Broken Ti frame

[Hot Flatus]

Fair enough. To me, it means what places like Evans are selling. I am aware of the history of Giant and the Trek OCLV (I own one), but I don't recall them being commonplace until the late 90's. A once a week sale in a high-end specialist shop, granted.

Anyhoo, back to carbon MTBs, I retain my amazement that not only were they being produced by large volume producers in the early 90's, but that also people were buying them.

[LittleWheelsandBig]

These shops were not high end shops; aiming a step above Evans, I'd say (particularly mechanically).

[Hot Flatus]

In Oz or the UK? If over here, then I genuinely don't know where they were (bar London). I went shopping for a new bike in about 2000 in Cheltenham, to replace the steel race frame I'd had for a decade. IIRC there were two shops, one a specialist, the other was Leisure Lakes (I think it was there at the time). Neither had a cf bike in stock, although the specialist did sometimes have trek OCLV in, but way out of my price point. I ended up with an aluminium Bianchi. By 2002, when I next went shopping, you could get Trek OCLv everywhere, and the prices were being heavily discounted by the retailers.

[LittleWheelsandBig]

Oz, of course. I can't help it if the UK is a little backward.

A place I worked in during the mid-90s is http://www.goldcross.com.au/riders.aspx The approach and target market hasn't changed much since then. The places I worked in before that don't exist in the same form anymore.

[Hot Flatus]

....and yet it is now your adopted homeland 

[LittleWheelsandBig]

I prefer the term 'flag of convenience'.