Best Explosif Steel

[FluffyChicken]

..The geometry was ‘suspension-adjusted’ from 94 onwards.

Do you know which years the frames where 're-adjusted' for the ever increasing fork lengths?

 

[PurpleFrog]

I thought that Tange Prestige was really meant for relatively light riders? Eg

desperadocycles.com/The.../About_Steel_Tubing_page4.htm

 

[FluffyChicken]

I thought that Tange Prestige was really meant for relatively light riders? Eg

desperadocycles.com/The.../About_Steel_Tubing_page4.htm

These are all top end steel frames so all will be similar to weight range.
They're designed for XC racing, to last as long as a season for abusive use if that long. XC racers will tend not to be your 14stone+ person as they'll be pretty fit

Though the ovalising, ribbing blah blah and what not reduces flex, there will always be limits. Buy a more heavy duty frame.

Note there are quite a few different grades of Prestige.

5 in 1992 I think
Ultimate Ultrastong
Ultimate Ultralite
Concept
OS (OverSize)
'standard'
...that's not including Ritchey branded versions of it


Orange Prestiges had the black label on so used the bog standard bargain basement 'prestige' tubing, I don't remember them using the Oversized tubes.

 

[Kenbo]

I love this site, you guys are great.
I'll be looking for a frame built between '93 to '97.
I am thinking of putting Poject 2 on, mainly for the experience...

 

[Anthony]

..The geometry was ‘suspension-adjusted’ from 94 onwards.

Do you know which years the frames where 're-adjusted' for the ever increasing fork lengths?

They've never been readjusted! The geometry of a 2009 Kula is the same as a 1994 Kula, they've just let the head angle get slacker. They say it works, but you don't see Konas winning xc races the way they once did, so maybe it works fun-wise rather than speed-wise.

Incidentally, believe it or not, although the quoted head angles were always 71 degrees up to (I think) 2005, Tech confirmed in an mtbr thread that when they said 71 they meant 'if you fitted a 41cm a-c P2 fork', even though the bike wasn't available with a P2 fork and was actually fitted with say a 100mm fork that was 6.5cm longer. I don't know how they justified that, but they don't do it any longer, so I guess they decided they couldn't justify it.

 

[Anthony]

I thought that Tange Prestige was really meant for relatively light riders? Eg
desperadocycles.com/The.../About_Steel_Tubing_page4.htm

That's an interesting article, but I think it's very old and pre-dates the introduction of Tange Concept and Ultimate. For example the distinctive fluted Ultimate Ultrastrong down tube on the 93/94 Explosifs is by no means a lightweight tube.

But in general what he says about Tange Prestige is pretty silly, with all due respect to somebody who knows far more than I do. I'm afraid that frame-builders tend to try to aggrandise their own role so as to impress potential customers. The notion that Tange would design a tubeset and call it Tange Prestige MTB but it wasn't strong enough for MTB, even in the heaviest gauge they made available, isn't really plausible. The only data I have for Prestige MTB says that the gauge was either 9-6-9 or 10-7-10, which is by no means thin (my 97 Kilauea has a 7-4-7 top tube and 8-5-8 down tube and I haven't heard of heavier riders breaking them)

 

[FluffyChicken]

probably the good old E&OE tag or the very pale grey on white text in small font somewhere you'd not dream of looking
410 AtoC rigid, be fine for a 60mm fork (after sag). Possibly a bit steep for 45mm forks in use.

I suppose it's one of those things where when the fork is in use there id a chance you'll hit that angle and if it was adjusted you'd get very steep in use if it wasn't allowed to return quickly enough.

Rigid is so much easier, lol.

 

[FluffyChicken]

Anthony, you might like this then
not sure on year

Also
1997
go eat your heart out here
http://www.equusbicycle.com/bike/tange/ ... index.html


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[PurpleFrog]

I thought that Tange Prestige was really meant for relatively light riders? Eg
desperadocycles.com/The.../About_Steel_Tubing_page4.htm

That's an interesting article, but I think it's very old and pre-dates the introduction of Tange Concept and Ultimate. For example the distinctive fluted Ultimate Ultrastrong down tube on the 93/94 Explosifs is by no means a lightweight tube.

But in general what he says about Tange Prestige is pretty silly, with all due respect to somebody who knows far more than I do. I'm afraid that frame-builders tend to try to aggrandise their own role so as to impress potential customers. The notion that Tange would design a tubeset and call it Tange Prestige MTB but it wasn't strong enough for MTB, even in the heaviest gauge they made available, isn't really plausible. The only data I have for Prestige MTB says that the gauge was either 9-6-9 or 10-7-10, which is by no means thin (my 97 Kilauea has a 7-4-7 top tube and 8-5-8 down tube and I haven't heard of heavier riders breaking them)

Plus if the article is that old - which I didn't notice - and it was right, then we'd be surrounded by Explosif shrapnel by now.

 

[Kenbo]

Going off the track a bit, what's your opinions on the difference in 'ride' feel and quality between steel frames and Titanium?