Originally Posted by
kpug505
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.
Ti first got a bad rap with bicycles in the 1982 Girod'Italia when Laurent Fignon had a bad fall while he was in the lead due to a broken Super Record axle. This resulted in a second generation Super Record with steel replacing the previous Ti parts (while the SR Ti axle is legendary, there is no evidence they were ever available beyond the pro sponsored riders). Titanium tube sets cost about the same as 853 steel, but like 953 (that costs a couple $100 more), the cost of the frame is in the build not the tubes. It should be noted that there is more titanium in a Boeing 747 than all the ti bike frames ever built; close to 20 tons. To those that judge the ultimate metal as strength to weight, Reynolds 853 is equal to ti and 953 is 25% stronger; a good frame maker can coax any ride quality out of any material.
I read this in another post
I've ridden a slew of both materials (ti and steel) and I think materials come in about last place when I think about how a bike feels beneath me.