Originally Posted by
UnfilteredDregs
I see Ti as the ultimate custom frame in terms of the best balance between ride quality, durability & performance. Sure, a more rider tuned Cf frame can be found but it won't have the resilience to minor/typical impacts that Ti has...Lack of corrosion is another, others have mentioned many of the same reasons already. As others have said, ride and narrow things down to knowing what you're looking for before making a long term investment.
(Gratuitous De Rosa porn...):
Drop Dead Gorgeous! Just perfect! Would kill 'em on the hot or not thread.
Ok, I have ridden a Merlin Ti since 2001. This is a very comfortable frame, very durable frame, with my better wheels on it the ride is spectacular and very snappy feeling, and it is NOT like 95% of the other bikes out there. Most all of the advantages of the Ti bikes has been stated in earlier posts so I won' repeat other than to say that it is super durable and I don't worry about it or fuss over it like my carbon fiber bike. The Ti bike is not as light weight by about 1.4 pounds in comparison to the CF bike yet over a 2 hour ride my time is virtually the same. I am not racing on either bike, just riding hard and pushing myself. Any argument that Ti is too expensive vs other frame materials is bull. You can easily spend $5000 or more on one of the top shelf CF frames - Colnago, Pinerallo, etc etc. You can also spend that much on a custom Ti frame. If I were to do that, I would look seriously at a Moots. But you can get a really good Ti frame from Lynskey for much less than $5000.