Ti-ngle

March 2005
Later on I met a fellow Caballero rider who previously had a titanium hardtail. Rommel, like me, was a hardtail holdout until the Cab came along. Coincidentally we had our bikes serviced at the same shop, and I asked him about his old frame. He told me he was selling it. We talked about the frame and our common bikes. He was real nice- used to race too.

The next day I received an SMS saying that a Caballero was stolen. Turns out it was Rommel's! That piece of news really sucked- it actually brought back memories when my Miyata QuickCross was lifted from our garage.

To cut a long story short, Rommel built up another bike, this time a Trek Fuel, and I just couldn't resist the lure of his old frame. Parts were swapped from the KZ-1x1 to the "Ti-ingle", and I must admit that titanium really is what it is all hyped up to be. Though I am running full-rigid, it still has a bit of compliance. It's comfy enough for long (50km) rides.

So for now, here is the parts-spec:
Sandvik USA Titanium frame
Rigid Alloy fork
Time Alium pedals
Club Roost Go Fast Riser bar (formerly from the KZ-1)
WTB Motoraptor 2.24 tires (bigger tires for more cushioning)
WTB SST.XR Titanium railed saddle (carried over from the Schwinn)
WTB Weirwolf grips
Azonic ORC stem (again from the KZ-1)
Cane Creek headset
Generic seatpost (traded with Efren for a Titec laidback one)
Mavic 230 BSP rims and Shimano Deore hubs (from the Schwinn)
Magura Formula 500 brakes (formerly owned by Efren)
Shimano Deore crankset and BB (purchased 2nd hand along with brakes)