This bar was donated to our all volunteer charity that gives away over 2000 bikes a year in Rochester NY.
Brand new, box label says titanium, but I'm not sure if that is the "color" or the actual metal. I could tell by grinding and looking for white sparks, but, of course, I don't want to damage the bar. I contacted Roost Bike and they told me that the company that made this is out of business and they had no info.
Has anyone seen this bar before? Is it Ti?
Thanks in advance for your help,
Fred, for R Community Bikes.

All I know is that if you use the water test and it sinks, it's a witch.

Actually it's the other way around. If one floated, then they were a witch. If they sunk and drowned, they weren't.


As for the OP's question, titanium is pretty light compared to steel. And the finish on those bars don't look like any aluminum finish I've seen. So if they are lighter than a comparable length of steel handle bars, then I would go with titanium.

Titanium isn't magnetic either. But I don't know if that includes when tested with neodymium magnets. Stainless steel is weekly attracted to regular magnets and strongly attracted to neodymium magnets.

No,no. If it's the same weight as a duck,it's a witch.

It looks like 90s era titanium, and Club Roost definitely did stuff in Ti, so I'd guess that it's made from Ti.

I don't think those are titanium. Generally, BITD if something was titanium it would have "Ti" or "Titanium" labeling or logos; after all, what was the point of having titanium if the general public didn't know you did? And - any metallurgists out there please correct me - titanium bike parts weren't usually bent to form curves like that because of the difficulty in doing so.

Yeah, those are good points! The swaging at the clamp was a bit worrying for me, but now that you mention it and I think more, having the clamp area grip lines is something I've never seen on a Ti bar (that I can recall) and would be highly unusual, so I think you're right that it's not Ti.

Always learning here. Ti is bendable. and I'm sure it's alloy dependent.
Also, some stainless is magnetic, some is not. google. From web search: Pure titanium is not magnetic. It is a non-magnetic metal and does not react to magnetic fields. While titanium alloys may have some magnetic properties depending on their composition, pure titanium itself is not attracted to magnets

I've seen Ti parts not stamped Ti. I'm hoping somebody knows this exact bar.
I might pull the plugs, do the spark test and sell with that caveat. If I'm careful, I won't remove much more material than a minor crash.
I could also get the density using a large graduated cylinder and a balance but don't have a cylinder that will work. Size and shape makes awkward Archimedes.

Is this bar titanium?

Wouldn’t know. Never had a drink there.

If it's very magnetic, it's probably chromed chrome-moly steel.

Stainless steel can be magnetic, or non-magnetic, but non-magnetic can become magnetic if very cold-worked. A triply pot with non-magnetic exterior will often be non-mag on the bottom, somewhat mag at the turn to the sides, and very mag near the top from deep drawing.

Titanium will typically be much thinner wall thickness than aluminum, due to titanium's excellent fatigue strength and aluminum's much worse fatigue strength.

Aluminum will be thickest wall of all, and lightest silver color in raw state.

Aluminum has excellent electrical conductivity. Titanium has terrible electrical conductivity, among the worst of metals.

I've read recently that I think pure nickel and boron can both be ferromagnetic.

The water test might work.
Think specific gravity, and say 'Eureka!'
Maybe a Brinnel (?sp) test for hardness.

I am with chaadster and jolly codger it is Al, for the reasons they state, the brite finish (unless you polished the TI just before posting and it still appears too bright) and the bright/shiny swaging, common on Al bars and I have never seen on a Ti bar.

Examples here, my polished Vitus Al with Mothers aluminum polish and my polished Litespeed with ultra fine Scotch bright pads:

Given the tubing thickness, it is likely titanium. Aluminum wasn’t usually made that thin and if a magnet doesn’t stick to it, it’s probably titanium.

Another approach - calculate the density. Measure the wall thickness and diameter and the length. Calculate the volume. Weigh it. Yes, there is the larger diameter at the stem and you won't know if it is thicker walled there so your density won't known exactly but there is a very big difference between steel, ti and aluminum. I'm moving my study at this time so all my engineering books are put away but a quick Google search should get you those densities in any units system you desire. (Weight divided by volume = density,)`1

Edit: if I have Ti Cycles build me another bike, I'll discuss with Dave Levy if he can bend the seat tube. So it can come up from the BB at a 76 degree angle or steeper and curve back to put the seat where a 72.5 post would put it. And I can run a regular ol' 2 cm setback seatpost, center the clamp on the seat rails, and have adjust-ability for the rest on my riding life. And run big tires and fenders on short (under 16cm) seatstays.

Dave will know 1) if the bending is possible without issue and 2) how hard it will be and what to charge me! He knows titanium very, very well. I bet he's already thought through what he'd have to make to pull it off. This dream bike would also have a custom FD bracket to put the FD both far enough back on this really steep tube and inboard enough for a super low Q-factor with an ordinary ol' FD shifting a triple. And now no clamp where I want space for fender and tire. Fun with ti!

It doesn’t look like aluminium in the photos. Looks far more like titanium to me.

Or you could do it like Archimedes supposedly did. Water displacement would be far easier than trying to calculate a volume of metal.

Here is was Team Roost bars look like today:https://roostbike.com/product/roost-handle-bars/

Or, if you like destructive testing, melting.
The MP of Al is a balmy 1221°F while Ti is a warmish 3034°F.
If it is nonmagnetic a torch on a few filings should tell the tale.
put a few known Al filings alongside to let you know when you get there.
For safety, have someone hold your beer.

Depending on what one defines as an issue, bending titanium is possible.


https://www.thefabricator.com/tubepipejournal/article/tubepipefabrication/bending-titanium-to-make-racing-safer

https://www.roguefab.com/titanium-tube-bender/


and others.

Also if it weighs the same as a duck.

Because they weighed the same as a duck.

Did you hear about the alcoholic who was unsuccessful at becoming a lawyer? He couldn't pass the bar.

I have always found that my pictures come out better when I don't lick my camera lens before I take them.

Give me a break, this is my first time back to the forums in forever.

I did the grind test. No sparks. It's aluminum. Thanks for your help.