Originally Posted by
emeshelman
I visit two different bike shops today that gave me completely different information, so I figured I'd ask here to get to the bottom of this.
One said aluminum frames are stronger, can withstand crashes, and can be fixed if a serious crash does occur. The owner said carbon frames are light, but also fragile--when broken, they cannot be repaired.
The other said carbon frames are stronger, can withstand crashes, and can be fixed if a serious crash does occur. On top of this, he said aluminum breaks in crashs and when broken, cannot be repaired.
So, which is the correct information? I'm looking into purchasing an endurance road cycle to ride from Seattle to DC (not touring, I'll have a van and crew following the team with all our gear) and need to make a proper decision.
Lots of generalizations there. You can get strong light carbon,aluminum,steel, titanium, etc. that would let you ride cross country without failure. The failure modes are different between materials. Rather than focusing on what might happen (ie need a fix) the focus should be on well the bike fits and how it feels on the road. Price isa also normally consideration. Seattle to dc is a long ride and if you are going to be in the saddle 10-12 or more hours a day you are going to want a bike that is comfortable that many hours a day. Many people will say aluminum is going to be much harsher than other choice for such ride, but you would have to try the bikes out for your self.