I currently ride a 2004 carbon Giant TCR Comp 0 bike with durace and Krysium wheels. I have really enjoyed riding this bike but was thinking about getting a new bike. Some of my friends ride a titanium bikes and suggest that I consider a Merlin or Litespeed. I have enjoyed my Giant and would appreciate any suggestions or recommendations on a new carbon or titanium bike that I should consider.

I'm sure you'll get lots of suggestions, but --

What kind of riding do you do today? What would you like to do?

Just to start the conversation -- lots of folks on this board ride carbon, lots ride Ti. I personally own a Titanium bike because I wanted a custom frame. To my knowledge, there are lots more folks who can build you a Ti bike a reasonable price than a carbon bike...so if you're thinking about a custom fit that is one consideration. As for custom builders, I liked my builder, Bill Davidson at www.davidsonbicycles.com. if I wanted another Titanium frame I'd go to him without reservation.

Gallery of a nice Davidson (not mine):
https://www.flickr.com/photos/huggeri...7603720434389/





As for larger scale builders, you should also check out Moots and Seven.

The most important thing to determine is what you are looking for in a new bike. Do you want it to feel differently from your Giant? Are you going to ride differently on your new bike? Is there a particular kind of geometry that you are interested in?

There are zillions of cool bikes out there. I am happily riding an 8 year old Litespeed Classic. They make nice bikes, as does Merlin. Seven, Serotta and Moots also make great bikes. Lynskeys are made by the original family that founded Litespeed.

As far as carbon goes, the two bikes that interest me at the moment are Orbea and Specialized. I think that the Orbea Orca is gorgeous and the Specialized Roubaix looks like a fabulous, all day bike.

Have a blast!

Joel

Don't forget your steel friends. They still make really really nice ones.

If you can afford a Ti bike, don't settle for anything else. You won't be sorry.

The only ultra lite bikes I have even looked at was a Lapierre X lite or S lite. Both are made of petrified smoke. Way out of my range or class.

Titus.

If I were in a position to consider a high dollar Ti frame, I would look at Moots, Lynskey, Serotta, IF, Seven, Merlin, Lightspeed, Titus etc.

Not being in that position, I might consider Bikes Direct or Habanero.

I hate to say it but I have a couple of good bikes. TCR-C and a Boreas. TCR is CF and after a lot of sorting- it is a good ride. Now the Boreas- It is not good- It is Superb. Lightweight aluminium frame that is engineered.

I am not saying that you should go Boreas- but look at the high end Frames that are around. Custom built CF is not readily available- but it is there but Custom built Ti- Steel and Aluminium could be a way to go.

Thanks for the responses. I primarily do group rides now ranging from 50 to 100 miles at a reasonable pace. Last year I did 20 century rides. I am looking for a comfortable high end bike. My current CF bike was a significant improvement in ride over my previous aluminium Cannondale. Is CF or TI better?

Good luck getting an answer to that!

I don't think either is better. They're different.

Frankly, when I started test riding high-end bikes they were all so much better than what I was riding before that the distinctions between them weren't significant. My decision was driven by my desire to have a bike that would be an all-weather bike that could take bigger tires and fenders if I wanted them, and would also fit me (I'm tall), and that led me down the Ti path and a custom build. If I were buying a nice-weather bike for centuries I'm sure I'd be just as happy with a CF bike.

Carbon and Ti are different, each with their pros and cons. People argue back and forth about whether carbon absorbs road buzz or feels dead and if Ti makes for a more lively feeling or beats you up. There are also people who believe that your choice of tires and their inflation pressures, saddles and handlebar tape have more to do with the way a bike feels than the frame material. I have a Ti bike and if I were buying a new bike, I would probably want to try out a CF frame. I can understand you being interested in Ti.

I would suggest visiting a lot of websites and LBS to see what's out there. You may find a bike that is love at first sight. Also, a knowledgeable LBS might help you direct your search.

Joel

I test rode a lot of high end bikes and got the Cervelo R3. I suggest you test ride different bikes and see what works for you. Have an LBS set up a Ti and CF bike in the same price class with the same wheelset and ride them. Actually, I used my own wheelset for the demos to take that variable out of the equation. At the high end Ti and CF price points, the differences blur. I would keep an open objective mind. Have fun.

The biggest advantage of CF is price, mass production. The biggest disadvantage of CF is no warning of pending stress failure. The biggest advantage of TI is durability. The biggest disadvantage of TI is price.

Beyond that, for me the Ti ride seems better to me. More predictable and not as harsh as CF. It just differs a lot on the bike, the geometry and your body geometry.

Have fun, and let us know what you end up with.

What is the best material- CF or Ti? Think you have to include Steel and Aluminium in that aswell. Not talking about the run of the mill frames though- Talking the better quality ones. Ti Can be very flexible- CF can be very stiff OR flexible- Aluminium can give a very harsh ride and steel--(Aswell as the other materials) can be heavy.

But the reverse can be true on all the materials again. Best ride I ever had was on a Ti frame- till I got the Boreas. and then when the TCR-C frame got built up- I was disapointed till I got it sorted. And my favourite Offroad ride for comfort was a Fuji-Steel frame that was built up and weighed 19lbs.(That is light for an MTB)

Only point to make is that you need quality. Whether that is by going top end complete bike- or buying just the frame and building up with your own Custom build- The heart of any bike is the frame and that is where the cost should go on any build.

So its time to get out- Find the shops selling the quality bikes and get test riding. One of those will stand out as your next bike.

Here is Seven's pricing chart from their website as one data point. I have not found high end carbon frames inexpensive. To the contrary, I have found them more expensive than Ti, Al or steel but comparable to Bamboo (Calfee). However finding the most expensive or cheapest material is not the point. The chart is hard to read but the first number is the price of the frame only.

Model Material Frame Only Bike as-shown Estimated price range**
Diamas A6™ High-modulus Carbon $4,995 $11,2500 $7,500 - $15,200+
V.II A6™ Multi-modulus Carbon $4,395 $12,700 $7,100 - $14,600+
Elium SG Cirrus TC™ Ti & Carbon $3,995 $12,000 $6,500 - $14,000+
Elium Race Argen TC™ Ti & Carbon $4,690* $9,500 $7,000 - $14,500+
Aerios Cirrus™ Ultra-butted Ti $3,595 $9,900 $6,200 - $13,500+
Triad A6™ Multi-modulus Carbon $3,595 $8,900 $5,900 - $12,500+
ID8 Argen TC™ Ti & Carbon $3,395 $10,000 $5,900 - $12,500+
Axiom SG Argen ™ Butted Ti $3,195 $7,900 $5,500 - $12,000+
Axiom Race Argen ™ Butted Ti $3,890* $8,700 $6,000 - $12,500+
Luma Intergrity TC™ Ti & Carbon $3,095 $6,500 $5,100 - $9,600+
Alaris Intergrity 325™ straight-gauge Ti $2,395 $6,300 $4,400 - $8,600+
Axiom Steel Origin™ Butted steel $1,795 $4,900 $3,700 - $7,600+

I mostly ride a custom steel bike built by Carl Strong, see link below. For a custom is was reasonably priced (similar to the bikes you're looking at) ... he also makes Ti bikes. It was a great experience, took 12 weeks from start to when I took delivery, and it fits me perfectly. Again mine was a steel road bike, but was still less than 20lbs all in with pedals (but without seatbag).

https://strongframes.com/

Hermes
The Cervelo R3 is one of the bikes that i was looking at. How do you like the ride and what other bikes did you consider.

I rode the Parlee Z4 and the Trek Madone 6.5 as well as the Cevelo R3 SL. They are all fantastic bikes in that class. I found it hard to differentiate between the bikes. I considered the Look 586 Origin and the Cervelo Soloist SL - SLC but did not ride them. It takes time to get the bikes set up for the right fit with the right equipment. I used my own wheels if possible.

Since my impressions are very qualitative and subjective, I do not want to bias your choice. You should do your own due diligence and test riding. I will say that I went for low frame weight, climbing geometry and ride. The R3 seemed to do the best in those areas for my body stature but once again these are very qualitative / subjective impressions. YMMV. I really like the ride and performance which gets better as I grow more accustomed to the bike. Good Luck.