Custom titanium build...

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Berzin1
Posts: 237
Joined: Wed Jul 20, 2016 9:35 pm

by Berzin1

I will be going with a Lynskey custom geometry frame. I've decided on the R480 tubing, with the down and top tubes made of 6/4 titanium. I may be able to do curved seatstays, but haven't decided yet.

I've been out of the loop for quite a while in terms of road cycling tech, so bear with me. Some of my questions/concerns may seem simplistic to some of you veterans, but they are new to me.

The head tube for this frame is tapered and integrated. I have no idea which size fork would go with this. Does it mean the 1 1/8th hourglass head tube is a thing of the past? Is this going to be or is it already the industry standard?

I am considering an Enve fork. Are there any others I may be missing? It seems as if most manufacturers are going with their own proprietary seatposts and forks, so I am assuming there isn't a whole lot of choice.

The bottom bracket is going to be 68 English thread. I was told they do not have the tooling to make a T47.

I was also told that the chainstay bridge had to stay for reasons of stiffness and warranty. They could weld it a bit further up towards the bottm bracket but that is about it.

As for the seatpost and stem, I am considering Enve. They conveniently make a 120 stem in a -17 rise, so they are in the running. But I will also consider any sugestions.

The handlebars are going to be a bit tricky. I currently ride an Oval Concepts R910. The anatomic bend is very close if not exactly like the other bars I've used, the 3T Prima 220. Again, any suggestions would be appreciated.

That's it for now. I will be getting into the painting of the frame and components in a few days. I've had a preliminary look at http://www.blackmagicpaint.com. If anyone can recommend any other painters in the USA for the sake of comparison I'd appreciate it.

markdjr
Posts: 250
Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2017 10:21 pm

by markdjr

Since youre looking at blackmagic I'd say check out Ticycle for your custom build, they work out of adjacent spaces and both do great work. I have been really happy with my Lynskey frame I got super cheap on ebay, but if I was spending the money on custom I would have gone for Ticycle for sure.

by Weenie


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Berzin1
Posts: 237
Joined: Wed Jul 20, 2016 9:35 pm

by Berzin1

I've already gone through the whole process with Lynskey and have made a commitment to them.

I had checked out Ticycles before when I was doing my initial research but I decided on the 6/4 titanium tubing that the R480 custom will afford me.

CLEAR
Posts: 241
Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2012 2:20 pm

by CLEAR

Likewise.. if I was going custom i'd go with the likes of Firefly, etc.. so many names. My bikes currently mostly Ti, one carbon and few steels. Started with second hand Seven, second handnplder Litespeed Ghisallo, new ready made Archon, Xicon, T7, T5, T1SL then more into customs from DeRosa, anigma, crisp, and Legend.

Ready made ti frames of course better bang for buck, but i truly enjoy the step up to customs once i gotten to know more of my riding style (solo long rides and short spirited group rides) and body positions. Honestly had I went custom geo from the start, i will have zero clues on whats good or bad frame geo.

Berzin1
Posts: 237
Joined: Wed Jul 20, 2016 9:35 pm

by Berzin1

Throughout the years (and after many, many different bike frames) I've pretty much got the geometry down-

55cm top tube (non-sloping).
54cm seat tube.
73 degree head tube.
72.4 seat tube.
40.6 chainstays (this may change upwards, but not by much).

Wookski
Posts: 1416
Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2016 5:51 am

by Wookski

Enve forks are solid but nothing special. WR compositi make beautiful slender carbon forks in 3K (gloss or matte), otherwise the 3T Rigida LTD is the weightweenies choice (< 300g uncut). Extralite make wonderful headsets and have a very easy to use website to determine diameter etc.

DJT21
Posts: 381
Joined: Sun Mar 27, 2011 7:35 pm

by DJT21

Enve stems look like garbage and their seatposts seem overly complicated. Also very expensive. Would never choose either.

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pdlpsher1
Posts: 4016
Joined: Thu Jul 19, 2012 6:09 pm
Location: CO

by pdlpsher1

For my custom Ti I went with a Trek Domane SLR fork. It comes in several color choices (I chose black and it comes with no logos of any kind). The Trek fork has an extra long axle to crown distance. As such it has tremendous tire clearance. I have fitted a Panaracer GravelKing 32mm tire and there's stilll a 3mm of clearance. The fork does take direct mount brakes so I've asked my framebuilder to build me DM brake studs on the rear so that I have matching DM brakes both front and rear. The Trek fork also has a carbon integrated crown which saved me roughly 30g. of weight from not having to use the C.K. steel crown. Lastly the fork comes in several rake options so you can choose the one that suits you. For only $300 it's a much better deal than an Enve fork.

If you have a desire to run a bigger and wider tire (i.e. 28-30mm actual measured width) on the rear you might want to consider lengthening the chainstays. A standard Lynskey may only take a 25mm tire.

Berzin1
Posts: 237
Joined: Wed Jul 20, 2016 9:35 pm

by Berzin1

I don't plan on running tires larger than 25's.

I appreciate the comments on Enve because now I know that I have other options. The choice will ultimately depend on what I need, as I was looking at one of Enve's stems because it has a -17 rise. But Zipp and 3T also make stems in this configuration.

As for the Enve fork, I have been hearing rave reviews on it and just thought it would be a no-brainer. The comments have opened my eyes to other options.

Seedster
Posts: 672
Joined: Fri Jun 05, 2015 11:05 pm

by Seedster

It seems like Enve is the go to choice for custom titanium frame builders and I really don't understand why. Could be the whole American builder ethos, but I would certainly give WR and 3T a serious look.

Imaking20
Posts: 2260
Joined: Fri Nov 18, 2011 5:19 am

by Imaking20

3T Rigida LTD also won't clear more than a 25mm tire - so at least the bike would be balanced front to back :)

robertbb
Posts: 2179
Joined: Thu Jul 23, 2009 3:35 am

by robertbb

Have a look at a Trek Emonda SL/SLR fork. They are very high quality, come in two rakes, available in a range of basic colours with no branding (including black), are very competitively priced, and are designed for direct mount brakes.

Even if your frame takes a standard mount rear brake, direct mount on the front puts the stopping power where you actually want it.

rollinslow
Posts: 864
Joined: Fri Dec 21, 2018 2:25 am
Location: New York

by rollinslow

Seedster wrote:
Wed Dec 19, 2018 1:03 am
It seems like Enve is the go to choice for custom titanium frame builders and I really don't understand why. Could be the whole American builder ethos, but I would certainly give WR and 3T a serious look.
I would argue that most people buying custom Ti frames want only the best. When it comes to carbon components I subjectively think Enve is the best. Never had an issue. However, given that Mavic is now the owner it will be interesting to see if quality dips.
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Berzin1
Posts: 237
Joined: Wed Jul 20, 2016 9:35 pm

by Berzin1

For the stem and seatpost, I've narrowed it down to Enve, Zipp and 3T. Seem like the obvious choices, but the pool isn' that deep and they are the few companies thqat offer -17 degree stems.

The handlebars are becoming a difficult because I haven't seen any comapnies that make an anatom,ic bend. Worse comes to worse I'll use the Oval Concepts that I have on my Cyfac.

Wookski
Posts: 1416
Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2016 5:51 am

by Wookski

rollinslow wrote:
Sun Dec 23, 2018 12:02 am
Seedster wrote:
Wed Dec 19, 2018 1:03 am
It seems like Enve is the go to choice for custom titanium frame builders and I really don't understand why. Could be the whole American builder ethos, but I would certainly give WR and 3T a serious look.
I would argue that most people buying custom Ti frames want only the best. When it comes to carbon components I subjectively think Enve is the best. Never had an issue. However, given that Mavic is now the owner it will be interesting to see if quality dips.
Enve is not the best- it’s simply the most recognised mainstream “high end” brand. Bike builders like enve because of the range of different rakes available, supply is never an issue and the brand is well known. Compare the 2.0 to the WR FK1: FK1 is a much better product- in performance, weight and aesthetics. In fact, all of WR’s carbon components are much nicer than enve.

by Weenie


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