Frames

thefartingcockeral

Hi, when people say that bikes have superb frames, such as Giants and Treks, what in particular are they referring to about the frame?

phz

given a certain level of basic build quality i believe that very much depends on what style of riding you do and how you like a bike to 'feel'

good materials / well-designed geometry/ great quality control will get you an excellently made frame but it doesnt matter how well made a frame is if it doesnt suit you and what you want it to do

i ride a DMR trailstar (mark 1) and consider it a very good frame - i want a 'do anything' hardtail and so the trailstar suits perfectly IMHO - compact and quick handling for singletrack and playing around but still long enough for leisure XC - great build quality in steel so tough as nails and not stupidly heavy

slainte 8) rob

Northwind

pHz is spot on, frinstance I absolutely love my Soul, it's got really good handling but also a nice amount of flex to take the harshness out of the rear end. But a mate of mine had one for about 2 months and hated it, because he likes a stiff rear triangle. He ended up with a Chameleon, which is a lot stiffer and which I don't like much. It's all a matter of taste.

But, the things people look for in a great frame are strength, weight, looks, handling (ie geometry) and feel. Not in that order, neccesarily

hucking_fell

The most important things about a frame are it's colour,

How new it is,

How much it cost,

And the name on the side of it.

1st_aide

pHz, which forks do you run on your trailstar?
I'm getting a new set for mine. Was thinking Z1s or Pikes. also trying to decide, 20mm or standard axle (then I can spend more on the forks),
Cheers

Anonymous

thefartingcockeral wrote:

Hi, when people say that bikes have superb frames, such as Giants and Treks, what in particular are they referring to about the frame?

a good frame is normally one with good angles primarily, so it will build into a nicely balanced and handling bike (whatever that means) other things which make a frame good as opposed to ok are things like good quality welding which promotes strength, nice bits of detailing like braces and gussets and also well manipulated tubes.

a "good" frame will have tubes which have different thicknesses along its length. this means there will be strength where its needed and limited material where its not which will have a few effects.

1st will be lighter weight with out loss of strength. the second will be that the frame builder can tune how the frame physically feels.

as mentioned before, some folk like a very stiff frame for direct drive and maximum eficiency. others like their frames to be designed in such a way as to promote a bit of suppleness which will make the frame a bit more forgiving and less physically demanding.

these factors are all taken into account whatever material is used as carbon, steel, titanium and aluminium can all be manipulated to be forgiving or super stiff.