How does Tiso Bike stay in business ??

[Donald Gillies]

http://www.xxcycle.com/php/boutique/PRODUIT.php?key=4467

If you're a company that sells a derailleur that costs $593, does that
mean you have the best derailleur in the world, or merely, the
stupidest customers on the planet ??

- Don Gillies
San Diego, CA

 

[[email protected]]

On 18 Dec 2006 20:03:56 -0800, [email protected] (Donald Gillies)
wrote:

>http://www.xxcycle.com/php/boutique/PRODUIT.php?key=4467
>
>If you're a company that sells a derailleur that costs $593, does that
>mean you have the best derailleur in the world, or merely, the
>stupidest customers on the planet ??
>
>- Don Gillies
>San Diego, CA

Dear Don,

Well, you could have other distributors selling your derailleur for
considerably less, say 239 EU (around $313):

http://www4.hibike.de/main.php?sess...39a3222af0e&method=m_catpd&nodeID=&groupID=10

And you could emphasize the claim that you're selling the lightest
derailleur on earth:

http://www.les3sports.com/html/index.php?page=21&categorie1=806&categorie2=943

And your customers could just be people who like to spend enormous
amounts of time and money building the lightest bikes possible, a
hobby that probably gives them just as much pleasure as restoring old
cars and polishing umpteen coats of paint on the underside of the
trunk lid.

Your customers would be arguably no more foolish than someone who just
issued his Christmas demand for Carmignola's new Vivaldi CD, just to
add several new concertos to a list of over 400.

But neither the company nor the customers are spending their time
calling other people stupid. That's a harmless pastime often seen on
newsgroups like RBT that seems to make some people happy.

Cheers,

Carl Fogel

 

[Werehatrack]

On 18 Dec 2006 20:03:56 -0800, [email protected] (Donald Gillies) may
have said:

>http://www.xxcycle.com/php/boutique/PRODUIT.php?key=4467
>
>If you're a company that sells a derailleur that costs $593, does that
>mean you have the best derailleur in the world, or merely, the
>stupidest customers on the planet ??

A merchant in the business of catering to this trade would *never*
refer to his clientele in such a coarse and undignified manner.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

 

[Ben C]

On 2006-12-19, [email protected] <[email protected]> wrote:
> On 18 Dec 2006 20:03:56 -0800, [email protected] (Donald Gillies)
> wrote:
>
>>http://www.xxcycle.com/php/boutique/PRODUIT.php?key=4467
>>
>>If you're a company that sells a derailleur that costs $593, does that
>>mean you have the best derailleur in the world, or merely, the
>>stupidest customers on the planet ??
>>
>>- Don Gillies
>>San Diego, CA
>
> Dear Don,
>
> Well, you could have other distributors selling your derailleur for
> considerably less, say 239 EU (around $313):
>
> http://www4.hibike.de/main.php?sess...39a3222af0e&method=m_catpd&nodeID=&groupID=10
>
> And you could emphasize the claim that you're selling the lightest
> derailleur on earth:
>
> http://www.les3sports.com/html/index.php?page=21&categorie1=806&categorie2=943
[snip]

A Campag Record rear derailleur is 157 GBP, or 233 Euros from
totalcycling.com and weighs about 5 or 6g more, so the Tiso seems to
competitively priced.

 

[* * Chas]

"Werehatrack" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On 18 Dec 2006 20:03:56 -0800, [email protected] (Donald Gillies) may
> have said:
>
> >http://www.xxcycle.com/php/boutique/PRODUIT.php?key=4467
> >
> >If you're a company that sells a derailleur that costs $593, does that
> >mean you have the best derailleur in the world, or merely, the
> >stupidest customers on the planet ??
>
> A merchant in the business of catering to this trade would *never*
> refer to his clientele in such a coarse and undignified manner.
>
> --

It probably falls somewhere between:

"It is unwise to pay too much, but it is unwise to pay too little.

When you pay too much, you loose a little money; that is all.

When you pay too little you sometimes lose everything.

Because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing you bought
it to do.

The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a
lot. It cannot be done.

If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the
risk you run and if you do that, you will have enough to pay for something
better."

John Rushkin 1819-1900

and....

"A fool and his money are soon parted." Thomas Tusser 1524-1580

I seem to remember someone in the US was making a derailleur that looked
something like an old Simplex Prestige and asking a small fortune for it.

Chas.

 

[Callistus Valerius]

>
> It probably falls somewhere between:
>
> "It is unwise to pay too much, but it is unwise to pay too little.
>
> When you pay too much, you loose a little money; that is all.
>
> When you pay too little you sometimes lose everything.
>
> Because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing you bought
> it to do.
>
--------------

Wal-Mart has a last push Christmas sale right now, and they are selling
full sized Mountain Bikes for $39. Does this fall into your too little
idea?

 

[John Forrest Tomlinson]

On 18 Dec 2006 20:03:56 -0800, [email protected] (Donald Gillies)
wrote:

>http://www.xxcycle.com/php/boutique/PRODUIT.php?key=4467
>
>If you're a company that sells a derailleur that costs $593,

That's the price for a set of two derailleurs - arrière et avant.
--
JT
****************************
Remove "remove" to reply
Visit http://www.jt10000.com
****************************

 

[Qui si parla Campagnolo]

Donald Gillies wrote:
> http://www.xxcycle.com/php/boutique/PRODUIT.php?key=4467
>
> If you're a company that sells a derailleur that costs $593, does that
> mean you have the best derailleur in the world, or merely, the
> stupidest customers on the planet ??
>
> - Don Gillies
> San Diego, CA

Neither and/or both. I am asked lots if something or another is 'worth
it'. I don't know what is 'worth' what to another. What mystyies me is
something that is bought and turns out to not work well or as
advertised, but is bought all the time anyway...marketing and peer
pressure are powerful.

For the RD, if it works well and is light, not surprised somebody buys
it. people buy titanium chains all the time too, and kry-4-me-seriums...

 

[Ozark Bicycle]

Donald Gillies wrote:
> http://www.xxcycle.com/php/boutique/PRODUIT.php?key=4467
>
> If you're a company that sells a derailleur that costs $593, does that
> mean you have the best derailleur in the world, or merely, the
> stupidest customers on the planet ??
>

In a market that seems to support $350+ saddles, $60 bar tape, etc.,
this just seems par for the very wacky course.

 

[David L. Johnson]

On Tue, 19 Dec 2006 07:14:00 -0500, John Forrest Tomlinson wrote:

> On 18 Dec 2006 20:03:56 -0800, [email protected] (Donald Gillies)
> wrote:
>
>>http://www.xxcycle.com/php/boutique/PRODUIT.php?key=4467
>>
>>If you're a company that sells a derailleur that costs $593,
>
> That's the price for a set of two derailleurs - arrière et avant.

So, that makes $600 seem like a bargain?

--

David L. Johnson

__o | Let's not escape into mathematics. Let's stay with reality. --
_`\(,_ | Michael Crichton
(_)/ (_) |

 

[* * Chas]

"Callistus Valerius" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> >
> > It probably falls somewhere between:
> >
> > "It is unwise to pay too much, but it is unwise to pay too little.
> >
> > When you pay too much, you loose a little money; that is all.
> >
> > When you pay too little you sometimes lose everything.
> >
> > Because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing you
bought
> > it to do.
> >
> --------------
>
> Wal-Mart has a last push Christmas sale right now, and they are
selling
> full sized Mountain Bikes for $39. Does this fall into your too little
> idea?
>
>
"Kid Killers" !

I think the it falls more into the second category.....

When the CPSC Act (US Consumer Protection Safety Commission) first took
effect in the mid 1970s there were a lot of unsafe at any speed, made in
Taiwan bikes being sold dirt cheap by department stores and discount
outlets. These bikes were so poorly built that the brakes needed to be
replaced out of the box and even qualified bike mechanics had problems
assembling them so that they would be minimally safe to ride.

They didn't meet CPSC standards to say the least so the importers and
distributors started selling them for $10 to $25 USD to places like car
dealerships, stereo component outlets and so on to be given away as sales
incentives. Buy a new car, get a free 10 speed....

Ironically, fully Campy bikes didn't meet the CPSC restrictions either and
for a few months we didn't know if we could legally sell them! Both ends
of Campy QRs, the flip lever on the brake QRs, both ends of the brake
pivot bolts, the cable locking bolts on the derailleurs all failed the
roller test. You had to be able to pass a certain diameter roller over all
parts of a bike and not have it catch on anything. That's why Campy change
the design of their NR/SR components! DOH!

There were no measurements for safe construction or performance! I saw a
number of these bikes where the welds were so poor that the whole head
tube broke away from the frame during normal riding.

Chas.

 

[Rex Kerr]

> Wal-Mart has a last push Christmas sale right now, and they are selling
> full sized Mountain Bikes for $39. Does this fall into your too little
> idea?

I couldn't find the one for $39, but I did find one for $54:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=2061608

It can't be that bad, it has a high-tensity frame with a lifetime
warranty!

 

[[email protected]]

On 19 Dec 2006 10:07:41 -0800, "Rex Kerr" <[email protected]> wrote:

>> Wal-Mart has a last push Christmas sale right now, and they are selling
>> full sized Mountain Bikes for $39. Does this fall into your too little
>> idea?
>
>I couldn't find the one for $39, but I did find one for $54:
>
>http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=2061608
>
>It can't be that bad, it has a high-tensity frame with a lifetime
>warranty!

Dear Rex,

The men's Fury RoadMaster is the same price, and it's in stock.

I rode one for 1200 miles a while ago to test predictions that it
would burst into flames and kill me before I reached the street
corner.

The only problem was a flat rear tire.

Cheers,

Carl Fogel

 

[Matt O'Toole]

On Tue, 19 Dec 2006 10:25:29 +0000, Callistus Valerius wrote:

> Wal-Mart has a last push Christmas sale right now, and they are selling
> full sized Mountain Bikes for $39. Does this fall into your too little
> idea?

It might wear out quick, but so do 10sp chains, and they cost more than
that.

Matt O.

 

[* * Chas]

"Rex Kerr" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> > Wal-Mart has a last push Christmas sale right now, and they are
selling
> > full sized Mountain Bikes for $39. Does this fall into your too
little
> > idea?
>
> I couldn't find the one for $39, but I did find one for $54:
>
> http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=2061608
>
> It can't be that bad, it has a high-tensity frame with a lifetime
> warranty!
>

Whose life?

Chas.

 

[Lou Holtman]

[email protected] wrote:
> On 19 Dec 2006 10:07:41 -0800, "Rex Kerr" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
>>> Wal-Mart has a last push Christmas sale right now, and they are selling
>>>full sized Mountain Bikes for $39. Does this fall into your too little
>>>idea?
>>
>>I couldn't find the one for $39, but I did find one for $54:
>>
>>http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=2061608
>>
>>It can't be that bad, it has a high-tensity frame with a lifetime
>>warranty!
>
>
> Dear Rex,
>
> The men's Fury RoadMaster is the same price, and it's in stock.
>
> I rode one for 1200 miles a while ago to test predictions that it
> would burst into flames and kill me before I reached the street
> corner.
>
> The only problem was a flat rear tire.


But a flat tire on the wrong moment can be killing...

Lou
--
Posted by news://news.nb.nu

 

[Ozark Bicycle]

Rex Kerr wrote:
> > Wal-Mart has a last push Christmas sale right now, and they are selling
> > full sized Mountain Bikes for $39. Does this fall into your too little
> > idea?
>
> I couldn't find the one for $39, but I did find one for $54:
>
> http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=2061608
>
> It can't be that bad, it has a high-tensity frame with a lifetime
> warranty!

"Lifetime warranty"? Unless it cracks....that's "normal wear and tear".
(I wonder how long it will take the Chinese to catch on to the legal
dodges that have served Cannondale, etc., well for so long.)

 

[Rex Kerr]

> Dear Rex,
>
> The men's Fury RoadMaster is the same price, and it's in stock.
>
> I rode one for 1200 miles a while ago to test predictions that it
> would burst into flames and kill me before I reached the street
> corner.
>
> The only problem was a flat rear tire.

Except for the fact that in the past when I couldn't (or wouldn't)
afford a good bike I also rode such bikes. I rode them many, many,
hundreds of miles over their lifetimes, even as many as 75 miles in a
single ride on a knobby tire Roadmaster 'mountain bike' that I bought
at Wal-Mart. Yet:

The plastic brake levers would bend when braking hard, rather than
applying more brake force
The poor brake pads and steel wheels didn't work well together
The bike weighed a TON
The shifters never worked right
I couldn't find replacement parts for it

For the same cash outlay I probably could have found a nice higher
quality bike, if I'd known what I was looking for. I wish that
somebody with knowledge would have helped me back then rather than just
telling me that my bike was ****, or trying to tell me that I couldn't
use automotive grease in the wheel bearings (yes, I did my own
overhauls), but rather had to use super expensive bike specific grease.

As much as I wanted to, I never really fell in love with cycling until
I got my first real bike (a cheap LBS hybrid bike), and then it became
an addiction.

If you look far enough back in the usenet archvies (about 14 years ago)
you'll find me asking questions on this very group about those old
Wal-Mart bikes.

 

[Rex Kerr]

> If you look far enough back in the usenet archvies (about 14 years ago)
> you'll find me asking questions on this very group about those old
> Wal-Mart bikes.

I found the post... I was close, it was 13 years, 7 months ago. --
oh, and that bike came from KMart. I'm sure that there are older
posts, but Google doesn't seem to have them anymore.

 

[Diablo Scott]

Donald Gillies wrote:
> http://www.xxcycle.com/php/boutique/PRODUIT.php?key=4467
>
> If you're a company that sells a derailleur that costs $593, does that
> mean you have the best derailleur in the world, or merely, the
> stupidest customers on the planet ??
>

I just clicked on "add to basket" and had a miniature orgasm.