I've often thought about this. I think, partially because of the fetishization of the French constructeur bikes, possibly fueled by them internets, people associate them with being the pinnacle of craftsmanship. I kind of see them as representing the pinnacle of *design*, but not necessarily craftsmanship. The bikes were designed with no design details left unconsidered, but they were built to be ridden, not propped on a pedestal and scrutinized under the digitally zoomed in eye of the interwebs. If you're a current day constructeur or KOF builder (Weigle, Gordon, Sachs, etc) it's par for the course, and you BETTER NOT leave a file mark anywhere on the bike. I think the craftsmanship bar has risen a lot since the constructeur golden age, but many design elements and the concept of "integration" have been lost or forgotten. Even the new breed of young 20- and 30-something constructeurs (Circle A, Hubert H d'Autremont) who have been building bikes for only a few years are building NAHBS bikes with stunning craftsmanship, but some of these bikes, despite having perfectly thinned lugs and not a single flaw in the brazing, leave a lot to be desired in terms of design, function, and integration (I'm not referring to the above Circle and HHd'A specifically-- I've actually been impressed with their level of integration).

So basically, Northbend, you're never going to be happy... just give that Singer to me (it's my size!) and you'll never have to think about those crude details.