Merlin is also a bicycle manufacturing company. Founded in 1986, in Cambridge, MA, they start out making high-quality titanium frame mountain bikes. Tim Kellogg joined the Merlin team as their master framebuilder in 1987 and the company just, well took off. They have since launched many outstanding pro-level titanium road and mountain frames, such as the award-winning Cielo frame (built specifically for criterium racing.
The difference between most bicycle companies (such as Giant, Trek, Cannondale, Specialized, etc, and Merlin, is the simple fact that every single Merlin frame is painstakingly hand crafted from 6/4 titanium. If you've heard of the popular, illustrious, titanium-based brand Litespeed, then you might have heard of Merlin without quite knowing what it was. Basically, Litespeed framesets start at about 2200 USD. Now, if you want a custom geometry, hand-crafted Litespeed frame, you actually end up getting a Merlin. This places you in the 3000usd+ range for a bicycle. Seriously, pro-level equipment.
But, you can have your fancy bike, your labels, your expensive price tag, you can get that from any bicycle company. Why Merlin? Well, for one, their welds are BEAUTIFUL. Especially concerning they're welding titanium. No sir, no six-year-old Taiwanese child labor going on here, they can't handle this level of beauty. Each bike is guaranteed to stand up to well over a million pedalstrokes at 400ft lbs of torque.
But why titanium? Steel is real. I like how light and stiff my aluminum frame feels! No. Thing is, with titanium frames, you get the best of both steel and aluminum. You get a bike that's as light and stiff as aluminum, as absorbing of the road as steel, and it's a tougher frame to crack than either. I'm personally known for flexing and breaking chain rings, but I feel almost no flex in this bike at all. The bottom bracket is -solid-.
These bikes just LOOK cool. Very little flash, the color of polished titanium speaks for itself. You can even have your frameset engraved with fancy designs and your name, if you'd like. The simplicity of the bike, with the beautiful welds, demands attention be paid to its elegance.
Damn, I think I'm gonna go ride my bike now.
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