If my Crisp bike is done in 2025 I might be just in time to be the cool kid on the block. It looks like Ti is becoming popular, at least partially due to the gravel phenomenon, according to this article in Cycling Weekly
The material is also seen as more durable than carbon fiber, which probably means it lasts 500 years instead of 400.
As an aside, the article also states that Ti ‘doesn’t require paint to maintain its integrity’. I will probably go for the naked titanium look myself, but I’ve always wondered why people don’t paint their Ti bikes. It’s possible.
But even here (and other examples I’ve seen) some titanium is left unpainted. I suppose this has something to do with the perceived prestige of the material. Any thoughts on this? I’m not against a nice paintjob, but this bike is going to cost me les yeux de la tête.
The Vicious Cycle 
I do like my titanium Enigma bike. It’s a shame that disc brakes weren’t properly established in road bikes when I bought it as it could well have been the last expensive bike I bought (I do still need a cheaper, less thief-attracting commuter bike). At some point I’ll probably ‘have to’ get a new one with disc brakes. I’m not a big fan of shiny titanium, but the bead-blasted bare frame is very nice. Paint is nice, too, but I like not having to worry about it chipping. Baby oil is all you need to keep the bare frame looking like new!
I always lusted after an Enigma when I lived in the UK. Beauties!
That’s a good point. My Colnago is painted, but it’s ‘stealth black’, so it doesn’t really look like paint. Having something that won’t chip is probably a good enough reason not to get it painted. Baby oil noted!
Gerry, you’ve seen my Moots, and the bead blast finish with some subtle etching for logos is super easy to care for. The Moots folks recommend Lemon Pledge (the furniture polish) as the the best way to finish up a wash on the bead blast finish.
As an aside, Ti picks up finger prints, and highly polished titanium is very hard to keep that way. Ti is also a little softer than most suspect and it will scratch, or patina, over time. Some of that can be brushed out with a scotch brite pad. Most Moots owners tend to just let the patina build up.
If you ever feel the need to get that like new feeling, Moots used to offer a service to refurbish the frame (https://moots.com/shop/frame-refurbish/).
That also means you could go for some of their very colorful anodizing if you wanted to. Other Ti frame makers do similar things.
For reference, when you saw my bike last year, it was already 5 years and many thousands of miles old, so you can judge for yourself how the finish holds up.
I’ll grab some Lemon Pledge when I’m back home next time, thanks!
Your Moots looked brand new to me, so you’ve done a good job of keeping it in good shape. I really liked the finish on yours and will go with the bead blast, I’m sure.
I like the look of the Magic Makeover, but I am nearly certain that Crisp won’t do this, given he’s a one-man operation. I’ll bet I can find it somewhere here, though. It a future problem, so I have time to look.
I’ve have a Baum Corretto, Aussie Titanium Bike, for around 15 years. Still looks like new, except for the rim brakes, and Campagnolo Record (remember them), thinking about a disc upgrade but another bike to annoy my wife. BTW Curve is a local company here in Melbourne, Australia, very popular.
I’ve had clients with Baum bikes. Lovely machines with great paintjobs, if I remember correctly. As for Campagnolo Record, I remember them all too well, since I still run it!
I didn’t know Curve was in Australia. Nice-looking bikes.
I think a Ti bike has to be at least partially unpainted, so you can see the raw metal. In my opinion they look nicer that way (and people don’t think it’s just an alloy bike, hahaha!).
I think I agree on both counts!
I’ve had my Enigma Escape for 4 years. Love the look of Ti, even with the wear and rub marks.
I didn’t know about the wear/rub marks till I wrote this post. Something a little ‘used’ is fine with me. It’ll match its owner!