cazzooo

I truly think is a cycling fad. I have ridden a lot of different frame sets and a high end alloy like the S-Works E5 is an amazingly efficient and powerful and comfortable ride (with carbon on the seat post, fork and bars). So many cycling geeks get caught up in fetishism of a bike and a bike's name or aura. Half of these types of posers are all about the looks and not much more. No wonder this is big money in selling a $6,000 bike to a geek poser loser.

RiDE

Nice blanket statement.

timwat

So what rhymes with "bait"?

cazzooo

Seriously carbon fiber is an over sold fad. Next thing they are going to be marketing to bike geeks is a carbon toothbrush. In the form of a celeste Bianchi replica Fausto Coppi bike.

cryogenic

(do not feed the trolls)

cazzooo

The three replies so far have been immature and reactionary quips. Can anyone seriously reply with recognition that bike marketing and pricing re carbon and other things (like jerseys) is just over priced hype sold to sort of dorky self-centered bike geeks?

aadhils

Soooo...Who wants some CF for lunch?

womble

I'm holding on to my money... until the advent of the Carbon Fiber Codpiece.

gabdy

Totally agree, all CF bikes in the TDF are just fads, these guys only use them because they look better on TV.

Seriously though, the same can be said for absolutely everything sold in our world today, it is all about making money at all costs.

A smart person will research, try, research some more than make up their own mind on whats best for them. 90% of cyclists do not need CF bikes and gear, maybe 100% I dont know enough about it. Lance thinks its worth it, although he doesnt have to pay
But I do like the look of CF bikes, and gear, but I wont buy it because of that, kudos to those who want it though

gmason

Read Burrows' book on bike design.

531Aussie

what interests me about carbon is that it's rare to see an elite track rider, in the shorter distances (<4km), using aluminium.

What bothers me about carbon is the price of a "good" carbon frame. It's rediculous!!

This Time VXRS is "on special" for $6900 AUS....frame set only!!!
https://www.webcycle.com.au/details.php?ID=20

with prices like this, I don't ever see myself owning carbon

khuon

I've said it before and I'll say it again. CF is easy to screw up but CF can also be made to extremely high quality. Most high quality CF bikes are handmade and thus are labour intensive. This leads to a very high production cost and quantities are generally lower thus market prices reflect that. Many people seem to think that just because a CF bike is made from a plastic that it is spat out of a huge machine like toys found in a McDonald's Happy Meal. This is simply not true. Admittedly, the production of the prepreg laminates do come out of a machine but the layup of those laminates into the molds that actually turn them into bike frames is often done manually. CF production is like a combination of brewing, sewing and baking. You pay more for good crafted beers and wine. You pay more good for handsewn clothes. You pay more to have a 5-star chef cook your meal. You thus pay more for a good quality handcrafted CF bike frame.

53-11_alltheway

They all use CF at Elite levels (wait till I show you pics of the LOOK and Corima track frames...links coming)

I notice though that the upscale track frames by Specialized, Bianchi and Cannondale are aluminum.

Everyday factory track frames are 520 steel? How good of an alloy is that? (never heard of it)

AnthonyG

520 steel is supposed to be the closest modern equivelant to the classic 531.

Regards, Anthony

khuon

That Look frame is hot. I love the headtube/fork assembly. I really do love the look of the Corima bikes too (they make nice roadbikes as well). Here's one in action at the local velodrome.

samp02

This is just too much thinking...............

cydewaze

This is almost always how trolls are handled on these forums. If you say something designed to touch a nerve, you waive the right to be offended when a nerve is touched.

That said, some of us have been riding CF bikes for over a decade. Some of us made that choice because we rode every material out there and liked CF the best.

Personally, I chose my CF frame because it had the perfect combination of stiffness, confort, light weight, and price. A Ti frameset that would have given me a similar ride at the time was almost double the price (and it came with a crap fork, so I would have had to purchase a fork on top of that, so more than double).

Carbon fiber may or may not have become a fad, but what truly IS a fad is the need to bash it. So maybe we should be asking, "What's the deal with all the carbon fiber bashing going on?"

Patriot

BAH!!!

Those plastic toys are just a fad.

Technology. BAH!!!

Labor intensive? BAH!!! Asian labor is cheap!!!
They shouldn't cost much more than a Matchbox!!!

Who cares if the make Stealth Bombers out of the stuff?

It's just a fad...... Right?

Doggus

We've been watching the Tour De France. My first bike shorts came in the mail yesterday. My wife was wondering why I don't have a huge package like the tour riders have. She can even see where some of them have their peckers pointed up - plain as day to see. Does anyone know if they sell an insert you can put in your shorts to make it look like I have a huge package...perferable in Carbon Fiber or I won't wear it.

Wurm

This is why I'm staying with steel frames, until/unless I can afford a very good CF or Ti frame again. To try to get into CF or Ti at low cost - at least at this time - is really defeating the purpose of any benefit over Al or steel. (I'm talking about a new frame here, not picking up something from eBay.)

Other's may disagree...

Surferbruce

i have a friend who's dying for a carbon bike even though he's still paying off his alu bike. doesn't even race, it's all about being "sexy". to each their own. sad really.

Patriot

Wurm, I know hat cf is VERY expensive. But, I got mine from www.pedalforce.com

It is $650, and still a bit pricey, but one of the less expensive cf frames out there. With it's unpainted blank design, it costs much less.

Most good Al, and steel frames bought brand new with a fancy name cost about that.

shaharidan

i'd buy one o those

Gienek

I ride mine becuase I got a great deal on it. Plus it absorbs road vobration better then other materials.

cydewaze

Those are nice looking frames, but this bothers me:



I dunno if I like rivets being there in a high-stress area like that. Wish they'd have thought of a different way (bonding perhaps).