![]() ![]() Frame is compatible with canti brakes or V-brakes. more marks and a little chain slap as shown. ![]() Early 2000's frame hand made in Boulder, CO! Used frame with some rub. So, having this bike here in my shop is really a treat and I can't wait to throw a leg over it and see how it rides.Dean Colonel Titanium Mountain Bike Frame. The relative scarcity of these frames with only a handful produced means that it has largely remained hidden in obscurity. Because these differences are subtle to the lay person and your average Merlin fan will relate the monostay design to the later Taiga model which was poised as an entry level Merlin, the Merlgoose as some of us have come to affectionately call it has for the most part been overlooked by collectors. The geometry is really the main difference with steeper 72 degree head tube as compared to 70-71 on the standard Merlin and a flat top tube (Merlin had slightly sloping top tubes). The tubeset is pretty much the same as the Merlin Titanium of that time (1 1/4" TT, 1 3/8" DT, 1 1/8" ST) and the bikes actually carry Merlin serial numbers. The main difference between this bike and a regular Merlin is obviously the monostay rear triangle. ![]() but in reality Tomes was slinging an all Ti version of the bike made entirely by the good folks at Merlin. At a glance this appears to be the same bike that Tomac was using to tear around on the race course. The top of the line IBOC John Tomac Signature Titanium/Steel composite frame was introduced in 1989 and featured a Titanium front triangle made by Merlin bonded to a steel rear end. First it was BMX, but by the late 80s he was racing their mountain bikes and carrying his own line of signature models. However, before JT donned the neon yellow jersey and the turquoise frame he had a successful career racing for Mongoose. I suspect that was the case for many others. I never really heard of John Tomac until he shocked the world by racing a carbon Yeti prototype with drop bars at the 1990 UCI World Championships. ![]()
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