Maybe its just me.....

[AlanW]

 

[AlanW]

 

[AlanW]

 

[AlanW]

Please post a full gallery of pictures, it's bike porn at its best

Hows that?

 

[Threevok]

Hows that?

Don't stop there - those stem bolts need doing too, and anything and everything else. You've gone too far to turn back now

 

[CharlesF]

Hows that?

Well, I am looking a bit green. Its fantastic. I really like the red accents against the polished titanium.

 

[AlanW]

Don't stop there - those stem bolts need doing too, and anything and everything else. You've gone too far to turn

A thing of beauty!

 

[I like Skol]

My opinion FWIW.

Love the Taper head bolts for the mudguard stays but have to say, those big ugly washers need to go! Here's a shot of the bolts on my front guards that are on the inside of the fork legs in case you are wondering.

Much neater and also more secure as the head/washer sits slightly inside the eye to prevent sidewards movement (excuse the dirt, cleaning is not an obsession of mine ). The additional washers you have installed are unnecessary (weight!) and spoil an otherwise tidy job.

The colour statement blanking screws are OTT IMO. Plain matching Ti or polished is the way to go there, but I must admit to liking a bit of colour matching myself as shown here on the subtle Presta dustcaps I installed on my new commuter...

 

[AlanW]

My opinion FWIW.

Love the Taper head bolts for the mudguard stays but have to say, those big ugly washers need to go! Here's a shot of the bolts on my front guards that are on the inside of the fork legs in case you are wondering.

View attachment 435474

Much neater and also more secure as the head/washer sits slightly inside the eye to prevent sidewards movement (excuse the dirt, cleaning is not an obsession of mine ). The additional washers you have installed are unnecessary (weight!) and spoil an otherwise tidy job.

The colour statement blanking screws are OTT IMO. Plain matching Ti or polished is the way to go there, but I must admit to liking a bit of colour matching myself as shown here on the subtle Presta dustcaps I installed on my new commuter...

Yes, I agree with you about the washers being ugly and to big, but the only other stainless steel washers I have are only marginally bigger than the actual head of the Allen screws. So when you tighten them up they have a tendency to splay the loop on the mudguard apart.

I'm also not 100% convinced either with the red blanking screws either? Sometimes the look really floats my boat and is pleasing to look at and admire, while other times I look at it and think "tarts handbag".....

 

[Profpointy]

Torx, also spelt 'Why the chuff do they have two standards?'

Standards are really good ... which is why we need lots of ‘em

 

[I like Skol]

the only other stainless steel washers I have are only marginally bigger than the actual head of the Allen screws. So when you tighten them up they have a tendency to splay the loop on the mudguard apart.

Perfect. Once the eye loop starts to open slightly the bolt is tight enough and won't come loose. Difficult to tell in your picture but there appears to be a built in washer with your bolt? If there is then that is sufficient. Also no need for a washer behind the stays, they are butting up to flat bare metal and Ti is damn hard.

I have heard that using Ti/Ti and SS/SS can cause galling problems that can destroy a thread in just one doing up and undoing (I have experienced this with stainless nuts/bolts and have had to resort to cutting the bolt to get it off as they effectively lock solid. Now try to always use a normal steel nut when installing stainless bolts as the dissimilar metals are less prone to picking up against each other). Have you done anything to avoid this when using Ti bolts in a Ti frame?

 

[Levo-Lon]

Puts a whole new slant on fiddling with your nuts!!
I lust after things like this too

 

[AlanW]

Perfect. Once the eye loop starts to open slightly the bolt is tight enough and won't come loose. Difficult to tell in your picture but there appears to be a built in washer with your bolt? If there is then that is sufficient. Also no need for a washer behind the stays, they are butting up to flat bare metal and Ti is damn hard.

Makes sense. Its a force of habit me putting the large washer on the frame side, as Ive always done it to protect a painted finish. But as you say Ti doesn't need or require them.

Its not a built in washer, its a M5 fibre washer that serves a couple purposes really. There are two fibre washers per mounting, the other washer is in-between the large washer and the frame. One is so that the Ti is not in direct contact with the stainless steel so as to avoid any possible contamination issues. The other reason is the Allen screws are a couple of mm to long, so they are acting as spacers really. I would cut the screws down, but we are only talking a couple of mm and as they are only 15mm long to start with gripping them in a vice without damaging the tapered head in near enough impossible.

I have heard that using Ti/Ti and SS/SS can cause galling problems that can destroy a thread in just one doing up and undoing (I have experienced this with stainless nuts/bolts and have had to resort to cutting the bolt to get it off as they effectively lock solid. Now try to always use a normal steel nut when installing stainless bolts as the dissimilar metals are less prone to picking up against each other). Have you done anything to avoid this when using Ti bolts in a Ti frame?

In many years of doing it, Ive never had any such issues to be honest, but I do coat the screws in Molycote anti seize compound before fitting them.

 

[simonali]

.....but there is nothing quite as sexy as a couple of titanium M5 x 15mm tapered head Allen screws....

View attachment 435187

Surely they can't both be M5x15, as the top one is not protruding through the dropout, so I assume it's the bottom one you find sexy?

 

[AlanW]

My opinion FWIW.

Love the Taper head bolts for the mudguard stays but have to say, those big ugly washers need to go!

@I like Skol Thats better!