Interesting question Curt.
For my part I just ordered a new Alex Singer. I thought about a Toei but went with AS as I knew Jan Heine and knew I could go through him to make the deal as simple as possible. Also, it's my understanding that if you want your bike outfitted with "classic" parts (ie, Maxi-Cars, Simplex, Huret...) you have to supply them to Toei whereas M. Csuka has a stock on hand. Another reason I went that route. Plus, the history of AS is fascinating to me and I felt like connecting to a part of it. I am not at all Euro-centric (I prefer many things Japanese) so that wasn't part of it.
John Price Denver CO
-----Original Message----- From: goodrichbikes [mailto:goodrichbikes@netzero.net] Sent: Tuesday, April 22, 2003 2:19 PM To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org Subject: [CR]Originals vs. Replicas
In the case of randonneur bikes, why is it that that the Herse's and Singer's fetch more loot and respect than the replicas that builders like Toei and Hirose make? At least, this seems to be true in the US. The Toei's almost across the board, are better built and finished than the French builders that he's imitating. Is it that people want the originals? Is it that collectors are more interested in the "oldness" of the French bikes? Or is it a Euro-centric bias? Probably all of the above. Thoughts?
Curt Goodrich
Minneapolis, MN