Salsa al a Carte Titanium...... Nice!

[GB]

Hi

Yes, it is the right size... The 20" is too long for me, sadly they don't do odd numbered sizes or I'd have a 19".

The build comes in just under 21lbs on the digital scales. The frames are c1500g, so not stupid light compared to modern carbon frames but mine will still be going in many years time...

And it's not "just a Lynskey" - the geometry is what makes the bike, and this has it spot on.

The cat is Isis - we have her and her son. Got them in Jan from the RSPCA - they've chilled out so much in 6 months. Very cute...

GB

 

[cannondale king]

are you in suffolk/norfolk as if yours is the 18" id love to give it a quick ride as im really tempted by one but dont want to order it until im sure its gonna fit nice if you can i have a ride

 

[GB]

Hi,

I'm not in Norfolk, no. I'll be at Mayhem in a couple of weeks if you are planning on going.

Judging by your signature on here "ride it like you stole it" I'm not sure I want you anywhere near my bike though...

Come and see us at Mayhem if you're going. If you do want one - be prepared for a long wait - I'm not sure when any more 26" ones will be available.

GB

 

[cannondale king]

cheers mate will do il let you hold my ti bike and my giant and the truck as colateral im ok with the wait if its the right ride il see you there gb i dont think il miss you with that

 

[cudfather]

okay. maybe i dont see the point, but, it just looks like lynskey?

lynskey have their 'look', and i quite like it, but then why would you go and buy one only to have them put somebody elses logo on it?

its a bit like somebody liking the look of a thomson seatpost, stripping the anodising off, re coating it and getting 'salsa' laser etched on it?

crazy.

I made this point on another forum when talking about the similarities between the new Cotic Soda and the Ala Carte Ti. Cy Turner got very defensive.

I know it's his bread and butter but there really are a lot of similarities between the two frames in my opinion. Apart from the chainstays, those two particular frames look exactly the same to me. Of course, there's some rather acute geometry differences but I doubt many people would be able to tell the difference in the real world.
It's a shame, as I'm in the market for a quality Ti frame and will pay a fair price for the right one one, but unfortunately all of the highly regarded ones are so similar with being made in the same factory etc I can't bring myself to spend my money on one.

 

[GB]

Hi

This is an interesting argument:

"its a bit like somebody liking the look of a thomson seatpost, stripping the anodising off, re coating it and getting 'salsa' laser etched on it?"

Not really... Bike frames like this are not off the peg jobbies like your branded up Taiwanese stem/seatpost which are picked from a catalogue and branded up as Ritchey/KF/Push/Kalloy etc...

You could say the same about any frame made in the far east as there are so few different factories. You just don't know what they are called and they don't sell under their own brand (as nobody would buy a wing-ha corp frame). The manufacturer goes out there with a design and some geometry and the guys make it. The same factory makes many, many different brands but you don't really hear about it. This is exactly the same - the manufacturer wants to make a Ti frame but has no tooling or expertise in the material. So, the manufacturer goes to Lynskey with a design. Lynskey comment on it and make it. They might look the same by eye to you, but to ride differences in wall thickness, butting, dropouts and tube dimensions all factor in to a different bike. Lynskey, Salsa and Cotic frames are as different as Trek and Giant (both of whom's alloy bike are made in the same place). If Lynskey didn't sell under their own name yo wouldn't have a problem. If you like the way the Cotic rides, buy that. If you prefer the Salsa, buy that. If you don't like either and think you can design a better frame than two industry giants, buy a Lynskey custom.

GB

 

[Russell]

Hi

This is an interesting argument:

"its a bit like somebody liking the look of a thomson seatpost, stripping the anodising off, re coating it and getting 'salsa' laser etched on it?"

Not really... Bike frames like this are not off the peg jobbies like your branded up Taiwanese stem/seatpost which are picked from a catalogue and branded up as Ritchey/KF/Push/Kalloy etc...

You could say the same about any frame made in the far east as there are so few different factories. You just don't know what they are called and they don't sell under their own brand (as nobody would buy a wing-ha corp frame). The manufacturer goes out there with a design and some geometry and the guys make it. The same factory makes many, many different brands but you don't really hear about it. This is exactly the same - the manufacturer wants to make a Ti frame but has no tooling or expertise in the material. So, the manufacturer goes to Lynskey with a design. Lynskey comment on it and make it. They might look the same by eye to you, but to ride differences in wall thickness, butting, dropouts and tube dimensions all factor in to a different bike. Lynskey, Salsa and Cotic frames are as different as Trek and Giant (both of whom's alloy bike are made in the same place). If Lynskey didn't sell under their own name yo wouldn't have a problem. If you like the way the Cotic rides, buy that. If you prefer the Salsa, buy that. If you don't like either and think you can design a better frame than two industry giants, buy a Lynskey custom.

GB

What is is that Lynskey does to the Salsa frame/tubing that makes it worth £700 more than another Lynskey built frame from a certain British bike brand?

 

[GB]

Tube quality, dropouts, tube profiling, smaller numbers made (only 4 exist at the moment!), reverse graphics finish etc etc...

Plus some brands are just more expensive than others and so you do pay a premium - not all of it is paying for the name though as I said above. If you want a good value Ti frame and aren't fussed about weight or any of the things I just listed, buy a Ragley/On one or whatever. If you want a Salsa Ti, buy one. Enough people do want one to make it worthwhile.

You could say the same about designer clothes or Oakley sunglasses.... Yes, they are a little bit better made/designed, but are they really 10x better than a par costing 10x less... Probably not.

GB