Alloy Or Aluminum Bike Frame Lighter

Carbon however rules supreme in this area.

Alloy or aluminum bike frame lighter.

There s a misconception that steel bike frames are heavy and aluminum frames are light. Not surprising we make bridges out of one and soda cans out of the other. Titanium magnesium and other. It entails adding extra material and this extra material adds on weight and quickly an aluminum bike can weigh as much more or more than a steel bike.

Ride quality is more noticeable on road frames than mountain frames with vibrations being damped by carbon more so than aluminum. To make aluminum frames strong enough builders often make the tubes larger and thicker than steel tubes. For the best bike for your dollar see if an aluminum bike will satisfy your need for speed. Mid to high end steel frame bikes can weigh less than 25 lbs while a low end alloy frame bike might weigh 35 lbs.

And while it s true aluminum is lighter by volume as a metal that property doesn t tell us the whole story. The primary difference between carbon and aluminum comes down to weight and ride quality. Butting means making the aluminum larger and thicker than steel. Aluminum frames are lighter aluminum has about a third of the density of steel.

Aluminum is less dense than steel and to make it achieve greater strength to weight ratio. This doesn t mean that an aluminum frame weighs a third of a steel frame. That means that aluminum is lighter by volume. Because aluminum isn t quite as strong as steel more material must be used to make the frame strong and durable enough.

Aluminum frames can be as light as or slightly lighter than steel but a department store steel frame may weigh 10 lbs and a dept store aluminum frame may weigh 8. When it comes to the strength to weight ratio few materials can come close to carbon fiber. It s possible to build very light and capable bikes out of either aluminum or carbon. Different factors like frame size manufacturer components and wheels have a big effect on weight but most aluminum bikes come in at around 18 pounds or lighter while still costing far less than a carbon fiber bike.

Quality aluminum frames are butted. Carbon frames are usually a bit lighter than aluminum up to a pound for mountain frames and up to a half pound on road frames. A carbon frame will almost always be lighter than an aluminum equivalent.