FLAMING: Complete Titanium Mtn Bike $ 449, retail: $ 1100

[Dx-treme]

WOOHOO ! Idont know about some of you guys but hopefully you have a life outside of the computer & internet but anyways .......

Titanium mountain bike COMPLETE

size 18" only

retail $1100 sale : $449

http://www.airborne.net/eready/janette/store/ruti.asp

OK, OK the components might not be great but the frame alone weight ONLY 3.55 LBS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ebay the components and keep the frame !!!!!!!!!

 

[vegetation]

They have some titanium skewers for sale at $15 (90g). Nice stocking stuffer if you can't afford much this year.

 

[Fastball]

Linked

Does anyone know what kind of quality this is? I know nothing about mountain bikes.

 

[mithrandir2001]

This is a very strange beast indeed. Ti bikes are a fortune, so one for $449 could be considered a steal. However, I don't know why it has the "Royce Union" labelling if the frame is made by Airborne (who is a well-known makers of Ti bikes). And yes, the components are crap. Or, shall I say, they would be more fitting for an inexpensive steel bike. If you are buying this bike for the Ti performance, you'll need to swap out almost all the parts. I'm not up to date on the value of Ti frames, but this could be a good deal for somebody with connections at a bike shop and can acquire cheap components.

 

[Merlin]

OK, as the owner of 2 titanium mountain bikes (an ibis and a merlin, hence the name), I can shed some light on this. This company was started about 4 years ago and made a pretty big impact as the first "budget" titanium bike manufacturer. After about 2 years in business, they were bought by Huffy, the largest and crappiest bike manufacturer in the world. They "supposedly" still operate independently from Huffy. They were able to make them so cheap because they are made in china by mass production instead of in the US or Italy by a skilled craftsman. Looking at the components on the bike, they are pretty crappy, but not any crappier than any other $450 bike. From what I can tell, this is the same frame as the "corsair", which by itself sells for $700 (as opposed to about $2500 for a top end ti frame like a Seven or an Ibis). The frame is not the BEST, but for this price, it rocks. The components kind of suck, but if you buy this and get into mountain biking, you can replace them when they wear out (and they will if you actually ride off road). Also, if I were gonna buy this bike, I would DEFINITELY take the stupid "rocye union" stickers off. If you are looking for a top end bike, this is not it, but if you are looking for a $450 bike, this is better than just about any other one you will find.

 

[RossMAN]

Here's ePinions.com reviews of mountain bikes, not sure if this brand is listed or not - I've never heard of it.

 

[Dx-treme]

Scenario 1: real biker

1) buy the bike

2) eb@y all the components, pessimistic figure: you get $150 for all the complete equip

3) total for a titanium frame = $300

4) go get a Shimano XT package


Scenario 2: Beginner

1) buy the bike

2) RIDE

3) RIDE

4) RIDE, RIDE, RIDE, RIDE !

 

[thegreatjeff]

<< Scenario 1: real biker

1) buy the bike

2) eb@y all the components, pessimistic figure: you get $150 for all the complete equip

3) total for a titanium frame = $300

4) go get a Shimano XT package


Scenario 2: Beginner

1) buy the bike

2) RIDE

3) RIDE

4) RIDE, RIDE, RIDE, RIDE ! >>


or...
Scenario 2: Beginner

1) save about $200 and get a cheaper bike.

 

[Dx-treme]

nothing compares to a good steel bike or a titanium bike ! and for under $500 its heck of a deal

 

[RossMAN]

Best scenario: Unless you have seen and test rode a certain mtn bike in person NEVER EVER buy one online because mtn bikes are NOT like CD-RW's they vary from person to person.

1) Go to your local bike dealer, ask questions, they're professionals.
2) Test drive the models you like.
3) Write down the manufacturer, year, size, make, and model of the mtn bikes you like.
4) Go online and buy the exact same model. I would still rather buy a mtn bike in person rather than online.

You can score some pretty great deals this time of year if you buy "last year's" model.

 

[jfunk]

IF you are looking for a decent starter bike this sounds pretty sweet.

It costs $300 for an entry level decent bike (like a Trek), and the components on this are about the same, but your getting a much better frame.

 

[GregANDTCH]

Is 3.55lbs the total weight,
or just the bare frame weight?
As long as it's a good fit,
it's light weight would make it easier to store
for the occasional user.

 

[vegetation]

I would agree that I would not buy a bike online unless I actually rode it before. Also, if you're a beginner you definitely don't want to be fiddling around with the cables and adjustment, which is what you'll need to do with this package. Poor adjustments can make a very expensive bike ride like crap. If it's your first real bike, my suggestion is to look elsewhere locally, where your bike will be setup perfectly for you and you'll get a free tuneup, etc. If you're a biking pro, then you probably can do all the adjustments with ease so it don't matter.

 

[Heinrich]

Rossman,

I cannot believe that you would advise people to go to a local dealer and leech knowledge from him and THEN turn around and buy from an Internet dealer. That is just so very sad. I worked at a small computer business for a couple of years and people would do this to me all the time with printers. They'd spend an hour with me and then go save $30 somewhere else. Guess who they tried to come back to when they could not get their printer working?

This is terrible advice to a beginner. Who is going to adjust your bike after you get it from the 'net? Bikes require a LOT of adjustment and tweaking on a regular basis. Those adjustments are going to cost $30-$65 a pop eating into what little bit of money that you will save.

But just the concept of going and leeching your information from someone else - completely taking advantage of a local dealer and using that information to try to save a few dollars - is nauseating. No wonder Wal Mart is taking over the world.

 

[jfunk]

Hehe, I too used to work at a local PC shop. We never bothered with the people who went to Staples to save $10 over us...we'd just charge them more when they brought the stuff to us to get it working...sometimes after they already paid Staples techs twice as much as we charge to not get the job done.<G>

Thats exactly why I bought my bike, which I know nothing about, from a local shop and paid $50 more than I could have ordered it for. They always do free work for me too since every time I have a friend who is looking for a bike I take them there.

j

 

[Salvador]

If it is true and this is made in China, I'd rather have a better made aluminum or even a steel frame. The components are in line with most $450 bikes, but this bike was originally over $1K. I've seen this before. They basically want you to buy the frameset and they are throwing in a cheap component set for free. It's a better deal IMO than just buying the frameset because the components cost them nothing and you can always upgrade. At least you have a rolling bike this way. Knowing that this is made in China, I'd love to see the welds on this bad boy.

FWIW.. I used to hang around a local bike shop and I once saw the owner drag in a $2500 Huffy similar to the one that Mark Allen used in the Ironman. It was a very nice bike and definitely not in line with other Huffy's.

I've never really had the money for a Ti frameset and I've never really ridden one. Well.. I rode an Ibis out in the parking lot of a bike shop, but that's about it. I have heard that they are quite stiff and a aquired taste. I personally have an aluminum frameset and like the ride.

Oh.. I've been out of the loop for some time now with MTB's. I seem to notice a few bikes around with Suntour cranks. What is this? I thought Suntour exited the business? I used to have a Stumpjumper with all XCPro components and I remember when they stopped making the stuff in the 90's. BTW.. I pretty much thought it was the Sega Dreamcast or the Aureal of the component groups. I actually liked it better than Shimano at the time, but Suntour didn't have the marketing muscle that Shimano did and Shimano basically drove Suntour out of business.

Anyway.. Blah.. Blah.. Blah..

Merlin: I'd sure love to hear your comments on your Merlin Ti bike. I've heard that it is just the ultimate in quality when it comes to Ti. If you don't want to post it, please PM me.

Sal

 

[Dx-treme]

Sure hope that i can find a good deal in a road bike as i love my steel mtn bike soft tail ($175) !!