Honest question - what's so great about Kleins?

[Rumble]

A couple of years back I did a roadie charity ride between Cambridge and Oxford, where we finished in a park in Oxford. Just as we regrouped an immaculate Klein in the dolomite colours rolled by (just some punter on his way back from the shops by the looks of things). All the roadies I was with, who had just spent the past 90-odd miles slagging off all things mountain bike, couldn't take their eyes off it. They just seem to have some kind of aura, even to those who didn't grow up with them.

 

[roblobster]

Well, I still remember being around storcks (german brand) kind of early on and just had this conversation with a friend who used to work at a shop that stocks a lot of the heritage frames that are lusted after on here. thing he objected was, that as aluminium took off a lot of the smaller shops kind of started to struggle with their steel inventory. funnily, some of them held onto them and alas it paid off. obviously stashing away kleins would´ve paid off as well haha. anyhow, from magazines and espc. catalogues you could always tell klein were a bit out there/over the edge/catering to another audience.

besides the functional and aesthetically very pleasing details like internal cable routing (I´m sure they weren´t the first, see road bikes) they definately set themselves apart with their bar stem combos and generally just looking bulkier, maybe like a pitbull of sort if you get what I mean? anyhow, the sheer at that time, new possibilities in painting and the hefty price tags were pretty much the catch back then. and after all, some people definately just see them as status symbols, bt to each their own, would much rather have a decked out merlin or whatever.

edit: will try to get some catalogues up.

 

[Raging_Bulls]

I like some of the ideas, but not how they were implemented.

The cable routing is neat, but I would have gone for a system that lets an entire outer cable slide through a tube in the frame. Much easier than fiddling with the thin plastic things they use, and less of a mess if you need to put a new one in.
I'm also not too sure about the rear-facing dropouts. It looks good, but doesn't make any sense due to the way the rear mech tensions the chain if you try to take out the wheel. Forward-facing is the only logical solution.

I had the pleasure of riding a green (I believe it's called "Gator fade" ?) Adroit, and liked the stiffness and immediate response whenever you pushed the pedals.
However I found it tricky when cornering at the limit because I just couldn't sense when it was about to run out of grip.

Don't get me wrong here. They're beautiful bikes IMO (even though I've already mentioned elsewhere that I'm not a fan of those fat forks).
If you'd give me one, I'd be pleased. However buying one with real money? Only if I would know how to make it handle and feel like I want it to.

As for the snobism and the worshipping, that does bother me indeed. Same thing with the Yetis. I just don't get it.
There are plenty of bikes that are just as good, or even better. There are plenty of bikes here that are rarer as well, and/or more expensive. Yet they don't get those levels of attention.

 

[dbmtb]

Was never a Klein fan and am still not - I always found that they seemed to attract the more poncy types.

But to be fair - plenty of the stuff that became standard fare on later bikes like:
internal gearcable routing.
Integrated stem/bar combos
Integrated headsets
Press-fit BBs
Smooth welds and oversize tubing

were all things that were pretty unusual at the time (am not saying Klein invented them all - but they did seem to be the first to use so many of them on the same bike)

But it does seem to be the brand that the money-is-no-object group of lawyers, doctors and architects seem to have come to the consensus is the one they want to impress each other with, to go with their Pinarello road bike and their S-works modern MTB.

 

[yeti-man]

Yes what's all this fuss with Klein and who is Jenna Jameson?

 

[MiniNinjaRob]

Cheers guys for the responses so far. Not all queries answered yet but I'm proud of you all for not fighting about it yet.

Would like to hear more from the Klein fans as well as thesneaker.

Maybe they will always be a bit of an enigma - I've heard stories about roadies liking them too before. I like the comparison with a pitbull - quite apt.

I suppose it is a bit of a shame all bike have the fat tubes now so they don't stand out like they did 20yrs ago. Skinny certainly looks different now and I can't see that changing.

 

[MiniNinjaRob]

Yes what's all this fuss with Klein and who is Jenna Jameson?

Be careful about when you google that ladies name....

 

[feetabix]

right.....ive never entered the klein debate before, but here goes.......my initial contact was when a mate who worked in the bike trade turned up on one in my local park. it was summer of 1990 and i had been spending my papar round money on bikes to take to races around the midlands. they were all skinny tubed, early 'golden era' bikes, and great fun too, but hemming's down hill escapades had presented me with images of this mythical beast, and seeing one in the flesh had blown me away, as i remember it.....i couldnt afford one, but the oversize tubing, headset and fork looked as hard as nails to my youthful eyes. At that time i was immersed in a hobby that no one around me shared or understood, i guess we all felt it, but i lived among people telling me that any more than £50 spent every 8 years on a bike was wasted money....it was a time when all of the top end bikes would fit onto a one page ad in mbuk, cheapest in bottom left corner, up to most expensive in the top right corner. there sat the klein, top of the pile at that time.....i bought my bike in 2008, i had only modern bikes in the garage and i had no concept of the retro scene. It was purchased to scratch an itch, i had no idea anyone else would see it as anything other than a colourful bike when i rode it.....i did it up, put some bits on i had in the garage and took it out to ride it.....sure, its as stiff as hell, and will leave you a bit sore after a few hours. The internal cables look minimal, but the truth is they need constant attention to keep them running smoothly. Replacing bearings is costly and time consuming. They have a tendency to crack, and i spent ages finding a 350mm seat post to prevent this happening to mine......On a positive note though they are fast, light and responsive. My other bikes wouldnt hold a candle to it in terms of a to b speed....it starts conversations every time im stood next to it, in whatever village i have ridden it to.....for me they represent the best of my teenage years, some think them a little vulgar and arrogant which i respect, but i love riding it....is there any other more instantly recognisable paint scheme in mountain biking above the green/white/pink colour combo?....if my house were on fire it would be the first possesion i would save!.....if i hadnt bought my klein i wouldnt have found retrobike either, i would probably be in bed now, but ive made some great mates here....all that from a bicycle!....

 

[yeti-man]

Btw c'dales had fatter tubes back then and was also filet braced. The internal cable routing are found on old road bikes. Only innovative thing I see with later kleins are the oversized internal headset. Tinker rode them, then he got wiser and jumpd to C'dale ;-)

 

[MiniNinjaRob]

Thats a great response feetabix. Thanks!

I'm trying to think about what my ultimate bike was BITD. I really can't remember many top end things. Strange how the only ones I remember was the Manitou FS (comedy money for the frame - visited sShockwave in Nottingham to see it but oddly can't remember the other bikes they had there) and the Pace RC100 in Castle Cycles in Newark. They are the only ones I can remember apart from the Dave Lloyd in my LBS.

Maybe because I knew there wasn't any chance of me having that kind of cash I never really thought about it.