Originally Posted by
Drew Eckhardt
A frame which lasts decades isn't quite the same thing as a bike which lasts as long. You can cold set a 40 year old frame to 130mm and run a 12 cog Tiso electronic setup which is as modern as you can get.
Titanium can be cold set too but needs to be bent farther than steel.
I've never heard of titanium being cold set - note I'm not saying you're wrong, just saying that's new to me. If so, it makes ti even more wonderful than I previously thought and I appreciate the correction.
I will agree with you and Oldschool that ease of maintenance is a definite win for ti...hands down...but durability really doesn't seem like that big of a win for me. A steel frame will last most of our lives (and then some!) if properly looked after. So the win for ti is that it requires less looking after, not that it will really have a longevity benefit for most of us.
I think, ultimately, we all agree that you can make a great bike (or a lousy one) from any material. I think ti DOES have some advantages...but I also sure like my steel too.
Edit - some quick research says it is, at least theoretically, possible to cold set titanium, but it is extremely difficult.
http://forums.roadbikereview.com/com...uts-42955.html
Just to be clear - I love titanium...I'm NOT bad mouthing it at all. If I ever hit the lottery, my no holds barred dream build would be a ti Spectrum.