Where is my bike (frame-set) made?

[Lewn777]

<disclaimer> Here is a list of where I think many modern carbon fiber bikes are made in 2019. This list is not definative, exact, neccessarily correct or exhaustive. This is knowledge that comes from a secondary source in China that works in the industry and has done multiple factory visits. Some manufacturers make bikes across multiple factories, so some models will be made in one place, others elsewhere, dependent on price or carbon fibre type or other frame material, and things often change, what was true last year may not be true this year. Sometimes factories or OEMs might be known in one name in English, and another in Chinese confusing matters. Or one factory might be called one thing and wholly or jointly owned by some bigger entity.

If you know something that's wrong, or incomplete (for example Cannondale) excellent! Enlighten me/us with evidence or personal first-hand direct knowledge, we are all here to learn. This thread is just for fun, education and entertainment, not a game of 'who's right on the internet' with knives drawn . If you don't like this thread, and think it's stupid, usless or in another way uninteresting then kindly close the thread without commenting and go elsewhere.</disclaimer>

Pardus bikes Taian, Shandong Province, China. Some models of Cervelo, Scott, Factor, BMC, Argon 18.

Giant manufacturing, Kunshan near Shanghai, China - Most carbon fiber Giant Bicycles.

ZGL bicycles, Lianyunguang, Jiangsu Province, China - Some Colnago except C64.

Dingpeng bicycles, Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China - Bianchi, Pinarello - make raw frames and sent to Italy for paint and final assembly. Cube, Kuota, Fuji and others painted onsite and often sent to Taiwan for final assembly. Maybe some models of Canyon.

Xinkai, Xiamen, Fujian Province, China - Specialized possibly Merida too, possibly sent to Taiwan for paint and assembly.
Battle Bikes, Tianjin, China - Low-end Specialized bikes.

Look bikes - Tunisia

Some takeaway thoughts. The location of manufacture geographically doesn't neccessarily mean an indication of overall quality. The country of Manufacturer marked on a bike can often legally just refer to the country of paint and/or assembly. The country of origin of the manufacturer HQ is no guarantee that a bikes frameset was designed in or by a national of that country.

edited for removal of incorrect information

[Marin]

Thanks, very interesting!

Do you know what the overlap with the "open mould" frame production is?

[TobinHatesYou]

Carbon Treks and Canyons are made by Quest Composite in Dongguan, Guandong. Those are Quest's only two bicycle brand customers. They do manufacture other things like carbon baseball bats (Louisville Slugger) and tennis racquets. I am 100% certain that Trek only uses Quest, and I am 99% sure that Canyon only uses Quest.

Re: open mold.

A top-tier company like Quest, Giant, Topkey, etc. does not dabble in open-mold. They do not have the spare capacity. That's something second-tier factories do.

[kgt]

Time - France (rare exception)
Cipollini - Italy and Kotor Varoš (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Top frames from Bottechia, De Rosa, Guerciotti, Sarto - Italy
Colnago C64 - Taiwan tubes glued in Italy. Other Colnagos - Taiwan/China

[TobinHatesYou]

Tentech Composite, Dongguan, Guangdong - Some Specialized, some Cervelo, Ridley, some Scott

Giant Manufacturing, Taiwan and Shanghai - Giant, some Colnago, some Scott.

[Lewn777]

Great stuff, we're beginning to build up some real knowledge base here.

Cannondale are the biggest question left.

[Lewn777]

Not trying to start a fight, but I'm far from convinced any carbon fiber is actually laid up in Taiwan anymore. Most evidence points to it all being laid up in China. I'm told this is mostly due to emissions. Although I think there could be some very high end stuff still done in Taiwan.

[robeambro]

Not trying to start a fight, but I'm far from convinced any carbon fiber is actually laid up in Taiwan anymore. Most evidence points to it all being laid up in China. I'm told this is mostly due to emissions. Although I think there could be some very high end stuff still done in Taiwan.

Considering Trump tariffs and the likes, I wouldn't be surprised if the situation would bring back carbon frames to Taiwan, at least for American brands. Working for an American company (I'm in EU though but still) I can tell you that there's surely talking about using different factories rather than our usual in China.

[Lewn777]

Not trying to start a fight, but I'm far from convinced any carbon fiber is actually laid up in Taiwan anymore. Most evidence points to it all being laid up in China. I'm told this is mostly due to emissions. Although I think there could be some very high end stuff still done in Taiwan.

Considering Trump tariffs and the likes, I wouldn't be surprised if the situation would bring back carbon frames to Taiwan, at least for American brands. Working for an American company (I'm in EU though but still) I can tell you that there's surely talking about using different factories rather than our usual in China.

Yes, that could certainly happen, lots of movement to Vietnam and Cambodia too, especially for alloy framed stuff.

[addictR1]

what about high end Giant Advanced SL ISP or Pro versions? are they MIC or MIT?

[Lewn777]

what about high end Giant Advanced SL ISP or Pro versions? are they MIC or MIT?

My industry connection claims that all Giant stuff is made in China now. Most probably at Kunshan near Shanghai, and then likely sent to Taiwan for assembly and packaging.

I'm not saying this is definately correct, but most likely.

[addictR1]

Then did your industry connections have insights on the new 2020 Giant TCR?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[velolive]

Great stuff, we're beginning to build up some real knowledge base here.

Cannondale are the biggest question left.

Eurasian Conformity mark says USA, Taiwan, China.
Full company name, something in russian language, hard to translate.

[Lewn777]

Manufactured in China, assembled in Taiwan 11th November 2017 would be a guess.
I would also guess it's made by Topkey in Xiamen, Fujian. Happy to be proven wrong.

[Lewn777]

Then did your industry connections have insights on the new 2020 Giant TCR?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

If we can use our logic here for a minute.
Very high end frames that cost $5000 as a frameset like Pinarello are made in China and sent to Italy for paint and assembly.
Nobody I know has been in the Giant factory in Kunshan, but we know that Giant make reasonably priced bikes. So we can assume that the 2020 Giant TCR is made in China. Whether it's sent to Taiwan for paint and/or assembly is really the only real question. This is simply because the western consumer prefers 'Made in Taiwan' to be written on their bike rather than 'Made in China'.