Need help on used Titanium bike

[tdcadillac]

Hello all
I don't know much about bike.
this is a used bike with 105 shimano
is it a good buy?
https://www.kijiji.ca/v-road-bike/o...tanium-58-cm-carbon-fork-road-bike/1512303335

 

[Sharky]

Titanium frames have a good following. This bike is a bit bespoke, in that it has a leather saddle, triple front chain rings and an adjustable stem. Also has clip on tribars - perhaps the previous owner used it for TT's? - and can easily be removed if included in the sale.

Nothing wrong with any of the items I have mentioned, but can be a bit personal. If you don't get on with them, then you will have the cost of replacing them.

Value for a two year old bike? Maybe a third to half the price it was originally, but it is a seller's market at the moment, so really you need to see it in the flesh and decide.

Good luck.

 

[Deleted member 23692]

It's only the frame that's 2 years old. Component wise the bike looks like it was made of bits from the parts bucket. 9 speed 105 is ancient.

I'd look elsewhere

 

[Shadow]

Eclipse is not a name that will be familiar to UK folk. $1300 new seems cheap for a new (2 yrs ago) Ti bike to me.

I agree with @Sharky's comment about seeing it in the flesh your self and riding it. Do you have bike knowledgeable friends and do you live close enough to Ottawa area to see it?

[UK members note: this is NOT an eclipse from the Enigma stable]

 

[Ajax Bay]

I would probe the exact items.
"Shimano 105 drive components 27 speed with flight deck double shifters.
Shimano caliper brakes with new pads. "
On a 2018 bike 105 9sp (?5400?) means that the drive components are 12+ years old. It will not have been sold like this so likely the it was bought as a frameset and built up.
105 STIs (shifters) are implied but "27 speed" implies a triple. Why is a double mentioned?
Shimano makes many levels of caliper brake. What model are these? 105?
The aerobars are not for TT, they are for long distance comfort ie randonneuring.
The chainset is old as well - which is a good thing - and will be square taper (so a normal BB threaded shell).
Leather saddle would be expensive to buy but may or may not fit you.
I can't tell from the image what the wheels are: and the seller doesn't say.
Ti frames will hold their value better than others so I think people will pay more than 50% - if this bike cost 1300 dollars, then the frameset cost over $1000. And essentially, that's what you'd be buying. Is this really a 2018 bike? In what way?
https://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/2348419/
Full disclosure: I am about to build up (a minimally used) Lynskey Ti frameset to roughly this spec (of 9sp (non) groupset etc) so I know how much this non-vintage stuff costs.

 

[tdcadillac]

thank you all for all the great feedback and sharing your knowledge. This forum is a fountain of knowledge

 

[froze]

If the frame has no cracks, which means you have to check all the welds and bottle cage bosses, then you should do a tap test with a coin on the CF fork on both legs in several areas and see if one leg sounds different than the other, then that bike might be a good buy depending on price of course. It may have been a part here and another part there type of build, but you can always replace those parts as they fail or if you simply want to upgrade something.

The bike appears to have been sold, did you buy it?

 

[tdcadillac]

If the frame has no cracks, which means you have to check all the welds and bottle cage bosses, then you should do a tap test with a coin on the CF fork on both legs in several areas and see if one leg sounds different than the other, then that bike might be a good buy depending on price of course. It may have been a part here and another part there type of build, but you can always replace those parts as they fail or if you simply want to upgrade something.

The bike appears to have been sold, did you buy it?

no that was not me I am still on the hunt for a new or safe used one

 

[rogerzilla]

Cheap titanium is notorious for cracking. S/h purchasers don't usually benefit from any lifetime warranty. Stick to a very well-known brand.

 

[Andrew_Culture]

If you want an idea of how important build quality is for Titanium frames have a watch of this video showing how much detail goes into a frame when it is built by one of the masters:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jvqo9Ino1lE

 

[Jrich8]

Cheap titanium is notorious for cracking. S/h purchasers don't usually benefit from any lifetime warranty. Stick to a very well-known brand.

Agreed! Spending a bit more now will save lots later