While the company doesn’t have a long history, Bertoletti does: his framebuilding expertise goes again almost 40 years and consists of a wide range of esteemed manufacturers in addition to quite a few professional riders. In this evaluate, Australian tech editor Matt Wikstrom spends some time aboard Il Re, considered one of Legend’s premium titanium choices.

Marco Bertoletti started constructing bespoke frames in 1989. It’s a pursuit that appears quintessentially Italian, and in Marco’s case, the stereotype holds true. He spent 20 years working with a variety of European brands and “ghost-building” for numerous professional riders earlier than deciding to grasp out his own shingle in 2009.

There isn’t a such thing as a inventory frame in Legend’s workshop. Every frame is constructed for a reason, built to satisfy the precise wants of each customer. To this end, Marco works with each body material – steel, aluminium, carbon and titanium – acknowledging that one materials can not serve the needs of every rider.

Marco’s factory is situated in Presezzo, less than 10km west of Bergamo in the Lombardy area of Italy. He’s proud to say that each Legend frame is made in Italy, despite the fact that that has come to mean various things in recent times. Legend has an open-manufacturing unit coverage so potential customers can witness the work, have a fitting, and discuss their wants with Marco.

Bertoletti’s strategy to bike-fitting is simple and intuitive, formed by years of observe. He can tell quite a bit from watching an individual on their bike. Will make changes on the fly till he is happy with their type. For these customers that can’t journey to Presezzo, he can carry out the same process with video footage.

Legend’s present catalogue comprises over a dozen frames: there are 4 titanium models, seven carbon, 4 steel, and one aluminium. As talked about above, all are made to measure, and there are a variety of options and finishes for each.

Il Re is considered one of Bertoletti’s premium titanium frames. It’s an all-titanium affair (Legend adds one or more carbon tubes to its other excessive-finish Ti bikes) that takes its title from the Italian for “the king”. Based on Legend, Il Re is thought for its “outstanding handling, with good stability and rigidity” and is goal-constructed for lengthy rides. For this overview, I not too long ago spent a few weeks riding Il Re thanks to Legend and one among its Australian retailers, Cycling Projects.

Before the trip

Legend uses Grade 9 titanium tubing to build Il Re, a typical alternative for framebuilders that accommodates 3.0% aluminium and 2.5% vanadium. By distinction, Grade 5 titanium (6% aluminium and 4% vanadium), which is tougher and stronger but tougher to weld, is employed for the underside bracket shell and the dropouts.

I’ve detailed some of the special issues for titanium body construction beforehand. There is typically a much smaller margin for error when making ready the tubes for welding. Oxygen contamination is also a major concern since titanium oxides are extraordinarily brittle and can weaken any welded joint.

To this finish, Legend employs a special chamber – a plastic bubble envelops the workbench – that is crammed with high-grade argon fuel for welding the frames. The welder works at a distance utilizing gloves which can be sealed in the bubble, but it surely produces a weld that is strong enough to be “smooth finished”.

The sleek-completed welds are a particular touch, and the final product appears very similar to a fillet-brazed steel frame. There are not any beads to admire like other manufacturers: one tube flows effortlessly into the subsequent with impossibly clean and consistent transitions, as if the bike was poured from molten metal.

Il Re is built around a tapered headtube (1.125-inch higher bearing, 1.5-inch decrease bearing), BSA threaded bottom bracket, and Legend’s LG dropouts with carbon fibre inserts. The body is supplied with inside cable routing that’s suitable with each electronic and mechanic groupsets.

Il Re is a very customized bike so Legend doesn’t provide any inventory body sizes to select from. Instead, consumers work carefully with their native vendor and/or Marco to finalise the geometry of the body. Legend can be completely satisfied to make use of the recommendations of an unbiased bike-fitter.

Deciding on the final match of the bike is a vital a part of the ordering course of. As talked about above, some buyers choose to travel to Legend’s manufacturing unit to have their fit assessed by Marco straight. Felice Santoro at Cycling Projects in Sydney, Australia believes Marco’s enter is invaluable, so sends movies of his clients and leaves the final CAD design in Marco’s arms.

Customers are free to elect their most popular bottom bracket peak, chainstay size, stem length and steering path while Legend decides on the tubing and butting profiles according to the customer’s needs. There are additionally a lot of elective extras related to decisions for the headtube (customary or machined), forks (3T, Deda), backside bracket (BSA, BB30, or BSA TUN), and dropouts (LG or LG2).

The Il Re frameset supplied for assessment featured a normal headtube, 3T Funda forks, LG dropouts, and Legend’s TUN bottom bracket. The latter is BSA threaded, but is formed like a wine barrel to provide additional room for internally routed cables or titanium forging wires.

Customisation of Il Re extends to the finish, titanium tubing the place there is a alternative of various colours for the laser-etched logos on the body and paint for the fork. The vary of choices might be explored by registering to use Legend’s online configurator.

Another choice for the bike is Legend’s ending equipment that includes a selection of titanium parts from Control tech (stem, handlebars, seatpost clamp, and high cap for the stem) and PMP (seatpost). The package is designed to complement the uncooked finish of the frame and the final impact is beautiful; a uncooked and industrial effect that can be exotic and opulent.

The Il Re body weighs around 1,500g, depending on measurement. The frameset despatched for assessment (54cm equal) was assembled with Campagnolo’s Super Record RS groupset, Astute saddle and Fulcrum Racing Carbon Quattro wheels for a remaining weight of 7.75kg with one cage however no pedals (or 7.01kg with Bora Ultra 35 wheels).

Pricing for the Il Re frameset starts at €4,664/AU$8,000 the place the final amount depends upon the choices which can be chosen (e.g. the titanium finishing package provides €750/AU$1,300). Il Re is provided with a 10-yr warranty and Legend aims to fulfil each order within eight weeks. If you have any sort of inquiries pertaining to where and ways to use titanium forging news, you could contact us at our site. For extra info, go to Legend or get in contact with Cycling Projects or any one of Legend’s retailers.

After the ride

From the outset, I ought to acknowledge that there is a measure of futility to reviewing a bespoke frameset when all the bike’s attributes, together with the geometry, are customised to go well with the proprietor. On this instance, nevertheless, there was no lengthy dialogue and that i didn’t assessment the ultimate geometry. I simply offered my preferred high tube and stem size (545 and 120mm, respectively), and left the rest of the choices as much as Legend.

In retrospect, the potential for a mismatch was considerable. Indeed, it’s a point that unnerves many buyers. There isn’t a alternative for a check-trip to offer some reassurance, so any buy requires a leap of faith. That’s a deal-breaker for some but there may be one very satisfying flipside: a bike that has been function-fitted and -built to fit your every need. As such, there’s no worth in a bespoke frameset in case you don’t know what you want.

With all of that in mind, I was quite stunned by how well the frameset fit me. I had to swap out the titanium submit for a longer carbon mannequin to achieve my desired saddle height while a slim spacer was all that was wanted to set my most well-liked handlebar height.

The very first thing that struck me concerning the bike was the highly refined trip high quality. Il Re was instantly smooth and compliant, however I didn’t must surrender my sense of the road. Some riders would fairly block it out altogether however I imagine the feedback is essential, perhaps even important, for controlling the bike. If nothing else, it’s a pleasure to really feel the terrain, like feeling the sand between one’s toes at the seashore.

I by no means suffered from road buzz or any sharp hits whereas riding Il Re. Indeed, I started going out of my approach to search out tough terrain, first to check the performance of the bike, and then to marvel at how nicely it worked. I might really feel the terrain, trace it precisely with my progress – like a pen across a seismic chart – however I used to be never in hazard of being knocked from my path. It was a paradox that I was still marvelling at just a few weeks later.

Legend’s choice of titanium for Il Re goes a protracted to explaining the paradoxical nature of the bike. I’ve yet to find an enough clarification for how the material manages this trick, but there is extra to it than simply the behaviour of the fabric. For example, the Vamoots CR that I reviewed last year offered a firmer experience, and whereas it provided some of the same smoothness, it transferred extra street buzz on rougher roads than Legend’s Il Re.

I discovered that Il Re had extra tricks up its sleeve once i headed into the hills. Rising out of the saddle, the bike was instantly agile, recalling the qualities of lightweight carbon bikes like BH’s Ultralight EVO and Canyon’s Ultimate CF SLX. However, while the Il Re managed to match these bikes when it comes to its nimbleness, the bike didn’t offer the same form of responsiveness. For me, it was the first demonstration that agility and responsiveness are in a roundabout way related.

In this case, I suspect that among the agility of Il Re may be attributed to the compact frame design, which made the wheels appear a bit of smaller. Climbers will enjoy Il Re due to this, as will street racers. The bike doesn’t demand to be raced although: it is truly at dwelling on the open street, and as promised above, very well suited to long rides.

After spending practically a month on Il Re, I used to be not left wanting in any regard. The steering and handling was positive and exact whereas the geometry was virtually perfectly suited to my fit. I could alter the temper of the bike by swapping the wheels – Campagnolo’s Bora Ultra 35 wheelset really revved the bike up – but the bike never demanded it. Indeed, there was at the very least one second on each ride the place I felt like praising the efficiency of the bike.

Final ideas and summary

Marco Bertoletti has created in Legend a one-stop shop for any bike rider in search of a bespoke frameset. The vary of options is immense and therefore finest suited to consumers which have a clearly outlined hit-checklist of wants. While some models will appeal to excessive-finish customers with opulent tastes, Legend’s ultimate objective is to fulfill each buyer with a bike that completely meets their needs.

Engaging a framebuilder is a extremely personal expertise, however on this occasion my interplay with Legend (and Marco) was far too limited for me to remark upon. Nevertheless, any bespoke undertaking is an indulgence and that i count on most will take pleasure in the extra attention to element and a robust sense of collaboration (with a grasp Italian craftsman, no less!). Judging by how well the sample Il Re performed, I’m confident that Legend shall be ready to fulfill (or even exceed) the expectations of any buyer.