WHOOOSSHHH...

Downside..weight vs carbon
Benifit...Price vs carbon
Opinion.. I have a $1100.00 BMC Aluminum Road racer frame and a $3600.00 BMC Pro Machine carbon frame. They both have SRAM RED components. I ride each one equally. I switch out wheelsets often. The Pro Machine is lighter and it is faster, no question about it..It's a racer , built for speed. the Aluminum frame feels stiffer and is a cruiser...I could ride it forever, and use it whenever bad weather is forecast. the aluminum frame fits better..but that's a geometry thing...Damn I think I'm not sticking to the questions..Anyway, I find them both to be GREAT bikes!!

Bevo Bill

Yeah totally, me too. I had to ride an AL while my champagne and caviar holders were installed on my ti... The HORROR


Anyhoo, I agree w/ WOOSH; BMC Roadracer (or hell, even the streetfire if you want to go for the best price deal) > Soloist or CAAD9

kostyap

Dunno about ride quality but what a sweet looking thing

sced

This post offers up some real insights. In terms of control of weight versus structural properties, aluminum is intrinsically a better material for a bike frame than steel or titanium because it is comparatively easy to extrude, forge, hydroform, and join into complex shapes to control and orient grain structure three-dimensionally, thus providing directionally variable structural properties. Aluminum is almost infinitely alloyable and amenable to different types of heat treatments. It is no coincidence that is has been the material of choice for generations for most aerospace and high performance applications where weight relative to structural properties is important. Generally, the relative newcomer carbon fiber-epoxy (a.k.a. CF) offers marginally better directional control of structural properties at reduced weight, but at a higher cost. I think that the reason aluminum frames are looked down upon is simply that they are easily mass produced, thus inexpensive. Some people mistakenly believe that a craftsman with a torch and some simple machine tools is in any way competitive with a state-of-the-art mechanical engineering and manufacturing organization. Look at the aluminum content of Super Record, Red, Dura Ace, and all current production Ferraris for clues. From what I've read, the best current aluminum frames are pretty close to the best CF frames overall and are more than adequate for most amateur cycling enthusiasts. Please pardon my typos as I had a few glasses of wine with dinner

Everest

You asked about the top 5 aluminum frames, boutique manufacturers aside, the most highly regarded aluminum frames seem to be Cannondale (Caad 9 especially), Specialized S-Works E5, Cervelo Soloist Team, and the Giant TCR's. I'm sure that I missed a few that is from the top of my head. That being said I love my Quattro Assi Scandium frame.

bigtea

Generally speaking....generally speaking.....

1. Aluminum bikes tend to transmit more vibration to the rider. You can call it "road feel" or "roughness" or whatever. But what matters is whether you enjoy, accept, or despise that feel.
2. A big benefit of aluminum is that it tends to be cheaper than comparably equipped carbon and titanium frames, especially if you race.
3. The downside of aluminum bikes is that when they are good they are good, but when they are bad they are horrible.

otismedina

Scandium is a separate element, and is often used in aluminum alloys. Scandium on its own is not what your frame is made of.

I've also heard great things about the E5 and it will probably be my next frame, assuming there are any around when I'm in the market. I currently ride a Specialized Allez Elite, which is almost in geometry and design to the E5 but uses Columbus SLX tubing instead of E5 tubing.

Bikelyst

^^^
Often manufacturers throw 'scandium' in there to give it more of a wow factor.

You are right, because in reality only a tiny percentage of the raw material is actually scandium...the rest is just aluminum. I've heard rumors that it is used for its properties in the manufacturing process, to allow for the aluminum to be stretched thinner...or something like that, idk.

Grumpy McTrumpy

some tiny percentages can make a big difference in alloys. adding one percent C to Fe makes a very different substance.

Spiduhman

Aluminum frames require timeconsuming heat treatments, which is why we don' repair them; read sandblast, bring to temp, hold, reduce, hold, cool down, repaint. It's not a one day deal... try a few days. Oh yeah, maybe straighten and chase threads as well, eh?

By the way, the welded joints on my Aluminum Giant VT are beautiful; the BRAZED lug joints on my steel Myata are brazed, not welded. Seen any highend steel bikes welded lately?

RichinPeoria

I like my Cinelli Xperience aluminum frame with a Columbus Mega Tusk carbon fork and a Centaur gruppo I built last year. Mine is matte electric blue. This year they come in the color below.





Its made of Columbus "Zonal" aluminum tubing...Cinelli is ownd by Columbus

from the Columbus site...


Aluminum
For the production of its tube-sets in aluminum Columbus uses light alloys like Al-Zn-Mg (series 7000) and Al-Si-Mg (series 6000). The classification derives from the American Aluminum Association. The alloy elements: Mg = magnesium, Zn = zinc and Si = silicium that, properly combined between each other, form intercrystalline compounds which give the mechanical properties to the alloy. Both alloys acquire their maximum mechanical properties through a heat treatment cycle.

The alloy 7000, used by Columbus for the tube sets Metal Altec2 Plus, Zonal and Airplane, is defined as self-tempering: it is air-hardened. This means that in the areas overheated by the welding the supersaturated structure is restored, which, owing to the natural ageing (which takes place at ambient temperature), allows for a 75% recovery of the initial properties after a lapse of time of about 3 weeks. Nevertheless, Columbus advises to carry out a precipitation hardening treatment in the oven in order to give the structure a bigger homogeneity of the precipitates, with consequent improvement of the fatigue behaviour of the frame. The special alloy of the series 6000, used for the Starship series, is not self-tempering and thus necessitates the heat-treatment of the welded frame. In this way, the distribution of the precipitates is homogeneous even in the areas which have been heated by the welding and, by means of the hardening in the oven, load values are reached which make it possible to realize extremely light and reliable frames. The alloy used for the XLR8R represents the most recent product at the top of the Columbus range together with Starship. This is a sophisticated development of the 7000 Al-Zn-Mg, which through the addition of Zirconium (element used in nuclear reactors, to give an example of just one of its uses), achieving highly superior mechanical and resistance characteristics. The zirconium modifies the kinetics of the intermetallic composites in the matrix during the precipitation stage, conferring a very fine grain to the structure. In practical terms this means:

a) Superior mechanical characteristics of the frame: Rm=550 Mpa, Rs=510 Ap5>12%
b) Increase of the recrystallization temperature
c) Greater resistance to the Hot Cracking phenomenon – the weakening of the material due to thermal alterations caused by welding
d) Near complete recovery of the mechanical characteristics after welding through the use of a simple artificial aging thermal treatment.
For an idea of this alloy’s degree of sophistication, consider that it is produced in a controlled environment (i.e. the equipment is meticulously cleaned before and after processing to avoid contamination by other components), and that heat treatment and filler materials were developed specifically for the welding. It is one of the elements most found on earth, second only to oxygen and silicon. It is always found in nature combined with other elements, and is present in many minerals. From the industrial point of view, it is a light metal (with a density of 2.71 g/cm), produced from bauxite. Its main properties are: low specific weight; completely recyclable; high resistance to corrosion; high heat conductivity; atoxicity; high plasticity; excellent ductility and malleability; good weldability (by gas, electric arc and resistance).

Why choose aluminum?
Aluminum is synonymous with lightness and lightness, combined with good strength, is the quality most appreciated in cycling. However, if not properly treated, aluminum may deteriorate in time and this may give rise to a deterioration in the mechanical characteristics.
Consequently, an aluminum frame inevitably requires more rigorous production processes and frequent checks by the user to identify any superficial defects or cracks. Undoubtedly the most obvious advantage is that it withstands the action of the atmospheric agents: an aluminum frame does not rust! Also, with its excellent workability, it enables the designer to come up with the most imaginative and creative solutions.

The heat treatment cycle, is composed of a heating stage and soaking at an elevated temperature (about 470°C for the 7000 series and 530°C for the 6000 series) called solubilization, during which the alloy elements form compounds which go in solution in the metal matrix. Fast cooling (in forced air for the 7000 series, in water for the 6000 series) ‘freezes’ this structure, called supersaturated, at ambient temperature. Successive cooling and soaking at medium temperature (90/150°C 7000, 135/150°C in two steps for XLR8R and 180°C for the 6000 series), called ageing, enables the precipitation of the compounds inside the crystalline structure of the aluminium, giving it the desired mechanical properties.

Banzai

I'm so sick of hearing about "harsh aluminum ride". It shows that the speaker has absolutely no idea what they're talking about. A knowledgeable cyclist would say "harsh large diameter tubing ride", just like ElJam alluded to on the first page of this thread.

I may be wrong on the numbers, but as stated, doubling the diameter of a tube increases the stiffness by about a factor of 8. A hallmark of aluminum bikes is large diameter tubing to achieve stiffness...similar diameters in steel would be prohibitively heavy.

But, as ElJam said, it's all about engineering.

garysol1 

Agreed. Ill say it again. My Al bike rides ALMOST as smooth as my carbon and I am even using a Thomson 0 setback aluminum seat post on the Al bike. I would have no reservations about riding a century on it.

sced

Rather than just employing circular cross section tubes of varying diameters and thickness like the Cannondales, the Columbus aluminum alloy tubesets use non-circular triangular/ovalized cross sections that are geometrically varied longitudinally. This more advanced design approach is an excellent way of controlling responses to assorted directional loads while avoiding the large diameters and thin walls that are more susceptible to denting...rightly said "......it's all about engineering".

Fat Boy

I am an engineer by training (like ElJam) and I find your comments to be spot on.

uberclkgtr

Great bikes. I've got a Gios A-70 which also used the Dedaccia 7003 tubeset. Love it. Stiff but not harsh. I also have Rossin that uses Dedaccia T6 Energy tubeset that doesn't ride quite as nice and is a bit heavier. Your advice to the OP is good.

nenad

Excellent read this thread. Plz, allow me to factor in the following: tire size and pressure, saddle, handlebar tape, wheel type.

Case in point: I bought a second hand steel bike and it came with Michelin Pro Race 70x20 tires. My main alu/carbon bike uses Vittoria Corsa Evo CX 70x23 (well known to be a very comfortable) tires. If 70x20 tires are inflated to max recommended pressure, the steel bike will actually transfer a bit more road vibe. So, tire size and pressure alone will make a difference. So, it IS NOT all in the material.

All other things are equal (same wheels, same saddle, same handlebar tape).

And last, to return back to the thread, an all aluminum bike which I really like and respect is De Rosa Merak (Deda SC61.10 tubing), straight tube version (previous model).

Onan

My understanding is that the Columbus SLX tubing is E5 alloy. I have a Specialized Sequoia Elite and according to their wesite, it's E5. Tube decal says Columbus SLX.

Onan

rufvelo

For the last decade or so the aluminum bike with Ultegra is the best value available, especially for racing on a smaller budget.

sfcrossrider

+1

Why would you roadrace on anything else? I can build a CAAD9 with Rival, and a great set of carbon tubulars for under 2,500.