Need ideas for new bike

[stephanie1129]

I don't normally see much demand for steel bikes, I'm curious why you guys prefer them. Softer ride? then why not carbon fiber?

[Blueberry]

I just don't trust carbon fiber - I know people do, it's personal preference for me. I don't want to worry about if my bike falls over, rubs something on the rack, etc. that it will fail. The aluminum bikes I've ridden were quite harsh. I'd love a Ti bike, but it's not in the budget yet.

CA

[Tuckervill]

I like old steel bikes, the ones I had when I was a teenager. That's my affinity to steel. It's not the steel, per se, but the crappy componentry and friction shifters, and it's mostly the adjustable stems that I like a lot! I like the look of the narrower steel tubes over wide aluminum or elliptical carbon fiber, too; I like the aesthetic of steel bikes.

If I were racing, I'd go with the lightest, highest-tech bike I could find, though! There is a big difference in riding my steel touring bike with friction bar-end shifters and my aluminum road bike with brifters. The bike I ride for any particular occasion depends on who I'm riding with, mostly. If I will need to keep up, I ride the road bike. For pure pleasure, it's the steel tourer.

Karen

[Andrea]

I don't normally see much demand for steel bikes, I'm curious why you guys prefer them. Softer ride? then why not carbon fiber?

They're more expensive. I have one that's all built up for racing & I love it. Some people worry about frame failure, but honestly, any material can fail just as easily, but the failures happen in different ways- metal can bend or break (welds can break, too). Carbon doesn't bend. If you wreck, etc, then it's either fine or it breaks. There's no in the middle... which is why you hear of "catastrophic failure" of carbon parts. I don't see it as unsafe in the least.

To the OP- I have a Surly Crosscheck (in addition to my lightweight carbon steed). I LOVE it! I'm about to race CX on it, and once CX season is over, it's getting some fenders & maybe a rack and turning into my new commuter.

[Eden]

There are some weight limits to carbon that does make it a less than suitable material for building up a loaded touring bike, and it may not be the best material for a bike you are going to abuse and know that will be crashed often (like a cyclocross bike - I'd leave the CF to the sponsored pros who don't have to pay when they break something) but I essentially agree with Andrea.

I also have a carbon bike for racing. I don't feel in danger on it, and I've even crashed a few times without breaking anything. It is actually pretty tough stuff (its not going to break from tipping over when its parked...), its just that when it breaks it does so pretty spectacularly. The technology has come pretty far since the early CF bikes too, which I think may have been a little more prone to early failure. And I also agree with her that any material can beak. I have a teammate who has had unfixable failure of not one, but two titanium frames - and she's not particularly a heavyweight at about 5'2"... My husband broke a weld on a steel bike and the repair would have cost more than a new frame...

[Drtgirl]

I think Redline makes a steel cross frame. I ride a 48" Conquest Pro and it fits great (FWIW I'm 5'4").

[Zen]

Angels sing when I ride this bike.

[TxDoc]

Zen, what tires do you have on this bike? Can't say from the photo. Thanks!

[lunacycles]

The Surly Cross Check is a great bicycle too, although contrary to popular belief the steel Surly uses is fairly low-grade. It does come with good stock components, but you're paying a lot of money for steel that won't last as some of the cheaper bikes out there.

Surlys are 4130. This is an excellent frame material, nothing "low quality" about it, and it will likely outlast 90+% of anything made out of aluminum or carbon fiber. I would say it is extremely durable. The only caveat is that it is heavy.

[Zen]

Zen, what tires do you have on this bike? Can't say from the photo. Thanks!

Vittoria Raddoneurs, 32's.