New Climbing Frameset - any recommendations?

[bsharp77]

Hi all,

With my LCR018-D now finished and in daily use performing brilliantly at what it does, I want to start looking towards a project for next year - a dedicated climbing bike.

Is there anything out there, or anything coming soon that anyone knows of that would fit the bill?
Id really love something like a TCR SL with the integrated seatpost, but there seems to be very little options other than the new Intropy which is crazy expensive.

Want to build up something around 6kg that feels ultra responsive and will be used for big days in the hills.
No really seeing much out there that would represent good value - options like the new Intropy or Cima Evolve or Bigrock Sohtea look like great frames, but at the prices they are now charging, I could probably just keep a lookout and pickup a TCR SL frameset for around the same price.

Any suggestions appreciated - no panic so if you have heard of something coming in the next few months then that would work.

[SWeiden]

Have you looked at the ICAN Fl1 as an aethos-like?

[Mariuszuzd]

I can recommend my Avenger SHuttle SL.  Only 6.3 kg with pedals, bottle cages and mounts.

[bsharp77]

The Avenger Shuttle SL does indeed look stunning - and ive looked at it closely.
Would build into a fantastic climbing bike - however the price is very high.

Listed on their site at $1899 for the SL version. At that price, we're getting close to being able to buy a TCR SL frameset on sale, so the value proposition just isn't there, especially considering any depreciation considerations.

However I do agree that this frame does look fantastic!

[bsharp77]

Have you looked at the ICAN Fl1 as an aethos-like?

Thanks for the recommendation - it looks......ok - not super light, nothing standout about it really in general - a decent bike.
Want to build a cracker, so will hold out for something better if I can.

[Mariuszuzd]

If you want something cheap, go with Ican FL1.

[bsharp77]

If you want something cheap, go with Ican FL1.

I think there's an in-between - something of slightly higher quality, but without the crazy premium pricetag.
Maybe Peter at XM Carbon, or LightCarbon will bring out something next year.

[Dark17]

Bigrock Sohtea. It's literally Aethos backwards lol

[SWeiden]

I think there's an in-between - something of slightly higher quality, but without the crazy premium pricetag.
Maybe Peter at XM Carbon, or LightCarbon will bring out something next year.

I wish you good luck searching, but the triangle of light, cheap, good still applies. Winspace has some SLC2/3 frames on black friday sales, Speeder Cycling was the manufacturer for the SLC 2 I believe, maybe you could get a raw frame from them for even chearp. I personally think what youre looking for doesnt really exist

Edit: Maybe look at the longteng ltk266 as well, but it also isnt really lighter than the previous options

[bsharp77]

Bigrock Sohtea. It's literally Aethos backwards lol

Apologies, I somehow mis-read the price of the Bigrock.
Pandapodium have it at around £900 ish GBP which would be top end of what I’d be prepared to pay, but it really does look like a well finished product, and seriously light.
Straight to the top of the list!

[Sakizashi]

Quick plug for the LTK266D-SL. I think it's lighter than most of the options here, and approaches the TCL SL in terms of overall weight. The bike has a good climbing geometry, and the factory claims that they tried to replicate the stiffness and handling of the TCR.

It also looks like a full-size run should be available soon. At 680g (bare, size M), it's a competitive weight compared to second-tier big-brand frames like the Scott Addict RC, comparable to the best Chinese brands, and the price is pretty good. You can also get it as the Permeants ST-09, which is on sale on AliExpress right now, though I personally can't vouch for buying this frame from AliExpress sellers.

I tried to curate the useful information in the first post on this page:

https://chinertown.com/index.php/topic,6158.0.html

Things to know: this build can get expensive because it is best to buy the frame and source your own headset, bars, etc, as LTK doesn't offer any good bar options.

[bsharp77]

Thanks for all that info Sakizashi - they certainly are impressive numbers and the geo being like a TCR is a bonus.
It's back on the list! :-)

[bsharp77]

Quick plug for the LTK266D-SL. I think it's lighter than most of the options here, and approaches the TCL SL in terms of overall weight. The bike has a good climbing geometry, and the factory claims that they tried to replicate the stiffness and handling of the TCR.

It also looks like a full-size run should be available soon. At 680g (bare, size M), it's a competitive weight compared to second-tier big-brand frames like the Scott Addict RC, comparable to the best Chinese brands, and the price is pretty good. You can also get it as the Permeants ST-09, which is on sale on AliExpress right now, though I personally can't vouch for buying this frame from AliExpress sellers.

I tried to curate the useful information in the first post on this page:

https://chinertown.com/index.php/topic,6158.0.html

Things to know: this build can get expensive because it is best to buy the frame and source your own headset, bars, etc, as LTK doesn't offer any good bar options.

One sticking point is that horrible saddle clamp mechanism. If I couldn't replace the seatpost with a 2 bolt TCR type adjustment, I would not consider the frameset. One of the biggest annoyances are bad seatpost clamps.

[oker_s]

i have the 266-sl and the seatclamp is way better than on my gravel bike! quite happy with it

[adam900710]

Not sure if I'm the only one who hates fully integrated cable routing (aka, through the headset bearing), thus I'm going to recommend a frame that is still semi-integrated routing (aka, through the head tube).

Try to grab CRF51. The claimed weight for size S is 730g, the same as Bigrock, but my current feeling is the 730g is without paint, meanwhile the bigrock one is with paint.