Just when you thought you owned a forever bike...
#26
I'm good to go!
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: Mississippi
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I hope I never have a forever bike. Change is good!
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#27
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Portland, OR
Posts: 13,321
Bikes: (2) ti TiCycles, 2007 w/ triple and 2011 fixed, 1979 Peter Mooney, ~1983 Trek 420 now fixed and ~1973 Raleigh Carlton Competition gravel grinder
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I think this Extralight is just crying out for one of those couplers! Saw the DT at the crack. Clean up. Install coupler. Done! "Oh! You want to take the bike 'apart'?" That takes two and costs extra."
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#29
Advocatus Diaboli
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Wherever I am
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Bikes: Merlin Cyrene, Nashbar steel CX
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May sound naive, but at the time and thinking it would be a forever bike, reason for opting for the Cyrene over the Extralight was as much thinking it had to be a bit more robust since the frameset weight was about 270 grams heavier and had an identical geometry.
#30
#31
#32
That’s what I was going to say. You can always change back to the original forever bike. Like putting on that old pair of comfortable underwear you discovered in the bottom of a drawer.
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#33
Steel is real
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Not far from Paris
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Bikes: 1992Giant Tourer,1992MeridaAlbon,1996Scapin,1998KonaKilaueua,1993Peugeot Prestige,1991RaleighTeamZ(to be upgraded),1998 Jamis Dragon,1992CTWallis(to be built),1998VettaTeam,1995Coppi(to be built),1993Grandis(to be built)
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Sorry for your loss. As much as I like titanium, I prefer a good high end steel frame or aluminium frame. The Croll frame is pretty.
#34
Clark W. Griswold
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: ,location, location
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Bikes: Foundry Chilkoot Ti W/Ultegra Di2, Salsa Timberjack Ti, Cinelli Mash Work RandoCross Fun Time Machine, 1x9 XT Parts Hybrid, Co-Motion Cascadia, Specialized Langster, Phil Wood Apple VeloXS Frame (w/DA 7400), R+M Supercharger2 Rohloff, Habanero Ti 26
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If you look carefully at the bike the crack was actually some hidden carbon fiber that asploded. It would be tough to see on your phones or on lesser monitors but if you blow it up right you can see the crabons that exploded the titaniums.
#35
😱 I looked at it on my large iMac and you’re correct.
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#36
There's another thread going on speed wobble, I'll try to post in a sec, and someone mentioned a podcast on the subject, and darned if they didn't mention a Ti bike on a very fast downhill, got into serious speed wobble, was barely able to stop and sit down to calm down, and darned if there wasn't a crack exactly like you posted, across the top of the downtube spanning the shifter bosses. I think the severe speed wobble caused the crack, not vice versa, but not certain.
EDIT: Post #35, the Silca podcast, really long, like an hour, the Ti bike part is in there somewhere:
https://www.bikeforums.net/general-c...-danger-2.html
EDIT: Post #35, the Silca podcast, really long, like an hour, the Ti bike part is in there somewhere:
https://www.bikeforums.net/general-c...-danger-2.html
Last edited by Duragrouch; 04-13-24 at 08:01 PM.
#37
Senior Member
The problem isn't the frame, it's the components and trying to find replacement parts. If not on hydraulic and electronic, soon the only used market will be available and at some point I would think that will get more difficult. So forever bike maybe not impossible, but PITA from this point forward as bike industry is extremely insistent on not allowing cyclists to have choices. I mean I can't recall if I have ever seen a bike with silver SRAM parts... not even the slightest amount of choices from SRAM now, electric hydraulic black only.
Last edited by zymphad; 04-14-24 at 07:08 AM.
#38
The problem isn't the frame, it's the components and trying to find replacement parts. If not on hydraulic and electronic, soon the only used market will be available and at some point I would think that will get more difficult. So forever bike maybe not impossible, but PITA from this point forward as bike industry is extremely insistent on not allowing cyclists to have choices. I mean I can't recall if I have ever seen a bike with silver SRAM parts... not even the slightest amount of choices from SRAM now, electric hydraulic black only.
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#39
Steel is real
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Not far from Paris
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Bikes: 1992Giant Tourer,1992MeridaAlbon,1996Scapin,1998KonaKilaueua,1993Peugeot Prestige,1991RaleighTeamZ(to be upgraded),1998 Jamis Dragon,1992CTWallis(to be built),1998VettaTeam,1995Coppi(to be built),1993Grandis(to be built)
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I don't recall having choices in the past. There was a time when everything had DT friction shifters and rim brakes. There was no choice. Things move on and you can't expect backward compatibility or legacy production forever. But if there is enough demand then the niche market will usually cover it.
#40
You have the ability to buy new old stock parts even if it is expensive but everyone choses a different strategy . Not everyone is into electronic shifting running batteries , disk brakes or even 12-13 speeds. The niche market is having enough demand for nuovo record, c record, dura ace 7400/7700/7800 where prices skyrocketed. You can also find on ebay parts or entire groupsets that are new old stock that date from some years for sale. All is a matter of money for no more produced groupsets and their spare parts.
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#41
Senior Member
It's time to move on to a modern bike with electronic shifting, wider tubeless tires and disc brakes. I dig that four years ago. No regrets. The ride is so much better with far less tire pressure.
#42
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Join Date: Jul 2009
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#43
Senior Member
#44
Senior Member
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Bikes: Colnago, Van Dessel, Factor, Cervelo, Ritchey
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#45
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#46
#47
Commuter
Join Date: Jun 2022
Location: SE Wisconsin, USA
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Bikes: Main Bikes: 2023 Trek Domane AL3, 2022 Aventon Level.2 eBike, 1972 Schwinn Varsity, 2024 Priority Apollo 11
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That's a shame, but I'm glad you found the crack before it caused you to crash.
The Croll is a lot better-looking bike anyway. Even so, I hope you ride it a lot and accept that it won't always be so pretty.
The Croll is a lot better-looking bike anyway. Even so, I hope you ride it a lot and accept that it won't always be so pretty.
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#48
Thread derailleur
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Glendora, CA
Posts: 771
Bikes: Croll '94 & Cannondale Supersix '15
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Croll update:
Taking me awhile to acclimate to the stiff ride (relative to my Merlin Extralight).
Riding with lower pressures on the max size 30's the Croll accepts.
The Dura Ace 9100 clinchers always gave me a nice ride. I refuse to go tubeless, so nobody suggest that! lol
Thought of going to a saddle cushier than my Fizik Arione. Bring on any other ideas, please.
I love those Shimano downtube barrel adjusters. The old 90's version with the winged right-side one. Adjust on-the-fly!
My riding buddies came up with some blurbs:
- you sure riding slower. Did you go bar Crolling last night?
- you're making my skin Croll.
- quit slowing to a Croll.
The only worthy one for the Merlin was calling me a Wizard. Or, during a pitstop, the wizard's taking a wiz.
Taking me awhile to acclimate to the stiff ride (relative to my Merlin Extralight).
Riding with lower pressures on the max size 30's the Croll accepts.
The Dura Ace 9100 clinchers always gave me a nice ride. I refuse to go tubeless, so nobody suggest that! lol
Thought of going to a saddle cushier than my Fizik Arione. Bring on any other ideas, please.
I love those Shimano downtube barrel adjusters. The old 90's version with the winged right-side one. Adjust on-the-fly!
My riding buddies came up with some blurbs:
- you sure riding slower. Did you go bar Crolling last night?
- you're making my skin Croll.
- quit slowing to a Croll.
The only worthy one for the Merlin was calling me a Wizard. Or, during a pitstop, the wizard's taking a wiz.
#49
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Eastern VA
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Did you contact Merlin for repair or replacement? They currently advertise a lifetime warranty.
On the clamp on band type shifters mentioned. I had a steel frame bike with those. There was a small stop welded to the underside of the down tube. My frame cracked and broke there. This was back in the seventies.
On the clamp on band type shifters mentioned. I had a steel frame bike with those. There was a small stop welded to the underside of the down tube. My frame cracked and broke there. This was back in the seventies.
#50
Thread derailleur
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Glendora, CA
Posts: 771
Bikes: Croll '94 & Cannondale Supersix '15
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Did you contact Merlin for repair or replacement? They currently advertise a lifetime warranty.
On the clamp on band type shifters mentioned. I had a steel frame bike with those. There was a small stop welded to the underside of the down tube. My frame cracked and broke there. This was back in the seventies.
On the clamp on band type shifters mentioned. I had a steel frame bike with those. There was a small stop welded to the underside of the down tube. My frame cracked and broke there. This was back in the seventies.
The frame holds tons of sentimental value and would like to shoot for the warranty repair.
Maybe they could tack on cable guides to the head tube, since the couplers would install over the shifter bosses.
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