Submitted by
Dan
a Weekend Warrior
from Arlington, Virginia
Date Reviewed: October 29, 2002
Strengths: The cheaper Airborne Corsair frame I test rode seemed a bit wimpy for a heavier rider like me (190 lbs). It felt insubstantial. But the Lucky Strike's superior design provides a solid ride, and its definitely worth extra cash if you are a heavier rider. Litespeeds I test rode also seemed wimpy in comparison to the Lucky Strike. Litespeeds might be great road bikes, but they just seemed too dainty for a serious single track riders. In short, the Lucky Strike is light, sturdy, and a smooth ride thanks to the Ti frame.
Weaknesses: The chick decal is a little cheesy.
Bottom Line:
You can do very well without the extra expense of titanium. If your cash is limited, opt for a less expensive frame and better components. But if you've got the cash, ti is great, and the Airborne Lucky Strike is a top notch. Litespeed snobs are wrong; I test rode dozens of bikes, including a few Litespeeds, and the Lucky Strike was easily the best.
Bike Setup: RoxShox Race Carbon fork, XTR brakes and crank, SRAM rear deraileurs and grip shifters
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Mark Horacek
a Weekend Warrior
from London, UK
Date Reviewed: July 21, 2002
Strengths: Kick ass! a Ti frame for £700....drop the saddle height and head through the woods at silly speeds. I once owned a Rocky mountain RM9 with 9inches of travel and, well you can say I used it alot...the same applies to the Airborne
Weaknesses: Those bloody bombs on the side of the frame (how do you get them off without scratching the frame?). Creaking noises (me being too heavy?)
Bottom Line:
I am a little bit of a bike snob so I'm not too proud of my frame when its propped up. I'm used to getting alot of attention due to previously owning a stable of Rocky Mountains but hey my wallet is still fat and the smile is still there on my face- who can complain about that!
Similar Products Used: RM Vertex, RM9, Instinct etc
Bike Setup: Fox Vanilla, Hopes, CT2 and raceface throughout
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Thomas
a Cross Country Rider
from Grand Junction, Colorado
Date Reviewed: July 20, 2002
Strengths: Durability, Weight, Strength, Handling.
Weaknesses: Decals chip when rocks hit them. But what frame decal doesn't
Bottom Line:
I don't know where the people get the flex from in the other reviews. The only way I get flex is by pedaling my 230 pound fat ass up a hill in granny gear pulling the bike side and feeling the bottom bracket flex just a little. I would say that just about nobody is harder on frames than I. I have been breaking aluminum frames for a long time. This one has lasted almost 3 years.
Submitted by
Mark Horacek
a Weekend Warrior
from London, UK
Date Reviewed: July 16, 2002
Strengths: Delivered today, incredibly light
Weaknesses: N/a
Bottom Line:
I'm nervous, I'm a heavy rider at 15.5lb and I ovalised the headset on my previous frame. The "snobs" sneered at me buying a Airborne but after looking at Cover Hummer (£1500), Merlins (£2000) and Litespeed (£1330) I thought why should enthusiasts be ripped off for a frame only at those prices?. Watch this space for my first rides....
Similar Products Used: Rocky Mountain; RM9, 2002 Instinct, 2001 Vertex also Scott G Pro etc
Bike Setup: Will be Fox vanilla forks, Hope minis, Carbon CT2 riser bar, 7075 syncros stem, raceface titanium flite, UST Mavic rims, Race face kranks...
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Richard
a Weekend Warrior
from Edinburgh
Date Reviewed: February 26, 2002
Strengths: It's Ti!
Weaknesses: None Yet!
Bottom Line:
This frame soaks up the singletrack, it goes where you point it, and it appears to be bombproof. A few reviews say it suffers from excessive flex I am 180lbs and have not experienced this on my 2001 frame. I am looking forward to a long life with this frame. Oh and if anything goes wrong with it then I always have the lifetime warranty. Honestly I ask you what more could you want.
It is so funny how many good reviews are posted for this frame. I would like to offer one possible reason: The bike's cost opens up the opportunity for a whole lot of people, who may not otherwise ever spend $1200 + to own a ti frame, to experience how much better it can be than your average overmarketed alu piece of junk. Not all ti frames are good, but a well designed one has a whole lot to offer vs the alu bikes that most people end up riding. I'm putting in my two cents cause I tell people that my ti frame is sooooo good all the time and most people don't even get it. Mine is a sandvik made cove hummer that I'm sure is the baddest a$$ hardtail on the planet. Anyway, ti frames have been associated with yuppies and bike snobs for a long time, but if the LS is designed well it would perform like people say in the reviews ie soooo much better than the things they previously rode so you'd kinda expect rave reviews. Airborne isn't going to take any of the yuppie sales from the high end ti companies, but it sounds like they found a way to supply people with a pretty satisfying ride. Hey, it might be made in china, but made in the usa includes those alu bikes from pa that make me sorry for their riders.
Strengths: Good looking, well made, neatly welded Ti frame - people are always impressed with it. There are other Ti frames available for a similar price but none have the detailing of the Airborne - the curvy/mono-stay rear, solid dropouts and profiled tubes that make it stand out. A really good all round bike that looks as good as the day it arrived.
Weaknesses: When i bought mine (Oct 99) Airborne had taken the rack mounts off the mono-stay which had been one of the attractions. Euro dealer was very apologetic and sent a headset as compensation which i was happy with. Top tube possibly too long (i'm 6.5 riding a 21" with a 110mm stem). Fine on road commuting and makes it an excellent climber but coupled with the 72 degree angles it can make steep descents difficult.
Bottom Line:
Titanium looks nice and Airborne have crafted it into a quite special looking frame. It's not feather light but it's certainly not heavy and ultralight frames can be fragile. It's built into a bike i love and I'd happily buy another though i'd consider a 19.5" next time.
Bike Setup: Currently: Bomber Z2 Atom 80,s, Hope discs (using adaptor on rear), XT, Airborne ti seatpost, X-lite XC risers.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Scott
a Cross Country Rider
from Pittsburgh, PA
Date Reviewed: August 14, 2001
Strengths: price; customer service;
Weaknesses: none
Bottom Line:
I cannot say enough good things about this frame. I coveted it for a couple of years before getting up the nerve and the cash. The geometry is very similar to my old Kona. I am 6'4", 225, and have not noticed any undue flex. I think it is unreasonable to expect a Ti frame to be "responsive" and "forgiving", but complain because it is "flexy". If you want stiff, get aluminum.
The folks at Airborne were very helpful, and took the time to answer questions. So what if Airborne is owned by Huffy? Toyota owns Lexus; Volkswagen owns Audi. Welcome to the business world.
I have ridden the bike for two seasons now. Last year I rode it at Leadville; this year I rode it at Snowshoe and next week at Seven Springs. It has yet to disappoint me in any manner. It is a great climber, and really helps with the Western PA/Northern WV roots and rocks. The brushed finish is easy to maintain and still looks brand new. My welds look great.
I purposely waited for a while before reviewing this frame because I noticed that most of the reviews that are highly critical say things like "demo-ed only" under the length of time used; or tell horrible tales of what happened on the first ride, which the author cut short to indignantly send the bike back. I'm not going to call anyone a liar, but I will say it's a shame that we are obviously not all mature enough to use this website as what it is intended to be; an honest, non-biased, resource for those of us who wish to make intelligent, informed choices.
Anyone who is skeptical or curious is welcome to drop me a line; if you live nearby you can stop and check my Airborne out.
Strengths: A good ride. It is stable and predictable. Not too much flex but comfortable. It tends to ride more like a high end steel bike than ti. I think this is due to the fairly rigid BB. I weigh about 160 and notice less flex than my old Easton Alum frame. I have about 9 or 10K on the frame and have burned through a lot of components. The only damage to the frame are a few small scratches and the most of the decals are torn. A solid performer.
Weaknesses: I have the 16”, which has a very sloping top tube. This is good and bad. The large amount of seat post exposed make for a comfortable ride but could fail eventually. Airborne told me they would replace it for free if it does. I’m more concerned with replacing the chunk of flesh.
Bottom Line:
It’s a good deal. You are not going to be blown away with the cosmetic aspects of the welds and such, but the ride is very good and it is durable. If you tend to place more value on performance over cosmetic and status issues than this is a good choice.
Strengths: It's a ti frame, with all that implies.
Weaknesses: Head tube badge, people who don't know what they are talking about criticizing your bike
Bottom Line:
I own a 1999 Airborne Lucky Strike, non-disk brake model. I bought it used in November of 2000, so this is my first season riding it. I guess I have about 1000 miles on it so far. For reference, I'm 5'10, 165lbs and race in the Sport class.
I really like this bike, and the company that makes it. I bought the bike used. I had the seller send the bike back to Airborne, so that I could take advantage of the warranty transfer/recertification program they offer. The bike was inspected, cleaned, packaged and resent to me in about a week. Why do I bring this up? To show that Airborne is a company that has faith in their product (as evidenced by their willingness to recertify the warranty on a used frame) and there customer service (they *cleaned* the bike and repackaged it as if it were new).
The Lucky Strike is a great bike. It has a longish top-tube, so it is easy to get a stretched-out position. The mono-stay rear is quite stiff; that is to say that I have not experienced any brake rub, and I am able to apply plenty of power via my XTR brakes without any flex. In fact, I don't notice any flex in any part of the frame; no chainring rub at the BB shell, no torsional twisting in the front triangle, etc.
This bike is less 'harsh' than my last bike, an aluminum hardtail. I don't know how much of that I can attribute to the frame. I run a ti stem and ti seatpost on the Lucky Strike where I ran Thompson seatpost and Nukeproof stem on my old bike. This bike also fits me better than my last bike. So, is the fact that I no longer have a sore back and tingling hands due to the great vibration damping qualities of the frame? I don't know. But I definitely don't have back or hand problems with this bike.
Any problems? The head badge is crummy. It was not attached very well, and is falling off. This is a common problem with Airborne bikes. The decals are easily damaged, with is also common with pre-2001 bikes. On various boards, some people have complained about poor welds and mis-aligned frames. My bike does not exhibit these problems, and I have never heard a complaint from someone that actually owns one of these bikes.
To sum up, I really like my Lucky Strike. I have had numerous contacts with the company (I successfully encouraged them to become a supporter of IMBA, among other things) and have always had a positive experience.
Buy this bike if you want a good value for your money.
Submitted by
Sean O'Neil
a Cross Country Rider
from Missoula, MT, USA
Date Reviewed: July 20, 2001
Strengths: design, geometry, ride, value, customer service
Weaknesses: NONE, unless you are the kind of insecure person who feels lesser for riding an Airborne when you could pay twice as much for an inferior Litespeed, etc.
Bottom Line:
Sweet handling, compliant on trail ripples and small roots or rocks but not flexy (I weigh 158 lbs), nice geometry that climbs and descends equally well while handling crisply but nimbly in techie singletrack, great value. Why buy Litespeed, Seven, Moots or Merlin when you can get this frame? "Pretty welds" don't make a bike handle better.
Similar Products Used: Lots of hardtails and dual squishies between $1000 and $3000
Bike Setup: Marz Z2BAM, Avid AR50s, Avid SD 2.0Ls, Chris King headset, Koski 4-bolt stem, Race Face low rise bar, XT bottom bracket-crank-hubs-front der, SRAM 9.0SL rear der, SRAM 9.0 GripShift, Icon post, Bontrager RaceLite FS+10 saddle, Mavic 217 rims, Panaracer Fire XC Pro 2.1 tires.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Chris
a Cross Country Rider
from Bellevue,OH USA
Date Reviewed: July 3, 2001
Strengths: Light weight and good looks.
Weaknesses: way too flexy
Bottom Line:
Grab a paperclip with both hands using thumb and forefingers, now twist the paperclip rotating your left hand toward you and your right hand away from you, now reverse rotation back and forward - this is what the airborne frame does on the trail. You can imagine all the drive train and shifting problems it would cause not to mention control of the bike in general. I had an aluminum hard tail mongoose frame before this one - it was just as light and much more rigid. I don't know if this is the way all ti frames are but some how I don't think so - the way everyone is raving about ti - it must just be bad frame geometry or something. Rides good on blacktop or hard pack but on technical trail terrain you lose confidence because the bike is all over the trail and you constantly have to fight to keep it where you want it. Bottom line: save your money and buy a litespeed - I wish I would have.
Bike Setup: xtr brakes, drive-train, and shifter pods, raceface bb, king headset, thomson stem, lp bar, rockshox seat post, and mavic cross link wheels.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Albert
a Cross Country Rider
from Bangor ME USA
Date Reviewed: June 6, 2001
Strengths: CUSTOMER SUPPORT, light, and great price
Weaknesses: a little to much flex for my size. My fault i way so much though
Bottom Line:
The customer service is the best. I bought the bike used off of ebay. When I got the bike the frame had a crack where the top tube connects to the seat tube. I was able to send the bike to airborne, explain my situation and they sent me a brand new frame. Those guys are great. I like the feel of the bike alot. It so light and it's a great climber. I love this bike and would recommend going through Airborne to anyone. 5 chilis on the value cause I got an awesome deal, and 4 chilies on the overall rating just because this is the second time I've heard of a cracked frame from airborne.
Similar Products Used: GT timberline not even remotely similar, Marin, tested on Seven (drool)
Bike Setup: race face cranks, rings, and ti bb. syncros ti seatpost, syncros stem, rockshox psylo xc fork. the rest is xtr parts.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Olaf Vogel
a Cross Country Rider
from Toronto, Canada
Date Reviewed: March 7, 2001
Strengths: Geometry & design, stiffness, excellent weld quality Can't beat the price for Titanium
Weaknesses: Flexi top tube
Bottom Line:
Rear triangle is very stiff, loves to be hammered, tracks nicely. Overall geometry is very good, lowered top tube yeilds lots of standover height. Bottom bracket has surprisingly little flex - ovalizing the seat-tube, and down tube did the trick.
The overall design is so good that there is one surprisingly strange detail: the top tube. Its ovalized, but vertically!? This allows lateral flex but creates vertical stiffness - kinda backwards. I would expect it to be flatened horizontally. This flex is apparent at 70+ km/h and requires I hang on tight. (Ok, I'm 6'3" and 220 lbs -and I noticed, cause my Klein and Rocky don't flex there at all.)
Overall, for the money you can't beat this deal. For $699 you get a great looking & handling frame you can abuse for years. (Plus you gloat about how much money you saved.)
