headloss 

That's my complaint as well... the free-market and global economy is mostly just a complex shell game. If you buy for brand, there is an expectation (but seldom a guarantee) of quality. If you pay for the brand, you rarely see any of the savings along the supply chain. If you go the generic route, it's mostly hit&miss and at best you can rely on some insider knowledge or trial/error testimonials shared on the internet. In either case, a product could be great one year when it gets good reviews and then completely gutted/redesigned the following year. It's not even, necessarily, intentional cheapening of a product from year to year but just bad re-engineering with some unforeseen consequence. It's a weird economy and thankfully we have the internet to try and become educated consumers... emphasis on try, as there's no guarantee (and lots of bad info out there too).

Jaeger99

Things that matter to me:

Quality manufacturing.
Quality components.
Quality assembly.
Proper fit.
Manufacturer that stands behind their products.
LBS that offers exceptional customer service.

Things that don't matter to me:

Where the bike was made.

BoSoxYacht

American is a nationality, not a race of people.

ColnagoC40

If your values are not supporting your own economy, but rather supporting an economy where people are not being payed a living wage, the environment is not respected and the government controls the economy; have at it, call me a racist.

On the same note, I would much rather do business with Taiwan, than China.

As other posters have said, in many cases we do not have a choice, but when I have a choice I sure know who I would rather support.

Velo Vol 

No one said it was complicated.

RJM

I think I've talked myself into getting a Mercian....Mercian Cycles - Custom Cycle Frames & Cycle Shop

Ridelots24

I try to buy american to support national economy.
and this: Outsourcing Our Pollution to China - Politics - Science Forums

Bob Dopolina 

China has announced that it will ban coal by 2020.

I guess they will just export their coal instead.

Darth Steele

Here is the thing, bigger companies may have several parts and material producers globally, constantly changing location as production and manufacturing cost changes. Also it is well known that companies intentionally misrepresent where their products are produced for tax and perception purposes.

think about the terms manufactured vs assembled

Assembled in America with every part being manufactured in China. Does that mean that the bike was Produced in the USA since?

RJM

You can get a lot of american parts if you look. You won't be getting a Shimano groupset though. The parts you probably couldn't source from the USA would be tires/tubes, derailers, brifters, chains. You would certainly be limiting your build though.

Darth Lefty 

I'll put it on my calendar

Panza

Chinese bikes, I steer away because they have a bad reputation for a reason, and quality is hit or miss sometimes.

A lot of companies manufacture in Taiwan because Taiwan has the factories to output such large quantities instead of making or establishing new factories closer by. Doesn't necessarily mean a drop in quality, just more efficiency and an abundance of skilled laborers who have been producing bikes for years.

The bikes all have to go through the same quality tests though.

Taiwan > China

Would I entrust my personal protection firearm if it was made in China or Taiwan? No. They don't have the experience in that area. But a bike? Maybe.

seymour1910

Yup, my Ford was made in Mexico

Velo Vol 

Ask an economist.

Darth Steele

Exactly, I am only pointing out that "made in so and so" doesn't mean what you may think that it means.

Plus just being produced a particular location is not guaranteed of improved quality. Look back to American Cars as a point of reference.

bruce19

Kind of where I was coming from.

rjones28 

My frame was handmade in Taiwan.

halfspeed

I had one. It was certainly very nice for what it is and a way better value than a Rivendell.

Shuffleman

That is too juicy not to chew on. Yes, I am quite aware that my government sold their stock in GM. I am also aware that they gave GM far more money than they received back. There is the small detail of $10 Billion that is the difference between what they sold the stock for and what they gave to GM. You could say that they should have held onto the stock until it received what it wanted. The problem with that is this little issue with the Recalls. They have recalled more cars this year than they sold all of last year. There are 13 reported deaths attributed to those issues that we now know they knew about before even producing the cars. Did the government know about this before the bailout? We do not know yet and may never know.
One thing for sure is that GM is not the gold standard of American manufacturing. They make garbage that does not hold up well and they are morally bankrupt as a company. I for one, do not want to buy any product from a company like that. I truly hope that none of the bikes we ride hold themselves to the same standards as GM.
I am a huge fan of my country. I do not blame the worker or think that the work force is lazy. This is far deeper than that. My Honda was made in the U.S. by Americans. It is a great car. It was sold in an American dealership and is serviced by American mechanics, just like my Italian Bike with Italian Components.

rjones28 

My bicycle was assembled in the United States by unpaid labor.

Nachoman

My frame builder grew his own titanium in his backyard.

achoo

"Some time ago" is December 9, 2013. Merely 8 months ago.

I'm so glad you seem to have so much faith in the US government. I don't. As the US government may very well have been covering up for GM since 2005 or so:

GM Misses Red Flags From Rental Car Canaries on Crashes - Bloomberg

Amazing, also, that the recalls happened shortly AFTER the government sold its stake in GM. Amazing how the government failed to act until after that stock was sold:

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/06/bu...f-gm.html?_r=0

Read that Bloomberg article. Now factor in how the GM recall only happened after the government sold off its GM stock....

dnslater

Sounds like a new thread.

Machka 

Sounds like a new forum ... P&R.

bbattle

In some industries, Chinese companies are outsourcing to even cheaper labor in places like Vietnam.

I remember one of my bikes I had as a kid (over 40 years ago) cost $50; a typical dept. store bike. With inflation, that bike should be costing over $300
Because consumers have decided that price is their most important concern, you can still buy a bike at X-mart for a kid for $50.

I did find some kids tricycles for sale on the walmart.com website. Made in the USA, too. $258 for a tricycle? Angeles Rider Police Tricycle: Kids' Bikes & Riding Toys : Walmart.com

British textile mills closed down and relocated to the US over 150 years ago. They moved out of the US Northeast a hundred years ago to the US South. They've now moved to Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh, etc.

The Japanese economy matured and the yen increased in value such that most Japanese cars sold in the US are actually made in the US, using parts also made in the US. My old Honda Civic had more American parts in it than my boss' Cadillac.

Samsung, Hyundai and LG have moved manufacturing into this country, too.