The Handmade vs Handmade argument

S.

ex offender
bb7 rider said:
if all frames are hand made lets compare a balfa\on one\curtis low production etc weld to a specialized \giant \ whoever else. then we can point out the diff between hand made
Between handmade and handmade? Go ahead, compare away.
 

dhd

Downhill Direct
Oh I sooo wanna jump in here.......but common sense tells me to keep out of it!
 

Fat_Ride

Likes Bikes and Dirt
I'll jump in,
Socket, once again, you're trying to be a dickhead.. and succeeding!!!
Obviously, BB7 Rider is stating the obvious difference between the 'claims' each company has made of their frames being 'handmade'
Do you really think that a 'handmade' Giant frame has had as many man hours put into it than a Balfa?? While Balfa frames are cut, welded, fabricated, ect, etc by hand, this is obviously 'handmade'.
On the other hand, Giant frames, aswell as most other mass production bikes are moved from one machine to another by hand and this them gives them the right to call them 'handmade'!!
 

dunk

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Fat_Ride said:
I'll jump in,
Socket, once again, you're trying to be a dickhead.. and succeeding!!!
Obviously, BB7 Rider is stating the obvious difference between the 'claims' each company has made of their frames being 'handmade'
Do you really think that a 'handmade' Giant frame has had as many man hours put into it than a Balfa?? While Balfa frames are cut, welded, fabricated, ect, etc by hand, this is obviously 'handmade'.
On the other hand, Giant frames, aswell as most other mass production bikes are moved from one machine to another by hand and this them gives them the right to call them 'handmade'!!
Are you saying no machinery is used to cut and fabricate materials in the Balfa factory? :?
 

Fat_Ride

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Nope, they cut the pieces with their teeth and they are held together with ultra sticky semen!!

What the fuck do you think??? Of course machinery is used but Balfa, similarly to other low production bikes, uses more quality control and more manual labour per capita of bike produced!!


Roostn247, Balfa are awesome frames and are well worth the dollars...
 

WOW182

Likes Bikes
i say go for it roostn, there awsome bikes and have a race warranty and all the balfa guys are good blokes and will handle all your problems...
 

dunk

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Fat_Ride said:
most other mass production bikes are moved from one machine to another by hand and this them gives them the right to call them 'handmade'!!
From what I figure Balfa frames are also moved from one machine to another by hand
 

S.

ex offender
Fat_Ride said:
I'll jump in,
Socket, once again, you're trying to be a dickhead.. and succeeding!!!
Obviously, BB7 Rider is stating the obvious difference between the 'claims' each company has made of their frames being 'handmade'
Do you really think that a 'handmade' Giant frame has had as many man hours put into it than a Balfa?? While Balfa frames are cut, welded, fabricated, ect, etc by hand, this is obviously 'handmade'.
On the other hand, Giant frames, aswell as most other mass production bikes are moved from one machine to another by hand and this them gives them the right to call them 'handmade'!!
So now we're measuring man hours instead of what's actually used to make them?

I bet if you compared the actual processes that Giant and Balfa used from start to finish (literally, from CAD drawing to having a completed frame sitting on the floor) you'd find they're surprisingly similar. Tubes are drawn, heat treated, cut, placed in a jig, welded, and painted - there's only so many ways you can do that without fully automating it, and as far as I know, with very few exceptions (eg Merida, Specialized), it's pretty much all done "by hand" as such, anyway. Giant doesn't have a gigantic motorcar-type production line where hundreds of robots swing around and piece bits together whilst welding them in a billionth of a second, they employ actual welders too. I'd agree that Balfa probably puts more time into each frame than a higher production company (and may well have more skilled welders/designers/machinists/etc), but I'd be VERY surprised if there were significant differences in how they were made.

Maybe you should also not take everything so seriously, this seems to be causing you significant stress.
 

Sparkman

Likes Dirt
I think you'll find that they're heat treated after the welding otherwise the welds wouldn't be rated to T6.

Does a Canfield F1 count as handmade?
 

lotec

Banned
who cares if its a good ride, my bike store is ordering me the last complete anyway :p sorry roostn if you want one your gonna have to build it up :)
 

S.

ex offender
Sparkman said:
I think you'll find that they're heat treated after the welding otherwise the welds wouldn't be rated to T6.

Does a Canfield F1 count as handmade?
Possibly, although I've been told that a lot of bike manufacturers only heat treat the tubes before welding, not after. Grip?

Why wouldn't a Canfield F1 count as handmade? I know nothing about their production methods, I'd assume they're much the same as anyone else's?
 

MUNGUS

Pro Rider
bb7's are fine. who gives a fuck about all the tiny details. they are made well and are strong and trustworthy. end of story. all this other bullshit is not that improtant. all you have to do is ask anyone who owns one and they;ll tell they are well made and reliable.
 

rideit

Cannon Fodder
lotecsiriusconcept said:
ill be able to tell you how they ride at the end of the week :D
ill tell u how they ride i own 1 and they ride farkin sic they r the go bike no problems with them buy 1 2 day
 

lotec

Banned
i would except it has to be delivered to the store first :D what colour is your rideit? stupid question i know but i feel proud as im getting the second of only 2 white ones in australia w00t!
 

dunk

Likes Bikes and Dirt
bb7 rider said:
the balfa factory doesnt have any machines except a cnc machine.
So your saying that all cutting and forming of tubes is done by some other company? That parts of the frame assemblies are made by a CNC machine (ie not hand made) and only assembled/welded/painted in the Balfa factory?
 
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