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American made bikes

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Old 10-17-10 | 01:12 AM
  #26  
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Originally Posted by AEO
but then how american do you want your bike?
should the tubing be manufactured in the US too?
should the base materials be made in the US too?
should the components be made in the US too?
etc.
etc.
It would be all but impossible to have every material or component made in the US. If someone is looking for the All American Bike, I don't think it exist.

My bike's frame is made in California. The carbon tubes are made in the US too; but, many of the components are made in Italy.

However, the OP wanted a frame that was made in the US and that is very possible.
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Old 10-17-10 | 06:28 PM
  #27  
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Originally Posted by Carbon Unit
Yes, the purpose for BF is to share knowledge and experience and some for entertainment. If you are around here long enough, you will learn from t his forum. However, you will get insulated too because some people find that entertaining. You asked a good question and it you should have gotten the answer that you wanted.

There are many good American made bike frames, Calfee, Parlee, Parlee, Crumton, Kish, Seven, Litespeed, Serotta, Kirk, etc.

There are many Ti manufacturers in the US. Carbon builders are not as common because Asia can build these frames cheap. However, I own a Calfee and their entry level frame, the Luna pro, is $1,800.
Thanks very much Carbon! As I've been surfing & reading, and I started wondering about USA made carbon frames & you read my mind! Thanks for tip on Calfee. I'll check them out.
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Old 10-17-10 | 07:34 PM
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Originally Posted by Radix
Thanks very much Carbon! As I've been surfing & reading, and I started wondering about USA made carbon frames & you read my mind! Thanks for tip on Calfee. I'll check them out.
Radix, the reason that so many of us facepalm are as follows, I apologize ahead of time if you fall within this category...

in times past, people post this very question, asking what bike/bike parts are manufactured in US, believing that Made in United States still command a sort of manufacturing plateau that is unmatched. The usual process is that some ******bag is looking for this non-existing bike, which if everything is made in US, will cause upward of $10,000 because of union wages and material sourcing. They then back out saying that's way too expensive and that it's the local LBS's robbing us blind. the conversation thus degenerates into a pissing match before the thread is locked. And as you said...BF is to share knowledge and experience. A locked thread and the posts merely serves as entertainment.
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Old 11-30-10 | 08:50 AM
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Old 11-30-10 | 09:09 AM
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When I started riding in the '70s, the absolute garbage bikes that were sold at department stores were made in the U.S. Above that was Schwinn, and a couple of custom builders and that was all. Now the U.S. garbage producers are all gone and any of the mid-range production companies are gone. But if you look over a 40 year time horizon, there are a lot of choices for a U.S. built bike -- just not production bikes.
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Old 12-01-10 | 10:15 AM
  #31  
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Cervelo has the R5ca made in California, the frame. But I think its limited because the facility was to develop the process and some design. The Cervelo R5, I think is currently made in Canada, the frame. The fork, bottom bracket bearings, headset, may not be.
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Old 12-01-10 | 10:27 AM
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hey, this should get moved to trollheim.
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Old 12-01-10 | 10:29 AM
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buy a trek madone. problem solved.
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Old 12-01-10 | 10:36 AM
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The R5ca is produced by hand in very limited numbers while the R5 is mass produced. The big thing is the R5ca price is double the R5 ($9800 vs $4900)
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Old 12-01-10 | 10:38 AM
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Originally Posted by Garfield Cat
Cervelo has the R5ca made in California, the frame. But I think its limited because the facility was to develop the process and some design. The Cervelo R5, I think is currently made in Canada, the frame. The fork, bottom bracket bearings, headset, may not be.
I'm sorry but your information is not correct.

R&D at Cervelo may be done in CA, and there may even be a frame produced there but most of their carbon work is done in China by a Taiwanese company. This holds true to MOST of the brands you are able to buy in your market.

BB, HDST, chains, der, cassettes, shifters, brakes, rims, hubs, spokes, tires, tubes, cables, housing, seat posts, saddles, bars, stems, bar tape and anything else I've missed are produced, for the most part, in Asia (Campagnolo being the exception). If you are looking at buying a complete bike, odds are it was assembled in Asia and then shipped to your market.

This is the reality of the industry divorced from opinion or emotion. It is fact.

There are many custom frame builders in the US who produce fantastic products that are well worth the price attached (IMHO) but you simply can not avoid Asian manufacturing for the majority of bicycle parts.

Based on this fact it is impossible to say that any bike is made in a single location.

If you choose to buy American you have options, in some areas, but in other areas there simply are no options open to you.
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Old 12-01-10 | 10:42 AM
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Originally Posted by Bob Dopolina
I'm sorry but your information is not correct.

R&D at Cervelo may be done in CA, and there may even be a frame produced there but most of there carbon work is done in China by a Taiwanese company. This holds true to MOST of the brands you are able to buy in your market.

BB, HDST, chains, der, cassettes, shifters, brakes, rims, hubs, spokes, tires, tubes, cables, housing, seat posts, saddles, bars, stems, bar tape and anything else I've missed are produced, for the most part, in Asia (Campagnolo being the exception). If you are looking at buying a complete bike, odds are it was assembled in Asia and then shipped to your market.

This is the reality of the industry divorced from opinion or emotion. It is fact.

There are many custom frame builders in the US who produce fantastic products that are well worth the price attached (IMHO) but you simply can not avoid Asian manufacturing for the majority of bicycle parts.

Based on this fact it is impossible to say that any bike is made in a single location.

If you choose to buy American you have options, in some areas, but in other areas there simply are no options open to you.
Quoted for emphasis.

However, if you really want American made, look no further than Spooky bicycles.
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Old 12-01-10 | 10:45 AM
  #37  
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Originally Posted by coasting
buy a trek madone. problem solved.
fail....the only domestic madone now is the 6 series.

One frame in the entire line is still domestic.
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Old 12-01-10 | 02:08 PM
  #38  
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Originally Posted by Bob Dopolina
I'm sorry but your information is not correct.

R&D at Cervelo may be done in CA, and there may even be a frame produced there but most of their carbon work is done in China by a Taiwanese company. This holds true to MOST of the brands you are able to buy in your market.

BB, HDST, chains, der, cassettes, shifters, brakes, rims, hubs, spokes, tires, tubes, cables, housing, seat posts, saddles, bars, stems, bar tape and anything else I've missed are produced, for the most part, in Asia (Campagnolo being the exception). If you are looking at buying a complete bike, odds are it was assembled in Asia and then shipped to your market.

This is the reality of the industry divorced from opinion or emotion. It is fact.

There are many custom frame builders in the US who produce fantastic products that are well worth the price attached (IMHO) but you simply can not avoid Asian manufacturing for the majority of bicycle parts.

Based on this fact it is impossible to say that any bike is made in a single location.

If you choose to buy American you have options, in some areas, but in other areas there simply are no options open to you.
I happened to be at the facility that makes the Cervelo R5ca and spoke with one of the engineers who was working on a frame. The R & D for that model was done in California and there are a limited amount of frames that are made there. This is not to say that all frames of the R5 are made there, or even that all future frames will be made there. I thought I made it clear in the earlier post.

But for now there are a limited amount of frames made in California for Cervelo. When the production will cease in California, I don't know.
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Old 12-01-10 | 02:28 PM
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IMHO, the best you can do is to buy an American made frame (e.g. Lyndsky, Litespeed, etc.) with all SRAM parts. The parts may not be made here, but if there's any profit to be made, at least a domestic company is receiving it.
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Old 12-01-10 | 06:26 PM
  #40  
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Originally Posted by buttfish77
IMHO, the best you can do is to buy an American made frame (e.g. Lyndsky, Litespeed, etc.) with all SRAM parts. The parts may not be made here, but if there's any profit to be made, at least a domestic company is receiving it.
The next best thing to buying an American manufactured part, is buying one where the profits remain in the US tax system. Everyone should consider this for any purchase or even where they bank.

Buying any Trek applies, buying any Specialized partially applies since Merida owns (reportedly but unlisted) 49%, companies like Cannondale or Giant sit lower on the totem pole with presence and jobs in the US, and then I'm sure a bunch that basically have a small group of US employees for distribution, warranty, and dealer issues but otherwise are entirely based elsewhere.

It does bring up an interesting question on which is better for the US economy - a product made in the US but designed and owned overseas (like a BMW X5); or a product designed and owned in the US but made elsewhere (like a Ford Edge).

I rode the US wave with a $400 Raleigh Technium in the 80s, too many Cannondales to count from the 80s to 2003, A late-90s $450 cheapo Trek mountain bike (yep frame US made), a custom Kona Hot by Tom Teesdale, and Tete De Course. With the next bike I'll be in a position to buy US custom.

Last edited by teterider; 12-01-10 at 06:48 PM.
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Old 02-23-11 | 05:54 PM
  #41  
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Does it really matter?. I am in the UK and I have 2 mostly USA bikes, I wont hold it against you :-). I cant say the fact they are most likely not 100% American makes me lose any sleep, more important things to worry about, like being grateful to be healthy and have a job.

On the plus side I have injected about $4000 into the USA economy lately so you can cut me some slack for my sarcasm :-)
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Old 02-23-11 | 06:10 PM
  #42  
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Originally Posted by Radix
Thanks very much Carbon! As I've been surfing & reading, and I started wondering about USA made carbon frames & you read my mind! Thanks for tip on Calfee. I'll check them out.
If you want Carbon, Calfee, Crumpton, seven there are a few others.
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Old 02-23-11 | 07:27 PM
  #43  
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Every big name brand is made in taiwan or china.
With the exception of the highest grade colnago's and pinarello's and that's only a few bike's in there range's.
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Old 02-23-11 | 07:33 PM
  #44  
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Both these frames are American, and I would recommend either.



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Old 02-23-11 | 07:35 PM
  #45  
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Originally Posted by jbchybridrider
Every big name brand is made in taiwan or china.
With the exception of the highest grade colnago's and pinarello's and that's only a few bike's in there range's.
Incorrect.
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Old 02-23-11 | 07:55 PM
  #46  
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Originally Posted by Radix
IMHO, that's a pretty obscure website & spot on! That's the kind of info I wanted - so thanks Rjones!

For the facepalmers - not sure what the issue is here... Is it not one of the purposes of this forum to ask questions & share info? Seems like you're going out of your way to be insulting/negative when you can just skip over the thread if it's redundant or uninspiring.

Clarification - Yes, I realize most of the components are made outside the USA - I'm curious mostly about American made frames and bikes assembled here.

Kudos to those who shared info directly related to my question!
You have to understand that this question comes up every 6 months or so and has been rehashed ad-nauseum.
There are also those here who believe that BF is a search engine and human interaction is not the point.
I believe people come here to interact and learn from those who share similar interests and with this in mind, there is no question that is silly ( not implying your question is silly, it is not).

One thing I find interesting, there was a time that Made in USA was a stamp of quality and Made in Japan was a stamp of cheap, poor quality goods. Times have changed and the moniker made in USA does not necessarily mean quality.

My bike, a Merlin Ti/CF frame called the Lunaris was made here in USA and is a piece of art.
If I had the time to wait, and the money to spend I would buy a Richard Sachs bike, Hand made steel and truly classics. Check his web site .
There are so many good, smaller frame builders it is hard to know where to start. Some are too beautiful to ride. Happy hunting.
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Old 02-23-11 | 08:07 PM
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I've never really understood the obsession some people have with American made items. Yes, i'm American, i live in America and also love this country but i don't have an infatuation with whether or not my bike or other said item is made here. If its a quality piece of hardware who cares where it's made. Now backing an American based company i can understand but whether or not the actual said item is made here isn't important, to me at least.
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Old 02-23-11 | 09:01 PM
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Originally Posted by wrr1020
I've never really understood the obsession some people have with American made items. Yes, i'm American, i live in America and also love this country but i don't have an infatuation with whether or not my bike or other said item is made here. If its a quality piece of hardware who cares where it's made. Now backing an American based company i can understand but whether or not the actual said item is made here isn't important, to me at least.

The people in the Trek factory making Madone 6.9's would disagree.
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Old 02-23-11 | 09:04 PM
  #49  
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The top 4 or five models of BMC bikes are made in Switzerland...for what that's worth.
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Old 02-23-11 | 09:14 PM
  #50  
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