Originally Posted by DiabloScott

That carbon fiber rear end is something that was introduced with the first Waterloo-built bikes. I think Trek was looking for something to make aluminum bikes justify a higher price tag, and maybe it was a faster construction time, and maybe it was just a gimmick, and maybe there were too many people whining about stiffness. It also corresponded to the change in naming from Quantum to Q... so sometimes when people say they have a Q-Pro, I have to verify... is that actually Quantum Pro? (Chehalis, aluminum rear end) or did you truly mean Q-Pro? (Waterloo, carbon rear end).



One of the things that made Kleins a little different was that they used 6000 series aluminum alloys, and then heat treated the whole frame which gave very strong joints. Cheaper aluminum bikes typically use 7000 series aluminums that can handle hotter, sloppier welding without heat treating afterwards... same idea with Scandium.