Mabey this will shut up a few steel advocators, as they commonly refer to steel being better than aluminum in durability.

The problem with this poll is you can only vote once. I've had more carbon failures than any other, so I voted for that.
Breakage started with a Kestrel 4000, it broke twice, both times Kestrel repaired or replaced it. Then it broke again. Kestrel convinced me to spend 200 bucks and purchase a SCI 200. That frame broke, and Kestrel replaced it nine years ago and I'm still riding it.
I also have a Raleigh 531C frame that broke at the seatstay. Raleigh replaced it with another 531C and I'm still riding it.
I have a Cannondale Mt. Bike that split at the seatpost, and Cannondale wouldn't replace it, claiming it was too old (about 10 years old, maybe that is too old.)
I also have a Serotta Legend Ti that cracked at the downtube shifter bosses. The frame was 7 years old and Serotta didn't blink an eye as they replaced it with a new one.

Total cost to me for all the replacements was the $200 kestrel asked for the upgrade. Wish I'd never done it, I'd rather have kept the old 4000 in it's repaired state.

By the way, before you call me a lard a$$. I'm really not very big compared to some of you on this board,
only 6 foot and 195 lbs.

Steel bikes have been around for 120 years. As recently as 1990, steel bikes had about 95% of the market for bike frames. Most frames that fail ought to be at least ten or fifteen years old...and the majority of the bikes that old have steel frames...obviously then, most frame failures OUGHT to involve steel frames.

If a steel frame failed "just riding along", and it was less than ten or twenty years old, odds are the tubes were improperly joined (a problem in the 1970's, when US bike sales went from a million adult bike a year to over ten million adult bikes a year). And, if tubes are not joined properly, the joint is gonna fail regardless of which tube is involved. And, a steel tube that fails from rust? Well, if someone is silly enough to allow water to sit in their bottom bracket for a year or two...

The REAL data on aluminum frame failures will be coming in five years or so, when there will be a larger number of aluminum bikes around that have ten or fifteen years of riding history. Will a lot of 1995 aluminum frames be on the road in 2015? I have doubts.

But, there is also a difference between HOW steel frames fail, compared with aluminum, or carbon. If a steel frame is poorly made, it fails at a joint between two tubes or at the bottom bracket. If a steel frame is well-made, it can fail from rust (which is preventable) or from thousands and thousands of miles of riding, after decades and decades of hard use.

A well-made steel frame dies of old age. I have half a dozen steel bikes that are fifteen or twenty years old. All are in perfect riding condition today, and are likely to be on the road when they hit age thirty.

In comparison, failures of aluminum tubes and carbon tubes are often very sudden. Unlike steel, where a small crack might develop into a large crack over a period of months and years, aluminum and carbon frames can fail with zero warning, even when relatively new. When stressed beyond its limits, a steel tube bends. An aluminum or carbon tube snaps.

Aluminum frames came along at JUST the right time. Aluminum frames became popular in the 1990's, when America was becoming a "throw away" culture. I often hear someone with an aluminum frame say "This bike is three years old...I'm gonna get rid of it". An aluminum frame that has gotten ten years of daily use is a rare beast today, and is likely to always be a rare beast...most folks buying aluminum bikes don't intend to keep that bike ten years...old age will not be an aluminum issue.

Hmmm.....guess alanbikehouston read all of the posts.....(no)

Holy crap man. If you don't race you are extremely hard on equipment and/or very unlucky. ;)

Can I ask you how the frame replacement on your Serotta was carried out?

Nicely stated.

LOL....I just wonder how long my 46cm aluminum handlebars are going to last when they keep flexing on me in the drops (hoods no problem, but in the drops and they flex)

Convert,

Yeah, I used to race, but now I'm a "bike owner", usually riding between 80 and 140 miles a week.

I noticed the crack, and called the LBS. They said to bring it in. I emailed Lori, at Serotta and explained what was going on. She asked me to have the shop call her once they got the bike. She gave the shop an RA number, and told the shop to strip the bike and send the frame back to Serotta. She made no promises, but told the shop that she would contact them after the frame arrived and was examined. About a week later, she called and said Serotta decided to replace the frameset. Apparently the damage was considered a design or build flaw. Serotta no longer makes Ti frames with the shifter bosses on the downtube.

Alright something I am good at. Breaking Frames....

1. Schwinn Fastback Pro Al frame cracked at the bottom bracket above weld not warrantied new Schwinn company said no it was before they took over.

2. Giant TCR1 Carbon frame cracked at the head tube and downtube warrantied but rep said I was the only person in the world to crack a TCR frame.

3. Giant TCR1 carbon same exact crack as above and Giant finally warrantied after I spoke to the rep and had to call Giant to talk to the Giant Warranty dept. boss. They said my warranty was over after this frame so don't even ask. I sold it as soon as I received the frame.

4. Lemond Zurich Steel cracked at the bottom bracket above a weld warrantied for a Mailott Jaune spline frame.

5. Lemond Poprad Steel not really cracked and not my fault but was hit by a car and bent the rear triangle and totaled the bike.

I am a cat 4 racer who usually does around 200-250 miles a week and alot of climbing. A typical easy 35 mile ride usually has 2000+ ft of climbing. The last 2 days were 6000ft of climbing in 110 miles. I am murder on parts especially chains.

I voted none since this is road cycling, and the only frame I ever had fail was a steel wal-mart mountain bike frame I snapped doing things I shouldn't have been when I was 15...snapped it in half during a jump that went wrong. Needless to say I had a rather impressive set of injuries.

Anything can be broken by a 15 year old with too much testosterone and too much time on his hands :p


edit: oh and for the record, I'm pretty much aluminum only. Both my bikes (road and mountain) are 7005al, and both are darn good rides.

how the hell did you break all of these? Crashes in races I suppose? Let me know your schedule and your teams name, I will be sure to keep my distance. :D ;)

Of course steel has been around for forever so it's only to be expected that there will be more steel failures. I guess in 'steel times' bikes were owned and ridden for longer periods than they are in today's 'throwaway' lifestyle.
I'd like to see this same poll done in 30 years.

Never crashed in a race or went down except for being hit by a car on the Poprad and all were noticed while cleaning my bikes after a ride.

That is why good handle bar TAPE is so important ;) It's a comfort thing, but also a preventive measure :)

Konyak

Not a road frame failure, but a 1986 Trek 830 mtn. bike frame- it broke through the head tube while climbing a hill- "Tink!" (putting on the bar). This bike saw the vast majority of its use as a commuter, but a lot of use that way- many, many years as a college student commuting, in all weather (5-100 degrees F). It did see some trail riding, and was crashed a few times, but never run into anything other than the ground.

When I broke this frame a friend told me about her boyfriend having the same problem with his Trek roadie- same era (late 80's), same break (headtube). Does anyone else know of this problem w/Treks from that era?. Trek, btw, was very cool about the problem- no questions asked, paid for the build up of a new, upgraded frame, plus any parts required in the new buildup (BB,crank,stem, handlebars & grips, brakes, cables, front der., seatpost). And I got a newly rebuilt bike back in a very short time (good shop in Ann Arbor, Michigan).