Right now I'm looking at getting a new bike. It was going to be a CAAD8 (via buying the whole bike at once as an R900 and slowly upgrading as stuff breaks = $1600 MSRP). There are several people in my area who ride a manufacturer I had not heard of until I go here. The brand name is Paketa. The company is based in Boulder. Its basically run by two guys, they design the frames and build a prototype and a company who deals with magnesium makes the frames in Russia. The same company also builds aircraft parts and other things using Mg alloy. I've heard NOTHING but GREAT things about these frames. There are guys all the way up to cat 1/2 riding them, yet I believe a frameset is cheap enough to be well within my budget. I really want to buy a frame and build it up *exactly* how I want it, and in the mean time I can save money by not getting the stuff I don't need. For example, I don't need a seat right away. I can throw an older seat on what will become my old bike. I am going to get the frame with a threadless (it will be my first haha) headset and fork if I end up going with paketa.

Has anyone heard anything about them? I know the primary thing is to make sure the paint doesn't get scratched deeply or else the alloy oxidizes very quickly, but its generally bad to scrape the paint on any bike, you could be messing up the epoxy on a CF bike, causing your steel or al frame to corrode, etc. Mg is just a bit more reactive.. haha. At least I here the new alloys won't catch fire. But anyway who has heard anything about them? I am pretty sure I can get a really sick deal on it. A buddy of mine on my team was able to get a full DA9 Paketa Mg frame, with fork, Bontrager XX lite wheels, FSA Cf seatpost and good bars and seat and everything for $1950. He knows the owners or something - but I think I might be able to get a similar deal. Obviously the real discount was on the frame, since thats what they control the cost of. So I wonder what I could get one for...