Hulley

Now that is just Badass!

rekmeyata

And Lynskey are less expensive then Litespeed.

tanguy frame

+1 Moots. I got one. It's candy.

VT Biker

Why not either go with Moots, Lynskey, Spectrum (Kellog - founder of Merlin) or even a Company such as Roark.

At the end of the day, ABG is in it for the money, while these smaller builders are in it for the love of the craft. You decide.

The fact that Litespeed now sells carbon frames......kind of a sign they are going to eventually drop Ti altogether. It is just not economical for a large bike manufacturer to make Ti the mainstay, and to invest heavily into it.

aloysius

It's hard not to see parallels between what's happened to Litespeed and Lynskey and the whole Schwinn/Waterford thing. I'm sure that these carbon Litespeeds are fine bikes, but does the world really need need more rebadged Taiwanese carbon?

Fleabiscuit

At least they have a design that is somewhat innovative. I think they look pretty good, no worse than most of the aero designs of Cervelo, Ridley and Felt. Although I'd get a Lynskey over a Litespeed, I'd still consider Litespeed if I was in the market for a Ti bike.

Okay, Litespeed took shots at the CF mfg's over the years but the market is moving in that direction and they want to capture a piece of it. They designed the CF bike and it's being made in Asia, a situation no different than offerings from C'dale, Specialized, Trek, Ridley, Bianchi...pretty much every non-botique bike company in the US. Heck, even Parlee has some models made in Asia. To say that this makes Litespeed "confused" or whatever the previous poster said is a bit of a stretch. Lots of bike manufacturers offer bikes made from different materials.

The last time I checked, Serotta, IF, Seven, etc., offered bikes made from Ti, CF, Steel, etc. I wouldn't say any of these guys "didn't know what they want to do" or whatever that guy said. These companies make some really nice bikes. I'd gladly own a Litespeed. Their Ti bikes are still made in the US and the last time I checked, they were very well made. The Archon is a sweet looking ride. Easily as cool as anything from Lynskey (and I'm a Lynskey fan).

Just sayin...

jr59

Well said

Pb_Okole

You need to get your facts straight. First off, Tom Kellogg did not found Merlin. When Merlin first started up, they consulted with Tom to help design the frame. After they were up and running, most design was done by Rob Vandermaark. Tom was then consulted when they did custom frames. I worked with Tom when I had a custom Extralight made. Secondly, when you order a Spectrum Ti bike, it is built to his specs by your friendly welders at Litespeed/Merlin/ABG. He then does his finishing work on the frame and delivers to customer. Unless things have changed since I toured the factory a few years ago, when you get a Spectrum, it is being handled by the same team of welders that do custom Merlin or Litespeed orders. When ABG acquired Merlin, Tom went to the facility to insure that they still met his standards to reamin his Ti vendor. The fact that they met his standards back then and that the relationship still stands speaks to the quality of their work. I'm not saying they are any better or worse than Lynskey, Moots, etc. I'm just trying to set the record straight on the Spectrum/ABG relationship.

milliron

I had a minor issue with one of my Lynskey mountain bike frames. It happens. Was resovled very quickly. Excellent customer service.

A++, will buy from again.

Jrasero

Old thread but my input is both are good but as some have stated Lynksey simply has nicer details to their bikes while Litespeed plasters on cheap decals that frankly IMO don't look modern or nice. I have a 2018 Litespeed T6 and while it's a great bike the cheap white decals simply don't look great on the frame and I am almost tempted to wipe them off. Secondly some people have had issues with Litespeed claims since they are owned by ASI, and while I have had no claims with Litespeed, I will say their customer service is prompt and at least in the NY Tri-State area they do have a few authorized dealers. What it comes down to for me is geometry and weight. Lynksey frames while great always seem to be heavier than a Litespeed which may or may not matter to you depending on the bike you are targeting but more importantly I am in between a XS and S for Lynksey while Litespeed I can ride most smalls with little to no adjustments.

Either way both great bikes and sad to say still much cheaper than Moots or Seven Cycles

billridesbikes

As soon as the non-compete was over for David Lynsey I ordered a custom frame from his new company around the end of 2005. I believe it is frame #554 . It’s a great bike, the workmanship is fantastic and I still ride it a lot. The titanium frame will probably last forever.

...with spring ‘training wheels’

TheDudeIsHere

As long as we are talking ti, one of my buddies has a Holland. Very different. If you look closely, it is a ti tube with cutouts and a carbon tube inserted into the tube. He says it is a great ride. I dunno, never rode it but he swears by it.

Either way, very different and not everybody has one.

MidTNBrad

I still ride my '99 Litespeed Tuscany. This was before the buyout and it has David Lynskey's signature on it. I do agree with the cheap labels as mentioned above. When I rebuilt it a couple of years ago I contemplated taking them off because they are scratched on some places.

jadocs

Interesting thread. Just goes to show that opinions go both directions as I have seen a few threads that state Lynskey has terrible customer service and quality was not up to par.

I have been very happy with my T2 and my dealings with Litespeed (purchase, support, small parts). I have not needed to warrantee anything yet so cannot speak to that.

Menel

My 2010 or 11 era Lynskey small is properly light. In the past decade carbon and even aluminum offerings have leap frogged it, but its a 10year old bike at this point. Still very fun and feels competitive on evening club rides.

It predates the OS craze, oversized bb and beer bottle headtubes. I suspect, but have no expertise, that those OS details that are more applicable to carbon, cause construction to balloon in weight. Cause if you look now they don't have any frames below 3lb which is very different than a decade ago. Im sure they are still built well and still on my short list for a burly tourint rig.

Pb_Okole

They also use threaded bottom brackets as opposed to Litespeeed using press fit. No creaks.

jadocs

My bottom bracket is threaded and Litespeed also offers T47 BB as an option.

Pb_Okole

Yes, how old is your Litespeed? I rode Litespeeds for years UNTIL they stopped doing threaded bottom brackets and went with press fit. Now ride Lynskey where the models I ride anyway come with threaded bottom brackets by default.

greatscott

If you don't know already Lynskey was the original owner and founder of Litespeed. The company that took over has bad customer service, but they still make good bikes, it's just Lynskey pioneered all the methods used by all titanium frame builders today, so when I was deciding on a TI bike I went with Lynskey because they are number 1 in my book.

thehammerdog

road bike action just compared the 2.
go read up.
no down side.more of a money thing and what u like

cycology

"'99 Litespeed Tuscany. I do agree with the cheap labels as mentioned above. When I rebuilt it a couple of years ago I contemplated taking them off because they are scratched on some places"

I have 2000 Tuscany, decals wearing off, I replaced. People say ti is not as stiff as carbon (true but fine for me, I like comfort.) Friend joked he's Italian racer named Tetrazini. I got decal letters, put that on (you could also do Fettucine for a noodly bike)
People ask, what kind of bike is that?