Breezin
Dirt Disciple
Ouch.
After feeling the love from comments made here at "Show us your Breezer" it's a queasy swing of the pendulum with some comments here. But that's the biz...
Jeff, thanks for your initial post. I had contemplated posting the new Breezers, but figured this wasn't the forum.
To Jeroen and the Kaiser, thanks for your support.
If you'll permit (look elsewhere if not) I'd like to offer a few insights to how the new Breezers differ from the rest.
First of all, I designed these bikes after listening to what people wanted in a new Breezer. They wanted to see our black/white Lightning updated with 100mm fork travel, hydraulic discs, more tire clearance and same handling and attention to detail.
Some liked the lightness and relative affordability of aluminum (vs. carbon), so that's why there are those bigger tubes on the Thunder (aluminum is only 1/3 the stiffness of steel, so the tubes need to be larger. I've always refrained from huge alu tubes though).
Both Lightning (steel) and Thunder (aluminum) Breezer mountain bikes share the following features, most of which appeared on my Breezers from the late 1990s.
Breezer D'fusion tubing: Best example is at a frame's Achilles Heel, on the down tube at the head tube. The D-shape (flatter side down) diffuses stresses across the bottom of the down tube instead having more focused "hot spot" as with a traditional round down tube.
Breeze-In dropouts: I've been doing these on production Breezers since 1993. Their 3-D structure is twice the rigidity of traditional "door hinge" dropouts, and they are half the weight.
Breezer Apex disc mount: The rear brake is mounted on the chainstay not the seatstay. It's not only for more protection, but because chainstays are huskier than seatstays and this position forces the axle into the frame giving less (no) brake howl.
The acute down tube angle caused by 100mm forks requires a detour. I could've gone with straight, but that would shoot the DT onto the HT quite a ways up from the end making the frame weak (narrow TT/DT head perch). I could've added a gusset, but gussets deaden the ride. The curve is the best way around the fork (when turned at 90 degrees).
Basically, I'm trying to keep joinery to a minimum and make tubing the (rightful) star of the show. Joinery and gussets deaden the ride, so you want to keep that to a minimum.
Pudding: People say the new aluminum Thunder feels like steel. I agree, and was delighted to finally get aboard a new steel Lightning. People should enjoy Breezer handling as ever before.
The paint job is just a veneer, but I might as well include the ol' spears and diamonds, lest we forget where we came from.
Thanks for listening,
Joe
After feeling the love from comments made here at "Show us your Breezer" it's a queasy swing of the pendulum with some comments here. But that's the biz...
Jeff, thanks for your initial post. I had contemplated posting the new Breezers, but figured this wasn't the forum.
To Jeroen and the Kaiser, thanks for your support.
If you'll permit (look elsewhere if not) I'd like to offer a few insights to how the new Breezers differ from the rest.
First of all, I designed these bikes after listening to what people wanted in a new Breezer. They wanted to see our black/white Lightning updated with 100mm fork travel, hydraulic discs, more tire clearance and same handling and attention to detail.
Some liked the lightness and relative affordability of aluminum (vs. carbon), so that's why there are those bigger tubes on the Thunder (aluminum is only 1/3 the stiffness of steel, so the tubes need to be larger. I've always refrained from huge alu tubes though).
Both Lightning (steel) and Thunder (aluminum) Breezer mountain bikes share the following features, most of which appeared on my Breezers from the late 1990s.
Breezer D'fusion tubing: Best example is at a frame's Achilles Heel, on the down tube at the head tube. The D-shape (flatter side down) diffuses stresses across the bottom of the down tube instead having more focused "hot spot" as with a traditional round down tube.
Breeze-In dropouts: I've been doing these on production Breezers since 1993. Their 3-D structure is twice the rigidity of traditional "door hinge" dropouts, and they are half the weight.
Breezer Apex disc mount: The rear brake is mounted on the chainstay not the seatstay. It's not only for more protection, but because chainstays are huskier than seatstays and this position forces the axle into the frame giving less (no) brake howl.
The acute down tube angle caused by 100mm forks requires a detour. I could've gone with straight, but that would shoot the DT onto the HT quite a ways up from the end making the frame weak (narrow TT/DT head perch). I could've added a gusset, but gussets deaden the ride. The curve is the best way around the fork (when turned at 90 degrees).
Basically, I'm trying to keep joinery to a minimum and make tubing the (rightful) star of the show. Joinery and gussets deaden the ride, so you want to keep that to a minimum.
Pudding: People say the new aluminum Thunder feels like steel. I agree, and was delighted to finally get aboard a new steel Lightning. People should enjoy Breezer handling as ever before.
The paint job is just a veneer, but I might as well include the ol' spears and diamonds, lest we forget where we came from.
Thanks for listening,
Joe
