Lovingly crafted from Merlin's MTS325 seamless titanium tubing, the Newsboy's flowing curves are anchored by a 11/2-inch downtube that creates a rigid power path from the 11/8-inch head tube to the 6-4 titanium vertical dropouts. Combined with the oversize 13/8-inch seat tube, this stout construction creates a flex-free platform for climbs, sprints, and descents.

"On the trail,", notes Mike Ferrentino in a Winning magazine review, "the Newsboy feels anything but cruiserlike, begging to be hammered like any good 22-pound titanium race bike should. It is a quick handling, agile bike that floats up hills and accelerates with ethereal ease. The Newsboy seems build for those sections of hard, middle-ring single trail where the rider has to get down and dirty and muscle the bike where it's supposed to go. In this type of terrain, the Merlin can be flicked around and pointed where needed with almost arrogant impunity. Power along the straights, weight outside pedal, and jam the bike into turns. [T]he bike snaps around like it's on rails."

Much of the credit for this performance is due to the Newsboy's 7/8-inch chainstays, which are borrowed intact from the Merlin Mountain frame. These large-diameter stays are 50 percent stiffer than the 3/4-inch stays used by other builders, for greater lateral rigidity and improved cornering and climbing power. Their asymmetric S-Bends will swallow a 2.5-inch knobby with room to spare, yet they also accommodate any low-profile crankset.

The Newsboy's internal cable routing leads to a WTB SpeedMaster Roller-Cam brake, a lightweight design of terrific braking power and sensitivity. Other standard features include suspension-adjusted geometry, threaded dropouts, and a lightweight aluminum seat cluster design that accepts a standard 27.2 mm post.