#1
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Merlin experts?
Anyone know which model this is? Just curious as to how it would ride (performance/comfort). I think their pricing is a little optimistic, but I really am not knowledgeable at all about them.
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#2
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might want to start here Mike:
https://forums.thepaceline.net/showp...&postcount=581 few points of discussion there. agree overpriced as is.
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#3
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Well, those don't look like Merlin dropouts, nor do those look like Merlin seat stays. The pic is fuzzy so it's hard to tell, but maybe the answer is "it's not."
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#4
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Looks like an old Litespeed
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#5
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Good call. Looking at old turn of the century Vortexes and Tacheyons, those seat stays look awfully familiar. Somebody rebadged it as a Merlin. Maybe not the seller, but somebody tried to pull a fast one.
Let's see- a $500 frameset, a couple hundred (if that) in old 9 speed parts, a $1500 (retail) S&S retrofit... sure, that adds up to $2400.
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#6
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#7
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.
Last edited by cribbit; 03-18-2019 at 12:13 PM. |
#8
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I threw the guy what I considered a decent offer (probably a little generous) for the frameset and case. Told him I knew it wasn't a Merlin, and that those super-sweet Zipp handlebars, Cervelo saddle, Neugent aluminum rims, and Veloflex tires don't justify a $1400+ bump in price. Chances are, he got it for less than the $1,000 asking price since it was sitting out there for a few months.
He'll probably ignore me, at least for a couple hours until the auction closes. Then he'll probably ignore me some more. Maybe somebody will bite. For a flipper, he didn't do his research on the bike and isn't aware of the current market value of non-premium titanium frames (re-badged or otherwise). It's a nice enough bike, and I would have snapped it up back then if I had seen the post, just to avoid the hassle of sending a frame off to Bilenky. Flipping rim brake bikes (or pretty much any road bike) these days isn't a lucrative profession for the vast majority of people.
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#9
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The eBay auction ended without any bidders, he didn't answer my email, and he relisted the bike for the same price. Maybe those Zipp bars are super-nice...
I'm watching it just to see if someone goes for it.
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#10
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He just responded:
Quote:
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#11
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If it was early 2000's it could have been badged by Merlin, built by litespeed.
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#12
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Never seen a Merlin with thise seat stays.
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#13
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Quote:
Then again, it's the bike business, and few things make sense. I have yet to come across a picture of another Merlin that looks like it- in any era.
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#14
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I guess what you are referring to is that in 2000, Merlin was purchased by American Bicycle Group, which also owned Litespeed, and all Merlin manufacturing was moved to the same factory as Litespeed. While Litespeeds and Merlins were built practically side-by-side, they maintained their own brand identities and design features. Those curved seat stays were a Litespeed design feature, and as far as I am aware, none of the Merlin models used them.
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#15
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So it's entirely possible the "bro deal" the guys at the factory gave the Gortex guy was a Litespeed with a Merlin head badge from across the aisle. "Custom" and stuff.
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