Originally Posted by
mtnbke
The only place for steel is on cheap bikes in India and China, and also to separate rich ignorant vain Americans from their money.
Now now now...Them theres is fightin' words!
On a serious note...Ti got a bad wrap when it was introduced on the market for good reason. It broke...It's a fact. It wasn't until different Ti alloys were introduced and better engineering and manufacturing techniques came around that Ti found it's place in the world of bicycles. And what a great place it has found! Nobody in their right mind can deny that Ti is a fantastic material for making frames and select components when used and built appropriately.
Seems like some of the argument is really about aesthetics. I personally (like probably many here in C&V) prefer lugs. Fact of the matter is there are not many lugged Ti bikes around. I'd love to own the lugged Ti bike Pino and Behringer built or maybe even the lugged Bruce Gordon (except the ugly slanted top tube) but alas...I'm cheap.
I guess my point is that to some people (like myself) a bicycle is much more than just a tool to get you from point A to B. I like lugs. Preferably modestly filed and thinned. I like seeing the craftsmanship. While I have seen some welded bikes that were finely crafted they still don't make my blood pressure rise the same as when I see a finely crafted lugged steel bike.
I once saw the most craptacular Stella on earth. Nervex looking lugs with file marks everywhere. Looked like it had been built and painted by brush 50 years ago by some drunken Frenchman after lunch on a Friday afternoon...I would have sold every bike I own to get that bike. Can't say I would do the same for any Ti, aluminum or carbon fiber bike...Except the Pino & Behringer.
I don't know if I'd call that vanity...Maybe an appreciation for the work done by a mans hands? It's visible unlike most welded or bonded bikes...Maybe this is the "soul" I've seen referenced when talking about steel?
I don't race. I just ride every single day and I'd prefer if the bike appeals to me aesthetically. If the bike was just a tool for me I wouldn't own a single one that I do (except my mucho modded Cannondale Cad3 MTB...It's a tool).
P.S. I appreciate that someone brought up the ugly impact that Ti has and or had on the world. Whether it's questionable manufacturing processes or questionable sourcing. That's a discussion for P&R though...