Yes, well... I'm sure the saddle was made by Middlemores; but for the rest, I am not so sure. Certainly they may have outsourced the aluminum casting/forging/stamping, but I really doubt any of these parts were made by the companies they were copied from. The quality is just too poor, and in many cases the similarities are superficial, but the parts that would require precision, such as the bearings, were ordered from a catalog. The crank looks like a TA crank, but it's got a different extractor thread, different square taper (usually not actually tapered), and inferior finishing. The hardware isn't as well finished. The stem looks like it could be made by GB or someone, but much lower quality. The brakes are typical center pull calipers of the day, but not the same shape as any brand I've seen. The seat post resembles a Campy two-bolt post, but the quality... the quality... ugh. The strongest case could be made for the brake levers, which are a close copy of Weinmann levers, and involve a different manufacturing process than the other parts (being stamped aluminum rather than forged, cast, or drawn).
You're probably right about all of that, Rudi... by a factor of
44:1.
Sheldon Brown and the
classicrendezvous site agree with you as well. My statement was based on how closely the crankset mimics those of TA, but as you said there are significant detail differences. Even the aftermarket crank arm decals available for both brands are interchangeable.
0802172030.jpg
__________________
"My only true wisdom is in knowing I have none" -Socrates
Last edited by Hudson308; 10-24-17 at 01:08 PM.