Vinnems

Neat article. I work in aerospace and many materials have come a long way. I see carbon fiber now used in applications that 10 years ago I thought would be impossible!

Paul Barnard

There is only one real frame material. The others are beer cans, fishing poles and pig iron.

CliffordK

On my megameter ride, I had a steel (solid bars) bike rack that broke. I got it welded up in a small shop half way between Pistoia, and the Abetone pass. The weld lasted maybe 100 km, and broke again just before I got to the end of the ride. But it was good enough to get me home.

In an emergency, one could likely get a steel bike welded. It would depend on where it is, and whether it is welded with MIG, TIG, or Stick. It might get a person back on the road, but would functionally destroy the bike for long term use.

Thin steel is a different beast than welding thick steel. Ir could be difficult to get a functional weld with crude equipment.

As far as a broken carbon fiber bike. I'd probably find the nearest auto shop and buy a roll of fiberglass and some epoxy. It might not look pretty, but depending on what broke, it could probably get the bike back on the road.

If one can't find fiberglass and epoxy, then one likely isn't finding someone that can TIG weld or is very good with brazing.

Koyote

Let's also remember that many bike frames come with long (sometimes lifetime) warranties. I can't think of a better way to ruin your warranty claim than by having a third party take a welding torch to your frame.

CliffordK

True,

But if you're in the middle of the Amazon jungle, perhaps vampire bats are a greater concern than warranty coverage. And one may not choose to haul a broken frame that can't be ridden out of the jungle.

But, if the bike is ridden around home, then by all means, contact the manufacturer before going all MacGyver on it.

indyfabz

Bamboo is real!

Trakhak

The Original Plastic Bike!

Camilo

Titanium being the more natural partner, but you never know.

SpedFast

I can tell just by looking at that bike, and I'm assuming you're referring to the top center of the post, that the gearing will be much too low. Also, the handlebars are all wrong. It needs drop bars and brifters with at least a sub-compact gearing. Other than that, I like the color..

Eric F 

Just throwing something unusual out there. That may be the hottest "townie" bike I've ever seen.

If you're buying a "final" bike for yourself, no one else's opinion matters (not that it matters on any other bike). If you dig CF, get CF. If you prefer steel, aluminum, ti, bamboo, or shaved soap, get that. Make sure it has room for the kind of tires you want to run, is geared the way that suits your needs, and is kitted out with all of the best parts that fit within your budget. Build the bike that excites you every time you see it, and makes you want to jump on and ride every chance you get. It seems like you know what you want. Just go do it.

digger

Should have went with carbon, imagine how compliant you’d be AND lighter.

jgwilliams

Lol! Yes, the thought had occurred. On the other hand, everyone tells me that titanium is for life!

indyfabz

That's one reason I went with ti for the permanent screw in my thumb. That and because I have the super fly, custom ti bike. Maybe I will post a photo of it one day.

Koyote

What!? You have a ti bike? I had no idea!

indyfabz

Their stuff is proof positive that ti can be the shiznit:

No. 22 Bicycle Company | Handmade Titanium Bikes (22bicycles.com)

greatscott

You don't need the most expensive TI bike to get the exact same TI ride, or durability you can get for the lowest price one that Lynskey or Litespeed offers.

I even have titanium rods and screws in my back, no stainless or cromoly steel screws and rods, no aluminum screws and rods, no carbon fiber screws and rods, no magnesium screws and rods, titanium all the way, the stuff made me about a 1/4 of inch taller too.

SpedFast

And just when I had myself convinced that CF was in my future, you had to throw that into the mix!!! They build some damn sweet bikes for sure.

Erzulis Boat 

I will have to check, but I think that it never really existed past a prototype/mockup.

Reynolds 

fify

Atlas Shrugged

Considering the fork, bars, stem, wheels, seat post, and saddle rails are all carbon not sure how much titanium we are talking about here.

indyfabz

I don't believe they sell complete bikes, but rather only frames and a few accessories like ti cages and seat posts. The rest is up to the purchaser.

I like the Cerakote option. There is a forum member who has a custom ti frame with Cerakote.

PeteHski

Their range topping Aurora frame has a complete carbon seat mast/downtube. So clearly they couldn't make that work quite as well using a titanium tube.

Marketing blurb:-

"A top priority when developing the Aurora was to balance high stiffness and crisp handling with all-day comfort levels that only titanium can deliver. Despite an overall stiffness level approaching our race-specific Reactor model, the Aurora is the smoothest riding frame we offer. A combination of carefully shaped and butted tubing, svelte seat stays and the one-piece carbon seat mast result in a frame that smooths vibration like nothing else on the road."

It's hardly surprising that an artisan company with a long history of titanium fabrication would take this path, but even they have realised that you need carbon to achieve the best result. I would put good money on it that this bike is objectively slower, heavier and no more comfortable than a full carbon alternative. Obviously that would be missing the whole point of a bike like this (art decor piece for the discerning gentleman), but in the cold light of performance this bike is not going to compete against top tier carbon equivalents in any objective way. The use of titanium here is entirely down to aesthetics, nostalgia and of course their company skill set. Let's not pretend that anyone would actually race this in preference to a pro-level carbon frameset.

Atlas Shrugged

It is amusing observing traditional titanium frame manufacturers contort themselves attempting to remain relevant as composite technologies have passed them by. The latest Moots CRD, for example, mentions ride quality however, with carbon wheels, seat post, stem, handlebars, and even seat rails, how much influence does the frame material have in that case? Cant market tradition anymore since the CRD is a disc brake, electronic shifting-only bike. Weight is not even listed, and we know why because it is probably double the weight of a mass-produced S Works Aethos.

Attilio

In my mid 40's I am younger than the mountains but older than the trees so to speak. Old enough to have made "forever" XYZ mistakes, spent more than I should have on something that a few years later I realized I had changed, or my objectives changed and was no longer relevant or useful. Now I don't get that attached to things and avoid putting my eggs in one basket accordingly because everything changes from me to industry standard to everything else. Helps roll with the punches a bit better.

greatscott

This is just my experience, yours may differ.

I've only ever ridden 3 TI bikes in my 40 plus years of riding a bike, one of those belonged to a friend of mine, a low price Motobecane he got from Bikes Direct, so I rode it a bunch of times to figure if TI was a worthwhile investment; the other I rode once was a Serotta, can't recall the model, but in the meantime I was test riding a lot of CF bikes.

I had a scandium bike but hated the harsh ride, coming off of steel bikes it was more than noticable the ride was harsh then any of my steel bikes.

When I first rode the TI, yes it/they had a CF fork of course, but the ride quality was indeed better than my steel bikes, by a little but noticeable, but very noticeable over a CF bike. The odd thing about the CF bikes I test rode was that over smooth roads they did ride very smoothly, more so than any bike I have ever been on except for the TI bikes, then they were about the same. But where I live we get a freeze and thaw cycle that tears up roads, and on harsh roads the TI bikes were more comfortable than the CF, the CF would bang across rough roads, the TI bikes did not transmit the banging near as much as the CF. I tried to buy the Motobecane due to the price but they were out of stock over a year and half, in the meantime Lynskey had a closeout sale on the Peloton model so I bought it without ever test riding it, and love the ride on my first ride with it; the Peloton is not a racing geometry bike, closer to the old school sport geometry, so that also makes it comfortable, the Motobecane was more of a racing geometry.

TI bikes with 25c tires ride a lot like steel touring bikes that I had/have with 32 or 38c tires that are loaded, in terms of comfort riding on the road. But I find the TI bike very responsive, not quite as much as a CF bike, more like a steel bike, but you give up a tad of responsiveness to gain a tad more comfort. Of course my comparisons are limited, I haven't rode a bunch of different TI bikes so I can't say if a Moots or whatever brand is better or worse.

Here are my thoughts, if you're going to be racing then buy either an aluminum racing bike if your on a tight budget, or a CF bike if money is no object; but if you're not racing and you want more comfort instead than I say TI or steel bikes, but if weight is a concern then the TI bike weighs about as much as CF and lightweight aluminum bikes weigh, if you want both comfort and lightweightness.

I'm not going to respond to what I've said because some people get pretty intense over this sort of stuff, why I don't know, so to keep any bad vibes from happening I will bow out of all conversations over this stuff, take it or leave it. I will answer questions, but I will not respond to negative comments bashing anything that I said, it's all just my opinion based on my personal experiences and nothing more.