Tim/Trialsin USA

That is in pure form. Titanium is never used in bike parts without being alloyed with something else. Because of this, making any blanket statements about titanium parts will most often be in error. As for the "every gram counts" view. There are certain parts, upon failing, that can affect your ability to reproduce. Parts like spindles/axles and such always require erring on the side of strength.

There was one, Echo. It was as reliable as Gordon Brown promising tax relief.

I imported some of these to the states few years ago..... if they have kept the same strength to weight ration, its a good deal.

And there was much rejoicing.

Better than subtitled implications. "more substantial" is something I find hard to determine via CRT screen, personally. I am sure they are there, but I only saw the hose that goes from lever/master to slave cylinder. Did not spot a cross over on the web page..... it was probably right in front of my face and I did not see it.

What the hell are you still doing awake!? ha, ha, ha UK importer will have to sort the price for you all (you have VAT to ad to things). NSE Expect them by last week (or before) of July.

I am sorry you missed the "We" (there are others involved) in my post. I am not sure what else can be said to convey my relationship to MOE. Maybe I will have some "I AM MOE" shirts made up, to be sure full disclosure is met. Or did I misread this and you implied that if it had some other name on it you would by it....confused by that logic as well. As you are unwilling to explain the problem with a product, it is rather difficult to address it from my end. Sorry you were dissatisfied with a part. Maybe after some therapy, you will be able to overcome the inability to vocalize it. Ha, ha, ha, ha..........gotcha, Monday is Sarcasm day!..........seriously, zip me an e-mail and let me know what the problem is/was. Enjoy, Tim Yes, Adam.... quite right! The aluminum end is on the main line from lever to slave. That reminds me, the item I missed was that the fitting rotate just like the old Monty/Magura/Russell crossovers..... so there is no need to twiddle about with the fitting/collar to avoid twisting of line while installing.

Hey all, Plazmatic steel braided crossovers. We have recreated the famous Russell/Magura steel braided cross over....but better. What is cool about this steel braided cross over? 1. Dramatically reduces line breakage due to hooking with heel/foot while bailing. 2. Unlike current Magura steel braided line, you do not have to buy the whole kit. These will patch right in without having to change/remove/replace the standard plastic line that goes from master cylinder (lever) to slave cylinder. 3. Unlike current HOPE or Magura steel braided line, the ends/fasteners are not made out of aluminum that quickly rounds/strips and snap under certain impacts. We are actually using OE Magura M6x1 barb fittings. 4. Price will not dent your wallet too badly. Price in USA $30-$35. 5. An improvement over the original Russell crossovers, these have protective plastic coating. Pictured with translucent smoke/grey coating. Production ones have clear coating. 6. 10" (easy now!) gives plenty of clearance for big mod tires (and UNIs!). Don't swear the afternoon away because of another broken cross over! Enjoy, Tim Plazmatic/MOE

White is a little bit passe' for me at this point......but this is pretty cool eh?! more of the same bike........

Ever see early/mid '90s Monty shoes?! They were a nice match to their pink pajama suits.

OK, here is something only tangentially related...........but I have to get it out. Seven or eight years ago it was all the rage to own a sub 20 pound stock bike and sub 18 pound mod. It is cool, no doubt..... I'm all for people being able to buy what the Pros have. Where I got turned off was the consumer reaction once bikes started breaking. The loudest hue and cries could be heard continent to continent all screaming for better warranties. Not long after a few companies either went out of business or quit the trials market. Fast forward to now........ please, please, please (not directed specifically at person that started thread) please.......... become the smoothest rider on the planet, get full sponsorship or don't buy a superlight machine. In this sport, your bike is regularly smashed onto rocks (and worse!)......... let your skills (and wallet size!) help determine appropriate machine. I feel much better now. Since I no longer sell things retail, I can be blunt..............

The open ended slot for the top bolt of NEON ones does not exactly get me inspired to think about the torsional rigidity.

section tick. When driving, walking etc you are unable to stop you head from swiveling to anything that looks remotely rideable. An involuntary muscle movement directly related to the trials disease.

There is a reason people still buy them 10 years after introduction.

QUOTE (hugh_b @ May 1 2008, 10:07 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>I've ran both coust's and red pads both in cnc backings for quite a time now. I prefer the red's over the cousts, there's slightly more bite, louder honk hehe and great hold. The cnc backings are a must, they really improve braking like you wouldn't believe.....and look pimp too! I'd go for the reds. -Hugh Aluminum backings do not actually increase power. They might feel "better", but power applied to the rim via HS-33 does not change. And no, a little bit of flex in a backing is not significant enough to even be measureable difference.

DT, Marwi, Wheelsmith, Phil Wood, Sapim...... all good bets. Spokes do make a huge difference.......no name ones that come on alot of bikes are made from .....well, crappy metal. They stretch, not a good thing.

Lance Trappe. 10 year Pro who rides Cirque de Soliel shows twice a day over three hundred days a year. He has to trust what he rides, its his livelihood. There are alot of nice frames out there. However, I would submit to you that for guys over 12 or 13 stone, they will not feel as stiff as the WTF. If by "modern" geometry you mean 30+mm up BBs (the WTF is 15mm up), that fad has pretty much passed here. People have settled down (30 and less) to something that does not make some moves harder for the vast number of sub Elite level riders. Every rider is different, and each country finds its own style .........reflected in the geometry. It is not for everyone (weight weenies for example, or those taking vow of poverty). However, if you are a bigger guy who wants a very stiff and durable frame hand made by a proffessional......it should be worth a consideration.

Weight. Frank designed it to be the stiffest and most durable frame on the market. Weight weenyness and those parameters do not fit in the same sentence. Looks. As with all bikes, you like it or you don't. Unlike a number of other CNC laden frames currently on the market, this one was designed with function in mind rather than ego stroking looks. Name. Let someones parents be the morality police. Price. For a one at a time hand built frame it is actually priced quite low. It is hard to compare something pumped out of the Pulo factory to this. Tested. Yes, frighteningly, Frank doesn't use the general public to shake out flaws.

Actually Hungarian. I imported a few a number of years ago, sturdy stuff.

Pure titanium is extremely brittle. What is used in the bike industry is actually titanium alloyed with some other metal. Most parts in the bike industry made out of alloyed titanium will out last those of lesser metals. The trick is calculating the reduced wear as it compares to the increased price. You don't buy titanium parts to save money in the long run, you buy them because they are cool (although we on occasion use the excuse of shaving weight)........ I know, I have titanium parts on my road bike, I am much more skilled (at telling large stories) because of them.

I do not have an explanation not having the pads first hand. All I can tell you is that I am familiar with almost all pads on the market... and the compounds they are made of. All I can say is that either the pigment in one was a HUGE mistake (and not just pigment at all, but an actual compound changing material) on the part of the maker or the compounds themselves were not the same even though the maker thought they might have been. I thought that the food coloring in the icing was pretty clear. I know there will suddenly be baking experts claiming they know the difference in taste and consistency....but for the mortals among us it makes no difference. In a labratory any ingredient change of any material has an effect. The question we have to ask outselves is: does it have any practical effect? In the case of all the urethane based trials pads, no.

Damn, I knew this would come up when I used the tire comparison...but was lazy and didn't feel like typing anymore! You can have color added to tires to mask the color of the carbon (black). In the case of modern tires, they all have carbon in it. I can not tell you exactly the compound that makes the tires white...... but my strong guess is that there is no effect on performance.

The pigments that are used in urethane based brake pads (essentially all the trials pads) is inconsequential to braking performance. Sort of like food coloring in icing on a cake. The black color in a tire (tyre for you all....ha, ha, ha) is carbon, and is there to improve wear. It does make a difference to the compounds performance. In summary, don't confuse black in a rubber tire with pigment in a urethane based trials brake pad. This might have been the source of confusion. One more note. Can there be ingredients one could put into a urethane based pad that would change color and performance? Absolutely, but thus far the offerings out there this is not the case.

No problem, thanks. Sure it was not malicious intent, but just an error in syntax.

CRMS are a bit on the soft side (though do not confuse the hardness with wear life) at 92 Shore A. Plazmatic PMGs are the other end of things at 92. And just to clear the air. I found this on a website: "- 10th anniversary Limited Edition brake pads from Plazmatic, in the same compound as the CRMs*." followed by "*This is according to the importer, however we have not tested these pads ourselves just yet - an update when we have!" This leads one to believe there is some question as to the honesty of the importer (and ultimatly manufacturers) claim. That might not have been the intent, but there is not really any other way of reading that series of statements. As each time other makers change a color, I do not see a similar caviat placed in the product description. Yes indeed it is the exact same compound, only difference is lack of pigment (yellow).