Hutch questions...

[othomas2]

I'm not that much of a purist but... Is it worth spending the extra pennies for a OE usa made pro racer frame or are the taiwanese made frames just as good ? What differences are there. Also approx how much could I pick up a US frame for... ?

Also... I really like the hutch components and I know they cost a small fortune but are there close copies out there that would share the same essense as these parts... i.e. pedals, clamp, stem etc.

I know very very little about anything but burners, but I'd like to try something new... and this is my first choice.

Any help would be much appreciated.

thanks
Owen

[brass monkey!]

The welding is usually much better quality on the USA Hutch's, the serial number on Jap Models is on the rear dropouts, as per the US made versions, but has a small baseball symbol too. Taiwan versions have the serial nos on the bottom bracket.
Cost, usually 50% more for US made, if comparing like for like, as a rough estimate !
You can pick up Pro racers for a lot less in the USA, but the shipping cost can be high, I am not sure what the current prices for mint examples are, but if they're comparible to say the Trickstar it'll cost up to £250 for a US version, or about £150 for a non-USA version (it really depends on the condition)
I put all the Hutch parts I could afford on my Trickstar, but rather than buy copies I bought good quality non-Hutch parts on mine,
it's really down to what you like or fits with the type of look you want
Good Luck 

[Bob_Acid]

Are the welds on the Asian versions really that bad? I can understand wanting an american one because they were earlier and hutch was a US company an all that but is a good yank welder any better than a good asian one?

[CD17]

Are the welds on the Asian versions really that bad? I can understand wanting an american one because they were earlier and hutch was a US company an all that but is a good yank welder any better than a good asian one?

I don't think there is much differance, Iv got two MTB's one is US Made, the other is an asian one & both the welds look fine to me.

[brass monkey!]

Here's a really useful website, with loads of info on the Hutch history, has lots of details on the US v Jap v Taiwan topic. The guy who runs the website (Johan) was very helpful when I was building my Hutch, he's also a RAD memeber !!

http://users.pandora.be/jjrbmx/hutch/HUTCHfactory.html

I understand the Jap welds were v good, but they when the production moved to Taiwan things went down hill a little, which was a factor to why Hutch went under.

A debate in itself, althouh this is not my personal opinion, i'm only going on what i've read...

[jT Racing]

japanese welds are as good as or better than american welds. Americans on the whole think they are superior and also what they make(not everybody so don't jump down my neck). kuwahara, Japan. Tange, Japan, hutch diamondback haro raleigh(err) aero etc... the quality was second to none. Pre serial pro racer's are the most sought after, american trickstars are the most sought after. Don't know why? got a pre serial pro racer myself but i wouldn't have been gutted with a jap version. 

[othomas2]

Thanks for the advice and opinions... a very helpful bunch you lot. Keep it comin. 

[stuntmaster]

i got both trickstar ie taiwan and usa and i can`t fault the taiwan frame at all . there is other issue of the trickstar`s that are different ie frame stands .
regarding pro racer`s the only difference is that the hutch stamp isn`t a deep on the taiwan ones . i would wait othamas as pro racer do come up in this country and never really go very high compare to pk or skyway .

[heavyduty]

Hi Hutch, I have only just discovered this forum and when browsing through it I noticed you saying you knew alot about burners. I was given a raleigh super burner frame for christmas and I want to restore it. Can you help me because I know absolutely nothing about them (used to have one a long time ago). The frame is in really good condition and I bought some skyways. The original gold plastic is still on the frame, but I think I am going to remove that so the whole bike is chrome. The forks look crap and are black so I want to replace them, also the crank housing makes a noise when the pedals go round so maybe I need new bearings?
It would be great to hear from you

[othomas2]

Come over and sign on to  www.raleighburner.com , my username is Owen

I've just replied to your other thread before seeing this, but anything is possible and these guys are very helpful.

PM me if you want (either here or there) and I'll help as much as I can.... 

O

[heavyduty]

Hi Owen, thanks for your reply. I have registered into the raleigh burner.com site but every time I open a discussion all the text and information disappears within a couple of seconds. Am I doing something wrong?