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Piping hot off the CNC!

Thylacine

Monkey
May 9, 2002
132
0
Steve Irwins Bungalow
Hey trials type guys and girls,
As some of you may or may not know, I'm the latest 'little guy' in the frame building business. As of October 31, the latest incarnation of my trials frame - the Thylacine X-Trials V2- will become available. We had great feedback from the V1, and the V2 sports many refinements that we learned out in the field, such as trials tough disc mounts, great geometry, and sensible gussets.

I've attached an illustration for everyone to check out. I hope you don't mind my borderline spam/self promotion here - boards like these ones are the best means for me to get the message out...at least until I become rich and famous and actually have and advertising budget! At the moment every penny goes into producing these puppys right here.

Heres the lowdown -

Frames will be available from October 31st in limited numbers. If you want to secure one, I require a 50% deposit, upon which you will recieve a Serial No. and ship date. Frames are USD 799, shipping to the US and Canada is USD 55, including insurance.

If you want more information, leave your email address here and I'll email out to you full options ( yeah, its also available as a custom frame ) tech sheet, price list, warranty info - whatever you need. Aside from that, you can find out more at www.albertabiking.com/thylacine.htm , as well as (soon) www.thylacinecycles.com.
Any Aussies in the audience can come and visit me at the BITS trade show, at the Exhibition Buildings in Melbourne, 17-19th Oct, where I'll be exhibiting alongside JB Cycles.

Cheers everyone, happy trialsin',
Warwick aka Thylacine
 

MikeD

Leader and Demogogue of the Ridemonkey Satinists
Oct 26, 2001
11,669
1,713
chez moi
Just because no one's posting doesn't mean they don't like the bike, Griz.

Hey, perhaps their hands are too full to type...?:sneaky:

MD
 

Thylacine

Monkey
May 9, 2002
132
0
Steve Irwins Bungalow
Hehe, thanks Mikey. Takes heaps to impress people these days, doesnt it? :D Yeah, I'm part of a 4 man team that dreams the big dream, puts the dream on paper, then tries to make it a reality. We've been tooling up and prototyping for the past 18 months, and the Aussie trade show in Oct is our first push into the big bad world.

All I can say is "I'M EXCITED!" ( bad Aussie infomercial quote )
 

MikeD

Leader and Demogogue of the Ridemonkey Satinists
Oct 26, 2001
11,669
1,713
chez moi
You know, I love bent top tubes.

But most people seem to hate them, judging by the looks and reactions I get to my Surly.

Maybe that's a style point you'll have to change if you want to appeal to the masses...which I KNOW is your goal, lol.

Perhaps it'd be a good option to have...the extra-cost, extra special exclusive bent top tube, vice the plebian straight tube...

(Cuz we all know the proletariat favors having its nuts bashed on its bike...)

MD
 

Thylacine

Monkey
May 9, 2002
132
0
Steve Irwins Bungalow
Originally posted by MikeD
You know, I love bent top tubes.

But most people seem to hate them, judging by the looks and reactions I get to my Surly.

Maybe that's a style point you'll have to change if you want to appeal to the masses...which I KNOW is your goal, lol.

Perhaps it'd be a good option to have...the extra-cost, extra special exclusive bent top tube, vice the plebian straight tube...

(Cuz we all know the proletariat favors having its nuts bashed on its bike...)

MD
Mikey, most trials bikes have bent top tubes for clearance issues. Its only the devoutly religious who like their top tubes straight - it must be some kind of penetance (sp) or something. Maybe they were bad in a past life, who knows?
One of the really cool things about being one of the 'little guys' is that we build each frame, one at a time, by hand ( Okay, we have a couple of very trick tube mitreing machines and even a TIG welding kit, or so I've been told ). That means that if someone comes to us and says 'bent top tubes are gay', we'll put a straight one in there - but only of they apologise to our bent top tubes for the derogatory comment.
The other advantage of the X-Trials is that we have based all our CNC'd junctures, and the rear end as a multi-configurable design element. That means that by simple tube substitution, we can make a number of different styles of frames. For example, we up the size of the seatstays, add an Easton RAD front end, put a slightly longer seat tube in there, and reconfigure the geometry and voila! - A rough and tumble urban style frame.

Thats the benefit of aproaching bike design from a "bike nut with an industrial design background" POV.- I'm way too fussy just to just pull out the Taiwan Bicycle Directory, and I'm too design focused to make any compromise just for the sake of Marketing. Naturally that may mean I wont make a gazillion bucks, but I just couldnt live with myself if my stylist insisted that I wear a cowboy hat. :p I'd rather just make cool bikes!
 

LostBoyScout

Monkey
Jul 28, 2002
248
0
Vancouver BC
I like it.. very distinctive. I can see where selling them to make a name is gonna be tough.. a) it's more than the average trials frame (i can understand why but $ is still $)... b) nobody knows if it will hold up yet... trials is so tough on equipment. I think your warranty practices is what will sell or not sell the frame, and at the same time, could also be what could take you down, if the frame is not super tough.

Best of luck!
 

Thylacine

Monkey
May 9, 2002
132
0
Steve Irwins Bungalow
Originally posted by LostBoyScout
I like it.. very distinctive. I can see where selling them to make a name is gonna be tough.. a) it's more than the average trials frame (i can understand why but $ is still $)... b) nobody knows if it will hold up yet... trials is so tough on equipment. I think your warranty practices is what will sell or not sell the frame, and at the same time, could also be what could take you down, if the frame is not super tough.

Best of luck!
Thanks LBS. Selling the name, once the less adventurous amongst us get over the fact that Thylacine is not the name of a drug, wont be hard. Every new company has the same issue with building a name. I mean, if we look at most companies, their names seem lame if viewed in isolation- Monty, PlanetX, Turner ( who? :rolleyes: ) Chumba Wumba, Kona ( A Canadian company with an Hawaiian name?? ), Rocky Mountain ( Could you be more obvious? ) - you get the picture. The Thylacine is/was an amazing animal, and I challenge you to forget the name and those distincive stripes on the bikes top tube.
I've spent a long time designing and testing this frame - its not average and its not cheap, and anyone wanting warranty info just has to ask - even the disc mounts are covered unlike some brands.
 

Thylacine

Monkey
May 9, 2002
132
0
Steve Irwins Bungalow
Originally posted by blong
Thylacine, do you have an actual pic of one built up?
The older V1 can be found at http://www.albertabiking.com/thylacine.htm

Thats Marks bike - he's been riding it since June and likes it enough to have added it to his little website. I'm sure if you ask nicely he'll even email you some pics of him riding the beast. He's a poser like that ;-)

The new V2's are in pre production now, and will be available after Oct 31st. First in, best dressed as they say. Want any more info? Email me - warwickATpoolcreativeDOTcom
 

partsbara

Turbo Monkey
Nov 16, 2001
3,996
0
getting Xtreme !
nice pogo stick....mmm, i mean frame thylacine :)

actually ladies and gents mr. thylacine is a friend of mine and his work is awesome... meticulous to the point of almost being an@l ... maybe you won t make several dozen wheelbarrows full of money griz, but i m sure you ll build some sickkkk bikes that have alot of soul...

good luck

partsbara
 

valve bouncer

Master Dildoist
Feb 11, 2002
7,843
114
Japan
Still waitin for the DH frame ya ginger nutted freak of nature. Yeah and when ya become Mr high and mighty frame maker I'll still remember ya chunderin out the door of my car ya hoser.....:)
Lookin good mate best of luck with the trade show.
 

Thylacine

Monkey
May 9, 2002
132
0
Steve Irwins Bungalow
Its all about soul Strappa, coz without it, you may as well be dead. Thats assuming the person you're talking to is alive in the first place, which can be somewhat debatable some times.

We need to hook up sometime again and just ride, and drink beer man. Those were good times indeedy.

Grizza "In a dark mood" Thylacine
 

Rik

Turbo Monkey
Nov 6, 2001
1,085
1
Sydney, Australia
Hey I just realised that you ARE an Aussie!

I thought you were some yank cashing in on an Aussie icon/animal/name, with plans to use Steve Irwin in their advertising campaign :p
Where are you based, how much approx $au for one, and have you got plans to get these bikes stocked in shops, or just selling from the workshop?
 

Thylacine

Monkey
May 9, 2002
132
0
Steve Irwins Bungalow
Yup,

Thats right, I AM an Aussie - workin' here in Melbourne. Yeah, the 'last' Thylacine passed away in Hobart Zoo in 1936. Her name was Benjamin, so I guess they were the type of animal that didnt appreciate having Tasweigians poke about between their legs, and frankly, who can blame them? :D

As for the frames, sure, they're available. The next version of the X-Trials is having its CNC work done now, and there'll be some more urban type versions available as customs if ya ask real nicely. Orders are being taken now. The steel XC hardtails are available also on a custom basis, so if you want any more info, drop me an email ( thylacineATpoolcreativeDOTcom ) and I'll send you out a brochure and some stickerz.

Cheers Rik.