Originally Posted by
Walter
I really like the looks of the Masi. It's a shame they took the storied name of Masi Cran Criterium and used a 525 frame. But then I feel about the current Masi the way others feel about BikesDirect. Some names have meaning and what happened to Masi is a shame.
Totally agree here. On the one hand, it is good to see the name out there on the streets again, but a big piece of Masi's soul is missing. It seems that the "brand" is trying to revive the old mystique (eerily similar Downtube decals and the "Gran Criterium" name) with Taiwanese implementation.
Still, I feel that some of their offerings are easily on par with other bikes in the same price catagories, with a little panache - similar to Bianchi, which has made the same transition to Asian manufacturers while trying to preserve some of the "heart" of the company.