Raleigh Bicycle Company introduced in 1973 and only available in a bizarre shade of pink. This model was discontinued in 1976. The Mk 2 had a shorter seat and the frame modified to move the rear of the seat forward, this helped prevent the bike tipping up. The shorter seat also made it harder to ride '2 up' (2 people on the bike at a time). The "Chopper" remained in production until 1982, when the rising popularity of the BMX bicycle caused sales to drop off. Raleigh revisited the chopper design in recent times, with great success although the new version has had
Merlin (bicycle company) Merlin (bicycle company) Merlin Metalworks, Inc. was a pioneer in titanium bicycle design and construction. Merlin introduced the first titanium alloy mountain bike, oversized tubesets, s-bend chain and seat stays for mountain bikes. For road bikes, Merlin commercialized the first titanium butted tubing and many other innovations. The company was founded in 1986 by Gwyn Jones, Gary Helfrich, and Mike Augspurger in Cambridge, Massachusetts They were the first to manufacture bicycle frames constructed solely from titanium. Merlin became known for their meticulous and visually pleasing puddle welds. The first Merlin frame was a mountain bike frame custom-built for the defending