Originally Posted by Autopilot

This thread and many others like it in this forum seem to be so concerned about a bicycle made in Asia that rides (excuse the pun) on fear of quality. I don't have a problem with that as long as the product maintains technological advancements in design, engineering, and performance, which comes from the brand's HQ. You can't paint a broad brush stroke to assume just because something comes from China or anywhere from the Far East has less quality than anywhere else in the world these days. If you believe products sold at Walmart is cheap quality, well guess what... Walmart wanted it that way to keep prices down. The Chinese manufacturer who sells to Walmart is simply making something to meet Walmart' standards based on the price point. Don't expect quality at a cheap price and if you don't like it, then don't buy it.

Just remember the specifications of a bike frame and its components manufactured in Asia is based on the brand's HQ and their specifications and not the Chinese factory that builds it. So if the brand HQ wants to build something of lessor quality, it is NOT the Chinese manufacturer that's building it with less quality but the designer/engineering dept of the company whose put those tolerances into the design to cut corners if they chose to and vice versa. In reality, China probably has more engineers & technicians graduating each year than all of the engineers combined in North America. If you speak of high technology manufacturing, China is miles ahead in processes at a point it's down to an art compared to your typical modern factory in the US or Europe. Just look at how the Giant brand evolved from nothing to suddenly the largest bike manufacturer in the world in a few decades. Have you looked closely to where bike components are made? 85% of the parts/components of so called American/European branded bikes, their carbon fiber material is all made in China/Taiwan. Why stop at bikes.... How's your iPhone/iPad? Do you think the quality is cheap? Has the thought of being made in China stop you from buying an Apple product??