Bobby12many

@irafd: If/when the GSP program is reinstated in the US, a VN produced bike will have 36% less duty/tariff importing into the US vs an identical CN produced version. CN made MTB = 11% general duty rate / 25% Sec 301 (Trump Tariff) VN made MTB = 11% general duty rate / no 301 tariffs VN made MTB qualifying under GSP FTA = no general duty / no 301 tariffs

@jdendy: What you described would be considered duty evasion via "trans-shipping". Where something is shipped from has little bearing on its Country of Origin. In the US, Customs has ruled that the country where a bike's frame is produced is the Country of Origin (COO) of the complete bike, as the frame provides the essential character of the product Its more nuanced and complex in actuality, but that is the jist of it. While many companies likely do use "finished" frames from CN in their VN/KH/MY assembly plants to build complete bikes, in most cases those bikes would not actually meet qualifications to be claimed as originating goods from VN/KH/MY. "Assembly" does not constitute "production".

@tacklingdummy: I understand your sentiment and I do agree that importers need to be more diverse in their supply chains, but its not that simple. What you are describing is supply chain diversity, not independence. The pandemic, along with 232/301 Tariffs in the US really helped speed up that process of getting manufacturing out of China and having more agile chains of inputs. But what does that actually mean? Companies are now moving manufacturing to Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, etc for the same reasons they turned to China decades ago. The big OEs are producing millions of units a year, respectively, for markets all over the world. How many bikes does GG produce a year? a few thousand? The scale of production is something you cant just disregard for the sake of comparison. Also, companies like Merida, Trek, etc have subsidiaries in many countries, including China.... how do you domesticate and insulate your production when you have HQs and a dealer base in over a dozen countries? There are no perfect answers, obviously, but I think its a worthwhile topic of discussion that more people should have fluency in.

@tacklingdummy: GG and other smaller NA based OEs are still beholden to fluctuations in global supply chains, even for "just" frame production. You can have a "Made in US or CA" bike that is comprised completely of Chinese/Taiwan sourced aluminum/carbon/steel/etc. There are just as many US made frames comprised of Asian sourced materials as not. Boutique domestic manufacturers are just as susceptible to ocean carrier and global supply related disruptions as the Big OEs, its just a bit less direct. Issues with global shipping lanes, such as this one with the EVER GIVEN, send ripples across the bike world.... not just through big OEM's with offshore assembly plants. The global marketplace is deeply interconnected, soup-to-nuts, and that isn't changing anytime soon. As wholesome as many of these nationalistic comments are, they are antiquated and puritanical. We need true progressive thought when it comes to making REAL global supply chain improvements and multilateral trade regulations. Also, North America and EU/UK aren't victims to an evil far-east economic empire; its time we all accept that the most developed nations in the world willingly turned blind eyes to human rights abuses and political corruptness in order to maximize their profits at home. China didn't take our jobs, our corporations sold them off to the lowest bidder, and it put rocket boosters on their profits (and brought us value previously unseen). They were directly empowered to do so through WCO/WTO trade regulation changes they lobbied for. The global supply chain is an absolute marvel, unseen by human history. Bicycles are a perfect finished product to analyze its sheer robustness and velocity. But issues like this expose it's fragility, which can only be addressed through bold, forward thinking changes that are properly scaled for the future. /rant

Great song choice.

Dude @ 0:25 broke all the ribs

It looks antiquated and cutting-edge simultaneously. Cool.

What filter and lens is used for these 'into the sunlight' shots? Just a high end variable ND? The range of exposure is insane.... looks like HDR! Amazing stuff.

YES! I remember practicing 'stoppies' on my 97 Schwinn S30 with a Qudra 21R and having the elastomer blast out of the stanchion like a rocket, hitting me square in the chest. It left a pretty serious welt, too! I then ordered a OEM take-off Manitou X-Vert from Speedgoat. *nostalgia intensifies*