E richie,
Nothing makes the new ones gran criteriums. Nobody covets them. The interesting twist in the whole tale is possibly, in a way, because of this list, the original USA masi's have more mojo than the Italian built frames. But that mojo doesn't extend beyond the California built frames, I believe anyway.
People covet cool bikes. What makes them cool is a sliding scale based on how practiced your eye is and how experienced your legs are. I'm sure there are people who would come across this ebay masi an think it's cool, but after learning more about the story of masi, and all the lore, wouldn't think a California masi is 100x cooler? Or a Pela one? forgedaboudit.
As for a modern Haro-masi, same deal. If you're looking for a modern race bike, there's lots of reasons to buy something else. A nice Bianchi, Cannondale, or Pinarello spring to mind.
An unbroken line between a rich, history-filled past and the high tech future is the most obvious definition of cool when it comes to most brands. When brands stumble, or get off the path along the way, it doesn't necessarily mean an end to all their future collecting value, but it doesn't usually help. Lots of brand value comes from what you don't make, from as much as what you do. Who would argue that a RICHARDSACHS would have more value if you diversified into mountianbikes, shopping carts, and forklifts? I bet you could make a damn fine shopping cart if you wanted to. But you don't want to, and that's the point.
The brands like Haro don't live to make the best bike possible, they exist by making the smallest effort at product development and try to sell that product at a profit. So when Haro puts "masi" stickers on a 2nd rate product, it doesn't mean it's any better than the same bike with Haro stickers on it. But someone at haro thinks they will sell more bikes if it has a "real" road brand name on it. That's why they are doing it. And they are wrong. They're not selling many bikes, that's why they are on ebay.
Grant McLean Toronto.Ca
O \O/ _< \_ _< _ (_)>(_) (_)>(_) e-RICHIE querried: so many yearsafter the original name was sold to mr salm for u.s. consump-tion, what is there about these frames - the ebay one or the haro one - that makes them "gran criteriums"? is it simply based in legal rights to the name? technically, yes! but is that why folks covet these?
chester, ct