[Jerk_Chicken]

Who has built Turner bicycles throughout the years? I think Sherwood was early on, don't know who was afterward, and SAPA/Anodizing Inc. is the current builder.

I also heard Turner made custom frames until a few years ago. Were there ever frames made in-house, production, custom, or prototype? How does Turner work on protos now?

 

[cactuscorn]

i know i just read sometin on this here or was it a email? anyway, heres how i remember it.

94 and previous: ventana
95: ftw
96 - 00 or so: sport tech
01 till now: sapa

these may be a tad off cuz im goin by fuzzy memory here but i dont think there were any other players. no custom geo offered except for team bikes possibly. no in house production. hows that? maybe dt will pipe in and fix all my mistakes.

 

[Jerk_Chicken]

Thanks CC!

I think AJR's grandson, if IIRC, had a custom XCE. Don't know where it was sourced from, but I've heard of this more than once.

I was also curious to know how the prototyping is done.

 

[cactuscorn]

customs huh? i guess anythings possible. as far as protos go, youll have to ask the man. i sure wish i could remember where i saw that timeline.

 

[Jerk_Chicken]

We really have to put together the Turner history.

 

[Jerk_Chicken]

What do you think about getting rough production numbers, changes in designs/models, and prototypes out there? It would be awesome to see what designs DT had in his head and was testing.

EDIT: out of order reply, but I think it's awesome that DT is going to help out with this. Thanks David!

 

[cactuscorn]

a turner timeline is in the works! anyone who likes can add to it. see this thread: http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=145026

i got this from another thread http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=87832 and it tells the story right from dt: "That frame was from the second year from Sportech in SoCal. They made great frames from 1996 - 2002 for us. The very first 150 Turner frames were built by Ventana, in 1994 and 95's were from a shop in Arizona (my note... thats FTW hes refering to). We switched to Sportech in late 95 for the 96 production. Great group of people and a great team to be around all those years." so i was close.

 

[ajr]

Thanks CC!

I think AJR's grandson, if IIRC, had a custom XCE. Don't know where it was sourced from, but I've heard of this more than once.

I was also curious to know how the prototyping is done.

My wife had a RFX made with Easton ultralite tubing that was a special build that she was lucky enough to get. My Grandsons XCE was a 13" and only a few were made. He was small when he first used it and we fitted it with 24" wheels. I have owned 6 Turner frames between 95 and 04. 2 XCE, 3 RFX, DHR, 5 Spot.

 

[Jerk_Chicken]

Wow, a heavy duty RFX with ultralite? How much lighter than an RFX is it and was it made like that to get a lighter, longer travel bike without the need for the durability?

 

[Mr Pink]

AJR,what tubes was my 5 spot built from and did Ventana build it?

 

[ajr]

Wow, a heavy duty RFX with ultralite? How much lighter than an RFX is it and was it made like that to get a lighter, longer travel bike without the need for the durability?

Because it was not going to be launced off big drops and was ridden by a light rider its durability was never an issue. My wife wanted a long travel xc bike and this was when most riders thought 6" was for DH only. The complete bike weighed around 29lbs. I cant remember what the frame weighed.

 

[ajr]

AJR,what tubes was my 5 spot built from and did Ventana build it?

I dont know what make of tubes your spot was made with. I do not know the answer to the second question but I would not think so.

 

[Mr Pink]

It was your old 5 spot that was in mbr,pre production!

 

[Blue Shorts]

Hey cactus..... great stuff here. Thanks!

I have a question for you. You seem to have a very large amount of knowledge about current and past Turner bikes. Are you a current or past employee?

Keep the info flowing!!

 

[Jerk_Chicken]

It was your old 5 spot that was in mbr,pre production!

I don't know if this will answer the q, but I do know that SAPA makes the tubing in-house, so figure if it's a SAPA era frame, it's going to be their own stuff. Very high quality. The Six pack uses the Worth tubing, shipped to SAPA, I bet.

 

[cactuscorn]

im nuthin special

Hey cactus..... great stuff here. Thanks!

I have a question for you. You seem to have a very large amount of knowledge about current and past Turner bikes. Are you a current or past employee?

Keep the info flowing!!

im just a long time turner fan/owner, i know someone on the inside and ive been doin some research for the timeline a few of us are workin on, dt included.

it might be some time till we have somethin worthy of postin so stay tuned but be patient. and if anyone has anything to contribute, pics, storys, specs, whatevers cool, fun and relevent, please do so! but one request. PLEASE DO NOT POST IT! PLEASE! just pm me so we can release it all at once as a kind of suprise for the masses. from there we can all keep addin to it if ya like. the idea here is to acctually format the prime info as a e-book of sorts. sounds cool doesnt it?

 

[Robbo]

That's so cool...

My Grandsons XCE was a 13" and only a few were made. He was small when he first used it and we fitted it with 24" wheels.

I have SO got to find one of those for the young 'uns. Anyone want to trade one for my XL XCE?

 

[Farticus]

Robbo: I bought the baby XCE from ajr for my son. It's still kitted out with 24" wheels & he started riding it when he was 7 (he's only 8 now). It'll be good for him until he's about 13ish, after which, with 26" wheels, it'll fit his mum who is 5' 2". It's a beautiful electric blue & came with a lovely machined disc mount (hollowed out version of what's on a 5 Spot).

Good thing I bought it as it gave me the excuse to get myself a L XCE, and I got to swap the back ends to get the nice disc mount on my bike. One good thing about DT dropping the HL is that it's given me an excuse to get a new L 5 Spot too.

 

[HubbaMan]

My Grandsons XCE was a 13" and only a few were made. He was small when he first used it and we fitted it with 24" wheels.

Saw an orange one last summer at our local dh facility, the kid riding it was having a great time ripping up the trails.

Clem

 

[Robbo]

Good investment

Robbo: I bought the baby XCE from ajr for my son. It's still kitted out with 24" wheels & he started riding it when he was 7 (he's only 8 now). It'll be good for him until he's about 13ish, after which, with 26" wheels, it'll fit his mum who is 5' 2". It's a beautiful electric blue & came with a lovely machined disc mount (hollowed out version of what's on a 5 Spot)

My plan is to put my youngsters through BMX first - Miss 9's not so keen, but she loves riding her Expert-sized GT rather than the kludgy, heavy crap pile that passes as kid's bikes.

Master 3 rides a FirstBike, a German-made push-along bike with 12" wheels, a cast frame and good geometry for little bods [pic attached]. He just charges on it! He can cover a five-mile ride without a problem, and heads straight for any dirt he can find en route. Brings a tear to the eye...