Look 795 Blade RS vs Spesh Venge Pro

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muti
Posts: 131
Joined: Sat Dec 16, 2017 12:09 am

by muti

The Look frame what was cut by Raoul was a 695 made in Tunisia.We are not brand fanboys and we should not judge frames by country of origin.We should judge them by quality and how much they respect our hard earned euros/dollars/you name it, and ultimately how much they respect our lifes.

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kgt
Posts: 8749
Joined: Sun Jun 18, 2006 10:29 am
Location: Athens, Greece

by kgt

We can judge a frame any way we like to. Discussing the country of origin is not a nationalist issue, it has to do with who does what, in which way, to which standards etc. In general, a carbon frame manufacturer who makes frames in house and does not subcontract them to someone else has a better quality and QC. There are always exceptions but that is a general truth. If you follow Raoul's fb of youtube you will see how many - and potemntialy dangerous - issues the frames of big companies who subcontract their manufacturing have.

mag
Posts: 616
Joined: Thu Mar 16, 2017 12:23 pm

by mag

Interesting to see the 795s being made in Taiwan now. At least first batches were really made in Tunisia. But they had some QC issues with the Tunisia production (unusually high quality variation) for quite some time already. If you watched the Raoul's review of the 695, what you could see there was one of perfect examples of that... Perhaps this production change is for the better in this particular case.

Given the common practice these days it's also possible the frames are moulded somewhere in China and then brought to Taiwan for finalization and to put "Made in Taiwan" on them.

And although I like this new 795 for various reasons, its weight is insane and I wouldn't really consider it just because of that. I've got a "gravel-ish" aluminium alloy frame that isn't that much heavier... crazy. There are some reasonably light aero frames out there...

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Kayrehn
Posts: 1776
Joined: Thu Mar 24, 2011 6:06 pm

by Kayrehn

I would go for Look just for the looks; it is heavy but people who buys aero bikes usually aren't too concerned about a kg more. Every other person rides a spesh so.

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Lewn777
Posts: 1266
Joined: Thu Mar 09, 2017 5:35 am

by Lewn777

mag wrote:
Sun Jun 09, 2019 4:19 pm
Interesting to see the 795s being made in Taiwan now. At least first batches were really made in Tunisia. But they had some QC issues with the Tunisia production (unusually high quality variation) for quite some time already. If you watched the Raoul's review of the 695, what you could see there was one of perfect examples of that... Perhaps this production change is for the better in this particular case.

Given the common practice these days it's also possible the frames are moulded somewhere in China and then brought to Taiwan for finalization and to put "Made in Taiwan" on them.

And although I like this new 795 for various reasons, its weight is insane and I wouldn't really consider it just because of that. I've got a "gravel-ish" aluminium alloy frame that isn't that much heavier... crazy. There are some reasonably light aero frames out there...
I'm almost certain that what you suspect is true. Practically all bikes marked 'Made in Taiwan' actually have frames made in China and then sent to Taiwan for assembly and sometimes paint although I hear most painting is also done in China. I have a souce in the industry that's done lots of factory visits, but obviously the whole thing is quite secret, and nobody has visited every factory, multiple factories are used even for one brand, so everything you hear needs to be taken with a pinch of salt. But the classic 'follow the money' or in this case 'reduce fixed costs' as economists like to call it is proabably the most likely senario. :D
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Back to the topic.

Honestly I think the repuatation of the manufacturers is important. How much can we trust their warranty and how easily can we communicate with their employees outside of the sales dept. I appriciate good looking bikes, but I prefer function over form. To really have the answer to the question you'd need 1000kms on each bike. I've never ridden either bike, but I've own a Roubaix and ridden two Tarmacs. I like their sizing and their finishing kit, bar tape, bars, saddles are some of the best home brand stuff out there or at least suits me well. Nothing against the Look though.

anykarthik
Posts: 102
Joined: Thu Jul 12, 2018 10:37 pm

by anykarthik

Kayrehn wrote:
Mon Jun 10, 2019 6:24 am
I would go for Look just for the looks; it is heavy but people who buys aero bikes usually aren't too concerned about a kg more. Every other person rides a spesh so.

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The Venge Pro I bought is my only road bike. It's a very viable all-rounder rather than an aero specialist. I also live in a hilly area and as such, weight mattered to me. It was between the Venge and the Canyon Aeroad in my mind - and a Spesh team discount tipped the scale that way. I agree that the likelihood of seeing a Spesh on the road is extremely high and that was the only thing that held me back for some time. At least the Venge is less common than the Tarmac for now. After 2k miles, no regrets.

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