Message from discussion Typical decent Al Bicycle diamond frame costs $8 to make in Taiwan

Path: g2news1.google.com!news4.google.com!news.glorb.com!newsfeed2.telusplanet.net!newsfeed.telusplanet.net!newsfeed.telus.net!clgrps12.POSTED!53ab2750!not-for-mail
From: Ryan Cousineau <rcous...@sfu.ca>
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.tech
Subject: Re: Typical decent Al Bicycle diamond frame costs $8 to make in Taiwan
Organization: Wired Cola LLC
References: <051220051933154076%lucasiragusa@rogers.com> <4395DA1C.4040705@sheldonbrown.com> <4397232e$0$38640$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net>
User-Agent: MT-NewsWatcher/3.4 (PPC Mac OS X)
X-Face: b<uBw}84KfL`iIWUL]Yy%d?#Elba-Rw4>:MC%v0uf8,bd_*3YZi\dVm9-!88/s8cyA[_rKj
 aK][~t5C~mO|y\H*g*jaz+:e*q]A1x3s#ng$:\1
Message-ID: <rcousine-0E9FF8.18184007122005@news.telus.net>
Lines: 34
Date: Thu, 08 Dec 2005 02:18:39 GMT
NNTP-Posting-Host: 207.6.192.140
X-Trace: clgrps12 1134008319 207.6.192.140 (Wed, 07 Dec 2005 19:18:39 MST)
NNTP-Posting-Date: Wed, 07 Dec 2005 19:18:39 MST

In article <4397232e$0$38640$742ec...@news.sonic.net>,
 SMS <scharf.ste...@geemail.com> wrote:

> Sheldon Brown wrote:
> > Luke wrote:
> > 
> >> This from Sheldon Brown's Bentride Podcast (@ 8:50). No wonder
> >> manufacturing is a declining sector in North America! This can't be the
> >> total cost of production (stock and labor); does the figure apply to
> >> labor cost only?
> >>
> >> The mp3 file is available for d/l at Sheldon's website
> >> (http://sheldonbrown.com/podcasts/).
> >>
> > Actually I think the labor cost is insignificant...I'm pretty sure these 
> > frames are built by robots...
> 
> I recall one bicycle shop owner claiming that AL frames were actually 
> welded by hand, while steel frames were welded robotically. I don't 
> believe that this is the case though.

I venture to guess that both types of frames are made both ways.

Both materials exist at virtually all points in the market, from the 
cheapest department-store junk to signed-by-the-welder bespoke jobs. I'm 
pretty sure the technology to robo-weld either material is available, 
too. Aluminum is supposed to be a bit trickier to weld from what I hear, 
but both materials require expertise when they are as thin as high-end 
bicycle tubing.

-- 
Ryan Cousineau rcous...@sfu.ca http://www.wiredcola.com/
"I don't want kids who are thinking about going into mathematics
to think that they have to take drugs to succeed." -Paul Erdos