Chances this litespeed stem is real?

[thecannibal]

It's Ti; does it matter whether or not it is actually Lite Speed??

Surely it makes a massive difference whether it's made by one of the most reputable ti mountain bike builders ever or is a totally unknown quantity? Just because it's ti doesn't mean it's well-made. It could be a shoddy far east number with bad welds and dodgy alignment.

 

[petitpal]

looks very like a ritchey force lite stem in a ti brushed finish, now i know red riviera knows his stuff, but are we sure its Ti

+1 for the Ritchey. Looks virtually identical (welding quality and everything) to the ForceLite that came with my Saracen (pics on thread in sig). Only difference is the clamping bolts but that makes no odds.

Not saying it is one of those, btw - I don't have much of a clue about x-lite stuff - just that it's very, very similar to my ForceLite.

 

[We_are_Stevo]

It's Ti; does it matter whether or not it is actually Lite Speed??

Surely it makes a massive difference whether it's made by one of the most reputable ti mountain bike builders ever or is a totally unknown quantity? Just because it's ti doesn't mean it's well-made. It could be a shoddy far east number with bad welds and dodgy alignment.

I think we can all see from the (far from shoddy) welds that it quite clearly Ti...

...and the first thought I had was that it looked just like my Saracen stem too

OMG! It must be crap if it looks like something else, and doesn't even have a logo!

Ironic that the piece of cheap plastic screenprint seems to carry more weight than what it is actually attached to??

 

[thecannibal]

It's Ti; does it matter whether or not it is actually Lite Speed??

Surely it makes a massive difference whether it's made by one of the most reputable ti mountain bike builders ever or is a totally unknown quantity? Just because it's ti doesn't mean it's well-made. It could be a shoddy far east number with bad welds and dodgy alignment.

I think we can all see from the (far from shoddy) welds that it quite clearly Ti...

...and the first thought I had was that it looked just like my Saracen stem too

OMG! It must be crap if it looks like something else, and doesn't even have a logo!

Ironic that the piece of cheap plastic screenprint seems to carry more weight than what it is actually attached to??

Did you read what I wrote, because it doesn't seem like it?

 

[gtRTSdh]

No, it's like saying that a lancia 8.32 that's missing it's badges is a ferrari because it has a ferrari engine, when it bears no resemblance to any known ferrari! No matter how fine it's heart it's still not a ferrari.

 

[We_are_Stevo]

When Litespeed started out they were just another company exploiting a newly available resource...

...most Ti frames/components are made in the Far East with material from the former Soviet Block; the big manufacturers just buy them up and apply their logos before selling them on at a vastly inflated price.

If you Google the Chinese factories you can buy a Ti full susser for about £500; a big brand name buying them by the container load is still making a very healthy profit, even after all the overheads incurred...

 

[thecannibal]

When Litespeed started out they were just another company exploiting a newly available resource...

...most Ti frames/components are made in the Far East with material from the former Soviet Block; the big manufacturers just buy them up and apply their logos before selling them on at a vastly inflated price.

If you Google the Chinese factories you can buy a Ti full susser for about £500; a big brand name buying them by the container load is still making a very healthy profit, even after all the overheads incurred...

So litespeed sold stems made in China?

 

[We_are_Stevo]

Not what I said at all...

...They're an American company, therefore they must be better than any Foreign company??

Of course Litespeeds products are of the highest quality; you have only to look at them to see that...

...they're just not unique in that is all I'm saying.



And there are far superior cars to be had than a Ferrari

 

[thecannibal]

Right.

 

[We_are_Stevo]

Is it so totally inconceiveable that a firm such as Litespeed engineers would design/develope/test a particular frame, their marketing bods take a couple of pre-production frames and a couple of crates of Johnny Walker Black Label to the Far East for a Trade Expo, find a supplier who could build said frame to their spec. at the right price and order a few thousand for export back to the States for marketing under their own brand??

Is that not how industry works in today's Global Economy??