OX Platinum as a frame material
 

I am in the market for a new steel bike. Looking at the Burley touring bikes they are made from a material they call OX Platinum. Their marketeers make a point to distinguish the type steel tubing that they use calling it lighter weight and noting that this material gets stronger when heated/welded. I know nothing about metals but thought that someone here could help me out by comparing the OX Platinum to 4130 or other CroMo variants.
Thanks for any comments.

OX Platinum is similar to Reynolds 853 in that the steel gets harder in the weld zone after joining the tubes which they repute to make a stronger frame. In the real world, the hardening properties are not particularly important but they don't hurt either. Bottom line is that OX Plat. is a premier material which will build into a fine frame. Good stuff, just don't buy into all the hype.

Ed

Thanks Ed for the information.

Indeed. The whole airhardening thing is somewhat bogus. But: Air hardening steels benefit from much higher quality smelting, refinement and shaping technologies than existed fifteen years ago. Although so do all the other steels, too.

I have a Burley road frame and I love it. I have a few reynolds bikes as well, and I think they ride well too. I think the OX is stiff enough, but very comfortable to ride as well.

The Right Tube for the Application
 

OX Plat and 853 work great for thinwall tubes. They are a bit stronger and dent resistant than plain cromo. However, they aren't any stiffer. For a given diameter and wall thickness, all of the steel alloys will have the same stiffness. So, in a touring application, you will want a thicker-walled tube regardless of which steel is used. With the thicker wall, the extra strength and dent-resistance of OX Plat or 853 is moot since plain cromo will be more than sufficient. So, these are good tubes for lightweight racing frames, but not as useful for touring.

Excellent point. This often doesn't get stressed enough in steel building.

or as the old saying goes " a heavy frame is always faster than a broken light one"

Too true.

Unless dropped from a plane.