Originally Posted by
ninevictor
I still think you should consider SS. While it's stiffer than Ti it will definitely not beat you up on the long hauls.
If you were to use the same tube diameter and tube thickness, steel would definitely beat you up more in any haul than titanium. Steel is an incredibly stiff material. The only reason that steel
bicycles aren't as stiff as aluminum and titanium frames is that the tube diameter is smaller so it flexes a little more. A steel frame with the same tube diameters as an aluminum frame would jar the teeth out of your head.
Originally Posted by
KonAaron Snake
Stainless steel isn't inherently stiffer or less stiff than ti - it's the tubing diameters and build. With two frames of identical build, a SS frame will be stiffer...but ti is usually larger diameter than steel.
You are right on diameter but wrong on the stiffness. Steel is twice as stiff as titanium. Yield strength is about the same while the density of steel is twice that of titanium. Titanium frames probably don't need to be as large a diameter as they are but the tube diameter is a left over from the days when industrial titanium tubing was used for Ti frames.