Originally Posted by Rowan

Inexpensive open-mould Chinese carbon frames are somewhat different from counterfeit ones. The former sit in the market on their own merits; the latter thieve from both unsuspecting buyers and from the designers and manufacturers of the originals.

Would you buy a counterfeit Rolex watch from a vendor on the streets of Hong Kong for a 10th of the price of the real one? Safe in the knowledge that it would look good for about a week before the gold plate started rubbing off. And the movement stopped working when you went swimming with it on?

The watch is not going to risk your life, for sure, but the same things applies to a bike that looks like and is labelled like a proper mainstream bike... it is a fake designed to deceive you and your friends and associates into believing you have something real. And in this case, the bike may well be of unknown origin, using poor manufacturing techniques and may well be unsafe to ride... it is, after all, made for appearances only.

I am wondering when a bike is going to appear with a major spelling mistake in the name emblazoned on the side of it. Spcialized? Bianci? Treck?