pvillemasher

But if I'm on a slow Ti bike at least I'll have an excuse

shelbyfv

Hopefully the last one will be a recumbent trike with an electric motor. When I can't ride that I'll stay on the porch.

fried bake

I bought a closeout R255 on ebay special and built it up a couple months ago. What surprised me most it is how much I enjoy riding the bike; I thought it would be one of the quiver, but it's all I want to ride now.

Maelochs

(While shopping for bikes online): "Last bike ... you mean the bike I bought last?"

jamesdak 

OK, so let me offer my views of the R265. I bought mine as my "dream" bike. I wanted something fast, comfortable, and durable for rides up to 100 miles or so. The buying experience itself was fabulous. The rep I worked with was great. I discussed my physical limitations, needs in a bike, etc as we worked through the process. I even sent then the dimensions of my paid bike fit so it could be translated to the right frame size and could build out the bike with the right size stems and such. I went with the upgraded CF fork and then they through in upgraded wheels for free when the ordered wheels went on backorder. They also upgraded the finish on the frame for free when I asked about a military discount. So the buy was great.

The ride was really good in my book. The bike was built out with an 11 speed Ultegra groupset and climbed really well. Now I weigh in the 180-190 range and sometimes over rough surfaces the bike felt like it was flexing more in the rear than I liked. Most of the times though the rear rode really nice, smooth. It also seemed to put my meager power to the rear wheels just fine and didn't seem to give up speed to any of my other bikes. The front CF fork helped with road buzz some but like every other C.F forked bike I have it was harsher than my classic steel rides with wonderful steel forks. Mind you I primarily ride rough chipseal. Now they said the front fork would fit 700 x 28 tires. It may if they are true to size but it sure wouldn't fit Continental GP 4000s II tires in 700 x 28. But to be honest we know those measure quite larger.

Quality wise I was impressed. Seemed to be a very nicely built bike. The only issue I had was with the upgraded Titanium seatpost. It was an Enve single bolt design for the saddle mount and kept coming loose. Enve said to use carbon fiber assembly grease on the internal parts to keep if from slipping. I wound up running a different seatpost instead so I can't say for certain if that would have fixed it. Keep in mind, that was an Enve issue not Lynskey.

So, it was a great bike, well priced, did everything well, etc. And yet for some reason I always picked on of my vintage steel bikes over it. I can't give a real reason why. After about a year of the bike hardly used I sold it locally. By now Lynskey was selling stuff through the discount sites so I took a BIG loss on this. No big deal though and this has nothing to do with how good of a bike it is. I would recommend one without hesitation.

This is a shot the first day after doing the minimum assembly required.



You can check out this post for more indepth info:

https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycli...-new-ride.html

rpenmanparker 

I' e had a lot of great steel forks but never one that could match a Ritchey Pro carbon fork for comfort. My Merlin Works CR frame puts my last remaining 531 steel frame to shame. Best riding bike I have ever known.

jamesdak 

LOL, Merlin huh?? By coincidence this past weekend I took out my vintge Basso Gap Friday then my vintage Bob Jackson (who became Merlin, right) Saturday and then the LeMond Tourmelet Sunday. The LeMond has a C.F fork and I noticed right way how much "smoothness" that front on it was giving up to the bikes from the previous days. Now to be fair, for some reason that Gap is just one silky smooth beast. They all have the same tires and run the same pressures.

My experience with C.F forks are the two on my LeMonds, the Lynskey, the Madone 4.5 and 5.9 and the Scott CR1 Pro. In my obviously subjective opinion I like the steel forks on my Basso, both Giordana's, the Schwinn Circuit, and the Bob Jackson better. I think they ride more comfortably on my ride roads while giving up nothing in handling.

Oh the Paramount also has an old EMS Kestel fork on it. It's good but I'm also running C.F. bars on that one so that's one other factor to skew things. I did get the original steel fork with this one though and it would be cool to swap out the forks to see which I think is best ....

And now we've really taken this off topic. Sorry OP.

pvillemasher

No worries, I appreciate your posting. I actually read your earlier posts last night (and pretty much every other post related to Lynskey or Ti bikes on these forums) and I appreciate your experience with Lynskey.
But as with most threads, they start to go in different directions. I got what I was looking for, I just need to figure out what I want to do.
Carry on

shelbyfv

jamesdak has taken to heart the state motto of Utah "Why have just one?"

deacon mark

I have a nice CF Willier Grand Tourismo but really wanted a TI. I got a Habanero from Mark in April this year with the Nuevo frame straight road bike ultergra 6800 and I love it. I have 2400 miles on it and it rides rock steady. A bit heavier than the Willier at 18 pounds with pedals but it has given me my personal record on a downhill because it feels so stable and smooth. I also looked at Lynski and while like think they are fine I ended up with great personal service from Habanero and we got it down perfect. I wanted and will always wanted a thread BB that is why I originally bought the Grand T because the 2013 still had a thread BB.

Get a TI they are great I think

jamesdak 

LOL, too funny! Now I know what'll I'll start saying to my co-workers about why I have so many bikes, "I'm just trying to keep up with you guys and all your kids! "

rpenmanparker 

I don't know of Bob Jackson having anything to do with Merlin. Tom Kellogg designed the road frames.

whiskyrider

I enjoy my Ti enormously. It's a No22 built in New York State. I hand carried it back to Singapore. I have other bikes for other jobs. A carbon cross (Felt) and a Surly Disc Trucker. Always was looking at more to add to the stable bit since I have No22 that has waned. I conclude that I've all bases covered now🤔 That being said my purchasing has just shifted to bike parts and tools😆. Ti bikes ride like a dream. Less compliant than steel more comfy than carbon. Great for Long endurance rides and boy does it put a smile on your face. I like Lynskey a lot and nearly went for one. Because I can be a bit of a fickle tart it was the sloping TOP tube and graphics that put me off combined with some compensation choices they provide ( came creek vs Chris King ). I was also heavily swayed by No22 T47 bottom bracket as IMO threaded bb is the only way to go. You won't regret they buy👏👏👏👏👏👏

jamesdak 

Actually it's my confusion. Bob Jackson ran a second brand of Merlin years ago but it's not the same company now as the Ti Merlin. My bad....

pvillemasher

Appreciate all the replies.
I ended up ordering an R250 from Lynskey on 18 August, and it arrived via UPS a few hours ago. Nice packaging, no damage, and I just needed to install the front wheel, the handlebars, pedals, seatpost/seat. I removed the Lynskey saddle and installed my Specialized Phenom.

Very nice bike, I got a 22-miler in at lunch and I really like. it. Time will tell though.

It didn't even take me the entire 22 miles to realize that this still sucks.

Bah Humbug

How many times?

Chandne

I like Titanium. I'm kind looking for a Ti bike myself. I would have bought one already but one of those 50K expenses came up.

I'm looking at something like a Seven, Moots, Firefly, Holland, Ericksen, etc. There are 3-4 others as well so I'm researching those small builders while figuring out how to squirrel away some cash quickly. Since it will be my first and last Ti bike, I'm being insanely OCD about the frame. Heck, I may even do a Campy build to be a bit different. Enjoy the ride!

skimaxpower

Yes. I rescued a Litespeed Ti frame that had been exposed to saltwater and UV. Alu components corroded. Steel components rusted. Plastic/carbon bits cloudy from UV. The Ti frame, however, looked immaculate after a light cleaning.

Obviously, no one in their right mind should ever mistreat a bike like that. (Those poor vintage campy hubs!) Obviously you don't plan on it. But Titanium frames are seemingly impervious to the elements.

tiredone

Anyone have thoughts on Ti from BikesDirect? Is it a good way to try out Ti, or since you're going Ti 'for life', you should get a Ti from a high end builder like Moots, Lynskey, etc?

San Pedro

Still in my 30s, so my whopper was telling her I'd get 10 years out of my current bike, though she did say I could upgrade it (she doesn't realize how open ended that is... yet).

Maelochs

I thought about it since I have never heard anything bad about the BD Ti frames. However .... I don't have the money to "try out" a Ti bike which will run a couple grand, just to decide if I want another which will run $3K more.

Basically it has all been said ... Design-Dependent, Ti is a little less compliant than steel or maybe a little more so .... but about the same. It weighs a little less. So ... if you have a steel bike you really like .... imagine it with a Moots or Lynskey decal.

I cannot even tell you why I want one .... maybe because I saw ads in 1990s bike magazines (remember Supergo?) for Aeroflight or Airmail or something .... they looked so tight and only cost a little more than way more than I could possibly afford.

To me the most elegant appearance a bike can present ins brushed titanium with black fork and components. Sort of James Bond in a tuxedo only not a poorly written character in bad movies-- a relatively light, comfortable, durable bike.

I figure, if you don't know if you want Ti, you don't yet. You will be disappointed. It's like putting any new part on a bike and realizing, "Wow, I still have to work just as hard to go just as fast. Turns out this wasn't a magic derailleur."

If you know you want Ti .... get the goods. Makes no sense to go to a Ferrari dealership and ask for rubber floor mats. If you are going to go, Go. Save up, take out a loan, sell a kid or a kidney .... but get something which won't leave you later saying, "if only I had gotten ... "

79pmooney

You won't regret a Lynskey ti. I've never ridden on but I have heard a lot good about both Lynskey (one of very early good ti builders) and his bikes.

I did a quick ride on a Merlin mountain bike 1989 and knew immediately that "this is it! Custom fit, road geo and it doesn't get any better." Also $4000, something I didn't have. 18 years later I was a living in Portland and I landed "the" job. TiCycles had been building me stems to get my stock bikes to fit so I had become quite familiar with their ti bikes. Ordered that dream bike. It lived up to expectations and still does. Got a craving for a custom fix gear I could tackle hills with and ordered another. Likewise.

The different builders build different bikes. But, in general you will find they are more comfortable than steel (and often it seems than carbon fiber, judging from the reactions I hear on group riders when we hit chip seal). For durability - probably no more so than any good frame of other materials from hard riding but the very nice feature is that when they fall over and hit something solid, the damage is repaired with ultrafine sandpaper and elbow grease. No paint to chip. Not dent proof, but that takes work.

For a "lifetime" bike, consider getting a steel fork. It makes a really good match to the titanium for feel. That Merlin I rode so many years ago had a steel fork (of course, 1989). I ordered my first bike with a steel fork, wondering if I was being a fool. I have never regretted it and didn't think twice when I ordered my second 4 years later. I rode ~130 miles a week ago on the first and was comfortable all day. A quick ride in town on the other today. (It has also down a 130 mile day.) Love the rides.

The steel fork from an engineering view - titanium is roughly half as stiff as steel. Every tube of a diamond frame is supported at both ends. This effectively roughly doubles the stiffness of the tube. (OK, so the seatstay and chainstays aren't so beefy, but having another whole set on the other side makes a big difference.) Now think about the fork. Yes two blades but supported only at the top when you think about any vertical forces (bumps). They flex far more than that tube welded at both ends. Now think about that steel. Twice as stiff. And yes, it does behave just like it was supposed to be there with the titanium frame from the start. With a nice fork (I think my first is 531 and I know my second one is) the feel just seems "right". (I had to learn to restrain myself from seeking out the worst pavement out of respect to my tires and wheels. It was just too much fun.)

And bike mileages so far: 10,000 for the first bike. Nearly 17,000 for the second. (I just like riding fix gear way too much.) And the 531 fork on my Peter Mooney has about 30,000 mils and is going strong.) These bikes should never need replacing in my lifetime.

Ben

Fox Farm

Back in 2001, I bought a Merlin frame in my size and moved parts over from my older Cannondale. The Cannondale, a late 1980s era bike, was starting to really kill my lower back on rides of more than 2 hours. The first impressions of the Merlin were that it was like a magic carpet ride; I knocked out 75 miles that day without planning to do so and felt great afterwards. I continue to ride this frame today and it is just fantastic at 17 years old. Regarding the longevity of Ti, it does not corrode or rust like steel or aluminum. It can be tuned to provide a stiff or lively ride feel but probably not as much as carbon can be. I also own a recent Orbea Orca carbon bike and it is stiffer, lighter and feels faster on acceleration but over a longer ride, I observe no difference in ride time vs the Ti bike. I am not racing either one, just getting out for good hard training rides. I am 60 now and love both bikes but if I had to loose one, it would not be the Merlin. The Lynskey that you are considering is a good choice. Sure you can pay more for a Moots, but you don't have to to get the ride qualities of Ti.

pvillemasher

There are a couple of references to the price of Ti in this thread, so just for the record: The Lynskey in the pic in post #40 was right at $3K delivered. FSA crank, 11-speed Shimano 105, Vision Team 30 wheels. I upgraded only the finish and the seat post (to Ti).

I don't believe it was the deal of the century or anything, but the fact that I got a complete hand made-in-USA Ti bike for less than $3K before shipping was a pleasant surprise. I was expecting to pay $5K.

noglider 

I have a Lemond Ti frame with aluminum fork. I can't say if it gives a supple ride, because it can accept 25mm maximum, and my other bikes have much wider tires.