I wrote, somewhat inflammatorily (is that a word?):
> > If the tube decal says "Guaranteed built with Reynolds 531 butted
> > tubes, forks and stays", and it came from the factory with a Tange
> > fork, well that may be considered "normal" by some, but it is
> > FRAUD. Tange made good tubing, nothing wrong with it, but if Trek
> > said it was Reynolds, then they lied.
John Thompson replied
> Tange would build whatever the customer wanted, provided the order
> was large enough. Trek did have Reynolds 531 rear stays and fork
> components shipped to Japan to be brazed into sub-assemblies by
> Tange (and Ishiwata), that were then shipped to Waterloo for final
> assembly and painting.
Thanks for that cool insider info John, and I apologize to Trek, Trek workers, Trek bike owners and fans for my overly harsh words. I meant "If Trek said Tange tubing was Reynolds, then they lied". It never occurred to me that Tange would build forks out of Reynolds tubing, but I should have been more careful.
Mark Bulgier
Seattle, WA USA