# LeMond Tete spine owners - need advice



## JeffN (Sep 19, 2006)

I am interested in hearing from anyone who has experience with the Tete spine bikes of 2006 and earlier. Here's my situation. I currently ride a 2007 Sarthe, with the OX Platinum tubing. It's a 53, and at 5'8" it's always been on the longish side. This was not much of a problem until I started riding competitively again and cared more about the right fit. In short, I know of a 51cm 2006 Tete with a CK headset and XXX Race fork for sale for ~$1200. I am intrigued, but wondering if it would be worth it. The frame would fit me better, but it is used. For those who have ridden these bikes, I am interested in knowing whether you think this would be any kind of performance upgrade from the Sarthe frame. Any thoughts in general would be helpful. Thanks!


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## stevecaz (Feb 25, 2005)

Well I'm actually keeping a used Sarthe in mind for another build and haven't ridden it, so I can't say the difference between the two frames. That being said, I adore my Tete. The Sarthe is not for a performance change and I suspect my Tete will be better, but rather for a more classic build project. Obviously you would be getting a sloping top tube and lighter weight. Keep in mind the geometries are slightly different, but not really in where fit counts. 

I could pull out my geometry charts, but I believe the Sarthe has a longer wheelbase and maybe a different bottom bracket height. But I think the angles and top tube are the same size to size. 

The Tete will have a more compact, tighter, responsive feel. It should also be stiffer in the bottom bracket. I'll bet the Sarthe has very good road manners and soaks up bumps well. Ti is known for its big bump abilities, while carbon is known for its vibration soaking. You really do get both with the Tete. 

I think the price is a bit high for frame/fork/CK headset, but not crazy. I'll give you my straight comparison. I ended up selling my pristine 55cm after my flexibility returned from a back accident, and bought a used 57cm but with some environmental damage (clear coat fading and some bubbling - looks like the shop owner I got it from stored it in a full sun hot display window). So I sold my 55cm with Cane Creek S3 headset and reynolds Ouzo pro for $1k, and bought the 57cm with XX fork and CK headset for $800+shipping. 

But here is the deal. If you really want a Tete and the price is in your budget, and the frameset is nice, then its not entirely unreasonable. Lets face it, the frame is butted titanium and US made OCLV 110 carbon with laser cut (or water jet) cutouts in the Ti. The frame is a work of art. Look at how much a Ti/carbon frame from Seven, IF, etc costs and you could buy it 3, 4, and 5 times over. How often will your size Tete in just the frame come available - and thats why if you really want it then its not crazy. 

I swapped the fork to a 41mm rake Alpha Q. I like longer trails in the true sense of "Lemond Geometry", not the Trek bastardized version. With the 45mm Bonty XXX fork and resulting 52cm trail the bike is very very quick turning. You may like this, but I hate it as it makes no handed risky. On a long ride you couldn't sit up for long stretches no handed to open food, stretch the back, etc because the slightest turn in the bars and the bike wanted to dive in that direction. With the 41mm fork I can ride over bumps and turn corners no handed without concentrating on keeping the front wheel tracking where I want.


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## JeffN (Sep 19, 2006)

Stevecaz - thank you. Very helpful. I think you'll love the ride of the Sarthe. I appreciate your impressions of the tete. The quickness, responsiveness, and compactness of the tete is exactly what I'm interested in, especially since the 51 might fit me better. 

What do you plan to put on the Sarthe?


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## stevecaz (Feb 25, 2005)

My Tete has a Campagnolo Record mix - brakes are Mavic SSC (crazy powerful brakes) and the crank is a FSA Compact Pro carbon. I had the cranks a year before I built this bike in '06 (frame is also '06) and it works perfect and with Ti ISIS BB it is lighter than Record Carbon UT, so I haven't found a need to change it yet. 

My next Lemond project will likely get all aluminum Campy like Centaur or Athena.
I built my wife's bike this summer with a used Chambery frame and a Veloce/Centaur mix. 

I just saw that the 51cm Tete has a 72.5 head angle, so basically the resulting trail with the 45mm Bontrager fork is 59cm which is nice and balanced. The trail will actually be slight longer than your 53cm Sarthe with its 73 degree head tube.


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## Phillip J. Fry (Apr 8, 2005)

So did you pick it up? 

I went from an entry level Lemond alu to an '04 Tete and couldn't be happier. I absolutely adore the bike and can't believe the ride. As mentioned earlier, you get the best of both worlds with the carbon/ti combo. No longer are my teeth rattled nor does the back hurt after a long ride. I did get a screamin' deal on it. Frame, XXX fork and CK HS for less than 600. After riding it for 2 years, I would have no problems paying 1K for the same set up. I ride mostly a SS steal MTB but really enjoy this bike when I roadie. I don't think you can go wrong with this frame.


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## JeffN (Sep 19, 2006)

Phillip J. Fry said:


> So did you pick it up?
> 
> I went from an entry level Lemond alu to an '04 Tete and couldn't be happier. I absolutely adore the bike and can't believe the ride. As mentioned earlier, you get the best of both worlds with the carbon/ti combo. No longer are my teeth rattled nor does the back hurt after a long ride. I did get a screamin' deal on it. Frame, XXX fork and CK HS for less than 600. After riding it for 2 years, I would have no problems paying 1K for the same set up. I ride mostly a SS steal MTB but really enjoy this bike when I roadie. I don't think you can go wrong with this frame.



I actually decided to pass. The frame was in fantastic condition, and it was quite tempting. Holidays, moving, and expansion of my business trumped the idea though. Thanks for the feedback. I'll definitely keep this idea in mind.


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