Walter

Jesus wept.

Walter

'02 Litespeed Ultimate.

Actually relegated my steel LeMond to #2 status though the Chorus on the LeMond shifts better than the Centaur on the LS.

bassjones

I probably will eventually. I'm guessing there's no way I'd get into a custom frame with full SRAM Rival (or Force) for anywhere close to what I can afford right now though. The $1500 I'm paying for my CAAD9-4 was pushing it as it was.

patentcad

Hey, beats all those idiot cagers. I'm no Harley fan, but I'll take a brother biker on an HD over a friggin cager any day. Even a motorcycle fred like me knows that.

hodie21

Check out pride cycles. www.pridecyclesusa.com They make a full custom titanium from for $1000 and they are made in Tennessee.

bassjones

Wow, steel road frame is $650 and no extra charge for custom sizing...

cooleric1234

And I've read a few horror stories from people buying from them, FWIW.

cooleric1234

And many people don't want a bike to last forever, they prefer to upgrade every few years anyway. I'm not trying to be difficult, I've considered getting a Ti bike, but I want to make an informed decision. It seems sometimes the claims about carbon's fragility and titanium's durability are both exaggerated. Who cares how long your bike lasts if it isn't as comfortable (or light, or responsive, or whatever other criteria also matters to you)?

For a while I thought steel and Ti must be comfortable because they seem to be the materials of choice for randonneuring or sportive rides. But I think durability and longevity are probably big issues there. However, they can't be that uncomfortable of bikes if people are spending hours upon hours in them riding 200k and sometimes more.

If you couldn't tell the next time I get a bike (which won't be for many years) comfort will probably be a prime criteria. I just don't know if a Ti or steel bike can match the Roubaix type carbon bikes out there.

Oh, and I think another poster hit the nail on the head. These are generally bikes that people spent a LOT of money on. I think there is a trap of "having" to like your bike. I don't know how to put it but psychologically I don't think anyone wants to honestly admit that the bike wasn't worth what they spent on it, so they convince themselves it's as great as it cost, even when in some cases it may not be.

guadzilla

Funnily enough, after our little.. ahem, disagreement on the other thread, I almost pinged you to buy that helmet you were selling, before realizing it was the wrong size. That would have been nicely ironic.

guadzilla

Them: mostly big dudes wearing leather.
Us: mostly skinny-armed dudes wearing spandex and with shaved legs

"Brother bikers" they arent.

Walter

The Jorts man, the Jorts.

Walter

Where's that pic of a cat and something about no unseeing things?

hodie21

Please elaborate. I've never bought anything from them but their prices seem to be great for a full custom frame.

H1449-6

I had mine painted. Had a very specific paint scheme in mind. Works for me. And I love the ride.

tuxbailey

Very nice.

So you change your saddle and bar tape to match the bottle cage? i recall you had red seats + tape before.

Red tires too?

cooleric1234

It wasn't my experience so I don't feel comfortable talking much about it. But it's one of the first posts that comes up in a google search. I don't think it was on this forum board, it was somewhere else. When I say horror story that's what I mean though, and not just isolated.

rat fink

Nice. I really like that.

Campag4life

To mix things up...will post a pic of my Ti 29er hardtail...where road bike meets mountain bike AND my Triumph bonneville since Whoosh posted his cruiser.
Cruisers suck. ...sorry Whoosh...try a standard some time if you want some handling. I would own more bicycles if it weren't for my motorcycle habit.
I like Ti for off road in particular. Prefer carbon on the road and price no object, carbon everywhere.

patentcad

When I got into motorcycling, I just wanted a bike that was fun/comfortable to ride, style wasn't an issue. I chose a sport touring bike. Cruisers in general and HD's in particular seem to reflect style over substance, i.e., motorcycles essentially based on a 50+ year old design employing a chuggy two cylinder motor that don't do any motorcycling thing very well. But they do look cool. Hey, whatever floats your boat. HD did a lot for the motorcycle business and culture in this country. If they can get people to pony up $20-$30K for their bikes, more power to them. I'm a sucker for that HD V-Rod. Love that bike.

Campag4life

Pcaddie...what's the big idea trying to make a lucid argument?
Cruisers are sadly 'Americana'. In fact there is a parallel between Cruisers and motorcycling and how misunderstood cycling is in America for example compared to Europe. Europe gets motorcycling better than America as well...and I am all American. It’s somewhat endemic of the roads we have here...long and straight. Cruisers are the lead sleds of motorcycling and from a world perspective, are a drop in the bucket. Motorcycles started as standards with sit up and beg riding position which is still the most comfortable...which encompasses the sport touring category which you embrace. Back breaking feet forward cruiser riding position is all about fashion as you say….no rear suspension height for fashion to look long and low and feet have to go out in front where they can’t support the back. Cruisers sucks for handling and unless they have 120 rear horsepower are slow. A std mid peg bike makes the most sense and handles the best. Crotch rockets on the street are almost the polar opposite and painful in their own right. I ain't dissing on Harleys either. All the Hells Angel Harleys are mid controlled. The story of Harley Davidson is epic and Harley and Davidson were amazing pioneers. Sad to see the marquee morph however. Harley could be more than it is.

patentcad

In Europe since WWII, motorcycles have been a much more significant part of the transportation mix, at first because many people in post-war Europe couldn't afford a car, and now because with $8-$10/gallon gas in much of the continent they can't afford the fuel. When I go to Greece (I've been there 3x in the past 5 years) there are 10x (and I do not exaggerate) as many motorcycles on the road as in the USA. In all the months I've spent there I can count the number of cruiser style bikes I've seen on one hand.

Here in the US, motorcycles have never been a serious transportation alternative for too many people, it's 99% recreational. That's how I use mine, although at times it really does come in rather handy for a number of practical reasons. Right up until you get flattened by the F150 I mean.

But if you're going to actually use a motorcycle for transport on a daily basis, a cruiser is the last kind of bike you'd choose, and that's reflected in their low numbers in Europe in my view. That would be like buying a 1940's or 50's style car in 2011 because it looks cool at the bar on the weekend. If you only ride to the bar on the weekend that works. If you commute into downtown Paris or Athens every day, not so much.

Campag4life

True...and in more economically challenged parts of the world motorcycles are a principle mode of transporation as you say...and they are invariably standards. Also scooters make a lot of sense and very popular in many parts of Europe including a huge aftermarket for hotrodding them. The Harley thing is pretty laughable if you think about it. One reason the brand is dying out aside from the obvious economic downturn for way overpriced bikes with 50's technology in addition to their demograph aka geezers dying off, is young people today see the pirate thing for what it is. Old men trying to cling to their virility...how Harley has cashed in for decades...sad. Kind of like us oldsters on carbon fiber bicycles trying to keep up with the kids.

WHOOOSSHHH...

I forget most of everything right after I post it. PCAD has taught me that...As far as" big dudes leather wearing", They are some of the nicest folks I have ever been around. Would do anything to help a fellow biker, reguadless of type of bike..Bet you will find very few cyclist who had a problem with a harley rider..Here I'll give WALTER some more ammo to use against me..Fire away WALTER..I have thick skin.. My other Harley...

WHOOOSSHHH...

That theory is as old as the hills....Carbon bikes and Rice burners have one thing in common. They both lose half of their value quickly....That's a fact. I have been to many Harley rallies in Daytona, and while you do see some old school bikers, the majority are in the 30 to 40 year old range. People put $25-$50 grand into these bikes. That weeds out allot of the 17-25 year olds. Once they become adults they realize what a real motorcycle is, and they come over to the dark side....

Campag4life

No question many do put a lot of money into their Harleys and quite frankly I will go a step further and say that all motorcyclists are among the nicest people I have met...even more so than those that ride carbon bicycles who seem to have something to prove at times. Perhaps it is the humility of riding a motorcycle out on the road and knowing your life can change in a second but we do it anyway for the thrill of the open road.
Ride safe and if I were a rich man I would own 1 type of every motorcycle including several Harleys.