Bearbig

I ride an old Klein aluminum bike from the early 90's that I love. A friend claims I should buy a new bike which got me thinking. My mechanic says he can keep my Klein on the road for as long as I want. Would a carbon frame be too brittle for me ( about 250). I have had steel frames but they rust away as I'm a sweathog! I am very comfortable with the aluminum frame and the prices of Ti scare me. What do you folks think?

Thanks in advance
John

Tom Stormcrowe

If you love your Klein, I think you may have answered your ownb question!

I really doubt you'll have issues with the structural strength of any frame, except for some of the ultralightweight exotic frames.

CF is also very strong, but when it fails, the failure is total and catastrophic. One good crash and you are out a couple of thousand bucks!

Ti: Great frame, but very finicky to weld Ti and the resulting frame can be a bit flexie.

solveg

Hey! I have a Klein, too. A '97 Stage Comp. I currently weigh 215 and I asked the LBS if I was too heavy for it. He laughed and said, "No Problem!" and there hasn't been. I usually don't hammer on it, though, since it's a triple. The bike is really* fun to ride.

On the other hand, my Atlantis is steel and I couldn't ask for a softer, cushionier ride with those Big Apple tires. Choosing which bike to take is kind of like deciding whether to take the Caddy or the MG midget. (Not that I own either...)

Edit: a side note. I was looking at a bike at a sale the other day. It was lugged aluminum*. Very sexy and light. I asked the guy if I was too heavy for it, and he said, "Yeah... it's more for a rider who is about 130 lbs." He may have understated the weight not wanting to guess at mine, though. But wow. There must be a whole group of riders who are like "bike jockeys".

v1k1ng1001

Are you asking wether or not to keep investing in the Klein? I guess I would keep riding it if it works for you. You can always swap the parts on to a new frame.

My '98 Cannondale R1000 eventually cracked, not at a weld, but at the bottom bracket shell last year (still waiting for the warranty frame). Given that it was a relatively beefy frame by today's standards, I'm wary of all of these new, super light aluminum frames. Incidentally, I've never weighed more than 245#.

breadbin

I have two steel bikes and like you am a complete sweat hog but never seen any rust on them though. I am recently thinking of getting a Scandium frame just for a change. I was thinking if I leave it around the house whle I build it up it might motivate me to lose weight to be able to ride it. You could try that. I don't think I would risk my weight on it now. 220lbs. It is important to have or get a bike that you like. It will get you out more, I hope!

gattm99

At 220 pounds I wouldn't worry much on just about any frame.

I think a majority of Carbon stuff failing comes from it being damaged in someway, its really strong and isn't going to just break.

If you are really concerned you can't go wrong with steel, as long as cared for it'll outlast anything, and usually can be repaired if something goes majorly wrong, like you hit a tree at 20mph or something. Of course maybe your sweat is like acid or something?

I can't believe that someone told you that a bike was for 130 pound people, that is stupid, unless it was some kinda custom homemade job or something?

Tom Stormcrowe

He just met a "Stickboy Snob"! It happens!

Leaky Gas

The Klein is a classic; your buddy's just after you to keep up with the Joneses, which is always a questionable basis for making a decision. Chromoly steel is great, but off-the-shelf examples are harder and harder to find. Aluminum bikes these days ride very nicely; most, in fact , have carbon forks and often rear triangles as well, or at least seat stays. The vast majority of new bikes will fall into this category, and prices will tend to be much more reasonable. Carbon is sweet -- they make race cars, fighter planes, and spacecraft out of the stuff, so I'm guessing it'll stand up to your 2.5 balloons.

Do you WANT a new bike? How much do you want to spend?

solveg

It was a really early LUGGED anodized aluminum bike with some kind of glue* used, and a featherweight. Made by ALAN. I think 130 was overkill, but I wouldn't buy it at my weight.

Edit: I put a question on this in the C&V forum, so I'll tell you what they say.

gattm99

Yeah I've heard of the glued together flexible flyer al frames. Yeah, I'd say if you didn't want to watch your bike fall apart underneath you than you had better be light.

Why would anyone want one of those?

solveg

Well, the word on the C&V forum is that 230 lb people have ridden it. Some like it, some think it felt like a wet noodle.