I thought it was Orange riders who owned Audis? Now I’m confused.

Mercian and others have given up on 953, simply because Reynolds couldn’t deliver.

It’s true that there’s a sizable lead time with 953 (raw materical is supplied from Carpenter Technology in the US in very, very small batches – http://www.cartech.com/ ). I think with it’s associated costs there’s a sensible tendancy for Reynolds not to hold too much stock at any given time and operate more on a made-to-order basis. Saying that they’re unable deliver isn’t entirely fair. If you want the good stuff, you’ll have to wait.

Good article in latest Rouleur about this.