Flyte Arsenal

Price Paid:  $850.00 at Flyte

Model Year:
2005

Favorite Ride:
Tsali

Summary:
I bought this frame as a blem from the Flyte website. They had pictures of a scratch on the top tube posted on their site but there was no way to reference its relative size. This had me kind of concerned so before I laid down the money I gave them a call to ask about it. When the guy I was speaking to (Jason, nice guy) said “Hang on just a minute and let me get the frame.” I was a bit surprised to say the least. I love it when I can talk directly to a person who has first hand knowledge of the subject. It’s something that is very lacking in most on-line shopping places, but not at Flyte. So Jason whips out a ruler and tells me that the scratch is about a quarter of an inch long and that’s why the frame is $200 off retail. Still feeling like I was taking kind of a chance I went ahead and bought the Arsenal and an SRS-3 frame for my growing 13 year old. The frames got here 2 days later. I can now tell you from experience that anything you read about Flyte’s killer packing jobs is right on target. These puppies would have had to have fallen off of the truck at highway speed to have been damaged in transit. My son’s SRS-3 was the first to get unpacked of course and he was floored by its weight and looks. The Arsenal was next and after pulling all the bubble wrap off the first thing that struck me was that I didn’t see the scratch! No kidding, you have to be right up on it to see it at all. My son’s bike was built in 3 hours but I had to wait a couple of days to get mine together. When I did get it done the overall effect is stunning to me. This is without a doubt the nicest road bike that I’ve ever owned. The next step up in quality would be a huge increase in price! You’d have to go to a Seven or something like that to beat the welds and overall finish on this frame, it’s that nice. I know, I know, you’re saying “But how does it ride?” Right? Well as fortunes would have it 2 days after my Arsenal was built we had a 50 mile ride for charity and my son’s cycling merit badge for boy scouts. We took the bikes out for a short 5 mile shake down the day before the big ride and I was struck by how smooth the Arsenal is. Once I got up to the big ring and started cruising the bike became almost eerily quiet and smooth. My old road bike is a Cannondale pre-CAAD frame and very stiff, the step up to the Arsenal is almost a revelation. I didn’t know a bike could be that smooth and efficient. So on to the big ride; having registered for the 50 miler we headed out that morning both feeling quite confident. At the 20 mile mark neither of us were winded or tired in the least and we had a decision to make. We could turn off one way for a 65 mile loop (oooo, a metric century) or we could continue on for our 50 miler. At this point you should know that the farthest that I’ve ever ridden is 45 miles and the longest ride for my son has been 28. Even with this in our minds we felt so good that we decided to go for it and headed out for the metric century. My wife was having none of this and headed off with a friend on the 50 miler, leaving my son and me with our Flytes cruising along at a steady 17-18 mph pace. 5 hours and some gastro-intestinal issues later we finished at 65.1 miles (104k). Needless to say I’m quite happy with my Arsenal! What was the biggest surprise? My nether regions feel fine the next day. I’d be in serious pain if I’d ridden the Cannondale.

Strengths:
Smooth, efficient, light

Weaknesses:
I'd prefer nude Ti but the powder coat that's on it is nice to.

Similar Products Used:
Nishiki, Cannondale

Price Paid:  $2600.00 at Flyte online

Model Year:
2005

Favorite Ride:
Sunday long rides in TX hill country

Bike Setup:
Complete 2006 Ultegra group, with Bontrager wheelset, bars, stem, & seatpost; Reynolds Onzu fork

Summary:
Extremely happy as compared to previous bike: Airborne Torch. Never comfortable on compact XL geometry...fit is everything! Fantastic Flyte customer service & timely delivery. Unmatch value & quality for 3/2.5 Ti frame.

Strengths:
Light weight, smooth ride feel, stiff yet forgiving, no bottom bracket flex

Weaknesses:
Would prefer nude Ti frame, but paint job is well designed.

Similar Products Used:
Airborne Torch, Monoc Chrono TT, Kestrel Talon, Kestrel 200SCi, Fuji Roubaix, Trek 5200, Cannondale CAAD4