By Chris
A few random things:
The Piolet frames are selling well. The XL size is already sold out. We're just now sending 18 of them to a shop in Asia. One thing that I've noticed is that a large percentage of Piolets go to folks in the bike industry for personal use. The percentage is far above that for any other frame we've sold. I'm not sure why this is, but it's really a great endorsement that so many bike professionals want to ride Piolets.
We recently had an order for over $800 worth of VO brake pads from a relatively small bike shop. It turns out that they now use only VO pads and shoes because they feel they are the best available. I frequently see emails from customers praising these pads and have noticed more shops ordering large quantities recently. I wish I could take credit for developing these pads. But what happened was that I was at the Taipei bike show with an employee who insisted that we stop by this tiny booth displaying brake pads from a little factory I'd never heard of. "You've got to check out this one brake pad rubber formula these guys have," he said. "They don't squeal and they stop really well." I was skeptical, but we got some samples--they were great. Now I don't claim that they will never squeal under any circumstances, but they do eliminate noise on the vast majority of bikes we've tried them on. And they stop as well as any pads I've used in both wet or dry conditions. Try a set and see for yourself.
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| Sir Derek & Sir Brandon, defenders of the fenders. (photo by Clint) |
We now have a good stock of black replacement fender hardware.
Milan and Tourist bars are back in stock. A lot of you have been waiting. Those are our most popular handlebars; thus we ran out.
That is all.
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9 comments:
Adapted from Monty Python...
Scene: At some bridge, in some kingdom with some castle, some long time ago.
VO Guard: Whhaaat is your name?
SL: Sir Lancelot.
G: Whhhaaat is your quest?
SL: To seek a Piolet.
G: Whhhaaaatt is your favorite colour?
SL: Blue.
G: Okay, you may have one.
What's the grams on those roller cable carriers? ;-)
Those Dia Compe straddle cable rollers look awesome but $46 for a pair is a bit too steep for me although I am sure that won't stop them from selling out quick.
Looking at the straddle cable hanger photos: Are the washer and hex head really that gold/yellow color?
The VO brake pads are quiet, squeal free and offer good stopping power. Eventually, all our bikes will have VO pads.
What happened to the old generic Velo Orange cable rollers? I liked them better. Allen bolts have their place but not on these things.
Pink, those are cadmium plated parts. They have a slight gold tint, but the photo probably over-enhances it.
Didier, There was nothing generic about those VO roller hangers. They were made at one of the best CNC shops in Taiwan to our specifications. But after a while sales slowed and we decided not to reorder. Still, we might get more someday.
That's the thing with making these long-unavailable specialty parts--everyone who's wanted them for years orders right away and we can't keep up. Then demand slows because there really aren't that many of us just getting into this esoteric stuff.
Chris
Awesome on the sales of the Piolet. It's at the top of my list for a Tour Divide and pave less trans America stint. Just a couple more months of temp work. Wilson
> That's the thing with making these long-unavailable specialty parts--everyone who's wanted
> them for years orders right away and we can't keep up. Then demand slows because there
> really aren't that many of us just getting into this esoteric stuff.
> Chris
Makes sense Chris. I guess I have been wondering what's going on at VO and this kind of explains it. It was very interesting to me in the early days when there was a deeply respectful nod to the constructeurs, and to my mind much more of a purist approach to innovation. But your comment helps explain that -- a bunch of hardcore Japanese collectors and people like me soaked up some quick demand -- e.g., for the epically great flashlight headlight -- and they were just too rarefied to have much appeal.
But now there are things like graphics on top tubes, and sacre bleu pre-cut holes in racks (pretty anti-constructeur, no?), and those laser-etched GC logos on stuff, and while that's not at all for me I totally respect how those things are part of bringing a bespoke product toward a little wider market. It's just good business.
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