rexford

my bike search is narrowing and I have noticed that 3 I am considering (cannondale r700, trek 1500, and specialized elite double) are all aluminum frames. Two others, the Felt F70 and Orbea Volata, appear to have aluminum frames with carbon tails. Do the carbon tails make a big difference in tride smoothness/weight. The Felt and Orbea are also appealing as they are less common. This also makes them harder to find (no lbs in my area carries either).

TripleCrank

This is a no brainer. Go carbon. The carbon tail will definitely smooth out the ride of an aluminum frame. Test ride 'em all, you'll feel it.

bianchi_rider

Carbon, Carbon, Carbon..... Hmmmmmmmmmm......
Well I have an aluminum frame with a carbon fork, I have ridden a Carbon Colnago bike and to be HONEST, I still like my aluminum frame.
THO alot of people here are gonna say buy the carbon, I would say to you: buy what you want, All the other people here wont be riding your bike, You will !!!!
Test ride a few of each, see what feels better for you.
Read other posts about carbon, read articles on the net about carbon, read about aluminum.
Aluminum frames cant be that bad as they have been around for quite a while now...
But like I said ride a few of each and buy what YOU want, not what everyone els wants.
Good Luck and ride safe

bianchi_rider

OH one more thing, Carbon costs more, so be prepared to dish out the $$$$

TripleCrank

Aluminum with carbon stays is quite common these days and not unreasonably expensive. Sure, an all carobn bike is more expensive, but that's not what he's looking for here.

I test rode quite a few bikes before I chose mine due to the carbon stays. Much smoother than without them.

Like I said earlier, test ride 'em all. You'll know what's best for you.

bianchi_rider

Yep, I saw that, my bad !!!! Sorry about tha Triple
definately all carbon is more expensive, and as Triple stated Alum/Carbon stays are quite common, so if you find one that has the carbon integrated with the aluminum opposed to a straight aluminum bike. Go For IT

TripleCrank

On more thing. How can you take someone seriously that rides Bianchi bikes only. Sounds a little biased to me.

bianchi_rider

Hey now......
I didnt say the "Bianchi" one time....
But now that Triple brought it up
Be sure to ride a few bianchi's rexford, They are sweet

bianchi_rider

A LITTLE BIASED????
No No No, VERY BIASED INDEED

TripleCrank

Rexford? What's that?

bianchi_rider

rexford is the person that started this post... I just forgot to put a comma after the bianchi's

bianchi_rider

or maybe I should have said
Rexford, Be sure to ride a Bianchi, they are sweet"

TripleCrank

Oh yeah, the guy that started all this.

TripleCrank

I thought it was a bike model. Couldn't find it on the Bianchi site and was stumped.

bianchi_rider

LOL
Well in that case I am glad I had you looking at Bianchi Bicycles, I think that Bianchi should put me on the payroll... LOL

rexford

which bianchi would be in the $1000 range?

TripleCrank

Not so fast. I own two Bianchis myself. A 2004 Virata and a 2004 Axis. First time I've owned seperate bikes for the rain and shine. It's nearly imperative living in Seattle. My old junker took a beating from all the rain and gunk. The Virata still looks like the day I brought it home except for less rubber on the tires. The Axis looks a little tired from the rain, but that's OK, it's a rain bike.

bianchi_rider

Probably the Eros
https://www.bianchiusa.com/557.html
I am not sure of this years prices, but last years model retailed in that area, so you may get a good deal on last years model or a better model like a Giro at a Bianchi Dealer near you
Or this years model may be in the same range as last years

bianchi_rider

Ahhhhh another Bianchi rider, good to know
Both are sweet bikes glad you kept the roadie (Viratta) as the shine bike

Bedazzle

Check out the Leader 785R. Aluminum frame with carbon rear triangle and carbon fork. Paint is perfect as well as the transition between the two materials.

jbhowat

I'm going to have to join the all-aluminum camp... My bike is all aluminum, I love it. I've ridden Al bikes with carbon seat stays, and I've ridden all carbon bikes (i actually have a nearly new 5200 OCLV frame waiting for components). I find that the advantage to putting the carbon back there is not weight, its for dampening and comfort - which is fine. I just don't like the feel of it. I like my road bikes to be tightly sprung, very tightly - not even the full OCLV can match the feeling of my current road bike, but I'm probably going to build it up for next season as a race bike - leave the 2000 as my trainer, we'll see how i do this season on the all Al bike.

jthj

I have a Giant OCR Elite which is an Al frame with a carbon tail. The carbon tail definately makes a difference in the ride. I personally love the difference it makes but some might not. I'd suggest taking a few out for a spin. A good comparison would be the Giant OCR1 and OCR Elite as the geometries are the same. The only difference in the frames is the Elite has a carbon rear triangle and a lighter Al alloy.

tobiasg

I just bought the specialized roubaix, model up from the allez elite, after test riding several bikes. I found that there was a noticeably smoother ride with the carbon stays. This is a little silly but the allez elite that I tried had an increadibly noisy rear hub - it bothered me

grimdog

I recently went through the same process, and in about the same budget range, it sounds like. It seemed to me that in that range I could either have more carbon and 105 group or all aluminum and Ultegra. After riding everything I could get my hands on, I ended up with the Specialized Roubaix with 105. The ride was just so much smoother than the all aluminum bikes felt to me.

I agree with everyone else, though...ride as many bikes as you can! Narrow down the list, and see if the LBS will let you take a few longer test rides. (How long? As long as they'll let you.) If your experience was anything like mine, you'll know after several miles which bike is best for you.

Enjoy!

alanbikehouston

Most of the articles I have read about bike design say that it is possible to build a comfortable bike out of carbon, aluminum, or steel. Many respected researchers also say, assuming that the rims, tubes, tires, pedals, and bars are identical, most riders can not reliably "feel" a difference between the three materials.

I have bikes made with all three materials, and my steel bikes are the most comfortable to ride by a wide margin. The research says that is not possible. But, that is how the bikes feel when I am on them.

Steel frames also win on safety (a tube failure tends to develop slowly, rather than suddenly), and may win on longevity. Many steel frames are going strong after twenty or thirty years of hard riding. The jury is still out on whether most aluminum and carbon frames will last that long.

Yeah, the average "good" steel bike weighs a pound or two more than a carbon bike. Makes a big difference to people who race through the mountains of France for a living. Should make no difference to people who are riding to work, or riding to relax.