Originally Posted by
motobecane69
You missed the point. He wasn't saying that they didn't have huge tubes back in the day, he was showing you a modern Cannondale aluminum frame (CAAD 10) and that it still has a huge tube. IT's not done for style points, all aluminum bikes need to have larger tubing like that. I forget all the differences between yield strength vs. tensile strength but basically it has to do with the fact that steel will bend while aluminum just cracks and breaks. aluminum going with wider tubing renders more strength as opposed to steel where you would add strength by going with thicker tubing. again, this is just my crude understanding of it.
Ok thanks......But, to my recollection, the older frame that my buddy/neighbor had, had a LARGE downtube, it was the red bike, like someone posted here. I remember he mustve went through about 4 frames, as they kept cracking on him, and he didnt ride it hard & wasnt very big (he was an average rider, about 5'8 or 5'9 and about 165). For some reason, the frames @ nthe time, I dont think were as strong as they are now. Technology obviously plays a role/part in that now.