Materials

[quint41]

I'm a relative newbie. Can someone explain to me the difference between steel, aluminum and carbon fiber (besides the obvious weight difference). I've read several postings where people mention they prefer steel, or aluminum or whatever. But I don't know what difference (besides weight) the material makes. Thanks!

[mimitabby]

well, i'll start. (and you forgot Titanium)

Steel (atomic weight of IRON= 56, steel is like 98% Iron) has been used to make bikes for 100+ years. It is flexible and sturdy.
It absorbs shock well and is considered more flexible than Aluminum.

Aluminum(atomic weight 26) is low cost and very lightweight. It is more rigid than steel, but weighs less. People in search of a good ride with lots of bucks will avoid aluminum, but i've had 2 aluminum bikes and they were pretty nice. So it's a darn good choice for someone without
a lot of funds but who wants a light bike. andyou can get carbon forks on it too.

Titanium is lighter than steel (atomic weight 48) but heavier than aluminum. It's VERY expensive. It's supposed to be a great ride, but it seems to me that unless you are a fanatic (those are the people who buy these bikes)
the 15% lighter than steel doesn't make it worth it.

Carbon fiber is what my company is making their new airplanes out of. I figure if they are making airplanes out of it; it should be safe enough for bicyclists too.
It's a man made composite material, sort of like plastic or resin. It is super light; sorry; no atomic weight; it's not an element, it's a compound.
All i can say is go pick a carbon bike up in the store. They are like riding on air (i am told) but they are expensive.

Most good bikes now have carbon fiber forks, because it is superior to even
steel for absorbing road bounce.

Last night i asked the bike guy what were the high points of carbon forks versus steel. He told me that carbon will give you the more comfortable ride, but if you want fenders, lights, etc attached to your fork, you are better off
with steel. I hope that helps you
mimi

[KnottedYet]

Carbon fiber is what my company is making their new airplanes out of. I figure if they are making airplanes out of it; it should be safe enough for bicyclists too.
It's a man made composite material, sort of like plastic or resin. It is super light; sorry; no atomic weight; it's not an element, it's a compound.
All i can say is go pick a carbon bike up in the store. They are like riding on air (i am told) but they are expensive.

Most good bikes now have carbon fiber forks, because it is superior to even
steel for absorbing road bounce.

Last night i asked the bike guy what were the high points of carbon forks versus steel. He told me that carbon will give you the more comfortable ride, but if you want fenders, lights, etc attached to your fork, you are better off
with steel. I hope that helps you
mimi

Wow, Mimi!

[Toni]

My 2 cents........I just started biking about 1 month ago....I bought a carbon WSD (women specific design) Trek, and, well, I JUST LOVE IT!!!! I can fly on this bike.....I love speed. The farthest I have gone is 8 miles (long story) but at one point I was going 18 miles an hour, and didn't realize it!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I have been reading that sometimes carbon can crack, espec. in an accident, whereas steel frames may be more repairable and last longer. I am sure different frame materials all have their pros and cons. I really can't speak from first hand experience yet, but I hope to ride my new Rivendell through the countryside here for MANY years, and I don't plan on racing, so steel was a nice choice for me.
If one is not racing, weight is less important and should be balanced with other factors. Are you planning to tour? (long distances with camping/backpacking type loads) Mostly level riding? Going to be competing/racing? Have to carry your bike upstairs a lot? etc...

There was a bike weight discussion recently on a Rivendell (steel) bike list...someone had said: "From my reading, more riders are worried about taking grams off their bikes instead of pounds off their bodies and not to interested in the ride itself."

Now, when I was first describing and then showing my beautiful new Rivendell Rambouillet to my bike riding older brother recently, he kept asking how much it weighed, talking about how much his bike weighs, how much titanium and carbon and steel bikes weigh, how maybe I should have gotten a lighter carbon bike....etc etc. Sheesh! He doesn't even race. I had to really REFRAIN from suggesting that if he GOT on his bike more often and lost even just 5 of the 50 extra pounds he needs to lose to avoid his sky-high cholesterol heart attack waiting to happen any day now, he wouldn't have to worry at all about how much his bike OR my bike weighs! All this obsession he had about one or two pounds of bike...and I had just wanted to talk about the BIKE!
Made me curious though, and later on I actually balanced on my bathroom scale holding up my bike and WEIGHED my new 54cm Rambouillet with relatively big 700x37c tires (including the small saddlebag full of flat-fixing tube, tools, blinkie, and cable/lock that I usually ride with)....total 27 pounds. Probably 25 lbs without saddlebag and tools. Not sure I have any actual use for that information though. Maybe I will think of one some day while I'm riding a country road past some beautiful sunny farm field with the wind in my face listening to the crickets.

[Veronica]

I became more concerned with the weight of my bike when I started riding really long rides. If I'm doing a ride that's going to take me twenty hours to complete and a lighter bike will shave an hour or two off that time - it's important to me.

At the same time I want a bike that I can trust. I just have an inherent distrust of carbon fiber. I know I would always worry that if I took some of these bumpy descents too fast, that something would break. I know I would not allow myself to descend as fast as I do on steel. Nothing anyone could say, would cause to lose that distrust. Right or wrong, my gut says, this could break. So my new bike is going to be steel.

And yes, I've already shed weight off me.

V.

[KnottedYet]

this was posted down in the "Bikes" forum.

http://www.rivbike.com/html/101_pureopinions.html

Bear in mind this is a company that does only steel frame bikes and sticks with tried-and-true stuff. So read with a grain of salt.

I just plain love the feel and sturdiness of a full steel frame, and I don't mind the little extra weight. From everything I've read, you just need to ride until you find the material that suits you best. Each material has it's plusses and minusses. And there are some STRONG opinions out there!

Edit: my commutermobile is aluminum with a steel fork. I love this bike! But for longer rides, I am happier with a full steel frame.