I am looking to purchase a custom tri-bike for next season (I am a genetic freak and no mass produced tri frame would fit properly).
Just raced Timberman this past Sunday, and spoke to the Serotta guys at the Expo–I never considered this brand before, thinking that it was way out of my price range, and not realizing they built tri-specific models. It turns out, they do, and the price ranges from $3,500-$4,500 (about as much as I am willing to spend)–and they are made of steel–the CXII model–there’s also CXII SL (with carbon seattube-but that isn’t an option since they start at a size too big for me).
I haven’t really seen any steel tri-bikes before, so it seemed like an unusual choice of material (but I am not an expert by any means! Serotta has stellar reputation so they must know what they are doing). What’s your take on it? Admittedly, I really like the look of steel (thin tubes, kind of more of a classic look), and I live in NYC, so I can enlist the services of Paul Levine, who, it seems like, is considered the top Serotta bike fitter.
Until this weekend, the frontrunner was a custom Yaqui–alu/carbon combo. Now I am completely torn between the two.
Any thoughts on either one of these bikes (or both)? Advantages/disadvantages? Which one would you consider a better deal ($4,000 or so is a LOT of money for me, so I am definitely looking for a good value. I know that the bike will get a lot of use though, so it will be worth it)?
FYI: I currently ride a pretty cheap aluminum road bike.
Serotta has a very good reputation and there a couple of folks on this site that have them and speak of them highly.
I have a steel bike and I wouldn’t trade it for the world. The ride is very smooth and due to advances in technology and materials and materials processing, it is a very light ride. It seems that I am on the other end of the size spectrum from you and my bike, made from Reynolds 853, weighs in at less than 20 lbs “naked” at a 61cm frame. “Naked” is what I call the minimalist functioning bike: bike without doo-dads, but including computer, pedals, and seat.
Hard to beat the Serotta brand. I ride a Ottrott ST tri-geometry frame. I love it. I feel like 100% of the power I output goes to moving the bike forward. Any of their models can be built in tri/TT geometry. You could even get a CIII in trigeometry if you didn’t want the “aero” downtube. I’d talk to Paul Levine to see if that might be a better deal, since they have a little bit more control over tubing when using the round tube.
I was also considering a Yaqui, but ended up with my Serotta and couldn’t be happier. Steel requires a little bit of extra care (framesaver about once a year and remember to dry it a bit more carefully if you ride in the wet). But the ride compared to aluminum is night and day. I think you would be very happy.
Serotta’s are amazing bikes of outstanding quality. Serotta sells it’s cxii as a tri bike but if you look at all of the models you can get anyone of them in a tri geo and config. I ride a Nove as my road/tri bike and I love it super comfortable and handles like a dream.
Dean Bicycles (www.deanbikes.com) used to dabble in steel and other strange tubesets (metammic?). They are almost exclusively Ti and Ti/Carbon now and do a substantial amount of custom work. I’ve got a custom Ti frame from them, built to fit and with a steeper 76 degrees seat angle. Fits like a charm, I have never been more comfortable on a bike. No aero tubes though, so it doesn’t have that faster than schnell look. A bit of a heads up, all custom bikes take a long time to build up - from order to delivery you can count on 6 months from most small builders (unless you fluke out).
Thank you everyone. So far most votes are for Serotta. Just curioius, how come no love for the Yaquis?
As for QR/Litespeed, etc-my thinking was, a smaller builder (whose business is primarily custom) would be more likely to really customize everything based on YOU and your riding style (for instance, Serotta uses different tubes depending on how much a rider weighs, etc). While a mass manufacturer who has a custom division would just take a standard frame and make it smaller to fit my proportions. I could be wrong though.
I have had my CXII for two seasons now and am very happy with it. I haven’t ridden the CS model. Serotta claims that “omfort is enhanced even further in the CXII CS with the addition of our carbon fiber seat stay”. Could be, but I don’t have any complaints about the ride of my CXII.
I don’t have any experience with Yaquis but have only heard good things about them. Bottom line, $3.5K to $4.5K should get you a very nice bike. Good luck and enjoy.
There is a vast amount of love for Yaqui on this forum. Just run a search for “Ves” “Mandaric” or Yaqui". I suspect the subject line of your post brough the Serotta fans out of the woodwork. Write a post on Yaqui and see what you get.
ABG can and will do custom, they have been doing it for a very long time, even for some triathlete turned pro road racer who’s initials are LA. They probably build more custom bikes in a year than most of the other manufacturers (frame builders) combined. They may start with stock tubes, but they also have a plethora of tubes to choose from. I think IronZ06 has a custom blade made with the down tube of a Vortex as his top tube or something like that. They have the experience, skill, tools, resources, etc. to do anything you want.
They probably build more custom bikes in a year than most of the other manufacturers (frame builders) combined. They may start with stock tubes, but they also have a plethora of tubes to choose from. I think IronZ06 has a custom blade made with the down tube of a Vortex as his top tube or something like that. They have the experience, skill, tools, resources, etc. to do anything you want.