For a scientist, the man had a good nose for names: When the chemist Martin Heinrich Klaproth from Wernigerode in the Harz Mountains came across a shimmering silvery-grey metal at the end of the 18th century, he called it "titanium" - after the figures from Greek mythology who fought against Zeus. Since then, titanium has been associated with particular strength and toughness - associations that fit well with a material whose main customers for decades have been the aerospace and defence industries.
Titanium has played a small but important supporting role in the bicycle industry for around 25 years. At the beginning of the 1990s, it even seemed as if the material could have a stellar career in frame construction. With almost the same strength as steel, titanium is around 40 per cent lighter. As it is also completely corrosion-resistant - even to salt water - it was seen as the ideal material for lightweight, durable racing bike frames. Several European luxury brands jumped on the bandwagon and offered titanium frames, including Colnago and Merckx. In 1993, Lance Armstrong became world champion in Oslo on a titanium frame. At the Tour de France, Alex Zülle and Richard Virenque switched to titanium frames before difficult mountain stages.
SHORT & SHORT
The test shows: The appeal of titanium lies above all in the elegant appearance of the material and perfect craftsmanship. Technically, aluminium and carbon offer more potential. The test winner "Ghisallo" from Litespeed is an elaborately constructed frame that technically reaches the level of good aluminium frames - but costs four times as much. Moots and Serotta tend to appeal to more conservative customers: Classic appearance, great workmanship, technically solid. If there was an award for the best finished frame in the world - Moots would be a hot contender. Merlin's "Extralight" shows the progress made in recent years: the frame is beautiful, but no longer technically up to date.
You can find these wheels in the PDF download:
Lightspeed Ghisallo, Merlin Extralight, Moots Vamoots-SL, Serotta Legend TI
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