Hmmm, Interesting.
We got a call from a major bicycle wholesale distributor ten minutes ago advising us that Shimano component prices will increase across the board 10% on Thursday morning of next week.
Now, this is a 10% increase at wholesale, which may translate to up to 12-13% at retail.
So, if you are planning to buy a Dura-Ace equipped bike this year, do it before next Thursday to save 12%.
I wonder if the supply of parts will suddenly “improve” after the price increase?
Um…
I would like “What to buy instead of ShimaNO for $1000.00 - Alex”
The answer is…“cause it works better, looks better, lasts longer and now, is cheaper…”
Record10ti, you have no idea how right you may truly be…
Stay tuned.
I doubt that the price increase stems from Shimano bending people over the barrel. If Shimano suddenly has do increse production/output of their bicycle component line, they are incurring costs as well. Their net margin may be so slim that they must pass on the additional cost to the next level in the suply chain or not produce at all, which would be the worse move. To make more components, the raw materials will have to come from somewhere. I doubt Shimano alloys their own aluminium, so they have to buy it from the metals market, most likely “off contract” since they purchased what they thought was their needed amount of metal for '04 “on contract.” The ball bearings in their hubs came from a third party, as did certain other items that make up their components. So now Shimano is forced to get their jobbers to fit in extra work that wasn’t scheduled, this comes at a premium. Campy fans can smirk all they want, but it’s not like the folks at Shimano sit around eating biscotti and discussing the great tour riders while waiting for component orders to come in.
Brett
Record10, did you see this on Velonews today…that’s not your ankle is it???
http://www.velonews.com/news/fea/5413.0.html
Damn - that is a SWEET Tat…I never did get my M-Dot…maybe I can get the Campy wings instead.
The 2004 Chorus line never looked so attractive. With the new price increase I can get 04 Chorus with the carbon crank cheaper than 10 speed DA. I think it’s a no-brainer!
Dave from VA
That tattoo is FWF.
Shimano component prices will increase across the board 10% on Thursday morning of next week.
It’s the currency, folks. Campy and everything else imported (except Chinese stuff) will go up in price this quarter or next.
I added foreign bonds to all accounts in December. Starting out the year with a bang…
That is Peter Chisolm’s tattoo, he is the co-owner of Vecchio’s in Boulder. I am embarrassed every time I bring my Dura-Ace equipped bike in to him for a tune up.
That tattoo is FWF.
Florida Wildlife Federation?
French Wine Fanciers?
Fools with Firearms?
Drop some knowledge on us…
FWF?
For Wussies Forever?
Fu**'in Way Farout?
Fart With Fusion?
Fart Without Folly?
Funky White Fairy?
Ford Winnebago Fondue?
I’d say curency…
Our Aussie dollar is 20cents better today against the greenback than the same time last year. It makes buying from the states a little cheaper…
Unfortunatley, costs have gone up and we’ve seen 2 price increases in the last year…
Can’t win. But i think it was timberwolf??? i think got it right.
"The 2004 Chorus line never looked so attractive. With the new price increase I can get 04 Chorus with the carbon crank cheaper than 10 speed DA. I think it’s a no-brainer! "
Or you could buy Shimano Ultegra and have $1,000+ left over. I think THAT’s a no-brainer.
“I doubt that the price increase stems from Shimano bending people over the barrel. If Shimano suddenly has do increse production/output of their bicycle component line, they are incurring costs as well.”
perhaps it’s currency. who knkows. but increased production? shimano used to supply crank, bb, brake calipers and levers, chain, seat post, head set, cassette, hubset, and of course what it STILL supplies, which are f & r derailleur and shifters, combined with a lot less of the other stuff.
i’m glad to see shimano doing well, because it means the bike biz is doing well. i don’t know shimano’s revenue history over the past 5 years, but it’s had its gruppo picked apart one component at a time. i doubt the increase is because it doesn’t have capacity, i’ll bet its got some idle forging presses.
i don’t think the increase is a bad thing, tho. you make money when you can. now it can.
don’t get your hopes up about campy. it’s still the stupidest company in the bike biz. yes, it makes good stuff in general, but that’s the engineers at work. when it comes to the upper management of that company, genius skipped a generation.
Well we know wher Slowman sits on this fence…then again…didnt Slowman prefer 650c wheels too?
“Well we know wher Slowman sits on this fence”
since you’ve got a better vantage point, will you tell me? i can’t see the forest for the derailleurs.
i’ll bet you figured me out when you saw me on the road yesterday on my 10sp record road bike. or because you saw my 10sp centaur touring bike in the garage.
or was it because of the ultegra bike i raced at nats in shreveport, or the DA 9sp road bike i ride when i’m not riding the record bike?
fortunately, all these bikes are easy to buy rubber for, since they’re 700c.
i forgot, what was it you said?
Tom,
I am ready to order a new group but I am still waiting for your promised review of DA and Record.
When can we expect the results? - I can’t wait
Thx
Axel
LOL…
I swear - Slowman started the whole 650 wheel thing at the onset of 'Roo…hell every one wanted 650’s. I will never forget busting a gut looking at a 62CM frame with 650 wheels…just funny looking. I am glad that they are now offering more the the Tri bikes with options.
I’m just sending my quarterly client newsletter off to the printer, and here’s a free excerpt for my slowtwitch pals. Usually, one needs to put big dollars into my care to get this, but you nice folks can have it free – just this once. 
When the dollar falls, it simply means that it buys fewer Euros (I’ll use the Euro as an example throughout), and the Euro buys more dollars. If a French wine maker wants 10 Euros for a bottle of wine, you could buy that bottle for 10 dollars at an exchange rate of 1 Euro to the dollar. Now that the dollar has fallen, the wine maker still wants 10 Euros for the bottle, but to get the 10 Euros, you first have to cash in 12.50 dollars at the exchange window. The wine maker isn’t charging more for the bottle; just the price to you went up.
Substitute gruppo for bottle of wine and yen for* euro,* and you have our Shimano problem defined.