Where are the Brit Bikes?

[TimP]

Considers the contents of our garage -

Thorn
Roberts
On-One
Windcheetah
Claud Butler
Saracen

Some of those are completely built in the UK, from bits of metal pipe, others are assembled and Saracen is I think still a UK brand, albeit the bike was built in Eastern Europe.

The other machines in the garage can't really claim any UK heritage.

 

[gavintc]

Rando your post makes interesting reading. IMO, British bikes have suffered like its motor industry with a failure to move with the times. The short list of bike makers are lost in the steel generation and have failed to move forward to accept change and innovate to keep up. Alu and more latterly carbon dominates the market. As dodgy has proposed Dolan is a good example. There are others; Ribble, Planet X and Kinesis.

 

[bonj2]

Rando your post makes interesting reading. IMO, British bikes have suffered like its motor industry with a failure to move with the times. The short list of bike makers are lost in the steel generation and have failed to move forward to accept change and innovate to keep up. Alu and more latterly carbon dominates the market. As dodgy has proposed Dolan is a good example. There are others; Ribble, Planet X and Kinesis.

they don't actually build the frames in england though do they?

 

[gavintc]

No, but neither does Giant, Spec etc. The carbon industry is Taiwanese. Short list produced by Rando seems stuck in the 50's and seems resolutely unable or unwilling to move forward. You can still value add, by designing a carbon frame getting it tooled and manufactured in Taiwan and make money selling the product. Look at Cervelo a new and innovative company, pushing forward with carbon design, None of their frames (to my knowledge) are actually made in Canada.

 

[bonj2]

I think a lot of the time when people buy a bike they don't think where it's built, or necessarily care.
I think the quintessential 'all british' bike today is one that's hand built to custom spec from steel by an expert framebuilder. You visit his premises, do a fitting session with him, imbibe his 'master craftsman' surroundings, probably have a natter about bikes in general, and possibly even watch him at work - all this probably instills a certain pride in the finished bike permanently, and I think this nobility is a worthwhile USP but also probably a fairly attractive one if it can be publicized enough, that it'd be nice to see more people made aware of/sold to.

 

[Alembicbassman]

Raleigh are just an importer these days. At least Giant, Trek, Specialized et al import decent bikes.

You'll find many more posts of 'customer disatisfaction' regarding the big name bikes on this forum than for Raleigh.

Essentially you're buying a few aluminium tubes welded together or a few carbon tubes glued together (monocoque excepted). There's minor differences in geometery for best fit for an individual rider.

All are computer designed and CNC manufactured to conform to stafety standards (BS EN 14764). Most frames carry at least 5 years warranty against defects (not abuse) some have lifetime warranties.

All the components are identical, Shimano, Truvative, SRAM, FSA, Campagnolo etc...

I'd rather have my 105 kitted Raleigh than a Sora/2200 Giant/Trek/Spesh.

'Decent Bike' is subjective, one bad experience with any manufacturer can put you off their products forever.

So far I've done over 500 miles on my U6 Pro since March and no problems to report.

 

[trsleigh]

Manufactured two miles fom my front door, lets hear it for BROMPTON of Brentford.

 

[gavintc]

They serve a specific purpose, but they are supremely ugly.

 

[Steve Austin]

I ride a Dialled Bikes Love Hate which is a British Company, but they're not made in the UK, but then again what is?

 

[palinurus]

I tend to buy what my LBS has in, which is Specialized and Trek. I've bought bikes in London before but I do prefer some local support where I can be at the shop with the bike inside of two minutes (it really is local for me).

I once bought a 'cross frame and had it built up at the LBS, so I might go down that route for my next road bike and get something a little different from the stuff the large manufacturers offer.

Only british bike I've had recently was a Brompton. Does Airnimal count? I had one of those too.

 

[Auntie Helen]

I ride an ICE Trice that is designed and built in the UK.

 

[fossyant]

My best bike was built about 2 miles from where I live. The Ribble, about 60 miles (it's a steel one built by Terry Dolan).

TBH most UK built bikes aren't cheap - folk much prefer 'off the peg' these days. If you wanted a 'good bike' before the mid 90's, you'd generally go custom, or off peg handbuilt..... the market's changed. There are plenty of bike builders about, but they are 'expensive' - not something you'd usually point a beginner at.

 

[Randochap]

Ant hits the nail on the head, and it isn't just the UK that suffers from this unpleasant side-effect of "globalization."

As for the fact that "British bikes" use the same components as all others so there isn't a true Brit bike; that's a bit disingenuous.

When I was drooling over the bright red Hetchins leaned against the bike shed at my high school in Wednesfield, in 1964, it sported a Campagnolo gruppo. (And, incedentally, I still buy Campagnolo -- so this supports the theory that excellence is a powerful branding tool).

My Canadian-built Marinoni was built by a French-Canadian welder at a company established by an ex-pat Italian. It has the aforementioned Italian components.

But this does add an interesting "component" to the discussion. Why shouldn't/couldn't the UK produce some good bicycle components that at least occupy a solid place in the niche market? Has it been so long since British manufacturing collapsed that there are no good machinists around?

I own several of the US brands of hubs, including Phil Wood and White Industries. These are absolutely beautiful! I also have Chris King headsets on 2 of my bikes. I own a pair of Phil hubs that I used for 20+ years. The new ones incl. cassette R hub that can be disassembled w/ 2 5mm allen wrenches.

The UK meanwhile hasn't to my knowledge built a derailleur since Benelux (originally a French-English collaboration) and Sturmy-Archer is in Taiwan.

Brooks, cast adrift when parent Sturmey-Archer collapsed, was gobbled up by Selle Royal.

Why is this? At the risk of being provocative, did the highly centralized/unionized (no, I'm not anti-union) factory culture of the UK discourage innovation and individual enterprise?

I'm imagining here one of those little derelict factory buildings springing to life as a high bling-factor producer of bicycle components. Put those on yer bike and ride it.

Lastly (for now) the problem in all constituencies is the cost of producing a bike for Everyman in today's market. "Stuck in the 50s" isn't an issue when it comes to this sort of machine. I have been pondering the question: How does one produce a practical bike today -- for, say, around £250-500?

Raleigh was indeed the British flagship. Too bad it sank.

 

[dodgy]

But this does add an interesting "component" to the discussion. Why shouldn't/couldn't the UK produce some good bicycle components that at least occupy a solid place in the niche market? Has it been so long since British manufacturing collapsed that there are no good machinists around?

I own several of the US brands of hubs, including Phil Wood and White Industries. These are absolutely beautiful! I also have Chris King headsets on 2 of my bikes. I own a pair of Phil hubs that I used for 20+ years. The new ones incl. cassette R hub that can be disassembled w/ 2 5mm allen wrenches.

Ahem - http://www.hopegb.com/

 

[jayce]

I got told that my dolan is british built ,but i dont know so is it ?