brandontw

Been hanging out on this forum a lot over the past couple weeks, and it seems like the forum in general has a pretty big carbon fiber *****...

Whats the beef with titanium? Ti bikes are usually comparably priced, and weigh is right around the same as CF, plus i think the bare metal look is awesome, and it would be about as durable as you could ask for.

What gives? Why is nobody rocking the titanium? i know if i was in the market for a high end bike, Ti would be where i was be looking.

kimconyc

If I traveled with my bike more (like every week), I would look into getting a custom Ti bike with couplers. This is the only practical reason why I would get a Ti bike and by that premise, it's not really practical.

p.s. get a CF/Ti combo.

something like this:


Also, search helps...

bigskyTi

Some of us rock Ti. I happen to rock four fo them. Here is my roadie

Sprocket Man

Plenty of people here have titanium bikes and are quite happy with them. Ti bikes, in general, aren't comparably priced to carbon - they're more expensive. Especially if you are referring to well known titanium frame makers like Lynskey, Litespeed and Merlin.

twodimensional

I like the look of Ti as well, but I think carbon fiber is a better value now, not to mention pretty much every
manufacturer makes carbon bikes so there are more choices available. Carbon fiber also has the advantage that the lay up schedule can be tweaked to achieve different design goals.

Booger

Titanium costs and weighs more, which is why it has fallen out of favor with all but a very few high end builders.

brandontw

I was under the impression Ti bikes were on par with carbon as far as wight goes, perhaps i was mistaken...

Thats pretty BA

AEO

titanium is the hardest material to work with. requires more heat to shape than alu or steel, requires special welding tools, etc.

carbon fiber you can shape the tubes how you want, very easy to get the shapes you want.
aluminum is easier to form tubes in a multitude of shapes into one tube.
titanium, work with the tubes on the market or buy expensive machines to form the tubes you want.
steel, same as ti with premade tubes, but it's main selling point is that classic look.


the answer is bamboo

tony2v

Here's where the Ti cult resides:
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...light=titanium

I have a Moots Compact.

brandontw

I saw an operable bamboo bike just the other day at the Maker Faire in San Mateo, pretty cool, but practical? I think not.

Nachoman

I ride ti. But I like the idea of a ti carbon mix.

deadly downtube

Ti can weigh around a pound more than carbon, depending on which carbon frame and which ti frame. The Ti frame that weighs nearly the same as carbon has very thin walled tubing, and is shaped funny, and probably isn't as stiff when you get out of the saddle. I'd rather have a traditional looking Ti frame that is around a pound heavier than a carbon frame, because it's durable and stiff. Carbon might technically be higher performance, if you can afford to take the loss of your expensive frame after crashing it. I'd rather have Ti.

StanSeven

I have both a high end Ti (Seven Aeros) and high end CF (Cervelo SLC-SL). Both have vitually identical geometry and ride very close with the same wheels. It took me a while to notice the subtle differences. The Ti rides a little smoother, especially when I'm on it a long time. The CF feels a little quicker on climbs and accelerating hard.

brandontw

Yeah thats kinda what i was thinking, i'd hate to have a knarly crash and end up not only bleeding and probably in need of medical attention, but also lose your carbon frame that cost well over a grand, mabye upwards of two, but thats just me.

Plus I'm a big dude(250 lbs), and the idea of a carbon fork exploding underneath me if something goes wrong absolutely terrifys me. I like to have some metal holding me up.

martymc

'Rode the Orbea Orca, Trek Madone 5.4, a Lynskey steel bike, and a Lynskey Ti bike... then settled on the Lynskey Ti bike. Love it.

Much to my surprise, my second choice would have been the steel bike, based on nothing but feel. (I assumed the steel bike would feel like pedaling a boat anchor -- but it was anything but.) Heading into the selection, I was 95% sure I would go carbon and get the Orca.

Ti heavier? Yes. But not by much. 56cm Lynskey R3 Ti frame = 2.47lb frame. 56 cm Orbea Orca Carbon = 2.07lb frame. 181 grams heavier, on non-rotating parts, was an easy price to pay for substantially higher durability and the ability to get custom geometry.

Also, I planned on riding my bike for many, many years. That influenced the decision as well.

As far as the school of thought that Ti rides better -- I don't feel it that much. The ride is nice, but only (maybe) very marginally nicer than a good high end carbon bike or even steel bike, in my opinion. There is that tad of springy-ness when you really hammer -- but it's not that big of a deal / really not that much of a stand-out feature, in my opinion.

-mm

martymc

Carbon forks are very common (the most common material?) on Ti bikes.

johnny99

I think this is false. For the same quality and performance levels, carbon bikes are cheaper. Also, you can find decent performing carbon bikes for under $1500 (complete bike) now days. What is the cheapest decent Ti bike?

popeye

TI = Fred with too much money.

brandontw

Yeah, thats a problem, but not really for me, cause i ride a 300$ sora aluminum bike and wont be dropping 2-4 grand on a new road bike anytime soon.

But if i was in the market for a new high end bike, it would take some convincing to get me on one with a carbon fork. That's the stuff nightmares are made of for me... Riding down a hill at 30 or 40 and your fork splinters, sending you over the handlebars with slivers of carbon fiber going in your eye at the same time... Probably not going to happen, but it can in my head, and it hurts when it happens in there.

yohimbe2

Well I'm an old guy and have 10 years on steel,10 on aluminum, 1 month on carbon and I'm tossing it away for Ti.

I must admit, carbon is great. I loved my short stay on it. But now I want a bike for life and only steel or Ti can do this...... I feel like I'm riding on glass with carbon....I want something that can take abuse.

Dick Rhee

I have posted this before in similar threads but what the hell, here goes:

I have two main rides, a ti frame and a carbon frame. My thoughts (based on those two frames. these observations are not necessarily universal between the two materials):

Carbon: Way more stiff, about a pound lighter, half as expensive as ti
Ti: Way less fragile, marginally more comfortable.

Overall, I'm happier riding the carbon bike, but the ti frame will be with me for a lot longer.

Hunt-man

Wasn't there just a big thread on Ti Lightspeed frames cracking and poor warranty support? Caveat Emptor - from a dodo who is loving his first all carbon bike and who has a buddy who's Ti frame cracked....

patentcad

I have a Ti bike from the 90's that I've owned for 12+ years. Back then it was state of the art for a racing bike. Today the Cervelo S2 I got in February is typical of a pro bike. The S2 is a better racing bike, I prefer it to the Ibis now. But the Ibis is more comfortable. I really do like the CF feel now after getting used to it over a few months. More responsive, stable at high speed, lighter, better climber, descender. The Ti has a nice springy feel and it's great on long rides over crappy roads.

Ti is also considerably pricier most of the time.

I've been doing this for 20+ years, I got my first Ti frame in 1991. That broke in 1996. It all can break. Generally Ti is forever, my Ibis feels the same as it did in 1996, it must have 50,000+ miles on the frame by now.

ericm979

Carbon fiiber makes lighter, stiffer and better riding frames (on average; there are a lot of variables in building a frame besides material) . It is also easier to repair than Ti. Calfee is one shop that repairs CF frames, and they do many repairs for $250 or so. I don't think you'll get that from a Ti framebuilder, and your corner welding shop can't do Ti.

Ti forks are very rare. All the Ti bikes you'll see use carbon forks. Carbon fiber is a lot more durable than you think. If something goes wrong enough to damage a CF fork, chances are it'd have damaged a steel or Ti fork.

But if you want a Ti frame, get one. It's not like they are bad, it's just that CF is a little better.

Edit: oh yea, I have had multiple carbon, steel, aluminum and one Ti frame. What broke? The Ti and a steel frame.

patentcad

Hard to say if CF is better than Ti. It's different. It really depends on what you want out of a road bike.

Do what I did. Get both.

Pcad has all the answers.