Originally Posted by djbowen1
Do you think his 6th vicotry in the Tour De France has anything to do with people buying carbon frames?? I dont. Having owned both aluminum and carbon in the last month i can say that the aluminum bike (Caad5) with carbon seatpost was way stiffer than the TCR frame i am riding now.
g'day,
certainly your opinion is as valid as any other around here, ....but....ya gotta compare apples with apples. The 'dale CAAD 5 ALU frame is arguably one of the better AL frames around, whereas the TCR composite frame is at the very bottom of composite technology, made to suit a price point, rather than a competing with high end composite frames.
I am a big guy, (190 lbs), producing a lot of power, (i s'pose i would call myself a sprinter). I was skeptical about composite frames suiting my style of riding. Certainly,the highend frames, C50, VRXS, KG486 have little or no flex through the bottom bracket. I agree with one of the early posters, that it is more about the components than frame, at this level. I can't notice any discernable difference between from ALU frame & my new carbon, as regards stiffness. What is discernable, is the absence of 'road shock' through the carbon frame......there is no contest.
cheers,
Hitchy