I don't believe anybody is handwringing over whatever their front end format is. Both threaded and threadless work and work well. bfd's assertion was that more Soma San Marcos framesets would be sold if it were spec'd with a 1" threadless fork, because threadless is mainstream even though 1" threadless is not mainstream. I don't think there are many potential buyers who would tell you that 1" threadless is their first choice. The point that bfd didn't make was that from a business standpoint, if I was Merry Sales, and if I wanted to keep the price as low as possible, I'd seriously consider offering only one fork for all sizes and drop the price of the frameset. That, I think, would generate more sales, and could only be done with...wait for it...threadless. There's already a precedent for one fork rake across lots of sizes for the budget Rivendell frames. If Soma wanted to offer the San Marcos at a lower price, and wanted to get there with a threadless fork, then I could definitely believe that might yield more sales. I doubt there are a lot of buyers who say "this frameset right here is perfect for me, but I don't like the headset type so I won't buy it". They'll disqualify on price, weight, fit, even color, but headset? I don't think so. I could be wrong.
FWIW, I've had all the headset formats and all of them worked fine, including 1-1/4" threaded and 1" threadless. When it comes down to looks and how nervous you are about crotchal safety, I'd say we're into the unimportant differentiators. On Apr 5, 3:34 pm, cyclotourist <cyclotour...@gmail.com> wrote: > I've come to appreciate threadless. The ease of setting them is > fantastic. If I were going to get a new bike, I would prefer it. I > don't know of any downside to them, other than they don't look good > with high bars on a too-small frame. I think they look nicer than the > big "7" of a quill stem sticking way up there though. Plus I don't > like a big hung of pointy steel aimed at my genitals when I'm trail > riding. As bfd mentioned, once you have the position set, presuming > you don't cut the steerer you have lots of adjustability. You have to > get a new stem to adjust for reach, but you have to do that with a > quill stem as well. And the open face plate for bar changes is > wonderful, although used rarely. > > My $.02 > > On 4/5/11, bfd <bfd...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Apr 5, 2:09 pm, William <tapebu...@gmail.com> wrote: > >> 1.125" threadless is certainly the MOST mainstream, but I don't think > >> I'd advise Riv or even Soma to grow their business by becoming more > >> mainstream. > > > Why not? If you offer things familiar to what people want, it will > > sell. Further, Riv does offer or once offered a threadless version on > > at least a couple of its bikes: > > > Roadeo: > >http://assets.rivbike.com/images/products/full/0000/3108/mark_s_roade... > > > Legolas (currently not offered): > >http://tandemhearts.com/coppermine/albums/legolas/legolas_03.jpg > > > And I'm sure there are more than one Riv Custom frameset that use > > threadless. > > > I'm not the only one who likes threadless. One of the original > > "retrogrouches" himself, Jobst Brandt (hope he recovers from his > > accident soon!) believes they are an *improvement* over threaded > > headsets and quill stems: > > >http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/threadless-headset.html > > >>1" threaded is flat out better for reasons that Riv > >> thinks are important. 1.125" threadless is flat out better for > >> reasons that Riv thinks are entirely unimportant. > > > I didn't just suggest 1.125" threadless, as I did state that 1" > > threadless with a shim could be an option. Further, how many people > > really adjust their stems up and down once they've been set? Moreover, > > unless you cut the steerer tube too short, spacers can be added or > > removed. Finally, there are stems that rise. > > > Again, these are just suggestion to *attract* people to this new > > frameset. Good Luck! > > > -- > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > > For more options, visit this group at > >http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > > -- > Cheers, > David > Redlands, CA > > *...in terms of recreational cycling there are many riders who would > probably benefit more from > improving their taste than from improving their performance.* - RTMS -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
