Originally Posted by slide
Well, you're right of course. I can't report that I built two bikes 100% the same other than frame material. I can only report that an early carbon bike I rode felt 'dead' and it also flexed a lot. I could push my foot against the bottom bracket and bend the entire frame with little effort.
Note, I did NOT condemn all carbon bikes and probably someday I'll own one.
I've heard time and again from the agnostics that if one was blindfolded, one could not tell the diff in frame material.
AFAIK, nobody has ever tested this nor can it be tested.
I'm not saying what you felt wasn't real, nor was I saying you are summarily condemning carbon frames, I just wanted to point out using your comments that there are so many things that contribute to the ride feel of a bike. And in the end, it's not so much the material, however the design and execution of the material that will determine the ride feel, as much as the components.
True, that blind test will never be able to be conducted, however it stands a a testament for how silly the whole "I can feel a pea under my mattress..." Is. It's just a bicycle and most of them ride fine enough. Its the people that get all wound up in the tech that start to clench over everything
