Litespeed
 

I have heard whisperings that the quality of Litespeed cycles has gone downhill. A contributor to another forum, a bike shop owner, said he stopped carrying them because of this.

Yesterday, when I visited this absolutely great LBS in Frederick, MD, the owner and I talked about bike for about thirty minutes. We were talking about the merits of the new LeMond hybrid steel/ti-carbon frames. I voiced concern that buying something new in the first year might be risky because all the bugs have not been worked out of the process.

He obviously knew his stuff, as he told me about how the frame components were formed, how they were joined, and the quality control and testing that went in to the process. He then made the following statement (paraphrasing) "The Zurich and Victoirre are built on exacting standards on a par with the better bikes, like Merlin, and far and away better than lesser bikes, like Litespeed."

When I asked about this, he, too, said the quality has gone down in recent years.

Anyone else heard this?

From other things he said, he is obviously a cylcling traditionalist. The one thing above others that indicated this was his ranking of frame materials in order of ride and overall quality. "Steel is better than aluminum. Carbon/steel is better than steel. Full carbon is better than carbon/steel, and ti is the best of all."

"Heresay" I say!! - - In all seriousnes, I bought my 2003 Litespeed Arenberg new and have put just a few miles shy of 1000 on it this year. I have had FEW problems, NONE frame or any structural related and find it to be the most responsive bike I have ever owned. I consider this purchase one of the best useage of $'s I have ever spent. Problems experienced were mostly in shifting adjustments done free by LBS. BTW- I agree with the frame material assesment. But must admit I have very limited experience with Carbon Frames.

Are the frames made overseas now?If so thats most likly what people mean,not a big deal if thats the case.

I attribute it too to shops that don’t carry the Litespeed brand obviously pushing the brands they do sell. Image them saying “Litespeeds are a great bike, but we don’t sell them.” :(

The owner of Intown Bicycles rides a Litespeed touring bike to work. He doesn't sell them but has a high opinion of the bikes and the company. So do I. I own one. :D

Dang!......I'm hangin' onto my '93 Classic!

I've not heard of such issues.

There were concerns about the light-weight bikes breaking but this may be too-heavy a rider or some such. This could be an issue with the new Trek 5900 replacement also!

Also the comments about shops spreading rumors may be true esp with Litespeed entering the aluminum frame arena... More competition at the low end!

Now Litespeed has models that directly compete with the Trek 2xxx and 1xxx models!

Having said that I will state that my choce if bike is based upon my needs. I purchased a Litespeed Catalyst in 1998 and I've no need to replace it any time soon...

On the other hand I am looking for an Audax bike (being a racing bike, the Catalyst has no eyelets for fenders or racks)...

I love Ti so I looked at the blue-ridge... However there were some things I did not like about the frame setup and I'm leaning to another maker of Ti frames, Airborne.

Also when I bought a roadbike for my wife it ended up being a trek 2200. Trek makes good bikes and it was her size and the price was right.

I can't speak for the new aluminum model line, but Litespeed titanium frames are still top notch in the industry. Jut look at the weld quality and their customer service. You cannot buy a better Ti frame than a Litespeed or Moots.
A bike shop owner is always going to promote the brands he/she carries unless he/she is professional enough to give you an unbiased opinion. At the end, money talks though, so do your research by actually talking to people who own and ride Litespeeds.

Cheers

This LBS owner did not carry Merlin nor Cannondale, but he said both were excellent bikes, with Merlin being better than what he carried. More and more I am hearing rumblings about Litespeed quality going down starting with last years model line. I can understand the loyalty of those who have Litespeeds made prior to last year, but I am hearing it too much to discount.

I proudly ride a 2001 Litespeed Classic. I just completed 10,411 Miles on Saturday - all since March 2002. It is a great bike. Absolutely no problems except for the failure of a rear hub on the Rolf Vector Comps that came on the bike, which were replaced under warrenty by Trek with Bontrager Race Lites. The workmanship on the frame is flawless. I also own 2 Cannondales which have been workhorses also. The Litespeed is a much better riding biKe than the R600 Cannondale.

Litespeeds are still made in the US (Tennesee). I think their still good bikes, so we still carry them. I think their slightly overpriced, but still of a high quality.

A buddy of mine with more money the sense who buys at least one new $3000 bike per year because he can, just purchased a new Litespeed, I believe it's a Sienna but could be wrong. He swung by a couple of weeks ago and my neighbor who builds high end race cars ( has done work for NASCAR teams and NHRA drag teams ) was at my house when he came by. He was literally gushing at the quality of Dan's Litespeed and this is a guy who knows what he talks about from an engineering, fabrication, and artistic standpoint. His comment was something to the affect that, "unlike your bike (my Specialized Allez Elite) this bike was built by someone who cares."

I think right now, Litespeed is at the top of the food chain when it comes to the "buzz" about higher end bikes. That will always make them a target. Trek, Cannondales, and others have been their as well.

That's good to hear. Perhaps the rumblings I have been hearing are in error. Let's hope so.

Litespeed has gone through some changes in the past
few years. The same company owns both Litespeed and Merlin, but they have different production facilities.
There has been a shift to pushing complete bikes and
frames are harder to come by than in years past. The
aluminum bikes represent a down market push by Litespeed that in some minds may suggest the overall
quality levels have declined, but I don't believe there has been any change in the Ti end of the business which is still very innovative. The Al frames are almost certainly east asian sourced. I have been told that Litespeed sales in Ti frames are in the 10 to 12,000
frames per yr range. Steve

The "rumblings" maybe targeted at the aluminum bike line, but I don't think that it's credible. An Al frame will always be less durable than Ti, so it does not necessarily mean that any of the Litespeed models declined in quality. "TrekRider" probably heard the same thing about Trek bikes, but I'm not sure if he gives any credibility to those "rumblings".


Cheers

perhaps lightspeed is a pain in the carcass to deal with these days because of their move to only selling complete bikes (there is always a component that someone wants different) vs. selling framesets as well.

lemond is made by trek now?!

lightspeed will always be right up there due to its rock solid reputation and its rock solid warranty.

since Ti is nearly indestructable and lightspeed is one of the best Ti bikes, i don't see it.

Complete B.S.
Litespeed is a premier ti bike in reputation and quality. Anyone that says the quality has declined either 1)has a grudge against Litespeed for some reason 2)doesn't know what they are talking about 3)are weak-minded sheep that will mimic someone else equally uncredible.

I have visited the facilities in Tenessee and their manufacturing and materials are top notch. Don't believe me, just look at the bikes!

Litespeed aluminum bikes are excellent too. Their top aluminum bikes like the Mira and Avior are as good as other top brand aluminum frames. The geometry is identical to their Ti bikes so the ride is familiar to Litespeed owners.

I am very surprised to hear anything like this of Litespeed since frames like the Vortex are some of the finest bikes available on the planet.

The Lemond brand is owned by Trek. As far as I know, the production facilities are seperate and distinct. A LeMond is still a LeMond. It's the same as Chrysler owning BMW or Mercedes or whatever it owns.

Trek is a conglomerate, owing LeMond, Fisher, and Klein.

Er... Mercedes actually owns Chrysler. For what it's worth.

I'd say someone's laying some b.s. on you. As a former Litespeed dealer (though the '03 MY), I've witnessed their quality and the consistency thereof. True, the alu bikes are sourced from Taiwan, but nothing's changed with the Ti bikes. I saw some flaws with the early alu bikes but those seemed to have been cleared up by the time they were previewing the 04 models.

Seems Litespeed has a pretty loyal following.

Aren't the Aluminum Litespeeds made in Taiwan now? Isn't that where Tim Isaacs was spending most of his time before he left the company? As for Titanium bikes, didn't TiSport make the first bikes for Litespeed and Merlin? These is no new thought processes over at Litespeed. In fact, according to Bob Roll, Litespeed makes the best shimmy bikes around. Just take your hands off the handlebars and see....

knifun,
Have you ever ridden a Litespeed? shimmy bike?! I bet your arms are getting tired from all that shoveling youre doing.

btw, you can make any bike shimmy without your hands on the bars. Watch Tafi come across the line in the '00 Paris-Tours. I guess Colnagos are shimmy bikes too.

I guess Mario Aerts, Rik Verbrugghe and Andre Tchmil's opinions on Litespeed are b.s.? Tchmil said it was the best frame he has ever ridden.

Litespeed
 

:D Litespeed built up my full custom (rebadged) singlespeed mtn. bike a few months ago! Sweetest ride I've ever owned.

3/2-5 mainframe and 2" tandem rated 6/7 downtube. Purtiest welds I have EVER encountered. Issues with rear tire clearance were resolved in FIVE days total time (Arizona to Tennessee and home again). Frame was built to my specs with plenty of MY input.

I have no complaints whatsoever wit Litespeed!