Innovative Bike Frames Maximize Performance

May 22, 2012 sarah Fitness

Together with the rise in biking popularity these days comes an entire brand new wave of serious biking fans who happen to be searching for the perfect bike frames on the market. The bike frame is the central part of the bicycle and there are many designs and materials available nowadays. Every material has a specific attribute that happens to be worth focusing on depending upon the kind of cycling you regularly do.

To begin with, lets discuss the various materials which have been widely used in the creation of bike frames and the way these materials affect the particular traits of the bicycle.

Steel bike frames: steel bike frames are considered the most traditional ones as well as have been used for the longest period. Steel was the metal of the industrial revolution so all kinds of things worthwhile had been created from steel and bike frames weren’t any exception to this. Steel bike frames are heavier and yet offer flexibility and great resistance to corrosion. Steel frames help make your ride softer and long lasting. But it is required to be painted and taken care of since you also have to spare it from corroding that is a serious problem with steel bike frames.

Aluminum Alloy bike frames: to handle the corroding challenge of steel, bike frames were started to be made from Aluminum yet it will not last for an extended time so other materials were combined with it to form a tougher bike frame. These are termed aluminum alloy bike frames. They’re immune to oxidation and rusting. They are simply lighter weight and a lot more rigid as compared to steel for that reason racing bikes commonly prefer to have aluminum alloy bike frames.

Adopted due to use in the aero space industry, titanium mountain bike frames have entered the marketplace. It seems that titanium is significantly lighter in comparison with steel but somewhat heavier then aluminum and as with the aluminum alloy frame; it doesn’t have the problem presented by rusting.

Carbon fiber bike frames: And last however, not the least, would be the carbon fiber bike frames. This is the newest addition to the family of bike frames designed for the bicycling enthusiasts. Carbon fiber is a by-product of crude oil so it is readily available not to mention low cost. But it is labor intensive meaning it requires a lot of time in production phase therefore it is not available in large numbers. It’s not subject to any corrosion or rusting like all metal plus its also extremely rigid. The negative aspect being that it fatigues rapidly and is not really durable. Nonetheless manufacturers are looking for their way around this issue and hopefully we will have durable carbon fiber bike frames also.

With all points considered, it appears that steel continues to be the most widely used material used overall in bike frames but aluminum alloy is the frame of choice for nearly all road bikes and modern comfort or hybrid bikes.