Orient Express - Cheap Chinese Rims / Wheels / Forks / Frames / Cranks / Etc

This isn't exactly what I'm saying. What I am saying is that these parts are manufactured in Asia anyway and then bought by Trek/Spec/Etc. They'll buy a fixed quantity and these will then be branded and packaged according to the buyer.

I can believe this is pretty close to what happens.

It's not so much that we can buy Trek or Giant or Spesh forks without the stickers, it's that we are now getting the ability to buy fork design xyz1234 from the factory that make them just as the big brands do.

There's always the possibility that customers who are buying 5000 forks at a time can return any that they're not 100% happy with for immediate and no questions asked exchange, a quality selection procedure that we, as single unit buyers, are not privvy to.

Cynics might sggest that the products that make it to ebay and the like are the ones rejected by the big brands. Who knows.