Yellow Saddle
Guru
- Location
- Loch side.
Not necessarily. There is titanium and titanium. Pure titanium is not widely used as structural components in engineering and it is usually alloyed with metals that give it the desired properties for the application. By buying titanium bolts from a Russian website you may not be supplied with the right information to make the right decision.
Further, the bolt's construction is critical for critical bolts like the ones I listed somewhere on this thread. Firstly, the thread has to be rolled, not cut. By cutting the thread you weaken the bolt substantially as well as reduce it's ability to resist cyclical stresses. By rolling the thread you remove no material and work-harden the bolt at the same time. There should be a smooth lead-out from shank to first thread - especially the first thread.
All of these things are taken care of when you buy high-tensile bolts. They may or may not have been taken care of when you buy just any old titanium bolt. For the two most critical applications - bar clamp and seat rail clamp, I won't recommend fiddling with non-stock bolts or, if they need replacing, get the right bolt. For other bolts such as those holding brake shoes onto the caliper, brake disc mounting onto the hub, water bottle cages, bell clamps, rack bolts etc etc, fiddle without concern for dire consequences.
A bicycle is not an aeroplane. And titanium is judiciously used on aeroplanes but there is still plenty of high-ten steel on airoplanes. Including cromoly. I don't see anyone saying my bike is cool because cromoly is used on Russian jet fighters.
