tedshuck

I have come to the conclusion that in order to be really comfortable on a bike and for it to handle well, I need a custom frame. I am 5' 9" tall and have a 35" cycling inseam. The competitive cyclist fit program suggests that I need about a 53cm top tube and 59cm seat tube. I am currently riding a 56cm Lynskey and I really like the bike, but to keep my saddle to bar drop at 2 inches, I have to use a 45 degree riser stem which has an effective horizontal length of only about 7cm and I think this results in my weight not being distributed evenly over the wheels.

This would not be a bike for racing, just recreational rides of 20 to 100 miles, with average distances in the 40-50 mile range. Although I am 55 years old, I am reasonably fit, 150 lbs, and can still touch my toes. I usually ride solo and keep a pace of around 17-18 mph when it's not too hilly. I live in the Denver area and ride a mix of rolling hills and mountain canyons.

I am considering a custom Lynskey 1 series. I have also been reading old posts here about other possibilities for custom frames and am considering Waterford as well. Waterford seems to have glowing recommendations from everyone who has owned one. One thing I really like about my current Lynskey is the BB stiffness and feeling of immediate acceleration. It just feels more efficient than other bikes I have ridden. The other thing that I like about it is the smooth ride on the rough roads and trails that I ride around here.

I realize that a Waterford steel frame will not be as light as a titanium Lynskey, but it looks like they come pretty close. Can I expect a steel frame to match the ride and acceration of the titanium frame? If both are custom and from well-regarded builders like these, should I expect them to ride about the same, except with a slight weight penalty for the steel frame?

Another option I am considering is to go with a small custom builder like Mark Nobilette who is not too far away. The only thing that makes me hesitant to do this is one post I have read where somebody compared one of his old steel frames to a new frame and was amazed at the improvement of the new frame. Waterford allows the option of building an S3 frame for less than the cost of the Lynskey custom and I would expect that frame to have more similar characteristics to titanium than an older lugged steel design.

Any recommendations are welcomed.

Thanks,
Ted

dekindy

You could not go wrong with either Waterford or Lynskey. In almost all situations and specifically yours, frame weight should not be a decision factor. I went with a stock Serotta steel Fierte. But if I had went custom it would probably have been Waterford. In retrospect, a bare titanium frame so I don't have to worry about paint scratches/finish would be my preference if I ever make another frame purchase, which I doubt I will unless accident or defect requires me to.

A riding buddy recently purchased a Lynskey and is completely satisfied with the result.

Hocam

Modern steel tubing comes in many flavors and a custom builder can mix and match them to fit your tastes. A good builder can make a frame that rides exactly how you want it to.

bigskyTi

I think that the most important thing in considering your new build is the reputation of the builder and their ability to traslate your unique dimensions into a well handling bike. All the money and materials in the world will not make up for a poorly designed frame, so if I were you I'd talk to a few different custom builders and see if you can't get a feel for how they might proprotion your frame (the online fit calculators can only go so far).

If I were you I'd surf around some other forums and get reccomendations for builders who have a reputation for difficult fits. There are literally thousands of frame builders in the US and most of them are perfectly capeable of welding/lugging a frame together, the real difference is going to be in how well tey cna make the frame fit you and still ahndle properly.

Places like Serrota, Roark, IF have a great reps in Ti as well as as being known as great fitters. Some other names to know are Guru, Ves Mandrek, Rue Sports (for CF) the list goes on...

Good luck, getting a custom bike is really fun stuff!

John H.

I would go with Serotta for the simple reason that I think they have the best, most integrated fit/build program available. Your new custom frame geometry is only going to be as good as the fit used to design it. Plus, Serotta builds world-class steel, ti, and carbon frames. What more could you ask for?

cmh

Maybe you should post this in the recumbent forum and see what they have to say about that .

Machka 

Marinoni builds custom bicycles. So does Mariposa, but I think Mariposa is taking a break from it for a while.

jcbenten

Parlee.

curtisvill

I just put my deposit down on a new Kirk frameset, https://www.kirkframeworks.com/index.htm. I will have to wait 7-8 months for it but I will be getting a bike that fits me and is built to my specs.

John

Scooper

I've had my custom Waterford 953 since May, and it's everything I hoped it would be. The 61cm frame weighs 1650g, and like Ti it'll never rust and I'll never have to worry about scraping the paint.

tedshuck

That is a beautiful bike! I had a look at Wateford's website and did not see a mention of 953 steel. Was this a special order? The frame looks like their RS-22 lugged option, but they show that this is made from "OS" steel. Any more information you can provide is appreciated.

Thanks to all of you for the suggestions. I am going to try to get to a couple of bike shops in the next week to see what the options are for different custom builds.

Thanks,
Ted

curtisvill

Pretty bike scooper.

Hocam

That's a beaut scooper. What's your fork made out of? I asked about a 953 fork, but Reynolds doesn't make 953 fork blades.

HAMMER MAN

realize that a Waterford steel frame will not be as light as a titanium Lynskey, but it looks like they come pretty close. Can I expect a steel frame to match the ride and acceration of the titanium frame? If both are custom and from well-regarded builders like these, should I expect them to ride about the same, except with a slight weight penalty for the steel frame

In regards to weight, personally I don't believe it would be that much of a difference.
My waterford weights in @ 18.5#, now if I used a lighter wheel-set, took the Open pros off it would drop by at least .25-.50 of a Ib. depending on what wheel-set I picked and bought,as well as using some other light carbon parts.

You can buy a new waterford and have the front true temper or 853,carbon fork and the rear tri- area in stainless steel this would also be quite a weight reduction.

I don't believe there would be any performance issues between a steel or titanium depending on the bottom bracket and chain stay length.
Ti is some what flexy but that also depends on how stiff and the sizing of the down-tube/seat-mast tube and bottom bracket.

Before I bought my Serotta CDA I test rode a Litespeed be quite honest it found it to be pretty crappy in regards to flex, it rode nice but kind of felt noodly.
I do weight between 175-185 depending on time of the year.

I have been looking @ ti frames though and if I do buy one it would be a Seven or a kish and I would have it made to my waterfords specs in terms of geometry with a beefy bottom bracket area as well as the junction of the down tube/seat mast

StanSeven

I've got a stock Waterford that I've had for 14 years and a custom Seven. Steel rides really nice and the quality of the Waterford can't be beat. I upgraded the fork and headset four years agao and had Waterford paint the fork with to match the frame color. Despite a ten year difference in age, the fork matched perfectly.

You won't regret the Waterford.

HAMMER MAN

here is a picture of my waterford built and bought in late 1999,still the same paint job only difference from when I bought it new would be the carbon fork-Quezo-pro and the C/k head-set,and on the D/A crank was replaced by Bontrager and chain-rings are now D/A.
The color is a Jason purple.
I have been thinking of a re-paint but cannot decide on the color or if it really needs a new paint job

[IMG][/IMG]

jrennie

Custom Carbon

www.ruesports.com

I have one coming in a couple weeks so I'm a shill

Scooper

Ted, it was one of the earliest frames that Waterford built in 953 and the paperwork just says "Custom 953", but it's generally based on the 22-Series. The geometry is similar to the geometry of my 1972 P15-9 Paramount.

Waterford Custom 953 B07014 -

Seat Tube Length: 61cm c-t
Top Tube Length: 59cm c-c
BB Drop: 70mm
Chainstay length: 433mm
Seat Tube Angle: 72°
Head Tube Angle: 73°
Fork Rake: 40mm
Wheelbase: 1030mm

The "new" Waterford website that's in beta right now does have a page on 953 under the "technology" tab:

https://waterfordbikes.com/new/home.p...stype=r953over

Thanks! You're right; no 953 fork blades. Mine is chrome plated 531.