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"Kenny Lee" wrote in message
... bfd wrote: "Donald Gillies" wrote in message ... Looks to me Japan-style price deflation is taking down prices of engineered bicycle components everywhere. Shimano isn't the only component-maker trying to prop up prices to stay alive. See the recent notice from Chris King, listed below, for another desperate attempt to maintain prices in the market channel. Perhaps new Chinese components will be hitting the USA mainland soon ?? Interesting, but are Chinese made components going to be able to compete with the likes of Chris King? Does anyone make headsets comparable to Chris King? At any price? I think not! At around $100 or less, CK headsets are arguably the best. What do you have? I live and ride in Taiwan. I've been told that Campy, Look, SRAM, TREK and a whole bunch of others are doing a whole lot of business here in Taiwan. I have no doubt that this is the case. I can bear witness that the people here and in China have the resources and the ability to manufacture bike parts to NASA specs, be it metal or CF. I've seen them, bought them and am using them right now. The prices are unbelivable. Sorry to say this but, if I were CK or PW I'd seriouly consider moving my production to Taiwan. The only people who care about the "Made in America" cachet are Americans. Correct me if I'm wrong here. I think just about everybody else has moved on, especially when they see the difference in retail margins between USA-made and Taiwan-made frames, wheels and components. For instance, many lightweight racing wheelsets - often with European or US brand names - are made in Taiwan and mainland China. How can US-made goods compete? Have a look at the A-Class website and see if these wheelsets look familiar: http://aclass-wheels.com/ The following link points to a company that makes world class quality CF parts, CHEAP. For prices contact them directly. http://www.pazzaz.com/ I would bet a round of Guinness that Pazzazz makes some of the "Weyless" components (cranks, stems, seatpost, etc) sold by SuperGo, and probably other house-branded parts from other mail-order outfits. Looks like great stuff to me. I've used Pazzazz carbon components in the past, and they were excellent quality. -Barry |
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#22
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"Mark Wolfe" wrote in message
... It's price fixing. Why not let the market decide the what it will fetch. I gave 100 for mine and didn't have an issue with it because of the reputation and the quality of the headset. They don't need to go to these tatics to set a price. As a shop, you've got your cost on the part, if CK wants to bring the price up for all bike shops, they need to increase what they charge for the part and let the bike shops decide on what sort of profit they make. Not make the shops sign an agreement to maintain a certain price. Mark I tend to agree. And it's not only Shimano and CK. Certain bicycle manufacturers insisted on maintaining prices throughout the dealer network. This was true for complete bikes as well as parts. If you bought 2000 13" bikes in one model, you were forbidden from discounting them when you relized that there weren't that many people under 5' in your neighbourhood. To me, that's price fixing. The only people that lose are the consumers. And possibly CK in the long run as people turn to cheaper alternatives. And headsets of all things! The most overrated piece of equipment on a bike. My $0.02CDN, Scott.. |
#23
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Better yet, all shops hit by this should get together and
file a class action suit. --Bill Davidson yea let's all get together and support our friendly local ambulance chaser...... yea right, just what needs to happen more lawsuits. Why not just get the merchants together and BOYCOTT King? Hit em where it hurts.. If they're product doesn't get sold that'll hurt more than a stinking lawsuit. Oh wait that's what Branford is doing isn't it. |
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Amen Scott - blah blah about King, while a WTB has lasted me years and is
still going very strong, and at low maintanance. Let them "price-it-up", I'll get my stuff elsewhere, may not be as cool, but hey, if you need a headset to feel better about yourself... .. "S. Anderson" wrote in message ... "Mark Wolfe" wrote in message ... It's price fixing. Why not let the market decide the what it will fetch. I gave 100 for mine and didn't have an issue with it because of the reputation and the quality of the headset. They don't need to go to these tatics to set a price. As a shop, you've got your cost on the part, if CK wants to bring the price up for all bike shops, they need to increase what they charge for the part and let the bike shops decide on what sort of profit they make. Not make the shops sign an agreement to maintain a certain price. Mark I tend to agree. And it's not only Shimano and CK. Certain bicycle manufacturers insisted on maintaining prices throughout the dealer network. This was true for complete bikes as well as parts. If you bought 2000 13" bikes in one model, you were forbidden from discounting them when you relized that there weren't that many people under 5' in your neighbourhood. To me, that's price fixing. The only people that lose are the consumers. And possibly CK in the long run as people turn to cheaper alternatives. And headsets of all things! The most overrated piece of equipment on a bike. My $0.02CDN, Scott.. |
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On Tue, 19 Aug 2003 04:31:15 GMT, "Richard Ney" may
have said: Chris King probably flies well under the radar screen of the US DOJ. Perhaps not for long. I doubt that they have the clout or connections to survive even the first phone call. -- My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail. Yes, I have a killfile. If I don't respond to something, it's also possible that I'm busy. |
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On Tue, 19 Aug 2003 13:03:03 -0700, Mike S. mikeshaw2@coxDOTnet wrote:
That's called Labor. Where do you think shops make their money? It certainly ain't on parts! If they didn't make any money on parts, they wouldn't sell parts except when they will install them; then it would be wise to price the parts with labor included. That's actually a good idea for a LBS. Hmm... Anyway, like I was saying, if they didn't make anything on parts, and didn't sell them except for their own installation, that would suck, IMO. I like to be able to go and get a part as soon as I need it, even at a higher price. My shop makes a sufficient margin on parts. I am willing to buy there, because he always takes such good care of me -- any problem, he takes care of it. Whatever I buy, he tells me how to install it. And so on. I had suspected that he makes almost no margin on parts, because his prices are not terrible, but when I had a problem and jokingly mentioned that thought after he solved a problem I had with parts, he said he makes enough to be worth it. Good for him! Mike -- Rick Onanian |
#27
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On Tue, 19 Aug 2003 11:19:16 -0400, Alex Rodriguez
wrote: In article , says... CK isn't trying to tell people what to charge, Yes they are. As I read the original post, CK is referring to the ADVETISED price. I see nothing saying that you can't actually sell it for whatever you want. Is the new CK policy about the actual selling price, or about advertising a price? |
#28
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Alex Rodriguez wrote:
In article , says... CK makes nice headsets, but it's really not necessary to spend $100 or more to get a light, high quality headset that will last for many tens of thousands of miles. Who else makes as nice a HS as CK? I have a Shimano Ultegra HS on my bike. It works well, but it is no where near as smooth as a CK. Hmmmm - any decent, well-adjusted headset should be smooth enough that you can't tell one from the other. Well, those with roller bearings will have a bit more drag, but that's not really a "problem". I suspect there's something wrong with your Ultegra HS if it's noticeably rougher than a CK (or any other HS). It WILL cost you that much to get one with the manufacturer's name written garishly around it though... ;-) I agree. In the past when I could not afford one I always wanted to get one. Then when I could afford it, they started putting thier name in huge letters on it, and now I would not spend my money on it. Heh. That's kind of my feeling about it too - but a lot of people really WANT others to know they dropped a C-note on their headset. ;-) Mark Hickey Habanero Cycles http://www.habcycles.com Home of the $695 ti frame |
#29
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mark- As a shop, you've got your cost on the part, if CK
wants to bring the price up for all bike shops, they need to increase what they charge for the part and let the bike shops decide on what sort of profit they make. BRBR The cost of the HS has stayed the same. CK wishes to not have the HS sold at a discount., at a lower margin. Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St. Boulder, CO, 80302 (303)440-3535 http://www.vecchios.com "Ruote convenzionali costruite eccezionalmente bene" |
#30
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fred- Why not just get
the merchants together and BOYCOTT King? Hit em where it hurts.. BRBR Brick and morter bike shops applaud this and other measures that prevents discounting..Bike shops, who do not discount everything to try to compete with MO, think CK has a good idea. The 'merchants' that are whining are mailorder, not store fronts. Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St. Boulder, CO, 80302 (303)440-3535 http://www.vecchios.com "Ruote convenzionali costruite eccezionalmente bene" |
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