The Chinese sure are fond of their censorship aren't they? I've been reading the journal of a couple folks biking from Beijing to Paris. All of the last month they were in China the guy wasn't able to update his blog. The first time he tried once they entered Russia it worked fine!

As an auto mechanic I've seen the good, bad, and ugly of replacement parts coming out of China for some 10 odd years now. At first they were horrible and we tried our best to find parts from somewhere else whenever possible. Over the years they've gotten better to the point their stuff looks as good if not better than anything I've ever seen.

Disclaimer: Our shop only deals with Car Quest and NAPA, as that is all we have in our area. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the cheaper parts store chains still use the cheaper made Chinese parts but I have no direct knowledge of that.

Now as far as the cheap Schwinns compared to the higher end bike shop Schwinns. I have no doubt the higher end Schwinns are a quality product at a good value. Would I buy one? No. Pacific has sullied the Schwinn reputation so bad that the bike would lose 2/3rds of it's value the moment it rolls off the showroom floor. A used one 10 years from now? Probably. If they hold up as well as I suspect they will, I wouldn't mind picking one up cheap cheap cheap.