Le club Time

[Calnago]

When I was much younger my passion for bicycles was there but I really didn’t know squat. I would see a bicycle and admit that I would either like it or not based primarily on its looks, or how it might be marketed. And marketing back then was a whole lot less offensive than it is today.
Fast forward to today and I have gained a whole lot more knowledge, and hands on experience, would go head to head with any pro mechanic in the land, and feel I know a little bit more about the intricacies of how bicycles work and are made than the average Joe.
I don’t “love to hate Time”. In fact, I really only took on the last Sk(c)ylon build so I could see first hand what’s new etc. My post re that build a while back in this thread and experience dealing with Time stands on its own. I didn’t even write it till long after the actual build since there were so many negatives involved. But they weren’t “made up” negatives. They weren’t “in my head” only. I had gone into the build thinking I would do a writeup for you guys, took a bunch of pics along the way, and then was faced with “Hmm, do I write this and get called a Negative Nellie or do I just move on and not write it at all”. Eventually, I decided to write it anyway. I knew there would be certain people who would jump up and down crying foul, but they had little to discredit what I wrote other than handwaving or pointing to lame marketing claims. It was a horrible build experience and the design choices Time has made and continue with are very questionable both from business and functional standpoints. So, no... I’m sorry for not loving Time but I have very good sound reasons for my “meh” attitude towards them.
Now it’s funny, because I know a couple guys that are almost like @Kgt in some ways it seems. They fell in love with TIME bikes for reasons unknown to me. They spout off the marketing spiel. Yet can’t adjust their own brakes. I make the same comments to them as I do here, yet they won’t have anyone else but me touch their bikes anymore. So, I’ve seen and worked on a few Times from different eras and I’ve been working on bikes since before Time even made their first one. I have a couple in the garage right now waiting for some love from the CalZone. I get that sometimes people just love a brand, period. And if it’s for nothing more than the look, that’s ok too. But for me, there’s gotta be something real behind it. But even then, there’s gotta be an aesthetic appeal otherwise I just might like it, or acknowledge its worth from a functional aspect, but never really love it. I do like the overall look of some of the previous TIMEs, for sure. But some of those have been complete noodles, and as far as I’m concerned, unrideable. The Skylon is not a noodle in that sense, but when I look at it, even if I ignore all the design issues that mechanics hone their foul language skills over, i just can’t love it. So, disagree with me over differences in what we find aesthetically pleasing, but you better have a better argument than marketing dribble if you want to dispute the other stuff I said. And if you’re argument is sound, I’ll listen.

[m4k1]

one question still always remains in my head though: does calnago now like the quickset headset or not? i think i will never know the answer

Ok, I just about spit up my coffee laughing at this post, as I'm sure you can't be serious. Did you see my last post above 5 or so up? Well, if not, let me reiterate very clearly, and thankyou for asking . I hate the entire Slow Squared System (my latest nickname for the "Quickset" headset. I now call it Slow Squared, instead of just Slowset, because with the latest incarnation in the Alpe D'huez model, they've now buried it under a top cover which makes access not only sloooow, but the most cumbersome of any modern headset I can think of. And you will need to adjust these things, since the waxy substance on the bearings wears leaving you with a loose knocking headset. Ok, "hate" is a strong word, so no big deal, but I just ask... why? So, off comes the top cap, and the stem, and all spacers and finally that top cover so that you can shove the little crowbar thingies in there at an even weirder angle than before, and loosen it off, or tighten it up. If it served any useful purpose I might give it some slack. Perhaps their steertubes are just too soft to even cope with the interface between the steertube and bearings, I don't know... but that is truly the only reason i can think of why they still continue to bond a threaded alloy sleeve to the steertube in order to make this thing work. It is not better. No other manufacturer needs to do it, and steertube carbon layups have come a long way since Time started this thing. It's unnecessary, but if you want a clunker of a fork, look no further than Time's own 550gram Activ fork.
I suspect Time's days are quite numbered in the actual frame manufacturing business anyway. Owned by Rossignol, poor perforiming from a financial perspective, and many of the staff at Time's former operations have already been reassigned. Perhaps they can resurrect their shoe business.
Hope that answers your question... now you know.

have you ever heard of irony?

[Calnago]

Yes, but you opened the door. Thanks. Not sure if you’re referring to your post, which was probably more tongue in cheek sarcastic than ironic, but it was funny.

[m4k1]

at first sarcasm, now irony...and you fell for my trap.
but it was just for laughs anyway.

did i tell you that i enjoy the quickset on my vxrs worldstar very much? haha

[Calnago]

I love traps where I can jump in and out of with ease. I like your Worldstar by the way. Hate it’s headset however, in case you want to know.

[tarmackev]

I love Cannondale like @kgt loves Time but like you Calnago I get infuriated by when things are designed badly.
My 2013 Supersix Hi-Mod was similar, I worked in a Cannondale dealer and nobody could stop it creaking, the clearance was terrible and the frame flexed to one side more than the other.
Getting the BB out was impossible and the frame actually cracked when removing it.
Still I’m on a 2017 Supersix now and it’s a dream bike, still had to get a wheels manufacturing screw in BB.

Back to time, I love kgt’s bike and if he has it working like a dream then that’s fantastic.
As long as everything worked I’d be over the moon.
Both of you have great knowledge and are part of the reason why weight weenies is such a cool site.
I bet if you guys met in real life you’d get on famously.


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[Calnago]

I bet if you guys met in real life you’d get on famously.

Yes. I’m sure we would. Is this another “trap”.

[miltmaster3]

I used to have from s works to any thing you can imagine! And then was time ! I have one thing just to say it is the first time that I can park my bike bike anywhere and don’t have the stress that my bike will leave varnish any wear! The bike stiffness is from another planet I have to say half my bike is like a Tt bike and half like a rounbaix ! So I am very happy that I have a bike that has life time warranty it is solid any very fast!


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[kgt]

Calnago does not respect a thread which is about people - like me - who want to share thir love for their TIME bikes. Calnago, can you please respect that and stop ruining the thread? Is it that difficult for you?

And, for the last time:

a. Those who know like Hambini, Luescher and other top engineers and composit experts give credit to TIME's manufacturing quality and advanced engineering. TIME's carbon frames, forks, quikset headsets, stems, bars etc. are among the very best. Period.

b. TIME frames are made in house in France and not subcontracted in China to nobody knows who. I can find a few videos presenting where and how TIME frames are made. For how many brands this is the case?

c. Although relatively new, TIME frames have won World titles, Olympic titles, cycling monuments and many-many pro cycling stages. Some of us who liked watching Tom Boonen on the TV or were lucky enough to see Bettini winning the gold Olympic medal in Athens on a TIME frame might remember those moments as something special. Are we allowed?

d. Someone who knows a few things about materials and construction, might be able to understand if something is well made or not, if there is attention to detail or not. TIME frames are better made than most other carbon frames. That does not mean that every detail on every TIME frame is perfect but in general their manufacturing standards are very very good. Period.

Again, this thread is about TIME frames and those who ride them and like them. We can discuss anything but, please, not Calnago's personal preferences. Whether he does like something or not, this is not this thread's problem. There are a few unbiased experts online to inform us about proper manufacturing and engineering, Calnago is certainly not one of them.

[Calnago]

Blah blah blah.... this is a general thread on Time Bicycles. I would argue that my build post is likely one of the most informative single posts in this entire thread. If it’s just supposed to be a FanBoy thread, then you should have said so. Why do you think I’ve not made a single comment in your own thread about your Alpe d’Huez. Because I was doing exactly what you asked, to respect the fact that you just got a new bike and are quite proud of it, so why rain on your parade. But this is a general thread, open for discussion good and bad. You may not like what I have to say, fine, but I did a fair bit of work in coming to my conclusions. Your heroes (anyone who has ever said anything remotely positive about any product you own) do not necessarily “know” anything more than I do. I would hazard to guess that I may very well have more experience than them in that regard. But because my views differ, I am not one of your “heroes”. I’m ok with that.
Now, please carry on with your fanboy like admiration with eyes and ears closed to anything that might contradict your beliefs largely gleaned from the marketing literature. But if I come across something that might be of interest to anyone, regardless of brand, I am going to feel free to post it.
We should have some grappa sometime.

[kgt]

Of course, you believe that you know more than anyone else in this forum - including some experts working on aeronautical engineering - although your expertise is limited to proper bb installation and nice cable jobs. Obviously this is the reason you have not a clue why a quickset headset, an iclic preload mechanism or an aktiv fork is just simple and advanced engineering.

[Calnago]

Pray tell, @Kgt, in glorious detail, why Time’s Slowset Headset, in this day and age, is superior to what’s on offer by all the other manufacturers. I’ve listed many disadvantages. The floor is yours...
And don’t stop there, knock yourself out explaining the virtues of i-clic as well. Don’t hold back.

[kgt]

Thank you but I have written about it a few times already.

[Calnago]

Yes. I know. And you’ve said nothing in those “explanations”.

[kgt]

Sure