Who's bought a custom bike "long distance"?

[Bad JuJu]

Wheee--can you hear my head spinning?

Love those 7's, and I'm thinking about Serotta too, since there's a Serotta dealer/fitter about an hour or so drive from here, and I've heard lots of good things about them. I think that pricewise, if I wanted to go with the Serotta, I might as well go ahead and get custom rather than stock because the price difference is minimal. I also have to admit that I like the romance of the name "Coeur d'Acier"--"Heart of Steel." That's no reason to buy a bike but I love it. OTOH, I was happy with my old Terry from the day I got her--until the day Hurricane Ivan took her.

Better get started on that income tax return--it looks like I might be spending some serious $$.

[Kathi]

Here's my baby.

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showt...hlight=serotta

I think the order time depends on the time of year. I ordered mine in mid April and there was a carbon shortage that year. Serotta originally told me 6 weeks but it was more like 3 mos. I don't think that will happen with steel.

Because Serotta doesn't charge for custom I also went that route. Now that I have a bike that fits well I have no interest in any other bikes.

[emily_in_nc]

Maybe you ladies may have helped them get it right, and I thank you for that. My BF is quite comfortable and feels like the same setup as the bike on which the measurements are based.

Looking at your stem (noticeably longer than mine), I think they got your top tube short enough. I think mine is effectively like a 7cm stem, which is pretty short -- I had told them I wanted it to be a minimum of 9cm effective. My DH's stem is even shorter; his is almost straight up and down and hardly curves to the front at all, so is probably more like 5cm effective because they also made his top tube too long (but he didn't send his Crusoe back for correction -- he likes it fine).

Lucky you, and I am happy for you! If anything either Triskeliongirl or I told them helped other women get a better fit, I feel very satisfied indeed.

Emily

[Blueberry]

Emily-

I haven't measured my effective stem length, but it doesn't feel too short to me. That much was right.....of course, we had other issues

So...maybe they did learn something

[BikerDar]

And the proof is in the bike - I love, love, love my Seven, I feel totally at ease on it, no more scootching around constantly to get comfortable. And it just GOES, snappy and responsive yet smooth. Plus it is beautiful!

* Chris Robinson at Robinson Wheelworks in San Leandro

Hi! Just had to chime in here, when I saw you mention Seven and that you were in CA, I thought maybe you were talkin' about Robinson Wheelworks.

He's one of the top rated, if not THE top rated fitter in the country and his attention to measurements is awesome. He fit my partner for her dream bike, a Seven Axiom steel. He fit me too, but luckily (moneywise) I'm built like a guy in terms of short legs, long torso, so a standard frame worked for me. I got a Titanium Habanero, with a Campy Compact Double that I could ride all day long.

he makes a great espresso too!

[motochick]

My 2 cents. If my bike got stolen or crashed, I would buy a custom Habanero.
Ti is a lifetime buy, as long as the hurricane doesn't take it! But knowing the salt/water won't damage it, makes it something to consider.

Brenda

[Bad JuJu]

Ti is a lifetime buy, as long as the hurricane doesn't take it! But knowing the salt/water won't damage it, makes it something to consider.

That is certainly something to think about. I'm smarter about my bikes now that I've been through a big, destructive hurricane like Ivan (2004, Gulf Coast, not as widely publicized as Katrina because it didn't hit a big city like New Orleans). Now, when I evacuate, my bikes evacuate.

I like the idea of a Ti bike in theory, but I don't think my budget will accommodate it. Thanks for the suggestions, though.

[Blueberry]

Bad Ju Ju -

You might be pleasantly surprised with Habanero - a stock frame is $795, and custom is $1195 (plus shipping, of course). I've heard pretty good things about them. Of course, they aren't as well known as some of the other builders, and some folks don't like them (no specifics to offer).

CA

[Bad JuJu]

OMG, what gorgeous bikes those Habaneros are! I'd never heard of them--what a well-kept secret. Great--now I have yet another option to consider.

[motochick]

Please get a Habanero so I may live vicariously through you! If you shopped around for all your parts, you could build a very nice, light, custom cheap. My hubby and I have built up a tandem and saved about 5k by doing it ourselves and finding good deals on parts. Good luck in your quest!

Brenda

[KnottedYet]

I fondled a Habanero at Trek's LBS.... niiiiiiice bike!

[Kathi]

My biggest concern about buying custom, besides getting a good fit, was ride quality.

I went from a Cannondale that "beat me to death" to an Aegis CF frame. The ride on the Aegis was so smooth for me and I was very spoiled by it. Originally, I was looking for a custom carbon frame which was pretty non-existent in my size because I wanted 650c wheels.

So I agonized for months about this purchase. It was made harder by the fact that I couldn't find any bikes in ti or steel small enough for me to ride. As I talked to different shops the consensus came out that for someone my size the best solution would be to go with a ti/carbon combination. The theory was that straight ti was to stiff for someone of my weight, 105 lbs, but having part carbon would give me the shock absorption that I was looking for.

I finally found a shop who had a couple of options for me. They had a 48cm Serotta Nove, ti/carbon, that they were able to adjust small enough so that I could get a sense of what the materials felt like and a 46p Fierte ti. At least I was able to get a sense of how the materials felt.

I didn't like the Fierte ti at all, it was too stiff giving me a pretty harsh ride. The frame was stock and designed with a much heavier person in mind. The ti/carbon bike came in close to what I was looking for.

Because of wanting the 650c wheels there were some issues with the Nove so I opted for the Ottrott. Serotta was able to give me everything I asked for, lighter weight tubing designed appropriately for my weight, excellent handling, the snap and smooth ride equal to the Aegis, frame nicely proportioned on 650c wheels.

Originally, I questioned how much hype is involved when a company says the tubing is chosen according to the rider's "size, weight and riding style" but Serotta made a believer out of me. Attention to these details does make a difference in the ride quality of the bike.

I set out to build my dream bike and I definitely got it with my Serotta.

[Trek420]

I'll chime in and reinforce what Bikerz said that's ....

I'll chime in and reinforce what SadieKate and IFJane said.

..... I had a great experience with my custom Seven - my regular LBS guy is a very experienced Seven fitter and dealer out here in California*, and had been helping me tweak my old bike for 2 years before I started the custom process.

......

It helps if your LBS knows you and your bike/s. Chris did an extreme makeover on my ol' Trek420 over years and all the work on my commuter-mobile.

I decided to get a Mondonico Futura Legero the weekend Antonio himself was in the area doing fittings. I got to meet and be measured by him Wow! He was probably muttering in Italian "I can't believe I, master builder Antonio Mondonico am building a frame for this Sunday duffer "

After a long wait the frame arrived and Chris built it up. It fit like a pair of old blue jeans from the first pedal turn.

Chris keeps exhaustive files on each clients build and work done on your bikes. It's not like he has it memorized but if he needs to he can pull up "Bikerz's crank length this, stem height is this ..."

While my bike was being built he loaned me a bike from his stable. I ride a 47 most days the smallest "spare" bike he had is a 50 cm De Rosa. Going from his measurements it fit me. If I would have been able to afford 2 bikes I'd have got that too.

Even so our bodies change all the time. We get more ... or less flexible, more ... or less strong, some of us are shrinking

If I was getting a new bike like maybe an LHT even with all he knows I'd have it fit and not order long distance.

And BTW, Bikerz's Seven is amazing.

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=16017

[BikerDar]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Hobbs!