Why isn't there a German manufacturer of a road group set?

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micky
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by micky

That Rotor groupset was rumored already 1-2 years ago.
There must be indeed a patent issue or something similar.

GT56
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by GT56

CBJ wrote:Wasn't Sachs German before SRAM bought them?



yes

read somewhere that some of sram's r&d work is being done there

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Marin
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by Marin

Sram groupset tech stems from their buying Sachs, yes.

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by xnavalav8r

I heard from a reliable source that Acros/Rotor/Open were collaborating on a road hydraulic group. I won't throw out a name, but it was someone closely affiliated with one of the brands who had some prototypes on-hand. Open are building frames already that are mechanical/electronic/hydraulic compatible. I imagine their road frame will be released in conjunction with or around the same time as the hydraulic road group.

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micky
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by micky

I never remember if Cervelo is writen with an è or é.

fromtrektocolnago
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by fromtrektocolnago

Campy is the only brand basically built in Europe and they've lost the OEM market to Shimano and newer SRAM who produce in Asia where 99% of all bikes are produced today. Campy is surviving by being a high end replacement product to over 50 year olds who have money, it's questionable if this is a good long term strategy.

If a German outfit were to rise up it would need to be a design only company and produce in Asia. SRM and lightweight are niche companies , to be successful a component firm would need to have a larger scale business model I would think. I just don't see the competitive advantage of a made in Germany group set. As it stands now a made in German bike or bike part doesn't have the same appeal as say a made in Italy one, so your left with high costs and no offsetting marketing advantage.
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by sawyer

fromtrektocolnago wrote:Campy is the only brand basically built in Europe and they've lost the OEM market to Shimano and newer SRAM who produce in Asia where 99% of all bikes are produced today. Campy is surviving by being a high end replacement product to over 50 year olds who have money, it's questionable if this is a good long term strategy.

If a German outfit were to rise up it would need to be a design only company and produce in Asia. SRM and lightweight are niche companies , to be successful a component firm would need to have a larger scale business model I would think. I just don't see the competitive advantage of a made in Germany group set. As it stands now a made in German bike or bike part doesn't have the same appeal as say a made in Italy one, so your left with high costs and no offsetting marketing advantage.


Think the point is more engineering excellence and the potential to apply that to road groups - though I agree on your comments re location of manufacture.

BTW ... over 50s own almost everything and there's a growing number of them... so it's not a bad market to target :wink:
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by mjduct

I'm 32 and build up all my own bikes with campy...


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by NiFTY

Do you have that Benjamin Button thing mjduct?
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kbbpll
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by kbbpll

I'm over 50 and can't imagine myself ever saying "I just have to have that groupset because it's made in Germany". I suppose it's just a perception that Germany doesn't have the same history and reputation of frame building and cycling innovation that other countries have. Seems like it could be an uphill battle lasting decades.

fromtrektocolnago
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by fromtrektocolnago

I'm almost 50 and now more than ever I think , why not get a great bike with appropriate components now so that I can thoroughly enjoy it while I still have the power and stamina. In fact I did that just last year when I turned 48. I hope to ride when I'm 60 and older, but face it at a certain point one has to wonder just a bit if one's health will permit it. Also cyclists in their late 40's and 50's as a group have more disposable income and could already be thinking more along branding than say in their 20's and 30's.
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BRM
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by BRM

kbbpll wrote:I'm over 50 and can't imagine myself ever saying "I just have to have that groupset because it's made in Germany". I suppose it's just a perception that Germany doesn't have the same history and reputation of frame building and cycling innovation that other countries have. Seems like it could be an uphill battle lasting decades.


I don't buy Campagnolo because it comes from Italy.
What has the history of framebuilding to do with developing a groupset?
Cycling innovation? Dont let me laugh. Cycling frames and components are not a very difficult engineering section.
The thing best developed in cycling industry is marketingshit.

Germany is known for high quality Tools and precise Engineering.
Deutsche Gründlichkeit.
That is the reason why people came with the idea of a German groupset.
That is also the reason why people will buy a German groupset.
To compare such a groupset with bikes currently made by Germans is thinking in the wrong direction. Its something totally different.

A succesful concept could be:
German engineering with Italian Design, produced in Taiwan.

bm0p700f
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by bm0p700f

They do well selling wheels too, I think that has saved them. They do supply Italain bike brands with OE equipment but this is fairly niche.

wingguy
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by wingguy

It would be interesting to see how big Fulcrum is compared to the rest of Campagnolo.

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fromtrektocolnago
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by fromtrektocolnago

This is a difficult argument to defend or make since its' mostly hypothetical and assumes any German product would simply be a superior one. I'm not sure. Just thinking appliances Miele is worlds above Bosch, just as BMW is a far better product than VW in cars. Also Shimano does a great job. The question posed is probably more of national pride and buy German than anything else.
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