Alloy so good nowadays I wont be buying carbon in a hurry

[Rob3rt]

Of course there are reasons why steel is not the material of choice for a racing cyclist these days but it doesn't mean that a steel bike is no good for going up hill.

Also LMFAO, an 11% hill........ absolutelly terrifying! Serious case of needing to HTFU!

 

[mickle]

... Cannondale ... alloy ...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alloy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aluminium

 

[VamP]

I am particularly amused that in the OPs world view, carbon forks are somehow immune from this predisposition of the rest of the frame to suffer sudden and catastrophic failure.

 

[michaelcycle]

For sheer lushness and comfort you are on the money regarding steel bikes, however one of my training routes has an 11% climb that the thought of using a steel bike on it would terrify me as with steel comes xtra weight and flex.

Eh? Ok, a little weight and a little elastic flex (as opposed to inelastic flex) may make things a tad more difficult but for average riders (I include myself here) I doubt it would make all that much difference.

I wonder how people managed in the past. I certainly hope effort and sweat weren't involved...

 

[Rob3rt]

If somebody bought say a Cannondale caad10 , those alloy bikes weigh what a carbon one does and the caad10 is just as good for a fraction of the price. Id be terrified to take an expensive full carbon out onto uk roads these days with the shocking driving we all witness daily and the roads are like pothole city. It just takes a hit in the wrong direction and carbon failure can be catastrophic, I know a guy who rode full carbons who had a coming together with another rider and the other guys crankset destroyed his downtube with a huge crack.

Are there any other riders here, who aren't endorsed cyclists that get a new bike when the old one is crocked, who share the view that with alloy bikes that have carbon forks being so good these days then why bother or take the risk with full carbon types ?

Coming back to this, I am interested to how this conclusion has been reached?

 

[Rob3rt]

I am particularly amused that in the OPs world view, carbon forks are somehow immune from this predisposition of the rest of the frame to suffer sudden and catastrophic failure.

Yeah, especially when a stem/handlebar, fork or steerer failure (as well as a seatpost failure, you can guess why) is probably the most catastrophic of all failures!

 

[mcshroom]

Madison Genesis are using steel road bikes this year. They were in the ToB which has rather steeper hills than just about anything the TdF goes up (Honister pass had a 25% section)

 

[ayceejay]

Are we saying that it is only the material the frame is made of that makes one bike 'better' (by whatever criterion) than another?

 

[Hacienda71]

The steel Condor that Kristian House rode in this years TOB didn't seem to stop him being ok in the hills and sticking with the break away in the penultimate stage. Frame material is one consideration, the construction is another. You can to a certain extent mask or amplify the characteristics of each material by construction techniques. There are quite a few race frames that are aluminium and are very light, however they tend to dent easily due to the thinness of the metal in certain areas. If CF was at risk of shattering at the first sign of a pothole it wouldn't be used. However it doesn't and so is used. It provides the frame maker with a material that is very light, strong and stiff. If it is used in mountain bike frames and even in the chassis construction of racecars the rigors of road riding are hardly going to be at the edge of it's limits.

 

[T.M.H.N.E.T]

Yeah but, CF melts in rain

 

[VamP]

Madison Genesis are using steel road bikes this year. They were in the ToB which has rather steeper hills than just about anything the TdF goes up (Honister pass had a 25% section)

I have heard it said, though, that the team riders don't like the bikes all that much, apparently too stiff in wrong places.

 

[Rob3rt]

I have heard it said, though, that the team riders don't like the bikes all that much, apparently too stiff in wrong places.

I have also heard it said.

Are we saying that it is only the material the frame is made of that makes one bike 'better' (by whatever criterion) than another?

No but it has a substantial impact!

 

[VamP]

Yeah, especially when a stem/handlebar, fork or steerer failure (as well as a seatpost failure, you can guess why) is probably the most catastrophic of all failures!

Yep.

The only thing I've broken catastrophically was an alloy flatbar on my steel MTB. Just went without warning halfway down a rather steep descent. Instant DNF but no real harm done. Hasn't put me off alloy.

 

[mcshroom]

From what I understand, they are first year prototypes with a new tubing (953 I think), and have actually been changing the frames during the season as they received feedback. I'm hoping this means that the complaints about stiffness or lack of are now being addressed and the next generation of these bikes will be better.

The point I was making though was that they are being used in team racing now, not just historically.

 

[VamP]

Yeah but, CF melts in rain

Only in that nasty abrasive North Atlantic stuff you have over the sea there.