Where to buy a REAL Mountain bike?

[suzannegoh]

Could you please explain what  "well made" .... "one certainly not made in china" means if also "made in China" ..."doesn’t mean that they are all junkers".   

 

 

 

 

 

  

I don't know what your problem is but you are misquoting me. Definitely there are a bunch of crappy bikes made in China. But in Taiwan there are contract manufacturing plants that receive designs, specs, and a bill of materials from major Western bicycle companies and build them to order and stencil the brand name of their client on the bike. That's how Merida started out, at first they did only contract manufacturing and then they started building their own designs (in addition to contracted designs). Such operations have excellent quality control. There may also be examples of western bicycle companies who have set up factories in Taiwan (and maybe China) that build bikes for them and only them.

 

 

 

 

 

[suzannegoh]

On 10/26/2017 at 6:17 PM, junglechef said:

Could you please explain what  "well made" .... "one certainly not made in china" means

if also "made in China" ..."doesn’t mean that they are all junkers". 

 

 

 

 

Perhaps what you are confused by is the term “quality control”.  Quality Control is about maintaining a production line such that it is compliant with a set of specs, it’s not about the design of the bike itself.  

[MaeJoMTB]

1 hour ago, suzannegoh said:

Perhaps what you are confused by is the term “quality control”.  Quality Control is about maintaining a production line such that it is compliant with a set of specs, it’s not about the design of the bike itself.  
 

As they only bolt the parts together, quality control is irrelevant. 

I can rebolt anything they didn't assemble correctly.

The parts all come from China, and it's the steel quality that is important. No good if it easily rusts.

[suzannegoh]

But I know all there is to know about bicycles.

I'm not sure what your claim is though. Is it that manufacturing expertise is irrelevant in building a bicycle? Or that all bikes built in China and Taiwan are of the same quality?

 

[Rimmer]

Some baiting and bickering posts have been removed

[Rimmer]

1 hour ago, MaeJoMTB said:

As they only bolt the parts together, quality control is irrelevant. 

I can rebolt anything they didn't assemble correctly.

The parts all come from China, and it's the steel quality that is important. No good if it easily rusts.

I think you are confusing low end steel frame bikes that are  often welded together in country behind that country tariff barriers to keep costs down and then cheap low end parts are then bolted onto them.

 

The major factories in Taiwan such as Giant, Merida and Pacific do not just bolt parts together, quality frames are designed and fabricated in Taiwan from 6061 series aluminum sometimes 7005, many of the parts such as handlebars, bar ends pedals are made by small quality manufacturers in Taiwan and China. Shimano have factories in Japan,  Singapore, Malaysia and Kunshan, China.   

How do I know all this? I owned five  mountain Bike shops in Singapore as well as being regional distributor for Pacific Cycles Taiwan also quite a few of the leading US brands including Santa Cruz, Moots,  oh and Camelbak 

[MaeJoMTB]

1 hour ago, Rimmer said:

many of the parts such as handlebars, bar ends pedals are made by small quality manufacturers in Taiwan and China. Shimano have factories in Japan,  Singapore, Malaysia and Kunshan, China. 

This, loads of the parts come from China (over 50% of all Shimano components).

Not sure there's anything at all coming from Japan these days. (Although my Giant Cross 3200 seems to have come from Japan, but it's 15 years old) Happy to be corrected about Japan if  you have any current info.

Edited October 28, 2017 by MaeJoMTB

[suzannegoh]

16 minutes ago, MaeJoMTB said:

This, loads of the parts come from China (over 50% of all Shimano components).

Not sure there's anything at all coming from Japan these days. (Although my Giant Cross 3200 seems to have come from Japan, but it's 15 years old) Happy to be corrected about Japan if  you have any current info.

You are more hung up than you should be about the country of manufacture and for some reason you are conflating Taiwan and China.  If you were ever to visited a large Taiwanese manufacturing company you would find it to be a humbling experience.  The Taiwanese make American workers look like retards.

Edited October 28, 2017 by suzannegoh

[Rimmer]

18 minutes ago, MaeJoMTB said:

This, loads of the parts come from China.

Not sure there's anything  at all coming from Japan these days. (Although my Giant Cross 3200 seems to have come from Japan, but it's 15 years old) Happy to be corrected about Japan if  you have any current info.

Your Giant if it is 15 years old will I think have been made in the Giant factory in Taiwan, Giant are the largest frame/bicycle manuafacturer in the world.  

Shimano Headquarters are in, Japan, the company has manufacturing plants in Kunshan, China; Malaysia; and Singapore.

If your frame is 15 years old and aluminium look for stress cracks at the bottom of the headstock where the downtube joins,  also on the seat tube where it meet the top tube. 

[MaeJoMTB]

My Merida Matts (labelled made in Taiwan) and only 2 years old has rusted summit rotten.

I have rusty forks, and rusty screws and bolts all over. Newest and worst of all my bikes for rust.

Trek Alpha (labelled made in China) and nearly the same age, small bit of rust on 1 brake cable.

 

Edited October 28, 2017 by MaeJoMTB

[suzannegoh]

15 minutes ago, MaeJoMTB said:

My Merida Matts (labelled made in Taiwan) and only 2 years old has rusted summit rotten.

I have rusty forks, and rusty screws and bolts all over. Newest and worst of all my bikes for rust.

Trek Alpha (labelled made in China) and nearly the same age, small bit of rust on 1 brake cable.

 

And you attribute that to the country of manufacture rather than to the specs and bill-of-materials of the bike?   

Edited October 28, 2017 by suzannegoh

[CNXBKKMAN]

4 hours ago, MaeJoMTB said:

My Merida Matts (labelled made in Taiwan) and only 2 years old has rusted summit rotten.

I have rusty forks, and rusty screws and bolts all over. Newest and worst of all my bikes for rust.

Trek Alpha (labelled made in China) and nearly the same age, small bit of rust on 1 brake cable.

 

With Trek having almost no rust spots and the Merida (which i would group as the same quality level as a Trek) having rust all over.  I would be thinking its a fake Merida. All Shimano components are copied even basic chains and cables. There are fake high end bikes like Colnago,  Pinarellos. Why not a fake Merida? I remember being told of a shop (not in Chiang Mai ) that sell fake Giants and other stuff. 

[Rimmer]

17 hours ago, MaeJoMTB said:

My Merida Matts (labelled made in Taiwan) and only 2 years old has rusted summit rotten.

I have rusty forks, and rusty screws and bolts all over. Newest and worst of all my bikes for rust.

Trek Alpha (labelled made in China) and nearly the same age, small bit of rust on 1 brake cable.

 

Maybe its a Hi Ten steel frame instead of the more expensive Cromoly steel which has carbon in it making it stronger and less liable to rust.

Hi ten steel is used on less expensive bikes.

 

Giant used to build many of the Trek frames dont know who does them now

 

[MaeJoMTB]

13 hours ago, CNXBKKMAN said:

With Trek having almost no rust spots and the Merida (which i would group as the same quality level as a Trek) having rust all over.  I would be thinking its a fake Merida. All Shimano components are copied even basic chains and cables. There are fake high end bikes like Colnago,  Pinarellos. Why not a fake Merida? I remember being told of a shop (not in Chiang Mai ) that sell fake Giants and other stuff. 

I just bought a fake Shimano MTB  8 speed gear/brake shifter pair with cables for 450bht from China (via Lazada).

Replaced the rusty ones on my Trek 4300 MTB, don't know how long  they will last, but they work as well as the originals.

https://www.lazada.co.th/bicycle-bike-cycling-24-speed-left-right-lever-shifter-combo-set-black-intl-38093881.html

Edited October 29, 2017 by MaeJoMTB

[Puwa]

Tis the season.

 

On good aluminum frames, the welds between tubes should look like these in the attached photo..  

 

Good steel frames won't show welds because the tubes do not attach directly to each other, but to connecting lugs. 

 

Carbon fiber is another matter entirely.

 

And since we are talking about mountain bikes, suspension is more important than frame. Good suspension forks are pricey, and very good ones will make your eyes water. If buying an entry-level bike, go for whichever has the best fork. Compared to a fork, thing like gears and brakes are cheaper to upgrade.

 

If you want to ride more challenging trails, a bike with a rear shock in addition to the front fork is called for. Good "full suspension" bikes are much more complicated technologically than hardtail bikes and have more equipment, so are more expensive, 100,000 baht range.

 

For a decent hardtail, look for: nicely welded aluminum frame, good fork for the class of bike, disc brakes (not essential but simplifies wheel maintenance), single or double chainrings on the crankset, 10 or 11 rear gear cogs, Shimano or SRAM gear and brake components. If you can locate these specs in your price range, you should be ok.

 

 

 

Edited October 29, 2017 by Puwa
Spelling

[junglechef]

  I don't know what your problem is but you are misquoting me. Definitely there are a bunch of crappy bikes made in China. But in Taiwan there are contract manufacturing plants that receive designs, specs, and a bill of materials from major Western bicycle companies and build them to order and stencil the brand name of their client on the bike. That's how Merida started out, at first they did only contract manufacturing and then they started building their own designs (in addition to contracted designs). Such operations have excellent quality control. There may also be examples of western bicycle companies who have set up factories in Taiwan (and maybe China) that build bikes for them and only them.
 
 
 
 
 

I apologize, my cut and paste must not work and it’s changing the exact words from your post.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[chingmai331]

I got a bike aluminum welded in Indonesia. Works great for me. Brand Marin with Shimano etc.

[junglechef]

I got a bike aluminum welded in Indonesia. Works great for me. Brand Marin with Shimano etc.

I had a Carbon Fiber Scott MTB repaired last week here in CM for 200 bht.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app