Tuesday 5 February 2013

Sold my Raw Lacquer S2L for...?

I have sold my Raw Lacquer S2L!! Now, is that a bombshell for you? In fact yesterday the person who bought it collected it and took it off for some new adventures... I have really enjoyed this bike and its highlights are two IG Nocturne Folding Bike Finals, London to Cambridge, London to Tunbridge and the distinction of NEVER being taken out in the rain!

I have had to sacrifice my Raw Lacquer S2L and I have already sold it. This is a bike that I have enjoyed greatly but being practical the S-type is not for me anyway, the most comfortable handlebar type for the sort of riding I am doing now. As you have perhaps read on my blog entries, many of the the rides I have gone on require many hours of riding. Sometimes these are epic rides over 50 miles. The M-type is better suited for this type of ride and being the height I am, this type of rider. Added to this, the M is the classic Brompton and I love that.

The riding I am doing of late consists of:

Races

Daily commute

Medium social rides

Night rides

Epic, long distance never to forget rides

This is perhaps the worst kept secret ever but I can contain this exciting news no longer! A new Brompton is being built for yours truly as I write this blog entry!!

For some time I have thought about getting a titanium Brompton. This is not a decision taken lightly and one I have deliberated for some time. I remember being about half way through the Marathon event at the 2012 Brompton World Championships, riding away and mulling the idea over in my head. I thought about colour and what else I wanted on it. It was actually quite a good way to take my mind off the two quite incredible hills I still remember to this day!

In addition to selling my S2L I have been busy on eBay selling all sorts of bits and pieces to help fund the price of this new Brompton.

My new Brompton will have the following spec:

Orange / titanium

6 x gears (normal ratio)

Firm suspension

Extended aluminium seat post

Front carrier block

Eazy wheels

Marathon tyres

Brompton standard seat but to be replaced upon receipt by a 'special edition' Brooks saddle

New Brompton rims

New Brompton brake levers

New Brompton crank

I have not opted to get a Brooks saddle with this order. The factory option is the standard B17 special edition. I might want the copper rails on this or perhaps a Swift, Swallow or even a mandarin coloured B17?

Weight wise it will work out as being more or less the same weight as the S2L I used to own. This was noticeably lighter than my current M6L. The bonus of this weight saving together with the six gears will I am sure prove its worth.

The colour choice was not difficult. Orange is and always will be my favourite colour. One day I may divulge why but for now that is all I am prepared to say. With hindsight I wouldn't have even chosen Raw Lacquer for my former S2L and would have opted for orange.

I am very excited about this new bike and will have to contain this for a few weeks as the titanium versions do take longer to be made. Timing could not be better as hopefully it will arrive when the worst of a British winter will be over.

With all the rides I have planned to go on I think that it will feature quite prominently. My Orange Brompton will now be partially titanium and I cannot wait!

7 comments:

  1. Definitely your worst kept secret. I would be interested to see what its like compared to "The Legend" weight wise etc. Never know I may order up something similar but in Yellow ofcourse in the future

    ReplyDelete
  2. Congrats - hope you enjoy being together

    ReplyDelete
  3. Shocking news! But a very sensible move, it seems, and your SL2 will continue to have its own adventures elsewhere, after all.

    Very eager on this end to hear what you think of your well-outfitted new B once it arrives.

    ReplyDelete
  4. It wasn't mentioned in the rundown, but I'm assuming that this will also be a M-bar (not P or H)? Congrats man! I've been dreaming of a Ti version also...I'll be interested to hear how it compares.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Fernando. Loving your blog by the way. Yes, it will be an M-type. I too have always wanted a titanium version and it only seems right that I will now have two Orange Brompotn bikes!

      Delete
  5. My wife and I placed an order this past weekend for a pair of H6L's. We were originally going to go with the titanium versions, but after sleeping on it decided that the extra $1800 could be better spent (it would have paid for a third bike). They are saying 13 weeks till we see them, but I am hoping for (perhaps in vain) for something sooner.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for leaving a comment.