Carbon or aluminium?

Best of both worlds. Carbon seat stays with aluminum frame. My Klein Q Pro rides like a dream.

drdoug said:

Help! I'm looking to spend about £2,000 on a new bike soon and I am in a daze about what everyone says about carbon or aluminium. I've heard a lot about the comfort of carbon compared to aluminium, but then a guy from Fuji laughed his head off and said that was nonsense and that aluminium was great. He was trying to sell me a Fuji Team Superlite at the time! (which I am tempted by). And what about aluminium with carbon stays?

So, for a guy like me who is a keen amateur who rides for fun (30-70k trips), will it make a whole lot of difference what I buy as to how it feels? Or should I buy the lightest I can get for my money? (which would be the Fuji)
:eek:

Gosh, just imagine! Someone trying to sell you something being biased!

Seriously though. A good aluminum frame can be a great ride however, all other things being equal, an all aluminum frame will be harsher than a carbon frame. That's because aluminum doesn't have the ability to flex repeatedly (ever tear a beer can in half by bending it multiple times?) whereas carbon does. For most real world roads (read "rough"😉, a carbon or hybrid aluminum/carbon bike will be more comfortable.

Greg

One of the most significant things a carbon fiber frame does is soak up the noise of the road and of the moving parts. An aluminum frame tends to amplify road and component noise. I believe that a great deal of the more comfortable ride of a carbon framed bicycle is the psychological side effect of the quietness.

"It must be a smoother ride because it dosen't rattle and rumble as much."

you should get carbon, as it asborbs more shock off the road, and weighs absouloutly nothing

waxbytes said:

One of the most significant things a carbon fiber frame does is soak up the noise of the road and of the moving parts. An aluminum frame tends to amplify road and component noise. I believe that a great deal of the more comfortable ride of a carbon framed bicycle is the psychological side effect of the quietness.

"It must be a smoother ride because it dosen't rattle and rumble as much."

I hadn't thought of it like that, but come to think of it, my aluminium frame does tend to clank around a lot. Whenever I ride on anything less than silky smooth, my brake cables bounce against the frame and the racket pisses me off no end.

I just switched from aluminum to aluminum/carbon. (not intentionally the aluminum was stolen and I was SOL) I noticed a difference immediately. Ther carbon is a lot smoother, quieter. Especially when it comes to smoothing out the little bumps.

Thanks for the info so far. Another question? Should I worry about a kilo here or there? For my budget, the carbon I could afford would be about a kilo heavier than the aluminium (8kg ish vs 7kg). Is that last kilo worth it or should i just go for carbon? My current bike is not light at all (18kg).🙄

Hey,
Since your a "keen amateur who rides for fun ", I think you should go with the Carbon. Carbon bikes have a little more flex than aluminum, but their a world of comfort apart. I use an all alu bike for my racing because it is stiffer. I certainly suffer on long training rides though. Right now I'm trying to put together 2 identical bikes, one carbon and one alu. That way I can train comfortably, and race stiffer. But for you, go carbon. Dont listen to the Fuji guy. Working at a bike shop, we had teh Fugi Rep come in the other week and gave us the whole Fuji lineup, if a Fuji is what your looking into, look into the Team carbon bikes. Their light, and going to be a lot more comfortable than the SL. I do have a problem with Fuji though. For the money you pay, your geting some crapola. Ritchey stem, seatpoast and handlebars, for 5 grand? hmm. Look elsewhere, OR, buy a comfortable frame and build a bike for the same price. If you go that route, you can get much better equipment for the same price. Look into a LOOK frame, the 481SL is awsome, and in the US, if you look you can get if for roughly 2300, combine that with a C Record group, OR Dura-Ace if thats your thing, for about 1500, Some Euros wheels for about 900, Newton Stem/Handlebar, and your looking at a kick ass bike for about the same price, and at a lighter weight. Just a thought, and just an example.
Dave

Im not sure if your into racing...but if your not, I think you would be happy if you focused on an aluminum framed bike with high-end components. With your budget, have you considered a Cervelo? Perhaps the Cervelo 105? www.cervelo.com

drdoug said:

Help! I'm looking to spend about £2,000 on a new bike soon and I am in a daze about what everyone says about carbon or aluminium. I've heard a lot about the comfort of carbon compared to aluminium, but then a guy from Fuji laughed his head off and said that was nonsense and that aluminium was great. He was trying to sell me a Fuji Team Superlite at the time! (which I am tempted by). And what about aluminium with carbon stays?

So, for a guy like me who is a keen amateur who rides for fun (30-70k trips), will it make a whole lot of difference what I buy as to how it feels? Or should I buy the lightest I can get for my money? (which would be the Fuji)
:eek:

It's more than just about the material. It's how it's built. There is good and bad in any of it for a particular person. Go ride some yourself and decide rather than swallowing All the nonsense and hooey dished up here by idiots.