Is this Merlin frame the extralight version?
 

We are selling this Merlin frame on eBay and got this comment: “This looks like it may be the extralight version since cable guides are not on top of top tube.” What do the Merlin fans here think?
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...112c60792.jpeg

Well, I'm no expert but that looks just like my Merlin bike and I understand it not to be an Extralight. My googling searches when I got my bike showed that the Extralights say that with a decal on the top tube vs Titanium like is on ours.

As an example look at this current ebay sale

https://www.ebay.com/itm/28552096673...kaAoqzEALw_wcB


Mine with Titanium on the top tube:

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...45dc07a68e.jpg

I too had one like it and it is a standard Merlin Ti frame...still a wonderful frame.
Beware, many of the extra lite frames suffered from a cracked down tube where the bottle bosses are...

Weight
 

The frame weighs 3 lb 6 oz according to a commercial 50 lb capacity scale. That's 1532 grams. All of the photos that I have seen of Extralites have that decal on the top tube where ours has Titanium.
I'm going with it not being an Extralite.

All the relatively few Extralights I have seen have machined rear dropouts to reduce weight by comparison with the “standard” Merlin Titanium which look to be cut from Ti plate without weight relieving work.

Dropout photos
 

Here's a couple of dropout photos.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...662d947752.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4ba075f703.jpg

Not an Extralight to the best of my knowledge.

This is c. 2002 but I can’t recall even the early Extralights not having weight-relieved dropouts…

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...257c27063.jpeg

I looked this bike up in the old catalogs, and I am unsure what this is.

In 94 the regular frame did still have the top mount guides. The Extralight has the stops, but it also says "Extralight", not Titanium. But it also says "Double Butted", which the normal frame did not. 94 EL dropouts are not lightened.

The next catalog I can find is 97, and that has three road bikes, but only one has butted tubing.

At this point, it appears that this bike has a mix of EL and standard decals. It could be a 95 or 96 standard with a DB sticker added, or it could be a 94 or later EL with a Titanium sticker added.


BTW, these bike were sized center to top of the top tube as either 49 or 51. This bike, if it really has a 52 TT is a 49, but a 49 would be measured CTT, not CTC.

I wonder if this all adds up to a custom?