Here is some info I got from a recent email:
hi guys,
Being that
The Morales frame is my second favorite flat frame of all time,and that
I still ride it,Ihave some info about the company itself.Morales bikes
was created by Bob Morales(of AFA and Kore Designs fame)and its first
product was the Morales flatland specific frame which came out in early
1994,on the march issue of ride magazine(I'll scan it and post it up
this week).The frame featured the stiffest rear end I've ever
ridden(boosted my back wheel rolling tricks more than 90 percent),a
pretty mellow(73.5) head tube angle(akin to the Original Dyno Compe
II,another one of Bob's brainchildren),twin top tubes,31.4 mm seat tube
which welded directly onto the twin top tubes(to eliminate the cracks
on haros and generals),990's mounted on the underside of the
seatstays,(a winner!),and tightly cropped and out-of-the-way
chainstays.This came as a frame only,with the Kore zero offset fork
accompanying it a year later).the frame became an instant hit due to
its attention to detail,durability(the first one I rode has more than
10 years of hard riding on it and is still being ridden),tough as nails
dropouts(a common problem those days),and the endorsement of gurus
jesse puente,edgar placencia and richard zabzdyr(r.i.p),all mebers of
avant-garde flatland posse "The Flatland Fugitives".Morales later
introduced the BTS frame for street(late 1996),which had a very
attractive design,and was also unbreakable.The company folded in
1999,with the remaining lot bought by Dan's Competitition,and sold as
"Poverty Frames" at a fraction of the std. $220 dollars price,thus
starting the now popular poverty brand.these poverty frames were the
second model(1996) of Morales flatland,endorsed by philosopher Chase
Gouin,with a 74 head angle,fatter top tubes,thicker chainstays and raw
finish.The BTS was also offered under these specifications too.I still
haven't seen a broken Morales frame.their design inspired many durable
trends in flatland frame design,that endure to this day(see KGB
Psychopower frame head and seat tube angles and fork design).Bob
continues to manufacture Kore products for MTB's and has no King of the
skateparks contests in project anytime soon.(psyche).