Hi, today I realised for the first time that the forks used by Cervelo are manufactured by a different company. I am realy surprised that Cervelo, claiming that their carbon-technic is superior to other producers, is using 3rd party parts for their bikes. What is the reason for that?

Cervélo work along with the fork manufacturer to design a fork ideal to the bike, the previous manufacturer was Alpha Q / True Temper but is now 3T.

 alpha q changed their name to 3t?

No Alpha Q and True Temper are the same company.  3T is a seperate company that is based in Italy but manufactures in Asia like 95% of cycling stuff. 

 Has anyone noticed that CSC still uses Alpha Q forks on there road bikes (SLC and R3)?  They use 3T on the TT bikes but every bike I saw in the Tour de France that was riding an Alpha Q, excet of course the TT bikes and maybe the white bike Andy Schlek rode on the last day,

 See below.

 Yea, csc is using 3t's aero bars now, are they also using their aero forks?

So is FSA out, their ceramic bearings and stuff, does csc use any ceramic on their bikes 

Your last statements do not refer to my question!

Is the manufacturing of a fork so complex that there are specialized companies needed?

Cervelo is optimizing all details of the fraim, but on a mayor part as the fork the production is given out of their hands.

Or is it a matter of price (are 3rd party producers cheaper because of higher quantities)?

Furthermore the finish (surface / texture of the carbonlayer) of the frame and the fork is different. I personally would prefer a bike in a

completely rounded piece of work.

I think the 3T funda fork on my R3 is great, and certainly matches the rest of the bike in terms of colour and overall looks. I am not fussed in the slightest that is not Cervelo made.

Heck, for all we know, the Cervelo frames and 3T forks could even be made by the same factory, just under different corporate contracting chains.  Probably not, but I know for sure my frame was made in China, not Canada even though that's where Cervelo is "from" and I doubt 3T makes their own forks in Italy, either.  The two companies say they work together on the design, which seems perfectly logical and reasonable, then they sub-contract the manufacturing elsewhere.  The only real area of concern is how each company handles their quality control process to check the results once the forks/frames come back from the factory.

Oh, one other bit on 3rd-party forks... Reynolds hasn't been mentioned yet since they're not part of the Wolf/Alpha/Easton/3T mix that Cervelo has used at one time or another, but the Ouzo has been one of the most popular forks I've seen around both as an aftermarket upgrade and as OEM for a lot of other frame manufacturers.  Previous to my Cervelo, I got an Ouzo Pro fork for one of my other frames, and I've been riding it for several years now.  Great fork, hands down... light, stable handling, excellent road feel, absolutely zero complaints.  My point is there is nothing wrong with 3rd-party forks in general, although not all manufacturers/models may be equally good.

u.m.

Bike manufacturers do not make each and every component that goes into their bikes, not just forks.   Handlebars, seats, wheels, drivetrain, headsets, pedals, brakes, yada yada yada.

BTW, car manufacturers do the same thing.

It's a pretty common occurence in all sorts of manufacturing.

Bob

u.m.:

Your last statements do not refer to my question!

Is the manufacturing of a fork so complex that there are specialized companies needed?

Cervelo is optimizing all details of the fraim, but on a mayor part as the fork the production is given out of their hands.

Or is it a matter of price (are 3rd party producers cheaper because of higher quantities)?

Furthermore the finish (surface / texture of the carbonlayer) of the frame and the fork is different. I personally would prefer a bike in a completely rounded piece of work.

I think I can help with this one by referring you to a response by Gerard on this very question (back in August 2007, when he regularly contributed in this forum):

gerard:

...As for other parts, we regularly have ideas for other parts, but we really don't have the time to produce components, much too busy with frames. But we have provided a few designs to other manufacturers in the past, and will likely continue to do so.

Met vriendelijke groet,

Gerard Vroomen
Cervelo SA
www.cervelo.com