me again! 456ti

willturd

sorry guys, im being rather indecisive. would love to hear other peoples opinions b4 i splash le cash. hear me out.....

i initially set my budget at 1k for a new(complete bike) all round (predominantly single track) hardtail. i wittled it down to a few options, looking at both on-ones and merlins/rocklobsters.

went to visit on one, the only bike they had put together i could try was a scandal, nice bike, but just didnt feel right for me. then i stupidly got introduced to the 456ti (1k a pop for just the frame!).... kinda loved the idea of it...and still am in love. even though i wasnt able to ride it!

have yet to visit merlin, cus its a good 3hours drive...

right so...this is where u guys come in to advice me what to do...

am i being stupid even considering such a leap in bike prices, possible ignoring that there maybe other better options in the price bracket!? taking into account i wont be able to try b4 i buy! should i take the plunge and head over to lanc and see what merlin have to offer?

if i decide that this 456ti is the right one...could i justify saying...its a bike for life(give it 15years!!).

none of you can answer these for me, but i really need a bike asap(sold my rock springs, and now am riding a old school cheap giant with rst sus), but 1.8k is big bucks for my frail student overdraft! but that 456ti-sweet!

HELP... i should be mega but feel sooo confused!!!

Chaka Ping

I think this is entirely a question for you and your conscience.

Sorry.

Larok

the reason your not happy is because an inner you knows that you cant afford that bike. You could get something great for under a grand. Even for £500.

Heck if you keep your eyes open and know what your buying you could get a nice 2nd hand for under £300 which would get you through uni.

Do avoid getting credit, your future you will thank you.

batch78

BUY IT

You only live once and all that











Christ I feel guilty now, don't put yourself in debt over it












No bollox to it BUY IT

toasty

I went for buy it too sadly. Hey it's not money, it was was a no brainer :P

uk_mr_brownstone

get the standard 456 and build it up with everything you'd planned for the Ti, it'll come it at your original budget... get the Ti frame later if you must- unless on-one suddenly start stocking hundreds of frames you'll likely be able to get back 80-90% of the standard 456 cost back on ebay anyway!

That's what i'd do if it was you

btw- last time I looked there were a couple of 456 frames on ebay currently (if your size is out of stock)

imo you'd it'd be daft to blow a grand on finance when you could do the above. But a grands a lot for me- if you're a plastic basher then go for it!

Torres

In this day and age i don't think geting in to debt over something like a bike is a good idea.
Either order something else Merlin, Focus etc. or do what Mr Brownstone said and build up a steel 456.
Sorry to be the [boring] voice of reason...
Ti does look gorgeous though....

supersonic

Agree with brownstone too. You get the same geometry, but in steel - for just 150 quid! OK will be a bit heavier, but if you get on with it, you can upgrade, if not, you have saved yourself a lot of money.

willturd

haha, so i went for your advice and have just come back from a long 5 drive to lanc to check up on merlin! had the rocklobster tig team (both alu/steel) and the merlin malt4 in mind.

i tried out the malt 4 first, it was only running on basic spec, lx groupset.....slightly more weighty then i was expecting, but i gave it a whirl and although its hard to tell wen on just tarmac, it rode well, quite impressed!

a bit disappointed, would have liked to try out the steel rocklobster, but thy only had the alu tig team si. this had the xt groupset on, but other then that it was a simlar build to the malt4. i took a shine to this bike, it felt alot more nimble. result...narrowed 2 bikes down to one! i was tempted slam the cash on the table there and then....but in the back of my mind, i still fancy going all out with the 456ti, even though its a good 700more and would compromise for a rigid fork for a year or so!

wish i could have had a whirl on the steel rocklobster, as i am yet to try a steel build out yet..nd may give a vague indication of what a steel 456 would be like...

at least i have checked out my options now! still undecided! ahaha :roll:

uk_mr_brownstone

an 18" 456 frame went for around £100 on ebay recently.

Myself, I'd not splash a grand on the Ti456 and run it with rigid forks- a WAY better compromise in my opinion is the steel 456 while saving for the Ti.

I think there'd be a fairly high chance that you'd be disappointed with a £1000 titanium frame that can handle pretty much anything, with rigid forks on it. Got nothing against rigid forks- just not on a sweet Ti456 that could do with some Revelations or Pikes!

In terms of testing out the bikes- of course it's always a good idea, but you're not going to get a great idea of anything except the sizing by riding around the block or carpark on a mountain bike. I cant see that riding a steel rocklobster around the car park would give you any indication of what a 456 would be like.

On a positive note- of all my impulse / internet buys (where you can't really test something out that well), the 456 with adjustable forks is about as good as it gets when it comes to 'flexibility' in terms of how you set it up (I was amazed at the difference in ride between 130mm and under 100mm travel). As long as you get the right size frame, if you've got adjustable forks it's unlikely that you'll not be able to find the perfect set up fairly easily. Therefore I wouldn't say that you need to test out this frame in the same way that you might for frame with a strict travel suitability.


I'm not for one minute saying that I wouldn't prefer the Ti version if I had the money- 2lb off my bike would be great. It'd certainly be noticeable. It's just the £850 upgrade (£950 for the SWEET blast graphics version which you'd have to go for!!) is a big wedge of money.

kpr1969

I got a 18" rock lobster team ti that I could possibly be in the market for selling. It'd also be under 1k so you could spend the rest ungrading to your preference. It's currently running Ronin 110 forks XT drive, mavic 717 rims, mono mini's, raceface carbon bars, easton stem and seatpost All in all nice bike but i'm looking to get a full suss.

willturd

unfortunately im a wee lad...the 15"seemed about right!

ride_whenever

buy a steel 456 and buy a Ti456 once you fall in love with it. They are lovely and ride beautifully. Check out mine... it needs a few more bits, bars, post stem and tarty bits then it'll be finished. It is already a demon to ride, you won't be disappointed!