TenGrainBread 

Ti is actually quite popular right now, just not in the pro race scene. Tons of small and medium sized custom framebuilders are thriving on ti right now, and Lynskey, Litespeed, Moots, Seven are all bigger operations doing pretty well. Not to mention QBP has a couple large production brands putting out ti models (Salsa, Foundry), and Kona still does small runs of some models in Ti.

scuzzo

yes the smaller builders are going great guns.. i dunno, it just seems that carbon fiber has crowded out the market.. but when i started riding i think the TREK 5200 or 5500 was the bleeding edge in carbon.. and cannondale just came out with the CAD4.. and the prettiest bike was a Bianchi in that wonderful green color.. dressed in Campy 8 ergo.. and that was the thing... but even the trek 5500 looked different in a good way... and then my friend showed up on a polished litespeed.. and it was like something from space.. real buck rogers kinda vibe. i mean if you were a bike geek you had to look and marvel at it.... now.. it just seems like the new thing is just the same old thing with a bit more swoop on the frame shape or a bit larger font on the graphic.. im starting to sound like an old man yelling at the clouds.. but.. there is a sameness to todays marketing centered cycling industry... it may have been when there was the push to the compact frame geom.. that ascetic just fights eye for clean lines... na... spinning way off topic... its just nice to see some cool old school traditional diamond frame Ti bikes.. gee i am a retro grouch..

Popeyecahn

Not vintage, but a classic - '97 Serotta Legend Ti.

markjenn

Another early Litespeed (1996), this one a lower-end Natchez. Not much remains of the original bike other than the frame and front hub; over the years, I've softened it up quite a bit as the bike is aging better than I am. Just upgraded to new 10-speed Campy Veloce group. Still a wonderful bike which gets a lot of miles.



- Mark

scuzzo

ha man, i always liked the natural finish on those, thats the cool thing about a nice Ti bike, you can just swap out groups and keep the frame and for the most part the thing will look as new as a penny. looks like a real clean ride, dig on the rolls saddle too.. those were classic... thanks for posting up.. i can remember seeing these and thinking SOME DAY!!

noglider 

Here is my ~1994 Lemond, ostensibly built by Clark Kent, now out of business. Very light, fast, and nimble.

scuzzo

cool some more additions, so we have Litespeeds, Moots, Serotta, Teledyne, Merlin, speedwell. Spectrum and Lemond. a couple of Eddies, a Nago.... all represented.. thats nice and diverse sample... still waiting on the DEAN and a Schwinn Paramount in Ti to make an appearance.. and any of the smaller frame shops.. like seven, and IF and Guru.. and any other that has skipped my mind... ha.. its just cool to see all these many and varied examples...

dig on the Serotta sp? i remember bidding on one of those on the bay... missed it by that much...
and the Lemond... again., i remember watching one of those bid out of my reach at the last second on the Ebay...


dang it.. ebay..

gaucho777 

1990 Merlin:




Tom Kellogg signature:

scuzzo

that Merlin is just too cool, even down to the downtube shifters. what a nice ride.. I really miss downtube shifters,,.

babyshoe36

noglider 

I did a frame and fork swap on my Lemond, above. This one is from ~1996. I did the swap because this size is better for me.

-holiday76

leeinmemphis

Well I finally get to contribute. I've had this Litespeed for about a month. It's a late 90's Litespeed Tuscany. I removed the old decals, changed out the bar tape for something newer/more comfortable and added a couple water bottle cages. I also went with spd's and a Brooks B17 saddle. I plan on riding this bike a good bit of the time.

mackgoo

95 Mega Tube.

RobbieTunes

Serial # 357

cheffyjay

that is fantastic!* Bravo.

*

curbtender

93' Miyata team titanium

RobbieTunes

Hot rodded.

jetboy 

damn @curbtender! nice! hows she ride?

curbtender

Joy to ride. Comes in, with pedals, a little over 17 pounds. I've had a lugged aluminum Alan (Salmagundi)and a lugged Trek carbon. The 3 bears, stiff, soft and the Ti was just right.

SpeedofLite 

Nope. First year Litespeed used an integrated head tube was 2002, so your fine bike is younger than you think.

nollo9871

My only titanium bike is a Litespeed Obed FS, from around 1995. There is a Speedwell titanium road bike up for sale on eBay right now.

GravelGuy

My 1991 Merlin has just come out of the basement after being upgraded to 11 speed. I used silver R7000 brakes, levers and derailleurs in an effort to keep it looking "classic." The crank is the original Shimano Dura Ace 7410 square taper crank, I think one of the prettiest cranks ever made.

noglider 

I have now replaced the wheels with 650b wheels and 38mm wide tires. I hope that doesn't break any rules. I also changed the brake calipers, of course. The wheels have a 7-speed thread-on freewheel, and I still have the Campy 10-speed shifters. I haven't decided what to do yet, but I have a hub ready for a rear wheel rebuild. I also have some 9-speed bar-end shifters, so I could put on a Shimano drivetrain. Oddly enough, the 10-speed shifters work well over the 7-speed freewheel. On some shifts, I have to click twice, but it works perfectly and noiselessly otherwise.

No pictures yet.

oddjob2

It may be behind the WSJ pay wall:

https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-ser...es-11551374180