Velo Dog

This is of academic interest only--my bikes are steel, and I'm not shopping for CF. But I see so many posts asking about how to transport and babysit carbon fiber that it's got me wondering--are those things REALLY so fragile that you can't put them on racks or lean them against walls? Will they live 20+ years, as most steel fames will? If I throw one in the back of my pickup with my other bikes, will the Atlantis rub a hole in the carbon while I'm driving along?
Again, I'm not shopping, just curious.

manutd

Enjoy your steel bike.

If you want to be able to abuse your high end road bike then CF is not for you.

svtmike

Have you read the answers to those posts?

chasm54

Good grief.

The answers to your questions are no, probably, and no.

And if your steel frames are good for only twenty years, I suggest you start storing them indoors when not riding.

ahsposo 

There; I fixed it for you.

spock

#5 years is minimum for a steel bike if you take care of it. (That is a capital 3 in the beginning)

rebel1916

These posts are due to a combo of problems with early carbon fiber, and internet alarmists like yourself.

Inertianinja

I was under the impression that early carbon frame problems had to do with the lugs, not the actual frames.

OP, if you're not trolling, carbon fiber frames are extremely strong. they will outlast you and can easily outlast you. they make cars and planes out of it. yes, they snap instead of bend. but their point of failure is so far beyond that of steel or alu...have you ever had a steel bike just fall apart on a ride? no? well then don't worry about carbon fiber. yes, there are frames with defects, but steel can have defects too.

Carbon Unit

As others have said carbon frames are strong and you don't need to baby them. However, I wouldn't throw my bike in the back of a truck with other bikes unless I didn't care if I stratched it up.

Roadfrog

Agree. Other than weight, generally speaking, what is the advantage of carbon over a good steel bike?

MegaTom

This has been asked (or inferred) and answered Ad nauseam in the very threads that you mention.

MegaTom

Weight. The ability to form just about any shape imaginable. That's about it.

ultraman6970

My answer is... no they aren't fragile, yes you can put them wherever you want but as any bike obviously if you dont give a damm about it for sure you will crack it or something.

You have to be careful just like with any bike but if you used to just toss it like a 200 pounds potato sack in the back of the car, it is more than clear that in that way it will crack sooner or later.

As probe of their durability, you still have the original trek carbon bikes moving around, many of those were manufactured like 20 years ago. The issue is that many people think that carbon is a new material that stores are selling just in the last 2 years and the material has been used for bikes from back in the mid 80's early 90s. Old Ketrels, treks, vitus and other brands are still moving around.

Seen steel tubes dent or craked because the user did not care about the bike, if you dont care about the bike then you will crack, dent or destroy what ever you buy, no matter what the bike is made of.

Good luck.

Drag

KtownScott

LOL ^^^ That's awesome.

TriEngineer

also remember that any material is a isometric material, meaning that as you draw the metal out, it will have very similar thickness all the way around the tube, meaning it's stiff side to side (stiff when climbing) and stiff up-down (harsh ride). This is true for aluminium, less true for steel because it's more flexible. but with carbon, you can have stiff side to side but pliable up down. Merely saying weight is not enough of a quantifier.

Bacciagalupe

Carbon can command a higher price, and (I presume but am not sure) a little higher profit margin.

Oh, you mean for the cyclist. Compared to steel, weight is the biggie. CF also offers designers a little more control over tube shapes and maybe tube characteristics. So far, all the steel I've seen sticks to round or slightly oval tubing.

Nowadays, you can get almost all of the same advantages out of high-end aluminum, albeit with a 1-2 pound frame weight premium. IIRC several steel alloys can get close to aluminum for weight, but I don't know if you can hydroform steel to the same extent of as aluminum.

tntyz

I don't treat mine like it is especially fragile.

windhchaser

wow im glad i saw this thread i always thought it was stronger then steal.and my dream bike is carbon.guess ill rethink my dream bike. because i need something that i can abuse.but i still think carbon is cool as hect

hueyhoolihan

i've got five metal bikes, and a new one that is all carbon. i don't think it will outlast me, but then again, i just might die tomorrow .

it's very light, which i like , and very stiff, which i didn't think i cared about, but have found out that i do. so that's good, i guess.

it also carries sound very, very well, which i don't care for .

rebel1916

One person said carbon was weak in this thread. Everyone else said the opposite.

windhchaser

opps i misread the post. looks like i can keep my dream bike.which is the trek madone

Velo Dog

Yeah...that's why I asked. There's no consensus. Generally people who've drunk the KoolAid praise carbon, and people who haven't--by which, of course, I mean "those who haven't yet discovered the magic of CF"--are curious or uninformed. I thought a straight-up question might elicit a straight-up answer from experienced owners. Mostly, though, it seems to have brought out the Arrogant Roadie P----s.

rebel1916

Hey, shi**ick, my bike is aluminum, and I don't drink koolaid. I am aware of the many uses of carbon fiber, and just how strong it can be though. Planes, Ducatis, F1 cars, etc all put a lot more stress on the material than some guys tooling down the road on a dang 10 speed!

zonatandem

34,000+ miles on our carbon fiber tandem . . . no issues.
13,000+ miles on my carbon fiber single . . . no issues.
Have broken TWO steel tandem frames and one steel tandem fork . . .
Got to be more careful with steel???
Any material will eventually fatigue and can break.