A friend of mine just bought a 2009 Giant TCR Advanced 3. Looking at the frame the TCR has almost the same squarish down tube as the Cervelo R3/RS (squoval) frames. Makes me wonder if Giant manufactures Cervelo frames in the far east. Anybody know?
fab4
Nope.
Though Giant's parent company, not Giant bicycles itself produces frames for dozens of other companies. There is a very important distinction between the Giant that markets Giant branded bikes, and the Giant that makes brand Z's bikes.
BTW 95% of carbon bikes come out of the same 6 factories.Three are located in Taiwan, Three in mainland China. For better or for worse, that's the way things are.
Though Giant's parent company, not Giant bicycles itself produces frames for dozens of other companies. There is a very important distinction between the Giant that markets Giant branded bikes, and the Giant that makes brand Z's bikes.
BTW 95% of carbon bikes come out of the same 6 factories.Three are located in Taiwan, Three in mainland China. For better or for worse, that's the way things are.
Giant has always made frames in Taiwan, and now has several facilities on the mainland. It has always been a Taiwanese brand with no production in the USA or Europe, ever.fab4 said:
Your Cervelo was made in facility outside of Guangzhou China. If it's a monocoque carbon as most frames are these days, it is produced in the far east.
As for the similar shape of the bikes, call it convergent evolution. When you are after the same properties in anything, your designs often end up very similar.
so, how do you tell if your bike was made by giant? i've heard actually a few different methods; the main one being a long, oval-shaped clear sticker on the chainstay...but i've also been told that is absolutely wrong, and the shop that told me that was just trying to get my money.
You can't tell.
Also, Giant may have made the frame/fork but they may not have been contracted to paint it. It is somewhat common for a company to get their frames made overseas, and paint the frames themselves. In the EU a company is allowed to say that something is made in, say Italy, when it was made in China. as long as whatever processes take place in Italy add 60% of the value to the product. One could argue that painting and adding a "Bianchi" logo onto a $200 frame can increase the value by much more than 60%.
Long story short, the clear sticker on the stay means nothing.
Also, Giant may have made the frame/fork but they may not have been contracted to paint it. It is somewhat common for a company to get their frames made overseas, and paint the frames themselves. In the EU a company is allowed to say that something is made in, say Italy, when it was made in China. as long as whatever processes take place in Italy add 60% of the value to the product. One could argue that painting and adding a "Bianchi" logo onto a $200 frame can increase the value by much more than 60%.
Long story short, the clear sticker on the stay means nothing.
Here's the big ...er... Giant factory where they produce all those frames for both Giant and everyone else.
Cervelo is made by Tentec in China.
Also there are more than 6 large CF factories, and even more alloy factories. Interestingly, a lot of these factories, especially in the alloy side of things, sub-contract to one another to manage occasionally higher than usual demand.
V.
Also there are more than 6 large CF factories, and even more alloy factories. Interestingly, a lot of these factories, especially in the alloy side of things, sub-contract to one another to manage occasionally higher than usual demand.
V.
That is very new then. I'll check with them 
PMG does several other brands, but components only. They never mentioned making frames.
V.
PMG does several other brands, but components only. They never mentioned making frames.V.
I think it's Tentec t too. I do know Cervelo and SCOTT are made by the same parent company in the same factory on Mainland China. If I also recall, those are the only two bike made in that factory.
Taiwan has been the leading developer for Carbon Fiber for the last 10 or so years so its not unexpected that so much comes from there.
Actually, for a lot longer than that.jcjordan said:
Before the carbon fiber composite bike frames became commonplace, the largest of the current bike component manufacturers were already making carbon fiber fishing rods, golf club shafts, and "graphite" tennis and squash rackets.
In fact, carbon fiber composites are just one type of a composite material that these factories had mastered over the preceding 30 years or so.
However, there are some newcomers as well, particularly in China where several CF factories began operating just 4-6 yeas ago, some as a result of splintered ventures where both parties ended up setting up separate factories, sometimes right next to one another.
V.
Yes! The Taiwanese bike industry actually shares a common lineage with the footwear industry in that they both can be traced back to the Japanese hat making industry, which was centered around Taichung, near the town of Ching Shui. The Japanese trained locals to sew and manufacture those straw hats... the kind often depicted in those racist Japanese cartoons of the 1940's... the voter hat. They eventually branched off into tennis racquets, shoes and other sporting equipment. I actually interviewed a man who was trained to sew tennis racquets in the 1930's. Later when the Chinese arrived after WWII, his teacher organized his sewing group to take up weapons and fight the Chinese in the streets. When WWII ended, the Japanese infrastructure was left largely intact and many of the factories converted to manufacturing other equipment. Many of the Japanese-trained craftspeople also moved into the machine tool and metal fabrication industries in the 1950's to support the American airbase in Taichung.
Taiwanese have been at it for a long time .
Taiwanese have been at it for a long time .
I wouldn't be surprised. Merida also makes a bunch. Anyone know who is branding Trigon and Token bikes?
Wow...I thought you were being sarcastic when I read the first two sentences, but it all makes sense.
Awesome story!
V.
Awesome story!
V.
Trigon (Great Go) is a manufacturer, Token is not.
Trigon makes frames for some of the most expensive brands - actually the most expensive brand.
V.
Trigon makes frames for some of the most expensive brands - actually the most expensive brand.
V.
Sorry, I cannot say. I am OK with "confirm or deny" types of situation where I do not volunteer the information, but given that this brand and Trigon do not have a relationship that they openly announce to the world, I will choose to respect their decision.john11f said:
V.
Trigon is a a manufacture. TKOEN brands parts from them.Dajianshan said:
By Blue Competition Cycles RC6 is from Trigon.
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