Frame material for sportive rides?

RichardFcp
RichardFcp Posts: 155
edited February 2008 in Workshop
To give my aimless training some direction I have signed up for a few sportives this year, and in "boys toys" mode I am now casting my eyes over new bikes. I have seen a tasty carbon framed bike I look the look of but wonder if this is a good idea, or whether I should go for some other material?
________________________________________________________
It\'s not about where you are going, it's about what you leave behind.

Comments

  • redddraggon
    redddraggon Posts: 10,862
    There's no "best" material. All the four types of materials do the job, the key is which one feels the best (comfort/fit/ride quality etc) and looks the best.
    I like bikes...

    Twitter
    Flickr
  • HungryCol
    HungryCol Posts: 532
    Look into this month Cycling Plus mag who reviews four sportive orientated bikes at a good entry prices. Titamium gets good reviews also for the comfort of steel but the weight of carbon fiber (nearly).

    Consideration on fit and comfort would be more important than frame material IMO.
    Every winner has scars.
  • cougie
    cougie Posts: 22,512
    Yeah - different frames ride differently. Carbon can be really stiff, or give a nice ride, depending on how you use it.

    I'd try a Giant Carbon TCR - mine rides beautifully.
  • gavintc
    gavintc Posts: 3,009
    I think the quality of your legs is more important than the quality of your frame.
  • RichardFcp
    RichardFcp Posts: 155
    gavintc wrote:
    I think the quality of your legs is more important than the quality of your frame.

    I have lovely quality legs :lol:

    Looks like carbon then [/magpie mode]
    ________________________________________________________
    It\'s not about where you are going, it's about what you leave behind.
  • peanut
    peanut Posts: 1,373
    depends what you want to achieve. If you want a fast comfortable ride without problems then you might consider steel . Aluminium and carbon are stiff but in my opinion a bit lifeless
  • John C.
    John C. Posts: 2,113
    If you are going to be on the bike for 8-10 hours the most important thing is comfort. I will get shouted at for this but the most comfortable you can get is good old steel and they are a lot lighter nowadays, check out the like of Bob Jackson or Caygills
    http://www.ripon-loiterers.org.uk/

    Fail to prepare, prepare to fail
    Hills are just a matter of pace
  • juggler
    juggler Posts: 262
    The pros ride carbon framed bikes (Cervelo, Colnago, Look,Time) etc...in any other sport you would be encouraged to buy the best you can afford, i.e. the same as the pros use, but cycling is a bit more complicated. Wisdom says that if you are a 'sportive rider' then you should buy a bike completely different from anything riden in a competitive race that you regularly follow on TV or in cycling magazines and ideally made from a completely different material (e.g. Titanium). Now you would think that bike manufacturers were paying for pro-riders to ride their bikes in an effort to increase sales to mortal sportive riders, but the bike world is not that simple......in answer to your question - i have no answer and am simillarly non-plussed.
  • LeighB
    LeighB Posts: 326
    I have bikes with Aluminium and Steel frames and the most comfortable is one with an Aluminium frame. This is more to do with the geometry of the frame than the material. I would look for something that ‘fits’ you. I don’t see why a bike for Sportives would be any different to a bike for racing, look at the big tours these guys do the equivalent of a sportive every day for a couple of weeks! Are they on uncomfortable bikes? The main difference would be the choice of gearing i.e. can you turn a 39 x 25 up a 30% climb; I know I cant so I have a compact 36 x 26.
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/21286698@N06/
  • meagain
    meagain Posts: 2,331
    "Consideration on fit and comfort would be more important than frame material IMO."

    Seconded! But carbon TCRs ARE very nice!
    d.j.
    "Cancel my subscription to the resurrection."
  • cougie
    cougie Posts: 22,512
    From what I've ridden lately - in order of most comfy first

    Carbon TCR

    Custom 853 with carbon fork

    ALu fixy with alu fork

    Mates Alu bike that felt like sitting on a brick that had been hardened even more. But hey - he loves it !

    You really need to try the bike first.
  • gkerr4
    gkerr4 Posts: 3,408
    LeighB wrote:
    I have bikes with Aluminium and Steel frames and the most comfortable is one with an Aluminium frame. This is more to do with the geometry of the frame than the material. I would look for something that ‘fits’ you. I don’t see why a bike for Sportives would be any different to a bike for racing, look at the big tours these guys do the equivalent of a sportive every day for a couple of weeks! Are they on uncomfortable bikes? The main difference would be the choice of gearing i.e. can you turn a 39 x 25 up a 30% climb; I know I cant so I have a compact 36 x 26.

    Hmmm - the big difference being that those guys are professional athletes - and capable of folding themselves to that position for hours on end when the rest of us can't!
  • alfablue
    alfablue Posts: 8,497
    I don't have a sportive bike, but I have a Dawes Audax made of 531c Reynolds steel (a British built model of 1997 vintage) - it is like riding an armchair - I just love getting on it. I also have a Ti mtb frame that is adapted for commuter rides (rigid steel fork), this is stiffer, and marginally less comfy, though the recent addition of a Ti seatpost improved matters. It is probably slightly overbuilt for road-going purposes. Now I realise that the design and build of these frames makes more difference than the frame material, but the Audax frame shows what a lovely ride steel can give in the right configuration.
  • wildmoustache
    wildmoustache Posts: 4,010
    If you're strong enough you'll win on carbon or Ti. Steel? That might put you at a small disadvantage in weight and stiffness terms. Depends whether you like the feel though ... I have a stiff carbon frame as my best bike and steel feels noodly.

Categories