KerryIrons

Unless you are defining "rust" as an oxide of iron, then you are confused. Aluminum oxidizes just like iron does. A paint scratch and a little salt & water and you have aluminum oxide (that white powder seen on corroded Al parts). Same for a steel frame. If you are worried about corrosion, titanium and carbon fiber composites are the answer, at a cost premium. And don't pay any attention to the "aluminum frames ride harshly" nonsense. You can design a compliant frame in any material, or a ridiculously stiff frame likewise.

Rick_D

True. Have an Al frame/CF fork, belt drive, Alfine 11 city bike (38mm tires) that's silent and dependable. The only observed rust/corrosion is steel fasteners, triggered by sweat, while the frame is pristine apart from a couple dents. Easily 2,000 commutes on it, 20k miles. While it's not maintenance free there are vastly fewer wear parts than a typical drivetrain. Belt is original but I confess the weak point of the Alfine is seals--some are replaceable and others are not. I have a shop change the oil, which is the main maintenance item along with brake pads and bleeding.

The back wheel is a thumping 6 pounds, the main Alfine downside. Would love a Rohloff bike but they're scarce.

Between the CF fork and a suspension seatpost, ride on lousy city streets is much better than a road bike.

Trakhak

All true. The one notable difference between aluminum and steel corrosion in bikes, though, is that once steel starts corroding, it tends to continue doing so ("rust never sleeps"), whereas after the surface layer of white powder appears, aluminum corrosion usually halts.

mattcalifornia

Rohloffs are excellent, but I don't think they are any lighter than Alfine. Am I wrong?

jmm77

Many of the new modern steel frames are treated inside the tubes, so no worries about rust there. ED coated.

veganbikes

Another +1 for titanium, great ride and no need to worry about it at all and no need to paint it either.

However you can ride steel in the rain. It won't just rust away to nothing unless the inside isn't coated (frame saver or an ED coat as jmm77 mentioned which is common on new frames) and the outside is also completely raw but even then it will probably take some time. Powdercoat the outside and frame save the inside and no real need to worry plus you get an opportunity to overhaul a bike and make sure nothing is seized and clean everything up real nice and replace old bearings and stuff like that and get something fresh.

I would only buy an aluminum bike if I had to because what I wanted simply didn't exist in steel or titanium. However I would generally still want and need to wipe it down and clean it just like I would with any other bikes. However that wipe down I usually did was a quick one and then I would probably lube the chain but if I did a titanium single speed or IGH bike with a belt I wouldn't really do any of that but would still clean it once and while.

Maelochs

The benefit (IMO) of an Al frame is that you can get a very good, reasonably light Al frame for less than other materials. If you want a bike for certain situations only, and don't want to drop a ton of money, but still expect a certain level of quality, and AL frame is generally the way to go.

Pop N Wood

I never wash any of my bikes anymore. My steel frame Bianchi frame lasted 40 years before I got the urge to paint it. The worst rust was from sweating on it while using it in a stationary trainer.

Rick_D

They seem to be close to par, weightwise. The Rohollf advantages are in more gears (14 vs. 11) evenly spaced, and wider range (526% vs. 409%), with the complication of twin-cable shift. Having only owned Alfine, I read the Rohloff is more rugged and easier for owner maintenance. I don't think, for example, they leak.

mattcalifornia

Yes - the Rohloff is (from what I hear) better than the Alfine. But it isn't any lighter, and it's about 3 or 4x the price. Probably worth it if you're heading out on a long bike trekking expedition, but probably not if you're just using it for day rides or commuting.

I have Alfine 8 on my commuter/town bike. It only has a 307% range, which is sufficient for my in town rides. On the plus side, it costs just over $200.

Alfine 11 has a 409% range, but it's double the price, at over $400.

The Rohloff Speedhub has a 525% range, but it costs around $1,500. That's just a completely different category of component.You can buy an entire groupset -- like 105 Di2 or Campy Ekar or Chorus -- for around that price. To me, the Rohloff is a specialty product for things like bike trekking where you need excellent gear range, maximum durability, and minimum maintenance.

mattcalifornia

Eh -- it depends on the particular frame. I've owned steel, aluminum and carbon frames (never Ti). It depends a ton on the design and build quality. I currently own 1 carbon and 2 aluminum alloys. I don't think generalizations about materials are really that accurate any more. I've had good and bad experiences with various frame materials.

wolfchild

IME with steel frames, I think most people are just too worried about steel frames rusting out... Most steel frames outlast their owners. Spray the inside with some type of rustproofing oil and ride the heck out of it and enjoy.

Rick_D

I'd been pondering ordering a Budnitz with Rohloff but they sadly folded before I could press the "buy" button. I wouldn't swap out my current Alfine drive for a Rohloff because the bike doesn't warrant that much of an upgrade. Also guessing it's a pretty complex conversion.

mattcalifornia

When I first moved to California in the 1990s, I rented a funny little place on a hill overlooking the ocean, a few blocks away. It was a weird arrangement of a sub-divided house, and I didn't have a garage, so I stored my bikes on the patio for a while. Within a year, my steel Bottecchia was pretty rusty from the salt air. Yeah, I probably could have done more preventive maintenance, but that salt air goes to work pretty quickly on exposed steel. Meanwhile, my aluminum MTB was totally fine.

wolfchild

I deal with a lot of road salt here during winter time and my steel frames are just fine.

mattcalifornia

Noted.