Road Cycling - R U an ex-steel lover converted to Carbon

If you have found an aluminium or carbon or even ti bike that you believe is better than the steel frame that you used to love, please share your conversion story with me.
I've been riding a lemon zurich (Reynolds 853 tubing) frame for 8 years. My previous bike was also steel.
I rode aluminium once 12 years ago and found it very uncomfortable. So I have always considered myself a big fan of steel. But then last week, I rode a friend Trek 1200 (some sort of Aluminium composite) and was pleasantly impressed with the stiffness and did not feel uncomfortable. So now that I am in the market to buy a new bike, I am confussed as to what I want. Should I broaden my horizons or stick with what works?
I am light weight, 155lbs, love to climb. I ride 100+/week do a few local cat 5 races a year.

I wouldn't call myself converted from steel to carbon although my last bikes were steel and my current bikes are carbon. I still like steel bikes and actually I intend for my next bike to be steel. Your Zurich is a higher quality steel than my last steel bikes and it's actually made from the tubing that I'll be looking for in my next bike. I think that carbon frame ride qualities vary all over the map as does Al and Ti to a lesser extent. Carbon is very versatile and thus the way it's laid up, the shape of the tubing and geometry all can vary greatly from bike to bike. This more than the material itself is the reason you can get such differences in ride quality. While I've certainly ridden some Al frames which felt like they were steel under most situations, I could in the end still tell they were Al. I have however been fooled by Ti frames so I would say that if you want the closest ride to your Zurich, I would suggest you go look at Ti. This is from having compared steel against Ti Lemonds. Carbon can also be made to ride like steel but it will still be noticably different. It's neither good nor bad... just different. I would encourage you to go back and try two or three bikes of each different material type from different manufacturers.

It's funny how people think. I started my re-introduction to cycling with a Trek carbon bike and bought a steel Lemond Poprad (853 Select) as a backup. Before long, I realized I liked the steel so much that I wanted a better one. So now I'm building a 6 year old Maillot Jaune. It's not that I think it's better than the carbon, it's just different in a good way.

55/Rad

My favorite bike was an Airborne Ti. This last winter I built up a Reparto corse steel Bianchi.... The Bianchi is winning me over....

Interesting, I ride a steel Ritchey. It is a sweet ride, just a little flex in the bottom bracket to give it a sense of rhythum when I climb. And a pretty smooth ride for steel. I still ride it once or twice a week. I have been riding a Kestrel for over 10 years and it is very smooth. I've tryied the Trek carbons and Calfees. I find the Treks to be a little rougher than the Kestrel but smoother than steel. The Calfee I tryied had a long top tube that give it a very relaxed feel, not sure if they all ride like that. I love the ride of the Kestrel, I just rode a hilly 60 mile loop this weekend and it was great! Did I say that I'm taking it apart? I just got a salsa scandium frame and I need the shifters and derailleurs. I'm planning to rebuild the Kestrel.

I've been on a Scapin EOS3 the past two years. Is a Columbus Niva OR tubeset. A great riding bike. But got the proverbial "deal" on a Dean Ti frame and have been playing with it for the past couple of weeks, ironing out my position and such. It is definitely a few pounds lighter and has sort of a 'magical' dampened quality to the ride. So far I think it is great, but am having some difficulty dialing in my position. Has taken a considerable greater effort to do so than did my Scapin or Paramount. And I am not there yet. Time will tell.

My first "real" lightweight bike was Alu, a whippy Viscount aerospace pro.
Currently ride a steel Trek (85 670) and Steel Serotta.
I'm afraid to test ride Carbon (Serotta Ottrott) I might like it and then have
to justify the cost of the frame :D

I'm a steel is reel kinda guy, so why mess with success?

Marty

I just test rode a bunch bikes. I have a Cannondale R700 Roadwarrior that I'm trying to replace. It rides very harshly, but very rapidly. I think I've settled on steel, but I did ride the Trek 5200 and it was a very sweet ride. It had all the caffine, but left that real jittery feel out. I liked the carbon, but I'm gonna stick with old faithful. I don't race though. If I did, I'd give carbon a good hard look.

If you have found an aluminium or carbon or even ti bike that you believe is better than the steel frame that you used to love, please share your conversion story with me.
I've been riding a lemon zurich (Reynolds 853 tubing) frame for 8 years. My previous bike was also steel.
I rode aluminium once 12 years ago and found it very uncomfortable. So I have always considered myself a big fan of steel. But then last week, I rode a friend Trek 1200 (some sort of Aluminium composite) and was pleasantly impressed with the stiffness and did not feel uncomfortable. So now that I am in the market to buy a new bike, I am confussed as to what I want. Should I broaden my horizons or stick with what works?
I am light weight, 155lbs, love to climb. I ride 100+/week do a few local cat 5 races a year.


I'd only ridden steel bikes for over 30 years (Raleigh 531), until I got an Al/carbon bike this winter. My new bike is a lot stiffer than my last Raleigh RT600. It's not a soft ride by any means, but does a good job of filtering and dampening out the road noise with the carbon fork and stays. I like the flex-free response of the new bike, particularly when climbing out of the saddle or accelerating...it just feels like it goes better and gets me up the hills quicker.

Suggest you try to test ride some Al/carbon stay bikes...they're not that expensive anymore. Recommend you try the Trek 2300 if you want to experience a plush ride. Have the LBS set the tire pressures to about 90/95 psi for your weight, and I bet you'll be amazed at the ride vs the 1200.

High-end steel will alway be elegant and classy to me. Don't care for 853, but a Columbus Foco or Ultrafoco, or True Temper S3 frame, still does it for me. Would like to have one as a second bike to bring out for the mellow club rides.

I wouldn't say I love my Al bike more than my steel ride, and vice versa. First of all, there are good at different ways.

The current steel ride, custom made columbus thron/tange tubeset combo, has a very comfortable ride. I can ride it for hours and still be fresh, since the frame absorbs most of the vibration. But I can feel the frame flex, when climbing, w/c means there is some power lost.

The AL ride, specialized S-works, on the other hand is stiff. I don't feel the frame flex, so I can accelerate faster and climb better. It is also 1lb lighter than the steel ride. Even w/ the carbon fork, it doesn't absorb as much vibration as the steel bike. So I do expect to be beat up more if the road condition isn't so good.

I rode two carbon bikes, one of them a Trek 5200, before moving to metal frames. I find that metal frames tend to have more life to them. I've ridden aluminum road bikes and liked their bottom bracket stiffness, but went steel with my latest road bike and have been blown away by its stiffness where it should be stiff and compliance where it should be smooth. I can see a purpose built alu or carbon bike for the track or TT's, but I think that my roadie will probably have steel in the frame for many bikes to come. And, with newer generations of steel, you don't see much of a weight penalty, if you will. It's getting to be as light as ti without the chic ti price.

I rode two carbon bikes, one of them a Trek 5200, before moving to metal frames. I find that metal frames tend to have more life to them. I've ridden aluminum road bikes and liked their bottom bracket stiffness, but went steel with my latest road bike and have been blown away by its stiffness where it should be stiff and compliance where it should be smooth. I can see a purpose built alu or carbon bike for the track or TT's, but I think that my roadie will probably have steel in the frame for many bikes to come. And, with newer generations of steel, you don't see much of a weight penalty, if you will. It's getting to be as light as ti without the chic ti price.

What is this steel road bike you speak of, Grasshopper?

What is this steel road bike you speak of, Grasshopper?

Orbea Ultrafoco carbon. The carbon is in the rear stays; might be part of the reason that I don't see much of a difference in stiffness between it and my old Cannondale. That, and I put in FSA's steel spindled ISIS bottom bracket and carbon cranks.

I like carbon, don't get me wrong, just in moderation. ;)

Orbea Ultrafoco carbon. The carbon is in the rear stays; might be part of the reason that I don't see much of a difference in stiffness between it and my old Cannondale. That, and I put in FSA's steel spindled ISIS bottom bracket and carbon cranks.

I like carbon, don't get me wrong, just in moderation. ;)

Waterford has a 3.25 lb. steel (TrueTemper OX3) frame for competition.

I guess you could say I am "sitting" on the fence. I have a 2004 Lemond Zurich, half steel and half carbon. It is a great ride. I test rode an all carbon Trek 5200 two or three times and was not sure which one to get. The head wrench at my LBS said the way I rode, long miles for the pure enjoyment of riding long miles, to get the Zurich.

According to the road test in Bicycling, the only difference between the Zurich and an all steel frame is weight.

Truly, it is an awesome bike. If I ever get another bike, it will be another Zurich or Maillot Jaune. The Lemond geometry with the sloping top tube feels like it was custom made for me.

No more aluminum and no full carbon.

The Buenos Aires has the same frame, but with a mix of 105 and Ultrega components. There are other great steel bikes with carbon seat stays and forks out there, too.

I guess you could say I am "sitting" on the fence. I have a 2004 Lemond Zurich, half steel and half carbon. It is a great ride. I test rode an all carbon Trek 5200 two or three times and was not sure which one to get. The head wrench at my LBS said the way I rode, long miles for the pure enjoyment of riding long miles, to get the Zurich.

According to the road test in Bicycling, the only difference between the Zurich and an all steel frame is weight.

Truly, it is an awesome bike. If I ever get another bike, it will be another Zurich or Maillot Jaune. The Lemond geometry with the sloping top tube feels like it was custom made for me.

No more aluminum and no full carbon.

The Buenos Aires has the same frame, but with a mix of 105 and Ultrega components. There are other great steel bikes with carbon seat stays and forks out there, too.

I saw that frameset for the first time over the weekend. Beautiful bike.

Steel vs. Carbon: I have an '03 Zurich (853 pro) amd love the way it rides. The carbon fork is a big plus. Recently, I looked into carbon composite frames, but the ones I like(Look,Time) are on the pricey side.

One thing I realized, the advantage of lighter materials over steel is somewhat reduced in smaller frame sizes (I ride a 51) simply because there is less material to begin with. Similarly, the "flex" that some folks associate with steel is reduced in smaller frames because of shorter tube lengths. (Of course, these are just generalizations). I hammer pretty hard on the climbs and have no issue w/ flex whatsoever.

So, yeah, I'd love to have a pro level carbon frame but am hesitant to give up my steely and a couple grand to get one. Would like to hear from more riders who have made the switch from steel, especially to a high end carbon ride.

It's funny how people think. I started my re-introduction to cycling with a Trek carbon bike and bought a steel Lemond Poprad (853 Select) as a backup. Before long, I realized I liked the steel so much that I wanted a better one. So now I'm building a 6 year old Maillot Jaune. It's not that I think it's better than the carbon, it's just different in a good way.

55/Rad

Good move, Here's a little inspitarion for ya.... : )

Man, I feel like a giant.

My own personal ride is back from the painters now - it's True Temper OX Platinum. I'll post pix when it's all decalled up and ready to roll. I must be weird though, coz I went from steel to steel. I must confess, I do have carbon forks though, but only because I managed to find a pair with a 48mm rake and it was a cheap and easy option.

Good move, Here's a little inspitarion for ya.... : )

It goes without saying that this bike looks fantastic. :) I don't know why the hell LeMond changed their graphics/decals. :mad: I'm so petty, it's enough to prevent me buying one.
I really think the new LeMonds look awful compared to this one