HAMMER MAN

anyone have one of these ridden one or ever seen one.
the Ti road frame is $795.00
Race Team issue is $895.00

They are made in china and he has a nice synopsis/analogy with concerns to these ti frames.



https://www.habcycles.com/index.html

late

I did a test ride of the Road bike and loved it.

HAMMER MAN

I have been looking @ Ti frames just basically from the web and ran across this one here.
he makes a lot of sense with his synopsis in the different tianiums that are used and avaliable, as well as head tube sizing. It probably is all relative to what one believes in perfromance and handeling

I kind of settled on a Serotta Conocurs.
Seems to be one hell of a price difference between the three, of course realizing his frames are sourced from China still seems really cheap.

kensuf

You know, I could have sworn I started a similar thread last week..

I've been looking at their "team issue" road frame, but am on the fence about the 1" headset.

auk

I've had the Habanero Team for 7 years now. Still lvoe it in every way to this very day. Very stiff, as stiff as the Cannondale I came off of. Much smoother than the Cannondale as well.

I would, to this day, reccommend the frames. Top notch.

iansir

I'm sure the Habanero's are good enough frames, but comparing to a Serotta is like comparing apples and oranges - I looked into a Habenero a lot before I found my ti frame on ebay for cheap. The Hab is made of straight gauge tubing, which will be heavier. The Serotta is double butted, which should save weight and if designed properly could be stiffer than the Hab. Not to mention I'm sure the welds on the Serotta will be quite a bit better than on the Hab. If I was going with a Hab, I'd go with the team issue since the ovalized down tube should help with bottom bracket stiffness (and it looks sweet). The s-bend chain and seatstays are very cool too, but not entirely sure how much of a gimmick these really are (the only ti I've really ridden is my Merlin Extralight, which has s-bend seatstays).

asgelle

Why? Because they charge more?

late

One inch headsets are fine. I bounce around 250 pounds, and go down some really rough roads when touring. Never had a problem. If there is a difference beyond aesthetics I have no idea what it is.

H1449-6

That's not anything to worry about.

HAMMER MAN

sorry, did not see it.

badkarma

I bet if I gave you two unbadged frames you couldn't tell me which was the serotta and which was the habanero.

HAMMER MAN

I know there is a big difference, my twin brother is a devout serotta worshipper, has two steel CSI's.
I rode a litespeed before I bought my Trek Madone, I just did not care for the way it rode, it was the classic and seemed to be pretty flexy,and seemed to run smaller in size than what was stated. I test rode a 57 and it should have been a 59.

My brothers 2 steel CSI are outstanding bikes but they also seem a lot heavier than my Waterford 2200

DocRay

Is your twin a real twin? or a Hamilton evil twin?

At those frame weights, I don't see the point of going to Ti. Some steel frames are lighter.
5 year warranty is not exactly inspiring.

DocRay

There is a big difference between riding butted and unbutted tubing. He could tell the difference from the weight alone.

HAMMER MAN

Real. We are Identical.
He is faster on the hills, climbing and I am faster on the flats and sprinting.
It works out great for a 2 man team when we do hard club rides, and want to gain onothe riders.

adiladub

I've had a Hab for about four years now and recommend it without reservation. Great bike and great guys to deal with.

To me, the value of "pretty" welds is minimal, certainly not worth a big $$$$ premium, but, with that being said, the welds on my Hab are very, very good. Certainly comparable to those I see on Litespeeds and other ti bikes.

As to the warranty, haven't checked the Habanero site recently, but they used to offer a half-price crash replacement policy which in some ways is better than a long "manufacturers defect" warranty. I'd assume that most manufacturing defects would show up in the first five years anyway. Bottom line, however, is that the frame is darn near indestructible which is one of the things I like best about it (along with the fact it is almost maintenance-free, never have to worry about rust, dings, paint chips).

I'm sure there are lighter ti frames out out there. Only you can tell how much these few ounces saved are worth to you (esp. when you consider the possible reduction in stiffness, a la early Ghisallos). For my needs and priorities, the Hab was the clear "bang for the buck" winner.

For more info, you may want to check out the rec.bicycles.tech newsgroup (easily accessible on Google groups). Lot of knowledgeable, satisified Hab owners there. Also, Mark Hickey, Hab's owner, is a frequent poster.

auk

The welds, as was stated in another post, are very, very good. In my club, there are two Serotta ti's and one 2005 Litespeed Vortex. The Habby is on par with both. The Vortex btw, was sent back 3 seperate times due to slag rattling in the frame. A 4th time due to an improper post insert that did not allow the proper size post to be inserted. My, and my friends Habby Team ti's have been trouble free for the seven years we've had ours.

And since all thread deserve a pic or two, here is mine in race trim.

HAMMER MAN

How do you like the way it handles?
Is it flexy, or some what compliant in the bottom bracket area.
I am pretty much of a big gear masher so I do want something that is stiff.
does it track good and is it agile?
I called habanero and they called back and I missed the call so I will try again on Monday.

johnny99

If you can't tell the difference between a high quality butted Ti frame and a Habanero straight guage frame, then you probably couldn't tell the difference between Habanero and a generic aluminum frame either.

Patriot

I've got a TST Ti frame made here in Washington. It is bombproof, lightweight (3.5lbs), and unbelievably stiff. In fact, it is my stiffest frame of all my bikes, yet as smooth when riding. It is slightly heavier than a Serotta frame, but for only $600 with an American Classic Ultra-lite headset, and a total bike weight around 17lbs with a Chorus group, it was well worth it. The quality of the welds are flawless, and are easily on par with every Litespeed and Merlin frame I have ever seen. Just because some of the lower priced Ti frames out there don't have a fancy sticker, doesn't mean they are lesser quality or performance. Where are Habenero frames made? What are their quality controls in the welding process? There are alot of factors one needs to take into account.

I have learned this over the last few years I have been building bikes and comparing dozens of differant brand name frames. What it really comes down to, is your ability to have a good eye for quality, and the patience to do some research.

auk

Love the handling. Very stable, yet more than willing to be steered with your butt. The 1 inch steerer is not a disadvantage at all. Perhaps on the standard frame, but not with the way the Team model is built with the ovalized downtube.

BB stiffness is very good. My friend, who has a team model as well, runs about 225-235 and claims the only bike he has that is stiffer is the old Cannondale Criterium frames with a beer can size downtube.

Good luck with your decisions and feel free to ask me more if I've left anything out.

SEAtrain

Sorry, I don't mean to hijack here:

Patriot,
That looks to be a great price for th TST Ti. I live in the Tri-Cities (Richland/Kennewick/Pasco) so I should at least give them a good look. Unfortunately, it looks like prices have gone up since you bought. When did you buy? Do they have unadvertised frames?

MODEL Stealth R1 $1,150

Thanks.

cyclintom

1 1/8th inch headsets were standardized on production road frames for two reasons:

1) Mountain bikes all were using 1 1/8th inch headsets for no other reason than the original makers had wanted to make a "difference" from what everyone else was making. You'll note that Gary Fisher Mountainbikes had 1 1/4 inch at the the time as well. If you recall, Bridgestone was making that series of MB bikes that all used 1" and they never had any problems.

As far as I'm concerned, 1" is fine on steel forks. And they are fine on carbon forks as well if you don't stick the steerer out of the headtube more than a couple of inches.

2) Carbon forked with carbon steerers were STRONG enough but they weren't RIGID enough. Larger diameter steering tubes were used to keep the forks points in the correct direction.

Next time you're going down a hill really fast, think of what would happen if that fork failed. You might want to think about getting a steel fork after such thinking. Give me a 1" steel steerer fork. Too bad that it's almost impossible to get a well made steel fork anymore.

Patriot

I know, the Stealth is the new model. I bought mine on sale from CBO, when they were selling off the older stock. Mine is the same frame as the Stealth, only it has the level top tube with traditional geometry, not sloping. The new Stealth is actually even more rigid, and slightly lighter. Finding on eo fthe TST's at $600 takes a bit of shopping around, but they are out there. Check Ebay regularly, and other discount sellers online.

MillCreek

SEAtrain, TST frames are built right there in the Tri-Cities. One of the many local spinoffs of Hanford: a skilled workforce knowing how to weld titanium. Lots of titanium pipes and fittings out on the Reservation. I, myself, am waiting for a titanium frame built of surplus tubing from the Fast Flux Test Reactor, or something: I figure the soft glow of the tubing will make a headlight superfluous!