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Expensive advice needed

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Started 6 years ago by Greenroofer
Latest reply from gembo
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Greenroofer
Member

OK, let's not beat about the bush with imaginary 'friends'. I have authorisation from Mrs G to get an n+1 in recognition of a significant birthday later this year. I can spend what, even by CCE standards, would be a reasonable amount of money on it provided that I dispose of one of the existing stable in exchange

Can you help me choose what to get?

I'm looking for a 'forever' bike that will last me until the end of my cycling career (or until I get an e-bike in 10 years' time). I plan to use it for 'audax' type activity: long lightly-loaded rides with mudguards and a rack/saddle bag. It won't be a regular commuter. I don't want a carbon frame because I have doubts about their longevity. Top priority is all-day comfort: I'm less fussed about speed.

I'm thinking about...
A Shand Skinnymalinky
A Mercian Audax Special
A Genesis Croix de Fer Ti
A Fairlight Strael

...and so on. You'll get an idea of the kind of thing and budget from these (up to £4k, woo hoo!). I'm quite keen on getting one custom-made.

What have I missed? What would you get if you were spending my money? What would you suggest I steer clear of?

Posted 6 years ago #
stiltskin
Member

If you are looking for a custom build, you can't go wrong with a Rourke
http://www.rourke.biz/index.html

Posted 6 years ago #
crowriver
Member

Also perhaps consider Ellis Briggs. They have off-the-peg or bespoke bikes, all hand made.

https://www.ellisbriggscycles.co.uk

Posted 6 years ago #
amir
Member

I'd get something with clearance for plenty wide tyres. Titanium has advantage of ease of cleaning. If I had the money I'd get a custom Lynskey, possibly with disc brake (not sure about that) with the emphasis on comfortable speed over a distance.

Spa sells sells interesting frames off the peg.

Stainless steel might be good.

BTW bianchi have just released a road bike with a very well hidden battery.

Posted 6 years ago #
gembo
Member

Rourke lovely, I have that book the Welsh guy got them to build him his bike, lynskey nice I like their shamrock at the rear drops, the hidden battery bianchi is what I need BUT Shand are very local for the fitting et cetera. Also good to hear if things have changed since the purchase.

I vote Shand. If I am spared and make it to pensionville I will go for a Shand

Posted 6 years ago #
GDR
Member

I have a Shand Skinnymalinky and it is SUPERB. Probably the best bike I have ever owned or ridden. I am not what is termed athletic build but somehow this bike barrels along. Mine has steel forks but I think they can do carbon nowadays. Built up for me by Ryan at Pedals with Ultegra, Chris King BB and headset and his own handbuilt wheels. Love it!
If you want disc brakes and ability to take wide tyres then I can recommend the Kinesis ATR titanium. I have 105 on mine and a Sugino “impossible” crankset .
But I’m with gembo-go for the Shand. Really nice guys
If you really want some bike porn go to Bespoked Bristol in April. A hall full of handbuilt bikes (including Shand). Been a couple of times and it’s a fun way to part with a wad of cash!

Posted 6 years ago #
Arellcat
Moderator

You can buy a second-hand velomobile for less than 4000 Euros. How about this one? (not mine)

You might also take a look at Enigma titanium frames. One of Laid Back's customers (who is otherwise riding in a whizbang Milan velo) has one and by all accounts is getting on very well with it.

Posted 6 years ago #
fimm
Member

You have to get a Shand Skinnymalinky just for the name ;-)

Lee Craigie rides a Shand MTB which she calls "Jimmy".

Posted 6 years ago #
minus six
Member

i'd be keeping an eye on scoring a CdF Ti frame off ebay

got a CdF stainless on ebay last year for buttons, an absolute steal

Posted 6 years ago #
Greenroofer
Member

An update.

I spent two hours with Edinburgh Bike Fitting last weekend. As well as making some interesting tweaks to the set-up of my existing bike, he set up his adjusta-bike thing to match the geometry of a Skinnymalinky, and it was clear that it was lower and longer than I was keen on.

He made an interesting point which is that for most ordinary people (i.e. with arms and legs of normal proportions) you don't need a custom frame.

He then pointed me to this and I went oooooo shiny.

Posted 6 years ago #
gembo
Member

Nice, l like titanium. Van Nicholas always worth a look and Lynskey if you want a shamrock.

I am wondering if all three of the above have the frames made in Taiwan?

Posted 6 years ago #
Cyclingmollie
Member

I had similar discussions before my last significant birthday. Although they turned out to be hypothetical I decided that I'd want a titanium frame.

Posted 6 years ago #
amir
Member

@cyclingmollie you'd have had to change your CCE name and it wouldn't have been good

Posted 6 years ago #
Morningsider
Member

Greenroofer - nice. I was very close to buying an Enigma a few years ago. Then it turned out we needed to get the roof rebuilt - which cost us around the same as a custom build Enigma for every day of the week. One day...

Posted 6 years ago #
mercury1and2
Member

my pennies worth- im looking at Van Nic and Enigma and hope to test ride both very soon - for me it is about the feel of the bike and the nearest fit which as others have said is very important. Enigma do signature and core type bikes i think - signature is welded in uk and core? is welded in Taiwan- Enigma do double butted and Van Nic do i think cold worked- and the warranties are quite different. I think at the prices you have to be fitted, then see how it rides, and then the function- best of luck

Posted 6 years ago #
gembo
Member

I have hired a van Nicholas in Mallorca for April the other fietsclub dads are all carbon

Posted 6 years ago #
mercury1and2
Member

expensive bikes do need some insurance has anyone got insurance for three bikes and who do they recommend? thanks ps not home insurance

Posted 6 years ago #
Greenroofer
Member

For reasons related to the discussion earlier in the thread, I've been looking at the same thing. I was quite taken with the ETA insurance offering. I've no experience of them as an insurance provider, but the actual insurance looked quite good. I'm waiting for their response to my question about whether the bike is insured if it's unsupervised on a train.

I'm feeling quite positive about ETA (the roadside recovery people, not the terrorists/freedom fighters) at present after my experience with a snapped gear cable a couple of weeks ago, when my £18 recovery package with them came to the rescue and a taxi collected me from Bonnyrigg at no charge and brought me home at 7am on a Sunday.

Posted 6 years ago #
crowriver
Member

Have you considered the Spa Cycle Elan? Titanium frame, a choice of hydraulic or cable pull disc brakes, 105 groupset, mudguards, etc.

Half the price of the Enigma Etape too.

Linkee.

Posted 6 years ago #
Greenroofer
Member

@crowriver - I did, and finally settled on the Enigma Etape, which is now on order. Much to the horror of the bike shop I'm having it with mudguards, a rack and a dynamo. There's an ongoing debate about the saddle: I love my Brooks B17 but Dougie the bike fitter doesn't approve of them for reasons of getting a reliable and stable fit.

Posted 6 years ago #
I were right about that saddle
Member

That is a handsome bicycle @Greenroofer.

Posted 6 years ago #
gembo
Member

I hired a van nich Boreas - airforce grade titanium (it said on the crossbar) from Pro Cycle Hire in Mallorca. Not cheap to hire. I thought it was in much better Nick than the carbon bikes. Either because the titanium is more robust for hire bikes where people are generally slightly less sensitive to damage or because few people hire it compared to carbon or a combination.

It was a bit big for me perhaps and like the Spa Elan it had the handlebars high up and I forgot to ask them to remove some spacers but on the whole I liked it better than any of the bikes I actually own. Though I was cycling in sunny climes with mostly gentle breezes.

I await the trickle down from Porton Down scientists breakthrough in the halving of the cost of producing titanium. Expect the bikes will stay the same price but become higher spec? Just buying a frame and getting LBS to build might be the way forward.

Posted 6 years ago #
I were right about that saddle
Member

@gembo

Titanium price used to be a function of the Russian submarine programme. There are a few elements that work this way - chemistry of boranes only well known because of military surplus.

Posted 6 years ago #
wingpig
Member

I await the trickle-down from gene-insertion bacterial synthesis and tissue-scaffold organ-construction research to produce bicycle frames made from structural biopolymers.

Posted 6 years ago #
Greenroofer
Member

So, acknowledging the old saw "cheap, light, strong. Pick two" the new bike is light and strong. The galling thing I'm now finding is that because it is so light and strong, the insurance company require that it is always locked with a Sold Secure Gold lock. These all seem to weigh a ton and so all the lightness benefits I have expensively purchased are completely cancelled out.

I'm going to have to lose some weight from round my tum to make up for this fancy lock...

Posted 6 years ago #
gembo
Member

@greenroofer when do you use the lock? Obviously locking the bike at home or in Edinburgh I can see the desire for a gold standard. Out and about in the remote countryside of Scotland and England I wonder who would steal your bike?

Posted 6 years ago #
I were right about that saddle
Member

One cannot enjoy one's cakestop if one has to keep a constant eye on the bike racks.

The solution is to legalise drugs, thus reducing acquisitive crime by two-thirds at a stroke?

Posted 6 years ago #
gembo
Member

@iwrats, nice solution. Scrib tree in Douglas is a nice cafe and friendly but we always have a slight difference of opinion at the start of the pit stop when I lean my bike on the wrong bit of wall or window. I always shift it to the correct bit of wall. They never get the hint and move the racks round from the back, though they do watch the bike for me when I go pee-pee so it all works out.

Posted 6 years ago #
Greenroofer
Member

This thread started four months ago. Part of the excitement of a semi-custom build is the anticipation...

I was told on Friday (and then called again this morning to check) that the bike was ready and on the shop floor, so I went to collect it this afternoon.

Them: "Here's your bike. It's all ready, apart from the rack, which won't fit"
Me: "There's no saddle"
Them: "It's all ready apart from the rack and the saddle. We haven't been able to source the saddle."
Me: "There are no pedals"
Them: "It's all ready apart from the rack and the saddle and the pedals. We can fit the pedals for you now, as we have them in stock"
Me: "I was expecting mudguards"
Them "It's all ready apart from the rack and the saddle and the pedals and the mudguards. They're here. I'm not sure why they haven't been fitted. Could you perhaps come back next week?"

We did an initial fit, but then I rather disappointedly came home on the bus.

When it's actually ready I think it's going to be a thing of understated beauty, but that's a thing to find out another day.

Posted 6 years ago #
gembo
Member

@greenroofer Them don't sound very brilliant?

Posted 6 years ago #

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