *******, but just because something is made by the chinese (which i am) doesn't mean its inferior. the locale of where something is made means nothing. most of the bikes you see around are made in asia, simply because the quality is higher and prices are cheaper. Betcha didn't know the Santa Cruz Jackal is made in taiwan, did ya? As a matter of fact, all the single pivot and hardtail santa cruz's are made in asia.

I'm going to have to agree with wiltsmith on this...

The quality is higher for the price, but the quality is most certainly not higher. They are pretty much equal due to the machine age.

so it's made in china/taiwan. big, fat, hairy deal. They make crap stuff in western countries too, it's called "comparative advantage" - where some countries make certain things better (read: either better quality or cheaper with negligible difference in quality) than other countries. Just so happens labour cost is cheaper in developing countries making it cheaper to make bicycle frames in china of the same quality. incidentally, most of the insides of your computer are made in taiwan.

In the end, quality control is under the scrutiny of the manufacturing company and doesn't depend on the country of origin.

Giant is actually originated from Taiwan, so no surprise there I guess.

I've got a Schwinn (pacific cycle), and I was surprised to see at the bike rack today a Trek with parts that weren't much better than what I had. I didn't really get a close up, but I saw like the brakes were the non-V kind..where its on cheap bicycles. Deraileurs looked like the same shimano parts.

Cannondale is the only company(big) to make ALL frames on US soil.

No longer true... their all carbon stuff is coming from overseas.

No longer true... their all carbon stuff is coming from overseas.
Hmmm... whoah! Do they still use the USA or Handmade in America sticker?

Hmmm... whoah! Do they still use the USA or Handmade in America sticker?

Only on their stuff made here.

Only on their stuff made here.
At least they are honest :lol:

so it's made in china/taiwan. big, fat, hairy deal. They make crap stuff in western countries too, it's called "comparative advantage" - where some countries make certain things better (read: either better quality or cheaper with negligible difference in quality) than other countries. Just so happens labour cost is cheaper in developing countries making it cheaper to make bicycle frames in china of the same quality. incidentally, most of the insides of your computer are made in taiwan.

In the end, quality control is under the scrutiny of the manufacturing company and doesn't depend on the country of origin.

BULL FEATHERS!!!

Comparitive advantage only applies to natural resources. There is nothing inherent about US labor vs Chinese labor that makes either better at feeding materials into machines and packaging the parts that come out of them.

China is an attractive labor base because the people are effectively disposable.

One might as well make an argument that we should return to slavery because that will keep the cost of cotton down.

i did mention "better" to be read in loose terms, not necessarily equating to better quality but lower cost with acceptable/negligble loss in quality, please read carefully before making a blanket statement, esp. if you're quoting.

economically the human resource of a country is part of its resources that should be included in the concept of comparative advantage. you're half right that china's effective because there are so many people around labour cost is low, and that's exactly what makes it easier for the country to produce bike frames than many industrialised countries. there's no point raising slavery as an issue as it is an emotive issue - but might i say that unless you've visited a factory in china, you have no idea how good or bad conditions are there. workers may be paid a pittance compared to US dollars, but the cost of living in china is comparatively much lower than in the US.

/this no longer has anything to do with mtb - mods move if required or pm replies please

the boutique bikes like ellsworth etc. are still hand made on the US soil. They usually set you back about $5k, though.

I don't mind buying a bike made in China if it's inexpensive, but to pay a few thousand for a bike that only cost a few hundred to make in China seems like too much profit to the corporate behemoth.

BTW, while I haven't fully decided, I'm leaning on a Brooklyn Machine Works park bike as my next bike. I have to give it a test ride to see if I'd like it, but the frame's made in Brooklyn (where I'm from) at their store and if that's not supporting your local businessman, I dunno what is.

I don't mind buying a bike made in China if it's inexpensive, but to pay a few thousand for a bike that only cost a few hundred to make in China seems like too much profit to the corporate behemoth.

BTW, while I haven't fully decided, I'm leaning on a Brooklyn Machine Works park bike as my next bike. I have to give it a test ride to see if I'd like it, but the frame's made in Brooklyn (where I'm from) at their store and if that's not supporting your local businessman, I dunno what is.

My Cowan was one of a few that were built in Washington State.

I always hated to see the made in China lable on things ,because it meant what I was considering paying for was junk. I was a little unhappy when I went to look at highly recomended bikes and saw the MADE IN CHINA lable on them. When I looked over the bikes though,the welding on the frame and the overall quality in the bike was very nice. I guess I will have to base my judgments on the product, not on where its made, from now on.

dont intense manufacture in the US?

My bike has a big metal tab on the front Head tube that says made in Waterloo, WI. I"ve yet to see a sticker that says made in China. ;) I understand lots of other parts are from other countries and that there's no bike fully made with parts from american soil. I'm very new to mountain bikes and just was thinking lots of the bikes were made in the US. Guess I still have a lot to learn.


My quad is a Honda and it's made in NC. Yes it's a japanese company but made by americans in america.


Global Economy, baby.

Your quad is made here but the profits go to Japan.
Chinese made bikes with HQ in the U.S. are made there but with profits sent to the U.S. (or likely to some tax shelter country like Switzerland or the Cayman Islands).

It's nice to see people sweating the details but the truth is that with a global economy even knowing where something is made does not guarantee much in terms of what the money trail actually is.

I always hated to see the made in China lable on things ,because it meant what I was considering paying for was junk. I was a little unhappy when I went to look at highly recomended bikes and saw the MADE IN CHINA lable on them. When I looked over the bikes though,the welding on the frame and the overall quality in the bike was very nice. I guess I will have to base my judgments on the product, not on where its made, from now on.

Uhhh....good job I guess?

Global Economy, baby.

Your quad is made here but the profits go to Japan.
Chinese made bikes with HQ in the U.S. are made there but with profits sent to the U.S. (or likely to some tax shelter country like Switzerland or the Cayman Islands).

It's nice to see people sweating the details but the truth is that with a global economy even knowing where something is made does not guarantee much in terms of what the money trail actually is.

Yep, it doesn't really matter. All of the fat cats are golfing together anyway laughing at us. Just buy the best quality product for the best price while supporting the people you want as much as possible :rolleyes:

BULL FEATHERS!!!

Comparitive advantage only applies to natural resources. There is nothing inherent about US labor vs Chinese labor that makes either better at feeding materials into machines and packaging the parts that come out of them.

Not sure why comparative advantage would only apply to natural resources, surly it applies to anything two countries can trade. Chinese labour is better because it is cheaper.

Still I'm not sure this is comparative advantage (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparative_Advantage) since china can produce bikes much cheaper that the Us.

Not sure why comparative advantage would only apply to natural resources, surly it applies to anything two countries can trade. Chinese labour is better because it is cheaper.

Still I'm not sure this is comparative advantage (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparative_Advantage) since china can produce bikes much cheaper that the Us.
Just b/c china's labor is cheaper does not make it better. I would say that it is more efficient/economical etc... but "cheapness" does not equate to "betterness"

Just b/c china's labor is cheaper does not make it better. I would say that it is more efficient/economical etc... but "cheapness" does not equate to "betterness"

It is if you write the checks to pay for labor. I think he was speaking from the business owners point of view.

It is if you write the checks to pay for labor. I think he was speaking from the business owners point of view.
I would still disagree with the term "better" being applied, even from a business standpoint. Perhaps the guy that only looks at the bottom line and nothing else, the china decision COULD be better for a while, but from the business standpoint there is the risk of the product turning to $hit and taking the "brand name" with it. If the companies only look at the bottom line then their customer service folks are in India and their warranties end up being a year long or something like that. Eventually the company sells their product to X-mart, junior high kids think they are cool for a while, then the company falls off the face of the earth. As long as the customer service is good, I am quite certain the companies we are talking about (Trek, Specialized, Cannondale, etc...) are not "bottom line companies." By manufacturing their bikes over seas they are able maintain lifetime warranties, good customer service, etc... I assure you, the three companies afore mentioned would manufacture all of their bikes in the USA if it was even reasonably cost efficient, which it is not. Therefore, cheap labor is not better, just more economical and a sound business decision, manufacturing in the USA is the best scenario, but like most "best scenarios," it is not a very plausible one for the longevity of the company. If you still want to say that cheap labor is better, then I say we can agree to disagree. :beer:

I'm pretty sure that all the Marins are made in the US, even their cheap ones....not that bikes from China are any worse.

From little green army men to Bikes lol

If you want a mainly U.S. built bicycle, then forget Specialized, Trek, Giant, GT, and all the other large brands - Taiwan or China, and probably from the same darn factory no less. Why not buy a custom frame from a true American company, actually, a true American PERSON! I ride Curtlo steel frames, the guy makes them in Washington State, with TrueTemper tubes, also made in U.S., Tennessee I think. The cost in doing this is not THAT much more expensive, if not a tad cheaper when you factor in the cost of the parts can be cheaper from the builder...You can find a steel handmade frame for $600 bucks if you do your research...you win two times - you get a bike that fits your body, and you support a guy trying to make an honest buck in the U.S. Just a thought. When I read a review in a magazine about this cool high-end $3000.00+ bike, only to find out it is made in Taiwan, I laugh out loud. Take the new Mountain Bike Action issue, it has a german-company's high end carbon bike, major bucks. Where is the frame made? China/Taiwan. It's getting ridiculous if you ask me. Us Americans are becoming so obsessed with the cost of something, always has to be lower, that we are missing the big picture. How much longer until Cannondale says "ah, screw it, why not just do it like everyone else and make more money"...just some thoughts.

Man, I don't even know what the big deal is. All my money goes to Italians in Italy.

And if you think you're not supporting america by buying a chinese-made bicycle, just think it through. If the factory is foreign, the importers are domestic.

From little green army men to Bikes lol
There at least now I can read the bloody post

Uhhh....good job I guess?

Uhhh... no guessing about it. Its a good job for me because every product I have seen or bought from China has been garbage up until now.
At least they can follow somebody elses specs.

Therefore, cheap labor is not better, just more economical and a sound business decision, manufacturing in the USA is the best scenario, but like most "best scenarios," it is not a very plausible one for the longevity of the company.

I think you just can't bring yourself to say a foreign worker is better than an American.

How is manufacturing in the Us the best scenario? Surely the best scenario is to manufacture the bikes where it makes most economic sense. Unless you think Americans should have a lower standard of living just so you can feel patriotic while you polish the made in USA sticker on your bike.

Surely the best scenario is to manufacture the bikes where it makes most economic sense.

Who is that the best scenario for? The bike companies?

I would think that the best scenario is to manufacture the bikes where the quality would be highest. I am not saying those two (economic sense/quality) are mutually exclusive at all.

I think you just can't bring yourself to say a foreign worker is better than an American.

How is manufacturing in the Us the best scenario? Surely the best scenario is to manufacture the bikes where it makes most economic sense. Unless you think Americans should have a lower standard of living just so you can feel patriotic while you polish the made in USA sticker on your bike.


Hi. I am new to the community (warm welcoming applause)

Although I am no anti-free-trade protectionist, I do believe that economic sense is not the be-all and end-all. I may pay a premium for my road bike (Trek 2300) for that "Made in USA" sticker because I want to support Wisconsin workers (their cheese is good too), even though an overseas manufacturer may offer the same quality at a slightly lower price.

My ATB is an aluminum giant ATX 7(Something). Good quality, bulletproof welds and made in Tiawan (by Chinese speaking people). Tiawanese workers get paid reasonably well and in addition, Tiawan is a free country (and is our friend).

I would not buy a good bike from China because doing so is to support a dictatorship - and as WiltSmith previously pointed out - China is in many ways a gulag. I dont avoid all Chinese mada goods - most of my kids toys are made there - but I have to draw the line somewhere.

China is the only country with their nukes pointed at the US......pretty scary that we import the vast majority of our good from a Communist regime that does not place any value on their own citizens, human rights, and certainly the environment. Maybe it'stime for all the "global warming" crowd to point their fingers at China for thier rampant disregard for any toxic emissions created by their factories. You won't find a local chapter of the Sierra Club in China....those things will get people killed. Very sad that our economy is so dependant on doing business with them. Someday we really will have hell to pay for helping to build our economic and military enemy.

Maybe one day China will become free and they can melt down their missiles and turn them into Titanium frames (will the bikes glow in the dark?)

China is the only country with their nukes pointed at the US



Well, I would argue about the progress of capitalism in china, but you probably wouldn't listen. So instead I'm just going to point out that you are incredibly, incredibly wrong with the statement I have in quotes right there. Lots of people have 'em pointed over here. Some of them are far more dangerous than China, who by the way is NOT our enemy at the moment. :rolleyes:

Hey guys,

I just got myself a new Specialized Epic Comp Disc, and found this forum.

One of the things my friend and I talked about on our last ride was whether these bikes were made in the US or in China. I had expressed the opinion that I'd prefer it if it was made in China.

My reasons:
1) Chinese people do not spend their time criticising others, as Americans do.
2) Chinese people have a better work ethic than do Americans.
3) Chinese made goods, dollar for yuan, are of better quality.
4) The Chinese have a better world perspective than the Americans.

I'm sorry if my post seems overly political, but this thread has become extremely antagonistic to a nation with a population of 1.3 billion people. I visited China once, and found it to be free and safe. The Chinese are an extremely kind and decent people.

I would give anyone at least 2 to 1 odds that a randomly selected Chinese would be a better person and worker than a randomly selected American. And I would give anyone 10 to 1 odds that a randomly selected Chinese person could be trained to build a bike much easier than a randomly selected American.

Of course I own American made products. At no point has that been a problem for me.

Bao?

Granted China is not as repressive as North Korea, and their Nukes (they only have a handfull of ICBM's) cannot be readily launched at us (they use liquid fuel which has to be added first - takes some time). But I would still rather buy a Taiwan bike (the people there are also Chinese - with the same work ethic) than a bike from the Peoples Republic.

I think you just can't bring yourself to say a foreign worker is better than an American.

How is manufacturing in the Us the best scenario? Surely the best scenario is to manufacture the bikes where it makes most economic sense. Unless you think Americans should have a lower standard of living just so you can feel patriotic while you polish the made in USA sticker on your bike.

Well, you're wrong, I could say that a foreign worker is better than an American one, if it were true, which sometimes it is, surely there are some better bike manufacturing people in China. However, I can assure you that is not the reason that companies OUTSOURCE, they have the bikes made there becuase it is cheaper to do so, which I am fine with as long as the company stands behind the product. Manufacturing in the US is the best scenario for ME, becuase I want to support my country as much as possible. I like to be self-sufficient as much as possible, if I had the know-how, time, tools and materials I would build a bike top to bottom myself (including forging the frame, suspension, etc...). Obviously this is not a reasonable scenario, so for ME the next best step is to support the country where I live to do my part in keeping my country as self-sufficient as possible. But you are right that it is the companies best scenario economically to manufacture overseas, but I would prefer the bike was made by my countrymen. If you have no sense of pride in your country, that is fine for you, but I prefer to support mine where possible. As to your standard of living comment: it is not worth responding.



One of the things my friend and I talked about on our last ride was whether these bikes were made in the US or in China. I had expressed the opinion that I'd prefer it if it was made in China.

My reasons:
1) Chinese people do not spend their time criticising others, as Americans do.
2) Chinese people have a better work ethic than do Americans.
3) Chinese made goods, dollar for yuan, are of better quality.
4) The Chinese have a better world perspective than the Americans.
Are you kidding me?! Talk about some sweeping generalizations :roflmao: