Great ride. Solid frame.

None yet.

I've logged about 800+ miles since I got this bike in July and have nothing but praise for it. This is the first titanium bike I've owned and I love it. The frame is solid and provides an incredible ride. The longest ride I've done so far is about 40 miles and I had no discomfort at all. I'll post more as I log more miles.

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Trek, Bianchi

workmanship, ride, comfort, durability, and finish.

toss the seat and seat post and upgrade to something better.

I've put almost 4000 miles on this bike and have nothing to offer but praise. It feels smoother than any of the Italian steel frames that I rode for years. The workmanship is impeccable and the welds are flawless. Any complaints about the satin finish? I like that I don't have to worry about a polished surface. This rig looks like new after a wipe down with Simple Green.

The ride - handling - 50/34 FSA compact crank (where have you been all my life!).
The shop I purchased the this bike from has been wonderful to work with!

Decals are a bit much but otherwise nothing that I have experienced to date is anything that I can bark negative about.

I was looking to upgrade from my Trek 1500 (which by the way is an excellent entry level ride). Over an 8-9 month period, I test rode between 10-12 different rides (including carbon, steel, various mixtures but kept coming back to the Ti frame for the that "feel" is the one that does it for me. We upgraded the brake calipers to Ultegra (comes with 105 stock), put a FSA Wing pro bar (it feels excellent as well) anda Chris King Headset on it. I am having so much fun riding this bike!!

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Carbon, mixtures, etc...

Value.
Durable.

One could quibble with the decal design but that is barely significant enough to even mention.

I debated between all carbon and titanium. While I might add a carbon bike in the future, this Firenze model, has been very impressive in comparison. While not the lightest bike, at 3lbs or so for the frame, it is more than enough for me. As everyone else noted, it is very well made and sturdy to boot. I haven't noticed any material frame flex, but then again I am not a large rider and the cranks were installed with the FSA crank and external bearings, both of which factors probably help. Steering at first felt a bit nervous but was in reality more responsive with a somewhat shorter wheelbase than my previous model. I also wanted the traditional frame, not the compact, which this model offers since I am old school in that way. Replaced stock seat with Fizik Aliante. Ultegra 9 speed.

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Cannondale mid 90s CAD3
Novara Strada Road

Great craftmanship, quality for price, comfortable on long rides

none

This is my 2nd road bike, was an upgrade from a cheap trek 1200. So far the Firenze blows it out of the water. I built it from the frame up as I got the frame seperate. Ive got an Ultegra 9spd set up with easton circuit wheels and an Arione saddle and I love the bike so far. Ive put in about 700kms so far and have had no problems. Its very comfortable on long rides too. The welds on this frame are absolutely perfect. Ive looked at pics of Moots frames and the Firenze's welds (at least on mine) are stunning.

Stiff Light Responsive Quiet

I feel every bump, but I had been riding the Softrides for about ten years.

This is my fourth, and hopefully last, real bike since I was twelve. I am now 46. I really like the frame. I have worn out a Vitus and two Softrides since 1986. The Firenze is stiffer, but smoother. I can tell it will climb better than the Softrides, but I will feel every little pebble. I think I have more power getting to the rear wheel. Build up came very close to what I had with the Softride. Only had to make two minor adjustments. No suspension will take a little getting used to again. I purchased the frame only and used as many of my previous parts as I could.

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Vitus, Dura Ace Softride Solo, Dura Ace Softride Classic, Ultegra

As a frame material, ti is bombproof Silky smooth Component group Reasonably light Affordable

Finish quality Flexes in BB Oversized seattube

I had this bike built with Ultegra 10 and Mavic Kysriums. It's a great entry level road bike at an amazing price. Most bikes in this category are aluminum which is too harsh. The ride quality is silky smooth but not muted. The tubing is traditional; although, Litespeed makes a pitch for its oversized seat tube. All that seems to accomplish is making seatpost swaps more difficult. I find the frame to be flexy, but the external bearing 10 spd BB compensates a bit. Kysriums also tighten up the ride. The bike is best suited for centuries and fast club rides. I've done many epic rides on it; most are in the hills. It is reasonably light at 18 pounds. It won't hurt you on a climb, but you won't rocket uphill either. The geometry should yield neutral handling, but I find it to be a bit nervous. Ultegra 10 is worth the extra bucks. Forget about FSA wheels, go with Mavics. I chose my own saddle, post, and pedals. I know what works for me. Finish quality is poor. Most affordable Ti bikes have brushed finishes nowadays. If you're in the market for a bargain bike you could train all day on, then this is the bike for you.

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2005 Airborne Zeppelin Ti 2004 Lemond Arrive Ti

3lb frame that appears it will last forever. Amazing value with Ultegra parts. Will the 2006 have the beautiful new Shimano 105 group?

"Satin" finish isn't so pretty.

Of course, I didn't get the set up described for the price paid. Out of the box, the Firenze was a wonderful all-round road bike. Replacing the Mavic Cosmos wheels and Litespeed fork with Rolf Prima Aspins and the EC90 SLX fork have reduced the bike's weight to 17 lbs. making this a great climber. Ride is superb. Easy to handle. Very steady, controlled descender.

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None.

price comfort weight

rivets? wheelset servicing?

This was my first road bike after many years on MTBs and trials. I went with Ti for ride comfort (long-distance)and ease of maintenance/no fear of scratching. Issues I've had: Cage rivets -- they should have just welded these -- the rivets repeatedly loosened on the seat tube, to the point where my mechanic had to replace them completely. Now they're fine, so I attribute it to bad manufacturing luck -- no one else I've talked to has had that problem. I love this bike -- it's light and comfortable, and climbs better than I do. However, I do wonder at times about torsional stiffness -- sitting on friends' top-shelf carbon frames has definitely made me jealous on occasion. That I've put about 2500 miles on my Firenze in the past 9 months and my only complaint is about torsional stiffness says quite a bit -- it's a very plush ride (not as plush as a Specialized Roubaix, but waaaaay better than most other things I've sat on) -- I think this may also be due to using a triple -- greater cross-chain angles on a short-stayed bike make it easier to generate chain rub when out of the saddle. The geometry suits me quite well at a normally proportioned 5'9" 165lbs. FSA wheelset is a very minor gripe -- it rides great and stays true, but when it's time to true it the spoke nipples are hidden in the rim such that you have to remove the tire completely to true it. I've never broken a spoke in my life. I'd prefer Ksyriums for easy servicing.

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test rode 2 dozen other bikes in the $1000-$2500 range

Titanium frame is light, responsive and SMOOOTH, like butter or a magic carpet. No really, if you've never ridden titanium, you should give it a try. And the $2k price point for a quality ti frame bike is pretty sweet, too.

Saddle, of course, but everyone gets a new one right away. If you're heavy, the stock FSA RD-80 wheels are going to flex a lot, and will spend a lot of time in the truing stand.

Pure pleasure. I loved this bike from the moment I test-drove it. I was facing down 50 last year, and wanted a bike I could do centuries on and minimize the discomfort. The LBS said one word, "titanium," and now, a year later, I couldn't agree more. I've done several 100+ mile rides, any number of weekend 50-milers, and I commute on this bike, so I've gotten to know it well. I'm at about 1800 miles on it right now, and couldn't be happier. It's smooth as silk, and it's also really responsive. Like everyone else, I replaced the saddle immediately, choosing the Fizik Arione, which I've been happy with. I also upgraded to the Ultegra 10, mostly on the strength of recommendations about the superior stiffness of the new integrated crank/bottom bracket, and I can say that this added a satisfying stiffness that the Ultegra 9 lacked, but also, unexpectedly additional smoothness, as the new cranks are smooth as silk, just like the bike itself. If I had any real complaint, it would be the wheels. I'm 5'11" and 203 lbs, and the stock FSA RD-80 wheels were simply not up to the task. I popped a spoke on two separate occasions, and the wheels were always going out of true (my wife rides the Litespeed Bella with the same wheels and, at half my weight, has no such problem, so it's just me). At any rate, I upgraded to a set of the Mavic Ksyrium SSC SL, and am deliriously happy with that choice. The Firenze with Ultegra 10 (especially the crank/bb), the Arione saddle, and the Ksyrium SSC SL wheels is a dream bike. Of course, that's a steep upgrade step up from the factory bike, but man, is it sweet. It's a pretty sweet bike straight out of the box, too, but once I got a taste of how extraordinary a bike could be, I just couldn't resist maxing it out. It cost me some money, but hey, the ti frame's supposed to last forever, so it could wind up cheap in the end.

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None, really. This is my first high-end bike.