Reading the latest Bicycle Quarterly reviews in the back sections I noticed a product test of the VO Retro Bottle cage. First I must state I own one plus other VO products, and I really love the company and the niche they fill.

I also enjoy Bicycle Quarterly.

Apparently the design is originally from Toei? And the VO website acknowledges this as well as the very high cost of the original. Jan Heine writes that every rider must decide how they feel about a company that takes existing designs and has them copied to avoid the cost and effort of developing an original product.

So what's wrong with copied designs? I think we all want stuff thats either out of reach or rare NOS on Ebay. Why not replicate these items for the market who wants them?