I have no science to back this up, and I may have said this on your
original thread, but I really don't think aluminium drop-outs and carbon
forks were designed to be rigidly attached to a rack that essentially doesn't move.

Do they have racks with spring-loaded or rubberized attachments that would provide some "give"?

If you consider what forks are designed for -- it's to have a wheel in them that flexes and turns, therefore having plenty of 'give'.

Anyway, my two cents.

I rarely drive with my bike in the car, and if I do, I either throw it in the back seat with the front wheel off (obviously ), or take both wheels off and chuck it in the boot.

G'day,

FWIW...I s'pose depending on the state of the roads & how many Km you're planning on doing are probably the biggest issues. I've said it before, Crap composite frames are exactly that...not worth the potof resin they use on 'em. some of the poorer ones will flex under load, have poor finishes, not much thought given to geometries & have a '3 sizes fit all' philosphy. A 'good' a carbon frame rides a lot stiffer, (a lot closer to 531's beloved steel) will generally be available in 2cm sizes. The first thing you always notice is the geometry as well. As you know, i'm a rap for carbon....but the good ones cost a lot, particulary when coupled with a full carbon fork. Alu has a bad rep for harshness, which i don't necessarily agree with. They ARE stiff, but not so that you get off the bike & are uncomfortable. There are a number of ways to less'n the 'stiffness' of an Alu frame. 1st, make sure the bloody thing is set up right...good bike fit is an oft overlooked issue. I've seen plenty of peckerheads whinging about how uncomfortable their ALu frame is...then you see 'em riding it & they have a headstem thats too long, bars to low seat to low...crap wheels, rock hard seat & an Alu fork..no gloves etc etc....no bloody wonder. 2. A carbon fork, (full carbons better but an Alu steerer is still ok) carbon DOES reduce roadshock transmitted to the body...absolutely no doubt about it...with a 'harsh' alu frame they are a godsend. If you can score something with carbon seatstays &/or chainstays, so much the better. 3. get a saddle that you are happy with. Very few 'off the rack' bikes are gunna come with a quality saddle...check out a few until you find one you like...then buy 2! (for when the other wears out, in case they stop making it!).I train on my Alu all the time, maybe 20,000km a year as against 5,000 on the carbon. I've done 12' round the bays' (200+ km) on the Alu & probably another 20 200km rides in training on the alu, (a fair few non stop)....I've never got off the ALu & felt soreness that i could attribute directly to the type of frame...general fatigue , yes, but no direct Alu issues. Having said that, my 486 frame is an exceptionally comfortable ride & i do notice the lack of roadshock everytime I get on it...but crap carbon frames have more issues than 'cheaper' alu frames. You can 'dolly' up an alu frame, theres not much you can do with an ugly, flexie composite. Don't be turned off alu, at least until you've ridden some & made up your own mind. One of the issues with these forums is that blokes hand out opinions like they are gospel, based on their experience on 1 frame or 1 gruppo & that becomes the 'word'. You see threads where some bloke is 'hammering' all alu frames (or carbon or steel) & the next day he starts another thread saying 'I have $50, whats a good carbon fork to get"!!!!!...hello, peckerhead????!!....ride some Alu's & make up your own mind. Incidently, the best Alu frame I 'owned' was a cannonadale CAAD5....supposedly the stiffest alu frame ever....I never noticed it in 10,000 km!

Hitchy

I guess having forces directed up through the fork is more in keeping with the actual work that components supposed to do than a tow ball rack holding a bike by it's top tube. Roof racks also have a little bit of give in them as they are pretty thin structures. Don't know if the structures are rubberised though. haven't looked closely at one yet.

I agree with you that I'd rather put my bike in my car. However I drive an Impreza sedan, and they don't have much space in the boot or back seat. So I have to take both wheels and seat out to move even my tiny mountainbike. I'm worried that I'd even be able to put a mid sized road bike in the thing (I should be able to though). So I thought I better figure out some solutions to transport it before it becomes an issue.

g'day,

the roof racks (front wheel off) look the coolest, especially if you've got the car to support the 'Euro Pro' look (which the Subi is...I've got an 'outback' BTW). I actually favour the towball type though. Cos i'm paranoid about the 486, I like the bike where I can see it, & also cos on the back, the car itself, provides some protection from the bugs, stones & anything else that comes hurtling off the road. If you get the type that 'tilts', you still have access to your boot/tailgate. if I haven't got more than 1 passenger, its always 'inside' with me though!

Hitchy

Thanks heaps for that Hitchy. Most of my riding will be long (if you can call 2 hours or more long) on crappy roads. I took a 2 and a half hour ride on the best road we've got out here on monday on my mountainbike, and I still felt beaten up. The road is still very coarse and rough but that fatigue was probably more to do with doing it on a mountainbike to small for me (head down bum up).

I've got no problems with Aluminium as long as it's got some carbon at either end. Hence me all by having laid down money for that Orbea. Buying local, I think that's about the best I'm going to do. It's only Orbea's mid range frame, but I don't think it should be terrible. One of my mates bought a flat barred Orbea with Tiagra and almost the bottom of the range frame, and that still seems like a nice frame. Certainly rides well enough (with a carbon fork). The only reason I'd buy a TCR is just to say it's carbon. And that's a poor excuse I guess. I'm sure I could do better if I lived down in Melbourne as well. That's not the reality of things though.

Don't know if you read what I posted earlier today in another thread. But I've always been wary of towball type jobbies ever since my mate got one. Bought his lady a bike. They were going to drive to a nice spot for her first ride. Loaded his and her bikes on the hitch rack and drove off. A k or so from where they were to stop, he hit a big bump. And the bloody thing collapsed at the top bend. His bike was closest to the car and was alright. her bike was on the outside and hit the road and tore off the carrier and got run over by a 4wd behind. She still hasn't ridden since. I'd mourn for a year if that happened to my new bike.

Also, top tubes are getting pretty thin these days. Do you think it's safe having a bike bouncing along only suspended there?

But yeah, an outback would be perfect to cart your bikes around inside. Aren;t you worried about your bike getting hacked about bouncing all over the place in there with other things like wheels?

...your cheapest & nastiest Alu frame will be better than even a really good MTB on the road...weight, tyres etc....& as you noticed, fit. The Orbeas look ok to me. Don't forget, the quoted price is the 'asking'.....sometimes you can spec them up for only a little more...y'know, "I'll pay the asking on the bike, but how much extra to put THAT seat on" "what about if I buy THAT lid & this jersey"etc etc. Thers not huge nmargins on bikes (especially at the lower end), but the margins on 'after market' stuff are huge. They'll generally be able to do a lot better if you're looking at the 'whole shabang'......so when are ya doing it?...we want piccys!

hitchy

....seats down in the 'outback'...don't need to take the wheels off...if I do i've got these gadgets called 'wheelbags' & 'blankets'...shheezzz saccy......go buy a bike...so much to learn...so little time!

Hitchy

Well, as per the magazine ad in ride, the bike with Centaur is $3.75. He's throwing in some look pedals and three strap shoes (I think I'll have a closer look at what shoes hes got though so I'm happy with fit) for $3900. $150 for pedals and shoes is okay. I'll dig at him a bit more when I go to get it though. At least he's willing to do something on price. Had a 2 hour yarn with the Bathurst dude yesterday, only for him to tell me that they don't do deals on bike prices as they have to pay staff and keep their doors open. Tried to talk to him about doing something with a Robaix, and he was just poo-pooing that, trying to put me on a Trek 2000, which **** me off. Finally, he couldn;t get me anything this year in my price range either besides the TCR's so I thought **** him.

I've just about put my order in up at Orange. Only thing stopping me is finding out what colour schemes they have. Supposedly they have green and silver (like the magazine has), as well as blue and white, and blue and silver. This has me confused as neither of those colours were in that magazine add. So I'm just making sure what those colours look like, and that they are infact 2005 bikes.

Sure will post piccies when I get it.

I'm not an aussie, but I love fosters. And outback steakhouse. And Crocodile Dundee. Yay!

Yeah, we have blankets out here. We use them for other things though.

But yeah blankets are allright. Still didn't save my mountain bike paint when the quick release on a wheel was banging up against the frame through a blanket.

****house Impreza's rear seat don't fold down.

Yup, so much to learn.

Ah fosters. The ***** we sell to the world because we wont drink it.

Actually it is better overseas than here, so I guess I can't blame yers. Should come for a visit. See if you think the real Australia is much different to the marketing you get over there.

.....y'all know what we hate more'n those stereotypes?........yup...nuthin!

hitchy

Can I say it first? too late


I've never had a, nor do I know anyone who drinks Fosters.

I really don't know why.

Us southerners drink "VB"
https://www.fosters.com.au/beer/about...vic_bitter.asp

Damn american marketing ... never again will i drink Foster's.

And it's *****! But at least it's cheap and get's yer pissed. And nobody calls you a poovdah for drinking it like you'd cop if yer found sucking on a fosters.

i think Mel Gibson's pretty cool ... he's an aussie ...

So are you guys implying that when I go to Outback Steakhouse, order a Foster's, and watch Crocodile Dundee on the T.V., I'm not truly having an "Oz" experience? My world is shattered.

...ahhh yep...& Mel's a seppo!

Hitchy

Never didn't not seen an Kangaroo 'til I went to a Zoo, although we do all wear those
Mick Dundee hats and the leather vest with nothing on underneath

I'm sure if you came over and just hung out with some tour groups they'd expose you to such rubbish. Find your own way about and things are a lot different.

Don't worry about all the strange Melbournites in here though. They're a breed unto themselves. Nothing like them anywhere else. That's because they think their city is the best in the world, and never leave. Never seen a kangaroo until you'd been to the zoo? Sheesh.

Hey, I thought those leather vests were an Oxford St thing in Sydney?

...they just don't have to many 'roo's on beach Road!....plenty o' 'chicks' though!

That's all the cabbin fever 'coz of the cold weather.



the second, and last kangaroo I saw was the one that nearly killed me when I was driving
out to Birchip (N.E. Vic)

What's a Kangaroo?

Oi,

I reckon Ed's cheating on us....i reckon he's over at 'Biceps R Us' or something....apparently our scintalating convesration is below him now!...bet he was a private school puke....i feel so ....used

I honestly would love to visit Australia someday. The place seems like a blast.