Carbon v Aluminum

[tangentgirl]

Thanks, this is all good to hear. I haven't discounted steel, either. Just getting this started.

[Cataboo]

Thanks, this is all good to hear. I haven't discounted steel, either. Just getting this started.

There's also titanium

[GLC1968]

I just bought my first carbon bike the other day, but I haven't been able to ride it yet.

That said, aluminum is quite stiff, so if the AL frame didn't break, it's likely a good carbon one wouldn't either. Carbon breaks when it is forced in a direction opposite to 'normal'. So it's easier to crack a top tube with a bike rack than it is to break a frame by just riding on a rough road.

But my heart belongs to Ti for both excellent road feel and durability.

[Eden]

A suddenly cracked chainstay on a carbon bike sounds like a flaw the construction or some previous damage. Vibration from a chip seal road is highly unlikely to have caused it. Remember they build airplanes from the stuff - its not fine china. Alu isn't really any more durable - it cracks (my husband has cracked a chainstay on an alu bike) and if it gets dented or bent it is finished.

[TxDoc]

A suddenly cracked chainstay on a carbon bike sounds like a flaw the construction or some previous damage.

+1.
People ride the Paris-Roubaix on carbon frames...

[colorisnt]

I don't have a full carbon bike, but I do have two road bikes with carbon components. The carbon fork on both bikes has never had an issue. My road riding bike saw some BAD chip and seal back in IN when I was doing group rides in a place where they were too cheap to re-asphalt the road. And no problems whatsoever. I have always lived in the Chicago area, so that is where my first carbon got a lot of work on chip and seal and rough roads. Roads back home are awful because of all the freezing and thawing that they go through.

[zoom-zoom]

I'm on aluminum, but am thisclose to upgrading to a more aggressive, carbon frame. The vast majority of our roads are chip-seal and I am tired of returning from rides with numb hands, feet, and butt from the vibration. Hubby is a big guy on carbon and hasn't had major issues. Specialized did replace his frame (under lifetime warranty against manufacturer defect) when it developed an odd crack where the top tube meets the seat tube. He'd ridden 12-13k miles before noticing that spot.

So his bike really took a beating on our roads...plus a 250# beast on the saddle. From the sound of it carbon manufacturing has improved over the last few years, so I don't think most women have much to worry about, even on bad roads.

[Triskeliongirl]

I just bought my first carbon bike the other day, but I haven't been able to ride it yet.

That said, aluminum is quite stiff, so if the AL frame didn't break, it's likely a good carbon one wouldn't either. Carbon breaks when it is forced in a direction opposite to 'normal'. So it's easier to crack a top tube with a bike rack than it is to break a frame by just riding on a rough road.

But my heart belongs to Ti for both excellent road feel and durability.

What did you get?? I thought you loved your ti isis???? I do love my cervelo RS even more than my isis, but i think its cuz I screwed up the size when I bought my Isis and mine is too small for me.

For the original poster, I have had steel, ti and carbon. My carbon is my favorite, but it may not be just about the frame material, its about the fit and other aspects of the design, although it is also my lightest bike and light is good if you like to climb or do fast group rides. But aluminum is equally light although I personally don't have any experience with aluminum.

[GLC1968]

What did you get?? I thought you lived your ti isis???? I do love my cervelo RS even more than my isis, but i think its cuz I screwed up the size when I bought my Isis and mine is too small for me.

The carbon bike is my new TT/Tri bike. A Quintana Roo Seduza. I do still love my Isis and she'll still likely get most of my ride time. If our house burned down and I could only save one non-living thing, I'd save my Isis.

I just realized that I have 4 bikes made of 4 different materials. My MTB is aluminum, my road bike is Ti, my commuter is steel and my tri bike is carbon! Funny! Maybe I need a bamboo bike next?

[Triskeliongirl]

Oh, I just found your new bike thread. ENJOY!! See the note on chain rings I posted there. I am not sure you need a new crankset at all, just different chain rings.

The carbon bike is my new TT/Tri bike. A Quintana Roo Seduza. I do still love my Isis and she'll still likely get most of my ride time. If our house burned down and I could only save one non-living thing, I'd save my Isis.

I just realized that I have 4 bikes made of 4 different materials. My MTB is aluminum, my road bike is Ti, my commuter is steel and my tri bike is carbon! Funny! Maybe I need a bamboo bike next?

[tangentgirl]

There's also titanium

So many choices. Is there an alcarteeltanium alloy out there?

[marni]

my 5 year old trek has been through three major accidents-two off road incidents and one brush with a trailer holding lawn equipment and although I haven't held up, the bike has.

Here in Texas , where the stuff was invented, they have chip seal to beat the chip seal anywhere else and it's a killer to ride. The bike has held up well. Let's not not to mention the number of speed bumps, potholes, rumble strips and tire consuming road snakes I have run over- not to mention the road kill and or gravel, hailstones, and miscellaneous , smaller than a bread box but only just, crap I have accidentally hit or run over.

Of course I have never had any other bike than the steel hybrid I had when I first started riding. There is a lot to be said for light weight, especially in distance and hill riding.

[Selkie]

There's also titanium

Word! While I love my steel bikes, I prefer my titanium ones.

[Catrin]

Word! While I love my steel bikes, I prefer my titanium ones.

Out of curiosity, how do you compare the ride between steel and TI frames? I love how my LHT rides, though she is far from light.

[SheFly]

I agree with others - the carbon chainstay issue on the chip seal sounds more like a defect than anything else.

I started out road riding and MTB riding on aluminum. I have tried Ti as well. But I LOVE my carbon bikes. I now have two carbon road bikes and two carbon 'cross bikes as well as a carbon TT bike. The ride of the carbon is awesome, and if I can race 'cross and not damage the frame, that says something! (FWIW, my MTB is still aluminum - hmm...).

I have hit potholes and ridden some really rough roads on the road bikes - not an issue on the frames. Have even ridden off the rollers in the basement (unintentionally, of course!) with no adverse effect on the bike.

I HAVE had a carbon handlebar fail catastrophically (it was used and previously crashed, I found out later). Despite that incident (which resulted in 3 months of PT), I still have made a big shift in my frames to carbon.

I'll never go back now, sadly...

SheFly