Originally Posted by
veganbikes
My first post I mentioned
Ora in Taiwan, not a boutique builder at all but they do quality work and are known for that. I did mention some builders in the U.S. in one of my more recent posts yes but also mentioned another bike I have that would suit a lot better for someone on a budget. I have yet had issues with Soma or New Albion and have worked with Merry Sales for years without issue. However yes they could have had issues I am not aware of. I didn't say one has to buy a boutique frame but one should not buy the bottom of the barrel titanium frame from some rando on eBay/Alibaba.
It was cool you sort of half read what I wrote and complied an incomplete summary that kind of missed the point.
Atlas Shrugged In terms of Titanium yes anyone can put a TIG welder to it but to have it last the area and tubing has to be clean and you want to back purge with argon gas while you weld. Also to build a bike you have to have some precision just slapping something together won't last. Tom Kellogg is more than just a name (and part of a good balanced breakfast) he is a designer and someone who understood geometry and design of a frame. Putting tubes together is just part of the equation. It is doesn't have to be romanticized but honesty should play a part. If it isn't properly straightened and checked you can have problems and people do. If the welds aren't done right, they can fail. Look at, for instance, when Clark Kent outsourced frames, they had a lot of issues their original stuff made in house was good but they want elsewhere and had issues. I get it everyone can do anything, good inspiring stuff but to say it is just that easy is not entirely truthful to the craft.
You have been reading too many cycling magazines and other industry propaganda. Any experience welder can weld Titanium tubes together accurately and reliably. Obviously it needs to be done right and that’s understood. Even yourself who I assume is not a welder is aware that the tubes need to be purged with inert gasses during the welding process. This is not some secret process like Stradivarius used in the production of Violins.
The fact that some framebuilder decided to outsource to a lowest bid contractor and did poor quality control prior to distribution is not connected to this discussion. Companies like State and Salsa pump out thousands of welded frames a year without a issue, much less catastrophic failure and mayhem on the streets
The magic of geometry and design is more ethereal fluff. Bicycle geometry has barely changed over the past 40 years and is easily determined based on your preference and again there is not much to it, a few angles and some tube lengths is all we are taking about. Grab a 1970’s Masi Gran Criterium and current Kellog frame where is the great advancement and innovation.
There is more skill and innovation necessary for Carbon frames, tooling required is specialized and expensive, layup skills are less common, materials more challenging to source and actual carbon layup design requires much more experience.