Who makes the lightest steel frame bikes?
#51
Senior Member
Cicli Barco XCr custom stainless steel 58.5 cm
How light can a steel frame bike get and who makes the lightest? What I would like is a 58cm steel frame road bike 700c wheels that is around 20 lbs and can accept tires from 23mm to about 42mm. Does one exist or can one be built from an older classic triple butted frame? I'm not experienced enough to know what to look for so thanks for any suggestions.
Although, the bike weighs 18.875 lbs. with pedals, it would be possible to cut some more weight off with a lighter saddle, carbon fork, and carbon wheels (although not wide ones). My wheels are HED Belgium Plus alloy rims which are much wider than most and are tubeless ready. I have 25 cm width Vittoria Corsa Control tubeless tires which end up being 29 cm on these wide rims. The Campagnolo Direct Mount Brakes open to 31.5 cm, wider than most rim brakes. They also work a lot better and are much stronger and trouble free than classic rim brakes.
If you want to know what the bike is really like, here is a review of the same bike. The only difference is the wheels, saddle, and the Campy SR electronic shifting, mine has the mechanical Campy SR group. All the other stuff is WR Compositi carbon fiber from the folks who also make carbon fiber parts for Ferrari and Lamborghini. That bike won the "Best of Italy" award at Bespoked, the English handmade bicycle show last year. That bike weighed 17.6 lbs. but it is a much smaller frame size than mine.
https://www.cyclist.co.uk/reviews/66...rco-xcr-review They give it a 5 star rating and a rave review.
Custom name plate
Campy direct mount brakes and the steel/carbon fork
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#52
Senior Member
Very nice Supercorsa, but it is a very small sized frame so the weight is misleading. I have a new Supercorsa that weighs in at just under 21 lbs with pedals for a 58.5 cm frame. But I have a relatively heavy Brooks saddle. Also It would not accept wide tires.
#53
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This is my new custom Cicli Barco frame made with Columbus XCr which is a very thin, very light, and very expensive, stainless steel, triple butted tubing. This bike weighs 18.875 lbs. with pedals. It has a 58.5 cm seat tube. The fork is also stainless but has a carbon fiber steering tube to save weight. The price of this frame with all the custom features, like the Barco Viva fork, internal brake cable, direct mount brakes, metal name plate, Italian shield, multi-color paint, dark nickel head badge etc. was $3,600, including shipping from Italy. It is handmade exactly the way you want with any finish or paint you can imagine. Gianluca Barco is very fluent in English and works very closely with you to make sure you get exactly what you want. We had about 140 emails between us during the design and build process. I can not recommend them highly enough. I suggest that you look at their Facebook page to see how highly they are regarded in Italy. And, to see some of the options available. You will also see my frame in there.
Although, the bike weighs 18.875 lbs. with pedals, it would be possible to cut some more weight off with a lighter saddle, carbon fork, and carbon wheels (although not wide ones). My wheels are HED Belgium Plus alloy rims which are much wider than most and are tubeless ready. I have 25 cm width Vittoria Corsa Control tubeless tires which end up being 29 cm on these wide rims. The Campagnolo Direct Mount Brakes open to 31.5 cm, wider than most rim brakes. They also work a lot better and are much stronger and trouble free than classic rim brakes.
If you want to know what the bike is really like, here is a review of the same bike. The only difference is the wheels, saddle, and the Campy SR electronic shifting, mine has the mechanical Campy SR group. All the other stuff is WR Compositi carbon fiber from the folks who also make carbon fiber parts for Ferrari and Lamborghini. That bike won the "Best of Italy" award at Bespoked, the English handmade bicycle show last year. That bike weighed 17.6 lbs. but it is a much smaller frame size than mine.
https://www.cyclist.co.uk/reviews/66...rco-xcr-review They give it a 5 star rating and a rave review.
Custom name plate
Campy direct mount brakes and the steel/carbon fork
Although, the bike weighs 18.875 lbs. with pedals, it would be possible to cut some more weight off with a lighter saddle, carbon fork, and carbon wheels (although not wide ones). My wheels are HED Belgium Plus alloy rims which are much wider than most and are tubeless ready. I have 25 cm width Vittoria Corsa Control tubeless tires which end up being 29 cm on these wide rims. The Campagnolo Direct Mount Brakes open to 31.5 cm, wider than most rim brakes. They also work a lot better and are much stronger and trouble free than classic rim brakes.
If you want to know what the bike is really like, here is a review of the same bike. The only difference is the wheels, saddle, and the Campy SR electronic shifting, mine has the mechanical Campy SR group. All the other stuff is WR Compositi carbon fiber from the folks who also make carbon fiber parts for Ferrari and Lamborghini. That bike won the "Best of Italy" award at Bespoked, the English handmade bicycle show last year. That bike weighed 17.6 lbs. but it is a much smaller frame size than mine.
https://www.cyclist.co.uk/reviews/66...rco-xcr-review They give it a 5 star rating and a rave review.
Custom name plate
Campy direct mount brakes and the steel/carbon fork
Mine steel bike is 18.18 with pedals and cages. Older Campy 10s Chorus with the exception of the 11s carbon crank (wanted a compact). Are you running tanks for wheels or something? I guess it looks a fair amount larger than mine.
Sweet bike nonetheless.
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#54
Senior Member
Huh, I would have expected less.
Mine steel bike is 18.18 with pedals and cages. Older Campy 10s Chorus with the exception of the 11s carbon crank (wanted a compact). Are you running tanks for wheels or something? I guess it looks a fair amount larger than mine.
Sweet bike nonetheless.
Mine steel bike is 18.18 with pedals and cages. Older Campy 10s Chorus with the exception of the 11s carbon crank (wanted a compact). Are you running tanks for wheels or something? I guess it looks a fair amount larger than mine.
Sweet bike nonetheless.
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#55
Member
I wouldn't necessarily mind a carbon fork, bars and seat post for that matter. Having a custom made may be the answer but if there was a less expensive option involving a vintage frame, that would be ideal. 38mm tires would do fine as well, if that's the limit. The Kona Roadhouse is as close as I found and I think it's out of production.
#56
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I have no idea who makes the lightest steel frame, but I do know that INdependent Fabrication makes some very light steel frames. Some places have a few of their frames on hand, but mostlhy they are custom built, and they can, according to a variety of factors, use different weights of tubing.
I've had one of their's for 13 years now, and I'm terribly fond of it.
I've had one of their's for 13 years now, and I'm terribly fond of it.
#57
Member
Agreed. The IF stuff is really, really nice. Steel is such a nice ride. So many advantages.
#58
Member
This is my new custom Cicli Barco frame made with Columbus XCr which is a very thin, very light, and very expensive, stainless steel, triple butted tubing. This bike weighs 18.875 lbs. with pedals. It has a 58.5 cm seat tube. The fork is also stainless but has a carbon fiber steering tube to save weight. The price of this frame with all the custom features, like the Barco Viva fork, internal brake cable, direct mount brakes, metal name plate, Italian shield, multi-color paint, dark nickel head badge etc. was $3,600, including shipping from Italy. It is handmade exactly the way you want with any finish or paint you can imagine. Gianluca Barco is very fluent in English and works very closely with you to make sure you get exactly what you want. We had about 140 emails between us during the design and build process. I can not recommend them highly enough. I suggest that you look at their Facebook page to see how highly they are regarded in Italy. And, to see some of the options available. You will also see my frame in there.
Although, the bike weighs 18.875 lbs. with pedals, it would be possible to cut some more weight off with a lighter saddle, carbon fork, and carbon wheels (although not wide ones). My wheels are HED Belgium Plus alloy rims which are much wider than most and are tubeless ready. I have 25 cm width Vittoria Corsa Control tubeless tires which end up being 29 cm on these wide rims. The Campagnolo Direct Mount Brakes open to 31.5 cm, wider than most rim brakes. They also work a lot better and are much stronger and trouble free than classic rim brakes.
If you want to know what the bike is really like, here is a review of the same bike. The only difference is the wheels, saddle, and the Campy SR electronic shifting, mine has the mechanical Campy SR group. All the other stuff is WR Compositi carbon fiber from the folks who also make carbon fiber parts for Ferrari and Lamborghini. That bike won the "Best of Italy" award at Bespoked, the English handmade bicycle show last year. That bike weighed 17.6 lbs. but it is a much smaller frame size than mine.
https://www.cyclist.co.uk/reviews/66...rco-xcr-review They give it a 5 star rating and a rave review.
Custom name plate
Campy direct mount brakes and the steel/carbon fork
Although, the bike weighs 18.875 lbs. with pedals, it would be possible to cut some more weight off with a lighter saddle, carbon fork, and carbon wheels (although not wide ones). My wheels are HED Belgium Plus alloy rims which are much wider than most and are tubeless ready. I have 25 cm width Vittoria Corsa Control tubeless tires which end up being 29 cm on these wide rims. The Campagnolo Direct Mount Brakes open to 31.5 cm, wider than most rim brakes. They also work a lot better and are much stronger and trouble free than classic rim brakes.
If you want to know what the bike is really like, here is a review of the same bike. The only difference is the wheels, saddle, and the Campy SR electronic shifting, mine has the mechanical Campy SR group. All the other stuff is WR Compositi carbon fiber from the folks who also make carbon fiber parts for Ferrari and Lamborghini. That bike won the "Best of Italy" award at Bespoked, the English handmade bicycle show last year. That bike weighed 17.6 lbs. but it is a much smaller frame size than mine.
https://www.cyclist.co.uk/reviews/66...rco-xcr-review They give it a 5 star rating and a rave review.
Custom name plate
Campy direct mount brakes and the steel/carbon fork
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#60
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The large tire size, not so much. Large tires and tubes and the wheels to accommodate them would add a very significant amount of weight to the build, compared to reasonably light alloy wheels and lightweight 23-25mm tires and lightweight tubes. If you're going modern-retro with downtube indexed shifters, that helps quite a bit compared to integrated brake shifters.
As far as the frame and fork, my limited experience is that a lot of vintage nice high end or near-high end framesets (i.e. double butted 531 or SL grade steel) will allow you to get in that 20 pound range without being too awfully crazy about it. Just a little bit crazy, looking to save an ounce or two every time you pick a component. This stuff is fun and you can do it with some recreational time on eBay or finding websites that sell out stock.
#61
Senior Member
The Campagnolo Super Record 12 speed group is mechanical, smooth as silk and you never have to worry about charging your battery. The 11-32 cassette helps these old legs on the hills. I don't ride my gravel bike as much anymore because this does everything it does, but better.
Dark nickel head badge
Direct mount brakes
Some Italian carbon
In action
A flat part of Creek Road in Dripping Springs, TX, one of my usual rides.
Dark nickel head badge
Direct mount brakes
Some Italian carbon
In action
A flat part of Creek Road in Dripping Springs, TX, one of my usual rides.
Last edited by Johnk3; 06-23-20 at 08:03 AM.
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#62
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I'm sold! These are the most beautiful bikes I have ever seen!
Someone asked about Titanium. Rationally or not, I guess I'm afraid of it. I'm about to pass up an opportunity to buy a nice Titanium bike fairly cheap for it's original cost but it might take 28mm tires at max and I have some rough roads here in the dirty south.
Someone asked about Titanium. Rationally or not, I guess I'm afraid of it. I'm about to pass up an opportunity to buy a nice Titanium bike fairly cheap for it's original cost but it might take 28mm tires at max and I have some rough roads here in the dirty south.
#63
Senior Member
I'm sold! These are the most beautiful bikes I have ever seen!
Someone asked about Titanium. Rationally or not, I guess I'm afraid of it. I'm about to pass up an opportunity to buy a nice Titanium bike fairly cheap for it's original cost but it might take 28mm tires at max and I have some rough roads here in the dirty south.
Someone asked about Titanium. Rationally or not, I guess I'm afraid of it. I'm about to pass up an opportunity to buy a nice Titanium bike fairly cheap for it's original cost but it might take 28mm tires at max and I have some rough roads here in the dirty south.
This Rossman is disc brake. Have a look at those tubes and the complete build (wheels!). https://theradavist.com/2019/08/how-...s-brest-paris/
#64
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Geez, my all original 1984 Fuji Club weighs 21 pounds.
The Rodriguez Outlaw RL weighs 13.5 pounds, and I haven't heard one bad report about those frames for all the years they made those bikes, and still make them today. https://www.rodbikes.com/catalog/out...tlaw-main.html
The Rodriguez Outlaw RL weighs 13.5 pounds, and I haven't heard one bad report about those frames for all the years they made those bikes, and still make them today. https://www.rodbikes.com/catalog/out...tlaw-main.html
#65
Senior Member
Geez, my all original 1984 Fuji Club weighs 21 pounds.
The Rodriguez Outlaw RL weighs 13.5 pounds, and I haven't heard one bad report about those frames for all the years they made those bikes, and still make them today. https://www.rodbikes.com/catalog/out...tlaw-main.html
The Rodriguez Outlaw RL weighs 13.5 pounds, and I haven't heard one bad report about those frames for all the years they made those bikes, and still make them today. https://www.rodbikes.com/catalog/out...tlaw-main.html
#66
Senior Member
While I wouldn't want a heavy ride made out of plumbing pipes, I have seen more than one big, heavy, strong guy mangle super light wheels and break rear dropouts. Might be less expensive, more predictable and faster to take a few pounds off the rider instead. 3 pounds off your bike might cost $5000, giving up a little pizza actually saves you money.
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#67
Senior Member
While I wouldn't want a heavy ride made out of plumbing pipes, I have seen more than one big, heavy, strong guy mangle super light wheels and break rear dropouts. Might be less expensive, more predictable and faster to take a few pounds off the rider instead. 3 pounds off your bike might cost $5000, giving up a little pizza actually saves you money.
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#68
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As many times as The Outlaw has been mentioned in this thread, & it's disc brake twin, The Bandito, I get the impression no one really believes a steel bike can be 13.5 pounds.
It's true.
It can.
There is one against the wall of their shop & you can touch it & feel & ride it to see for yourself.
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I shouldn't have to "make myself more visible;" Drivers should just stop running people over.
Car dependency is a tax.
I shouldn't have to "make myself more visible;" Drivers should just stop running people over.
Car dependency is a tax.
#69
Senior Member
Geez, my all original 1984 Fuji Club weighs 21 pounds.
The Rodriguez Outlaw RL weighs 13.5 pounds, and I haven't heard one bad report about those frames for all the years they made those bikes, and still make them today. https://www.rodbikes.com/catalog/out...tlaw-main.html
The Rodriguez Outlaw RL weighs 13.5 pounds, and I haven't heard one bad report about those frames for all the years they made those bikes, and still make them today. https://www.rodbikes.com/catalog/out...tlaw-main.html
#70
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Yeah, but if you "downgrade" to Dura-Ace you can save almost 5 grand too. Some buyers just want to spend money because money = greatness. Add in Campagnolo to the exclusivity club & you've got a recipe for big $$$ sales.
They sell A LOT. The Outlaw (of any trim level) is their most popular bike & the limit is really how fast they can make 'em.
$8500 really is in the same range as any reasonably high end carbon bike & priced consistant with the high end bike market. How many here paid ~5-6k for a bike & put $3k worth of wheels on it?
You can buy just the frameset & build it up any way you like too. That's super cool if you have particular tastes or an above average parts bin as well. That's what I'd do if ever my R5 needs replacement. It'd be easy to just swap the parts over.
They sell A LOT. The Outlaw (of any trim level) is their most popular bike & the limit is really how fast they can make 'em.
$8500 really is in the same range as any reasonably high end carbon bike & priced consistant with the high end bike market. How many here paid ~5-6k for a bike & put $3k worth of wheels on it?
You can buy just the frameset & build it up any way you like too. That's super cool if you have particular tastes or an above average parts bin as well. That's what I'd do if ever my R5 needs replacement. It'd be easy to just swap the parts over.
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I shouldn't have to "make myself more visible;" Drivers should just stop running people over.
Car dependency is a tax.
I shouldn't have to "make myself more visible;" Drivers should just stop running people over.
Car dependency is a tax.
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#71
Banned
An individual frame builder will select the lightest materials to satisfy you. if you are on the heavy side yourself ,
may recommend where you might be better served to not use the thinnest wall lightest tubes. lest it feel noodly beneath you ..
hand made.
may recommend where you might be better served to not use the thinnest wall lightest tubes. lest it feel noodly beneath you ..
hand made.
#72
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A couple people have mentioned body weight. I am 6'1.5inches tall and 170 lbs. I'm 52 years old and I weighed 360lbs when I was 50 years old. I got here by nothing but a good diet and lots of hard work. I've only been cycling 2 years and was over 300lbs when I bought my first MTB. I own about 10 bikes now with about 4 that are running. I doubt I have the skills to enjoy such super bikes as have been posted ,but at my age I have to ask, if not now , when? I haven't done a century yet but I do a 20-30 mile road ride 3-4 times a week usually. I love steel bikes and own a very nice Surly LHT, A Trek 400,and a 1983 Miyata 610 as my best bikes right now.
#73
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If I could buy my way into the "A Group," I would do it tomorrow.
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i know gitane has some light boy standard models but if you want something too light (CF or something similar) I think you have to go to one of those custom shops