Titanium bikes...
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Finally made up my mind and went for the closeout Litespeed Watia! It had dropped a bit more in price so wasn't much more than the Lynskey. Mistake with their inventory though meant they upgraded me to the Flint for free so has worked out very well. Wasn't much more then to go for the fully integrated Fi model then that gives fully hidden cabling through headset and T47 bottom bracket.
Not sure if I'm right to go for Fi model though, while it looks great I do have concerns about long term availability of parts. Token headset and FSA arc is the cheaper option. They do offer Enve fork and stem with Chris King Headset that I'd have less concern about maintenance on but it's mental money. FSA stem looks better also. The Chris King Headset is made in FSA acr version. Not listed but possibly on its own would be worth the investment if I could get it. The token headset does seem to be used by a lot of manufactures, Look, Scott, Orro and plenty more use it but it's a minefield of spacers and adaptors for different stems that seem very hard get aftermarket. I'd want to really make sure I source spares now while they are available.
Also bit unsure on sizing was set on M in the Watia as it was closer to road bike geometry. Think I might be better with ML and running a shorter stem on the Flint. I'm 174.5 cm 5'8.5" so slap bang in the middle of the two sizes. Still quite flexible.
I was fitted on the RT-57 and is set up pretty aggressively. The synapse I have is a more relaxed set up and probably closer to what I'll be at on the Litespeed. Genesis Flyer I have falls between them size wise and probably closest. I'm comfortable on it and fit but it's a bit too relaxed for what I want. Bars at 42cm are wider than I really want though also though the Litespeed head angles are slacker.
They are holding order so I have a day to make up my mind.
Post edited by Ryath on4 -
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It begins!
Had them hold the order for longer than planned, came very close to going for the Fi version but think I made the right decision. They had the frame ready in just a few days. Very pleased with the Blue Torch fade anodising. Shipping took 6 days. It was in Dublin in 5. Litespeed took care of customs payment so no nasty surprises or courier admin charges!
Have most of a Force 1x AXS Group, shifter, brakes, crank and rear mech, going to buy last few bits now. Need finishing kit and saddle which I've pretty much decided upon. Just need to run over a few more figures to decide on best sites to buy from.
Undecided are wheels, planning on two sets of wheels eventually, pair of alloy Dt Swiss 1600 for gravel and Zipp 303s for road. Budget means I'll probably only get one at the moment though. Can't quite decide, tempted to get the bling carbon first but the sensible option is the alloys.
Whole Zipp hookless debacle has me wondering if they are the best option! Value wise thought they are hard bet €870 online though LBS might be worth the extra with Zipps lifetime warranty if I ever need use it. Swiss Side Hadron2 all roads do seem a very decent option though I really can't find much reviews of them. They do aerodynamics for DT Swiss and the wheels are basically rebranded DT Swiss ERC 1400 for a few 100 less with plainer graphics. They are also offering a free set of alloy wheels that are the equivalent of DT GR1800 also at the moment which makes them even more tempting.
I'd prefer the DT Swiss branded wheels but they have updated a lot of the models in last few months so supply and good deals on them are hard find. GR1600 were available for less then €400 but €570 is as cheap as I can find the wheelset now. I can get then for about €520 if I buy front and rear from two different sites. Depends on the prices of other bits and pieces in need from which site though if it's worth paying shipping to split the orders.
Other undecided option is the BB, save money short term and go with disposable Sram BB or go all out and get the Chris King to match headset! Hope is the in-between option. They really seem to be the only 3 doing Sram Dub BB properly with a standard 30mm internal bearing and plastic shims. There's a lot of figuring out though on sized spacers and kits required though! Lot of sites don't have stock of all the bits required either.
CK Headset wasn't that much dearer of an upgrade over the Cane Creek from Litespeed. I probably should have just got the CK T through Litespeed even with customs it was a little cheaper. I was a bit confused about the options though at the time. They listed a T47 30i on their site and I've figured out now the bike should have a T47 30x for a 68mm shell bb. It was probably actually just a mistake.
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Was considering two sets of DT swiss hubbed wheels to make it easy but after a bit of research the other option is you can get get shims so you can align the rotors of one set to match the other. Ended up going for a pair of Campag Shamals at a bargain price I'm very happy with. Haven't decided on alloy gravel wheels but probably will be DT swiss when I find a good deal. Tyres were a b***h to get on! And I've got Marathon pluses on with my bare hands!
Sure look at it! Durability is main thing that drew me with no paint to chip and mark up. Titanium is especially suitable for a gravel bike because of this I think. Ride quality is meant to be great but some do find them to soft. Probably more of an issue with larger frames/heavier riders.
Took a lot longer than expected to get all the bits with items going in and out of stock and trying to get best prices and bundle to save on shipping. Did pretty well, managed to get full Force Group for less than the Rival AXS Groupset was going for by getting all the components separately. Still waiting on bars and stem which shipped Friday. Hopefully have it on the road for next weekend. Do most of my own maintenance but never a full build before. Went easier than I thought it would. Hydraulics is the big thing I still have to do and have no experience off. Need longer bolts which is why rear caliper isn't mounted.
There will be bit less seat post showing and stem will be nearly slammed. At 7.15kg at the moment. I make handlebars, shifters and chain left to be just under 1kg. Trimming steerer and seatpost should have me under 8kg. I considered a few other lighter bits but even spending €500 more would have only got me 200g off and I was leaning to durability. Forgot to weigh the frame before I started. Meant to be around the 1.5 mark.
I know that's not where the front hydraulic cable goes!
Post edited by Ryath on5
