Originally Posted by
Kimmo
Folks like to talk about frame material like it's the only thing that matters, but the design is more important. Competent engineering utilises a material's strengths to deliver the desired properties in a structure.
It should go without saying that a comprehensively optimised carbon frame will perform better in every aspect, except durability, than a comprehensively optimised ti frame, and cost less.
I agree 100% that a competently engineered frame is much more important than material choice with respect to weight, ride quality, and longevity.
There's a cost vs quantity tradeoff with carbon and ti, however. In high volume production, molded carbon frames are much cheaper per unit than titanium frames can be produced. In very low volumes (i.e. custom bikes), I think it's cheaper to produce an optimized titanium frame than a carbon one. Certainly our custom ti tandem cost thousands of dollars less than a custom carbon tandem would have, without giving up anything on weight, stiffness, or features. For single bikes frames, $3-4k seems like the going rate for custom ti, while custom carbon is more like $4-5k.