You mentioned durability. There is the preception that Al is always less durable than steel. Not always true,but a big part of the folklore. The Al frames your are looking at likely offer a 5 year warranty. Steel in the same price range will likely be lifetime. Warranty is for defects in material and workmanship,not fatigue,abuse or crash damage. Steel in this price range is typically lower end standard diameter Chromo and may lack adequate stiffness for your weight, especially in larger sizes. Your old ride is likely either steel or aluminum,so you should have some idea of the ride properties. There are steel rides in your price range, including Bianchi,KHS, Jamis, Fuji and others that are good bang for the buck and probably worth trying before making a decision. Low end Al is not necessarily lighter than low end steel,but is typically stiffer and may be better for bigger riders. Perfectly suitable frames can be made from either,but no one here knows what will work best for you.Originally posted by neilkod
Why the push towards steel?
Switching stems IS part of the fit process.Originally posted by funknuggets
Lets say you get a frame and you select the ones with the best wheels and components for the price, but the TT is too long or short... dude, you have a bike that doesnt fit, so you are going to spend more money buying longer stem, different seat, etc just trying to get comfortable on the dang thing.
This is a barge load of hooey.Originally posted by funknuggets
Aluminum... ... they typically fail catastrophically. .... The type of steel has everything to do with the ride characteristics ..... A compact frame will be a lot stiffer...... Now, steel is more pliant than aluminum and carbon, thus you will most often see more flex in the rear triangle and bottom bracket... but it WILL deaden the road vibrations more than an aluminum bike. Modern day carbon is pretty stiff, especially with shaped tubes, but the properties of the carbon will typically absorb more road vibration than steel and aluminum.
What right things ?....Certainly not that barge load of hooey and baseless generalizatons you tossed out. BtW, not really.Thre were bigger issues that deserved a separate statement.Originally posted by funknuggets
Im just trying to help the guy make decisions based upon the right things.
BTW....You specifically took your time to nitpick this one statement? Man, you have an overwhelming knack of stating the obvious. Sheeshe.
You either did not read the WHOLE thread or have a serious comprehension problem. You sure did the job with the barge load of materials hooey.Originally posted by funknuggets
baseless hooey?
Not sure what part of that is baseless. Im trying to help the guy make a good decision, not hijack his thread and turn it into a frame materials or a campy vs shimano arguement.
Im not trying to be an ass, but out of all the things I wrote, you pick out one minute detail and say it is part of the fit process.
I'd just toss it in a dumpster and walk away...Originally posted by funknuggets
yah, agreed, went a bit off course with that stuff. PROBABLY FODDER FOR ANOTHER FORUM. Lots of fluff there...agreed. .
Finally someone gets one right.Go to the head of the class.Originally posted by Rudy
No doubt Boudreaux is knowledgeable...but political correctness is not one of his strong point.
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