Originally Posted by shecky

I used to think like that. Then I tried those crappy steel calipers on my Raleigh Twenty. They work fine. Probably better than the crappy Weinmanns that came with the bike. I even have a crappy walmart pseudo mountain bike practically new from my alley. I've been riding it pretty hard all summer, curious to see how it would hold up. I don't think it has a sliver of aluminum anywhere. Poor thing needed some grease, and some bolts tightened. It's a lumbering hulk of steel, rides OK, that works just fine and will likely last a pretty long time with a modicum of regular maintenance. Like any bike.