fujiraf

Hallo, I am in front of a dilemma, what is better, a light aluminium road bike with Sram components 7.2 kgs, or a heavy carbon road bike with shimano components, 9.2 kgs,
In terms of durability, comfort.
Nor a matter of money. They are both same price.
Always had aluminium bikes, but never so light.
My body weight is 75kgs.
The aluminium model is Fuji Roubaix & the carbon Fuji Transonic.
Thanks

datlas 

Can’t say. Can you give more details on bikes??

Silvercivic27

Carbon/Shimano.

Maelochs

I would generally recommend the lighter bike. Carbon is not magic. it is just like steel or aluminum.... how it is used determines what it does. A steel bike might be more compliant, the Al bike lighter, and the carbon bike might just feel dead and flat by comparison with either.

You need to ride both bikes and decide what you like.

One question---what Else is different? The difference between "light" Al and "heavy" CF is Not five pounds. Those two bikes have very little in common if there is that big a difference in weight. Wheels? What else? Five pounds is the weight of an entire steel frame and fork ... so unless the CF bike has two frames, there is a lot of other stuff which is in no way comparable with the Al bike.

Links would help.

pesty

SRAM vs Shimano comes down to personal preference in my opinion. But without knowing which frames were talking about here, you’re going to get nothing but bad info and speculation.

DrIsotope

The better choice is the bike that fits you better. The weight won't matter at all if you're not comfortable. I could tell in 200 yards that I hated the CAAD12. And it was plenty light.

f4rrest

The color is important.

stockae92

those are 2 very different bikes. I assume the Roubaix would be more comfortable even though its alloy name. But the Transonic would be more aero.

I thought pick if you ride up hill more? or is the road rough? or you prefer smooth sailing over long distance?

if you want comfort, go with the Roubaix, if you want speed, go with wthe transonic

JohnJ80

a 2Kg difference in a bike is a LOT.

For durability - neither wins. For comfort - frame material matters somewhat, but far and away, what will drive the comfort is tire selection. This, of course, presumes that you are in the same position on each bike and have been fit properly. The frame material really doesn't matter much for ride comfort. You can get a comfortable or uncomfortable ride in any material.

For example, I have a steel frame Cross bike that had lousy vertical compliance (far too stiff) - I absolutely hated riding it. I added a carbon fork, got a bit better. I added a carbon seat post, better still but all small and incremental changes. Then I switched from 25c tires at 100psi to 30c tubeless tires at 75psi and suddenly it's the most comfortable bike in my collection. FWIW, those were Schwalbe G-1 speeds that are an amazingly lightweight tire for a tire that pudgy. Average speeds over long rides where the same as for 25c tubulars.

I'm betting that the lighter bike also has much better wheels that are also lighter. A bike's weight is about a third in the frame, a third in the wheels and a third in the components. To lose 4 lbs, you'd have to have a pretty good upgrade in all categories. I'm guessing those wheels are a lot better. So I'd go for the AL frame for sure especially if it has a carbon fork. Then make sure you pick the right tires and you should be good.

J.

Dean V

Aluminium. To be that weight it must be fairly high end frame and components. And for the carbon bike to be 9.2kg it must be the exact opposite.

Maelochs

exactly this ... IMO.

TimothyH

Which models?

Both the Roubaix and the Transonic come in various different build levels. Which ones specifically?

Lots of people are generalizing in this thread but without knowing the exact models and looking up the specs they are simply guessing.

The frames are probably a very small portion of the total weight of the bike.


-Tim-

Fiery

Despite the name, Fuji Roubaix is nothing like Specialized Roubaix. It's designed as an out and out race bike, stiff, light and aggressive.

redfooj

itd be cool if people see not to reduce the identity of a bike or frame down simply to its primary material.

kinda like a car to its engine configuration, where today whether something is supercharged or turbocharged or a 6 cylinder or a 8 cylinder really no longer defines its characteristics

Steve B.

This

Its nearly a 4-1/2 lbs difference in overall bike weight and I doubt its frame weight. So many other factors involved, components and wheels, tires, etc...

Maelochs

In post #4 I hypothesized that the bike might come with a spare frame. Seems reasonable ... to me.

stockae92

ohhhhhhh

Dean V

Does it really matter which models?
One bike is over 4lb lighter than the other so to achieve that the frame and components must be significantly lighter and better quality. Subsequently better value if they are the same price.
It is possible that it is a 700 gram carbon frame with etap and the worlds heaviest wheels, but not likely

DrIsotope

Assuming this is about the newest models, the only two bikes that come close to the OP's stated weights and similar pricepoints are the most expensive Roubaix, the Elite, and the cheapest Transonic, the 2.5. The Elite is fitted with a Force 22 groupset and the flyweight Oval Concepts 724 wheelset (a whopping 1260g.) Meanwhile, the entry Transonic 2.5 has a 105 5800 groupset and Oval Concepts 327 wheels-- which are a portly 1920g.

The 5800 group comes in right around 2500g minus cables, the Force 22 is in the neighborhood of 2100g. That's 1060g in difference right there, a full kilo from just wheels and groupset. The Roubaix Elite has a very light aluminum frame, and the Transonic has a typical aero looking road frame. The 2018 listed weights of 7.04kg for the Elite and 8.54kg for the 2.5 seem just about right, really... considering the $2k MSRP on the 2.5. Go up a model or two and the weights get closer.

fujiraf

Thanks, exactly those 2 model I am thinking , roubaix elite ,vs transonic 2.5 Which one would you choose? My question is which one of those 2 is better, in terms of durabillity,comfort, on roads which are not perfect at all (many holes), climbing.