The £100 bike

[mickle]

20" 'Klapprad' with a one-speed coaster and front V.

If building to a price the inclusion of components such as gears and dynohubs would seriously compromise the quality of the other parts. Better to build a very simple bike well than try to add too much within the budget.

Careful design and component specification are only part of the story though, it's economies of scale which really impacts VFM - the more bikes you make the more you get for your money.

 

[dellzeqq]

Therein lies the problem.

Take the time to assemble and check them properly and there goes the £100 price tag.

except.............the Vitamins are nicely put together by those nice people at Decathlon (I'm afraid I did the bike nerd thing and went up and down the row, checking each bike....). And - I name no names - I've seen very, very expensive bikes put together sloppily.

 

[mac1]

Taiwan was initally used because of the cheap labour. Becasue it became a bit of a hotspot for Alu bike frames it developed a certain degree of expertise and quality and labour costs have steadily increased over the years.

Many large manufacturers are now moving away from Taiwan to find cheaper labour in Thailand, Cambodia and China.

Japanese components? er SHIMANO

Yes, I know Shimano are Japanese, but are the parts still made in Japan?

Aside, my interest in European town/trekking bikes indicates to me that there's more than enough good stuff available that doesn't cost anywhere near as much as £1400, barring Rohloff equipped bikes. Granted, the frames might be made in Taiwan, but that still leave Pashley, Velorbis and Brompton, which again, don't come anywhere near £1400 provided you leave out titanium bits on the latter so you can save a whole kilo in weight.

 

[Black Sheep]

Boy, are you gonna regret saying that

Not the first time I've said it!

I do need to pump the tyres up a little bit as they've lost pressure over winter but thats been fairly normal for my bike since I've had it.