Can an Aluminum Bike Ride Like Steel?
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- Опубліковано 9 лют 2024
- Bike framesets are often overgeneralized: "aluminum bikes are stiff, steel bikes are compliant, titanium is whippy." But it's not the material that matters most, it's how it's used. They Tyrant Beastie is a unique aluminum framest; it's intentionally designed to be heavier to make it more durable, more comfortable, and more like a steel bike. Can this aluminum bike ride like steel?
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I ride a vintage steel frame bike.
For the longest time I had the original components on it and most of them were steel, but recently purchased a new drivetrain and completely changed all the components to more modern aluminum ones (not all though). It completely changed the feel of the bike, and it made me realize clearly what flexibility and stiffness means for bikes.
When people say steel frames and components feel flexible and comfortable, it’s like they yield to the force I put on them. They don’t push back on me. i could feel my old steel stem wrenching under my hands left and right as I climb steep hills, and the bottom bracket wiggling and waggling back and forth between my feet, almost gleefully, whenever I tried to sprint in high gear ratios. It was comfortable, but it was unruly, steel has a mind and personality of its own and it breaths life into a bike. It has personality, but it doesn’t always listen or do what I want it to.
The feeling with aluminum has been so different. When I push on it it pushes back. When I lay my weight on my drop bars it lifts me up, like we’re a pair of acrobats pushing each other up hand to hand. When I mash down on my pedals it’s like a hammer on an anvil. Sparks fly in a show of power, and it kicks me forward. It’s elegant but dangerous. It’s very reassuring, Aluminum doesn’t play around like steel does.
Steel can be unreliable, and it doesn’t always do what I need it to in the heat of the moment. And aluminum is a little too up tight, it’s all about getting down to business.
Steel is almost immature, but so am I, neither of us perfect so we forgive each other’s mistakes. Aluminum is refined, more professional, willing to see me as an adult. But I need the confidence to commit to my actions on aluminum, knowing every decision has consequences. That if I want to go farther, faster, it’s gonna hurt.
Pro cyclists must have entered a relationship with suffering. It’s do or die for them. Til death do they part.
They’re chasing a different dream.
But Steel is real. And aluminum isn’t all that bad either.
Thank you
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this
But don’t you still feel the frame flex even with all aluminum components? Would you say that gives the best combination? My two bikes from the 80s came with all alloy components and I still feel the frame (bottom bracket?) flex when pedaling hard
@@ryanhurst3859 it still flexes, but the more modern aluminum parts give it a really snappy response.
The carbon fiber fork thing is played out. Messengers use them, they're fine.
I appreciate your honesty. My current fixedgear is the og big block. I really do like it but sometimes I miss a super stiff aluminium bike. When I get a new place and have more bike storage I will definitely build a stiff beater to race around on!
Thoughtful evaluation. Tire and wheel choice can help suppleness. Good job.
Love steel bikes but my aluminium Dolan is still the bike I put more miles in as its my daily. I'd love to see you do a week riding the precursa vs the tyrant.
What tire pressure are you running? Aren't tires pumped too stiff for given surface? Tubeless allows to run a tad lower pressure than tubes and that could change ride feeling.
I can't blame tires itself as you don't anymore use wooden gatorskins but pressure could be adjusted when riding on chattery roads. Mini-pump is very useful to carry on longer rides to adapt to particular surface.
I'm curious about your toe clips and pedals. Can you tell me what you used in this video? Thanks for an interesting video and a great channel. This was a really good review. Thanks again.
I have both aluminium and steel fixed gear bikes. They're customized builds configurated down to the last bolt, so to speak. I think the key to a good aluminium bike build is to combine a strong, medium heavy set of wheels (around 2300 to 2400g) with the lighter (than steel) aluminium frameset (by the way, nobody ever talks about a proper weight ratio between frameset and wheelset). My aluminium build weighs 9 kg flat and it just hops over rough pavement without tiring me out over longer distances.
I agree with you Zach. I'm 56 and have been riding SS most of my life. A steel frame is a must. I've tried an aluminium frame and the fatigue my body experienced from it was similar to what you describe. On my steel bike, no matter how far I ride, I don't get any of that.
Finally! A riding video 😮
What type of bar tape are you using here?
This 1998 gangster rapper looks is great Zach.
He still look like a hipster bro huh
He looks normal.
@@miatomi Oh thanks for coming in here and pointing that out Mia, great stuff.. I'm sure everyone was going to be really confused abou the part where I said "Zach that doesn't look normal", it's a good thing you came here and took the time to leave this wonderful and insightful comment. Truly out here doing gods work Mia, thank you.
@@neom0nktake it easy man. I want to drink some flavored water in about 25 minutes.
No problem bb
are there carbon fiber fixie bikes?
On the topic of ride quality... Since you're something of a Mr Worldwide with bikes, do you have any reccomendations for broken pavement? Everyone seems to focus on gravel or offroad vs _smooth_ pavement, but here in the northeast we have the most broken, cracked, patchy, and chipped up roads from the weather and traffic volume. As well as gigantic steep hills.
The "best" bike I have in terms of comfort is a narrow-diameter, thickwalled heavy AF steel department store bike from 1979, but there has to be some "upgradeable" solutions that don't involve using what people would otherwise call a BSO... right?
older felt TK2's have some give in the rear triangle that is nice on the street. Not sure bout newer ones, the rear end looks beefier.
i own affinity lo pro (steel,12yrs) & affinity kissena (alu,5yrs) both fit 32c. casual rider these days, find myself riding the steel steed for every reason you stated. like why am i sore all over 😂
I have never ridden a magnesium or wooden framed bicycle.
I'm curious, but not enough to buy one.
My fixie is steel. The way I describe the difference between the two different materials is like this.... when on my Aluminium road bike I'm aware of the road chatter. When on my steel fixie I notice the rest of the ride experiences.
❤ from NZ
(Yes, we say Aluminium 😅)
steel is real
AMEN TO THAT! 🙌
I've owned 12 bikes of everything but Ti. I'm a steel person but I've owned a few very nice and smooth aluminum road bikes. Depends on the type of aluminum used, as well as the thickness and shape of the aluminum.
Anyone put on 32 gatorskin on wabi sub 15? Is that doable or is the rim too skinny for 32 and not recommended
Aluminium is unreal
Nice job putting out more interesting frequent content.
Half of the recent vids have just been ads for the Tyrant bike. It's getting kinda old.
I feel like aluminum is good on the track and for full suspension mountain bikes.
Titanium is amazing on the road, but that means custom fabrication.
It would be unfair to compare a Custom Bike to a Production Bike.
Ti is also expensive. So, steel is where it's at. Carbon isn't even on the menu.
So if you could get the right rake on a carbon all road/gravel fork to fit 32s in the front it'd be pretty dope then.
The issue is the axle to crown will also mess with the fork offset. You’ll get more slope on your top tube too.
I have the same problem with my aluminum bike (08 cannondale capo). I kinda try & stay away from riding it as much as other two steel bikes. Idk why I haven’t sold aluminum bike yet . I think I just like the way it looks . So I haven’t sold it for that reason .
Still riding my 08 gaint Bowery . Happy as
Upload 3 of asking to bring back fixie point videos
I agree, I miss fixie points videos, Zach!
Maybe if you struggle with being negative about a bike, I'm sure you can find a way to have more positive ways of doing it.
@@nathanielkhoom6043 "praise, roast, praise" format might work. Then everyone gets "a fixie point" lol. Because they have a fixie, and that's what matters.
Fixie points rules
Steel hasn't saved my old knees, but I still love it the best.
Can you make another budget friendly fix gear bikes tier list for beginners
This dude just likes heavy bicycles
Love the ride of Steel. Good luck on getting married.
i have an aluminium and a steel fixed gear and for me its like two rinding style, you have to change the way you ride and how you force at certain times and situation
I'm happy to hear this because whem my Wabi Lightning got stolen, I switched to a Cinelli Parallax and it's totally different, I have it set up exactly the same way as the wabi and it's nuts how much I feel it being different, but can't put my finger on why except "it's not the same material so it should be different" - I actually thought it was just in my head and I've been trying to convince myself I don't need to re-buy a lightning, but now that I see this video and all the comments... le sigh, I guess I need to re-buy the lightning....
@@neom0nk if this the way you want to ride you should rebuild it but for me when i bay a new bike i don't try to replicate the feeling of the previous one, i just enjoy the new sensation but i think it's just me 😅
@@neom0nk Even setting up 2 bikes the same way doesn't really work. I get totally different ride qualities from my 3 main bikes despite measuring them all fairly similarly. I can actually feel my legs working differently on each.
Bikes are not just stack and reach, but also the saddle setback from the cranks, seatpost material/diameter/wall thickness, the ground clearance, the ratio of stem:top tube for total reach, bar width, bar _shape_, steerer tube length/fork length, trail, chainstay length, rim width and tire width, tire and rim type, spoke number and type, and whether everything is properly greased/tuned...
@@Aubreykun Gee really? Wow, thanks for the education, I've only been riding bikes for 35 years, I had no clue... so happy you came here with this essay and provided me with knowledge I had no idea of. Thanks Aubrey, I hope you feel substantually smarter now that you proved your surface level of bikes to someone in the comments section. Thanks again, we're so lucky to have you around youtube providing these *amazzzzing* insights. wow!
@@neom0nk Well if someone else reads the comments with the same issue it might help them out. Nobody knows your life story online my dude.
Nice & Thanks :)
Anybody know the brand of the clip on front fender?
Hey, I had the same question. Ended up finding the SKS Germany S-Board mudguard. Looks like it's a match
Do a bar spin ableist frame sets
there's like 3 velodromes in California and like one 2 hours away from you in San Jose lol.
Rough estimate from some google maps peeking is there's probably like 30ish velodromes in the entire US, and they're mostly in some oddball areas. Very few seem to be near larger population centers. Oddly Canada seems to have a bunch around the Toronto area though.
Aluminum is like running on concrete, steel is like running on dirt/grass
Nonsense! Buy a quality aluminium frame, then come back and comment, lol
Thanks for the review. Steel rules
Had a Cinelli Vigorelli aluminum frame bike, and sold it to buy a wabi. The wabi is way more comfortable.
Of course it is.
Maybe if they made it to fit a 32mm tire it would help with the harsh ride.
Yup, but then you are building a different type of bike.
Not really, it's a 32c tire on the back, it's 28c on the front which will affect the feel of the front.
We are working on making a fork to fit a 32 tire in the front without compromising the geometry.
🔥🔥🔥
No- but a supple tire choice will make it pretty good…
My Cannondale CAAD10 rides about as smooth as my Litespeed titanium bike. My steel Bianchis were smooth too.
Cromoly for the win
I miss my Torker BMX from back in the day.
Is anyone making a raw chromoly single / fixed frame?
I thought there was a Mash version a couple years back.
@@pinoygal6232Tyrant legacy has a raw steel version
Isn't thicker tubing make it even more stiff?
And don't your steel bike have wider tires?
Depends on the type of aluminum used. 6061 with the added heat treatments provides a softer ride. Thicker tubing equals stiffness and the material ads comfort. Not to mention the oversize round tube sets are stiffer than aero or teardrop and yes the hourglass seat stays help transmit less of the road vibrations. I’ve been making and designing bikes for 25 years now and love it.
Thicker tubing but smaller diameter, so it will be less stiff
@@pratikpramanik7782 then you will get some flex. Key is comfort and stiffness
I don't ride fixed gear or road bikes but my hardtail is steel. My full suspension is aluminum
Fun fact: aluminum frames can be converted into steel frames by dropping 10psi.
@ZachGallardo Can you fixie point one of my bikes??
Half of the recent vids have just been ads for the Tyrant bike. It's getting kinda old.
Very critical for an ad.
sounds like it needs wider tires.
Zach already rides 28f/32r tires. Maybe 2" balloons?
Solution looking for a problem
Aluminum is realuminum!
I just bought a purple bike.
Squirrel!
This video is delusional... The difference is not the material but the geo and tube size....
Ehhh it all goes hand in hand. The actual limiter of aluminum is that it fatigues, so you have to actually make the tubes and geo different else the small amounts of bending will cause it to crack eventually. I know someone who had a cheapo alu folding bike's chainstay snap because it was designed like a steel bike.
@@Aubreykuneven the more expensive early cannondales stuff snapped and cracked cuz the tubes were tiny and geo was close to steel.
I have a fuji feather would love anyone’s input on nice carbon straight bars or risers I would have zach but after I sent him a message about it on Instagram and here he simply does not reply!! So anyone who would kinda guide me in the Wich handle bars are good would definitely be appreciated thank you