Best steel road bike tubing?
- Thread starter mr.mtg
- Start date
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mikeymustard
Guru
What a question! I hope you don't take their advice on anything important! Columbus has always made great tubing, and so do one or two other manufacturers so who knows. What makes a great frame is the skill of the builder in choosing the right type of tubes and geometry for its purpose, and then skilfully putting them together. The fact that some very skilful builders have used Columbus over (let's say) Reynolds, has traditionally been as much dependant on geography as any other factor.
Fab Foodie
hanging-on in quiet desperation ...
- Location
- Kirton, Devon.
I think you have to define what ‘best’ means to you in terms of bicycle tubing. Racing requires different properties to touring and all the shades of grey in-between.
Also the frame geometry, construction and fork affects how the bike rides and feels.
Also the frame geometry, construction and fork affects how the bike rides and feels.
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Cycleops
Legendary Member
- Location
- Accra, Ghana
You haven't been duped all these years you've bought what what suited your needs and presumably considered other aspects of the bike's specification. There's no such thing as a 'best' make of tubing although there may be 'better' tubing.
Drago
Legendary Member
- Location
- Suburban Poshshire
Make 2 identical frames. One with cheap and nasty steel, one with Reynolds 999 super Mango gold myrhh steel. Each frame will...
Weigh the same.
Feel the same to ride.
The difference is the super duper steel is stronger, so in reality less of it needs to be used and the frame can thus be made lighter. This idea that one steel feels nice to ride the another is tosh - that characteristic is all down to the design of the tubes, and the design and construction of the frame.
So it terms of 'better', the finest steel could theoretically make the lightest frame, and that's it. Nothing more. In all other regards, such as 'feel, comfort, springiness, the ability to absorb road buzz, etc, cheap stteel from a 1970s Lancia is every bit as good as a Columbus frame brazed using the Popes tears.
So the only advantage Columbus may or may not have over anything else is weight. How it is ulitised by the tube manufacturer and the frame builder are the two things that define the frame characteristics. Therefore, alas, the question is a pointless one - you may as well ask if the sun is better than the moon, or if Trump is better than Reagan. You've not been duped, but unless your overriding priority when buying a frame is weight, then you may have been chasing a chimaera.
Weigh the same.
Feel the same to ride.
The difference is the super duper steel is stronger, so in reality less of it needs to be used and the frame can thus be made lighter. This idea that one steel feels nice to ride the another is tosh - that characteristic is all down to the design of the tubes, and the design and construction of the frame.
So it terms of 'better', the finest steel could theoretically make the lightest frame, and that's it. Nothing more. In all other regards, such as 'feel, comfort, springiness, the ability to absorb road buzz, etc, cheap stteel from a 1970s Lancia is every bit as good as a Columbus frame brazed using the Popes tears.
So the only advantage Columbus may or may not have over anything else is weight. How it is ulitised by the tube manufacturer and the frame builder are the two things that define the frame characteristics. Therefore, alas, the question is a pointless one - you may as well ask if the sun is better than the moon, or if Trump is better than Reagan. You've not been duped, but unless your overriding priority when buying a frame is weight, then you may have been chasing a chimaera.
Bonefish Blues
Banging donk
- Location
- 52 Festive Road
I think that this is a good primer, full of common sense:
http://www.bretonbikes.com/homepage/cycling-article-blog/163-steel-tubing-for-cycle-tourists
http://www.bretonbikes.com/homepage/cycling-article-blog/163-steel-tubing-for-cycle-tourists
raleighnut
Legendary Member
- Location
- One of the 'Elite'
The nicest/ lightest frame I've got is a 653 frameset which is a mix of 531c and 753 tubing
Drago
Legendary Member
- Location
- Suburban Poshshire
Email Giant snd ask them?
biggs682
Touch it up and ride it
- Location
- Northamptonshire
[QUOTE 5463977, member: 9609"]How would I find out what my Giant 'speederlite' is - that's been petty good.[/QUOTE]
Either 4130 or Cro mo but they do ride well indeed .
What is best who knows
Either 4130 or Cro mo but they do ride well indeed .
What is best who knows
Bonefish Blues
Banging donk
- Location
- 52 Festive Road
4130 is Chromo, but not all Chromo is 4130, innit?
mustang1
Guru
- Location
- London, UK
I like those frames that say Hi Ten on them. They are so cool and pretty good price.
I have Columbus Spirit. (I just looked it up because I didn't know what it was) .
I have Columbus Spirit. (I just looked it up because I didn't know what it was) .
Spiderweb
Not So Special One
- Location
- North Yorkshire
I have several steel framed bikes with the following tube sets;
Reynolds 531c
Reynolds 531 Millennium
Reynolds 631
Columbus Gara
Tange 5
They are all lovely bikes to ride, the Columbus and Tange are heavier frames but I really couldn’t say which I prefer.
My Friend rides a Bike with a Ritchey Logic tube set and that is his preferred steel frame.
It’s a difficult question to answer
Reynolds 531c
Reynolds 531 Millennium
Reynolds 631
Columbus Gara
Tange 5
They are all lovely bikes to ride, the Columbus and Tange are heavier frames but I really couldn’t say which I prefer.
My Friend rides a Bike with a Ritchey Logic tube set and that is his preferred steel frame.
It’s a difficult question to answer
Bonefish Blues
Banging donk
- Location
- 52 Festive Road
Racks brain to think what he has in steel flavour.
Tandem is Reynolds 653, rides nicely. Kona Cinder Cone '95 is Kona's Chromoly IIRC, rides nicely. Kona Sutra is Dedacciai COM 12.5, rides nicely. All different, all well designed, each with different steel, so all are best, obvs.
Tandem is Reynolds 653, rides nicely. Kona Cinder Cone '95 is Kona's Chromoly IIRC, rides nicely. Kona Sutra is Dedacciai COM 12.5, rides nicely. All different, all well designed, each with different steel, so all are best, obvs.
Drago
Legendary Member
- Location
- Suburban Poshshire
4130 is indeed a cromo. It's have very similar mechanical properties to 531, so is cable of making frames comparable to 531 in weight, design, and therefore feel. It has the advantage of being more amenable to welding than 531, so tends to be the choice for many mass produced bikes vpbecuase it's cheaper to stick together. I like it. 531 is no better, but the brazing is a little more labour intensive to tended to end up on more expensive hi,as, sump,y because it cost more to assemble.
