[QUOTE=Wildwood;19247765]
Originally Posted by
rpenmanparker
This is worth pursuing one more post.
So instead of 'a certain factory worker' (I have nothing against factories or workers having lived in those shoes) would you extend that same level of confidence to all factory workers that may be involved in building the frame & assembling your bike?
Having been a supervisor on an assembly line (silicon/boards/subsystems each in SE Asia), I can promise you manufacturing consistency from hourly employees on a 'labor intensive product' is QA's major headache on a day-to-day basis. Bigger process problems or materials issues come up periodically as well, but day to day consistency is not easy in a volume oriented environment. Facts is facts.
Crap local framebuilders only build a few before they go out of business.
Thanks.
Bye
Not so fast. You are totally disregarding a few important facts. One is that your local frame builder only has one material and one philosophy to share with you. If you want what he has, then all is good. If you don't, then it is just talk.
Second, you are completely ignoring statistical quality control and assurance which have revolutionized manufacturing worldwide. You mention QA, but not from the point of view of giving the customer what he expects, rather to show how unreliable the labor force it. But it doesn't work that way. Modern statistical controls don't just find the bad products; they constantly improve the process.
You don't worry about the factory worker(s) building your automobile and go instead to a local car maker turning out one custom built auto a month. It is totally the same with bike frames. They are mass produced, and these days according to strict quality control and assurance standards and methods.
Then there is the question of proven product characteristics. A custom builder may have built the bike your have ordered once before or maybe a few times. Maybe they have come out like he wanted them to, or maybe he is still fine tuning that particular size and design. One thing is for sure: he has not built a 100 reps of that size and design to prove it out and perfect it. The factory, on the other hand, has researched every item in their line and proved the characteristics of each design embodiment. Yes, even in China.