When you buy a bike, price is often indicative of quality. In short, you get what you pay for. That means lots of people are interested in buying the best bike they can afford, so they’ll have a nice ride, and a durable machine. However, deciding which top of the line road bike is a good buy and which isn’t worth the money can be tricky. Here’s some basic information to help you get the right bike.
Pick the Right Frame
Frame material can make a big difference in the way your bike performs. Some are lighter, stronger, and cheaper than others. In general, steel is strong but heavy. Aluminum is light, but often weaker. Titanium is strong and light, but expensive, as is carbon fiber. However, a higher end frame made of any of these materials will solve some of the problems they have better than less expensive models. You’re not only paying for the material the frame is made from. You’re also paying for the engineering to make it perform well. Don’t be tempted to get a cheaper frame made from a prestigious material like carbon fiber. Sacrifices have probably been made to make that frame less expensive.
Another part of getting a good frame is making sure that it fits you correctly. Most people, who haven’t been correctly fitted to a bike, ride one that’s too short for them. Ideally, you should be able to extend your leg almost fully on the downward stroke, without the frame being so high that you can’t straddle it at stops. Talk to a reputable bike seller to find a frame that’s the best fit for you. This is actually more important than the material the frame is made of. If you’re not able to ride efficiently, the extra edge you get from a quality frame material won’t be much help.
The components you put on the frame also matter. While ordinary ones will do the job, higher quality components allow for more precision. Again, it’s important to fit your purchase to the way you ride. Getting the maximum number of speeds available won’t give you a big increase in quality of ride if you mostly cycle in flat areas. Gearing is more important when you need to change the difficulty of pedaling to match the terrain. People who bike more often, and are in better shape, will usually need fewer gears. Those who are trying to get in shape will prefer a larger number of adjustments, so they don’t have to strain while riding. Remember that it’s better to enjoy cycling and ride often than it is to get a heavy workout every time you get on the bike.
Bike Style
Bike style is also important. If you’re mostly going to be on pavement, a light road bike is probably your best bet. However, for areas with uneven paving, or off-road riding, mountain bikes, or hybrids between the two are more effective. They’re heavier, but they offer better stability than many lighter bikes intended for more level surfaces. Once again, it’s your riding style and habits that determines the best bike for you. While buying top of the line is a great idea, getting a bike that doesn’t fit always spells trouble.
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February 15 2008 | Road Bikes | 1 Comment »
The best material for your bike frame will depend on how you ride, what kind of shape you’re in, where you ride, and what your budget is. Some frames are lighter, heavier, more or less durable, and more or less expensive than others. Here’s a quick comparison of the major types of bike frame materials to help you decide what to buy for yourself. Of course, nothing can compare to trying out a bike on your own, so be sure to give several different materials a try when you go shopping. You might be surprised.
You’ll hear a lot of things about various materials. Most of them are false, to some degree. Some may be over generalizations. Others are out of date. So, think before you believe it when someone else tells you that getting an aluminum bike frame means a harsh ride, that a steel frame gives you a nice ride quality but the metal softens with age, or that titanium means a soft, whippy frame. There’s a lot of conventional bike frame wisdom that’s either a distortion of the real thing, or pure fiction. You can make a good bike out of any kind of material, and an equally bad bike out of all materials. The construction and methods used make a big difference, as does your riding style.
Three Big Factors
The three big factors to pay attention to when picking a frame material are weight, strength, and stiffness. Many people confuse stiffness with strength. However, titanium is just as strong as steel, even if it’s a lot less stiff by weight. Different materials flex to a different degree under the same amount of force. Stiffness affects how the bike frame feels to ride. Strength affects its durability, but not the quality of the ride. Weight can affect the amount of effort you need to put into riding. Remember that each material has the same weight for a given quantity of it. If you see a bike claiming to be lighter than other bikes of the same material, it’s just using less steel, aluminum, or other frame material.
Steel is the traditional material. It tends to be strong but heavy. Well made steel bikes can mitigate the weight somewhat, by using thinner tubes. Comparatively, aluminum is much lighter, but about third as stiff and half as strong. This is why you’ll usually see thicker walls and larger tubing in aluminum bikes. Titanium is about the same strength as steel, weighs about half as much and is half as stiff. Slightly larger diameters are used to prevent whippiness in titanium bike frames. Titanium tends to be very expensive.
Carbon Fiber
Another, non-metal, material that’s getting a lot of attention lately is carbon fiber. It has a much more pronounced appearance of grain than metal. If these fibers are well aligned, this is actually a helpful feature, because it can provide more strength where your bike receives more stress. Unfortunately, this technology is still somewhat experimental, which means that manufacturers don’t always know how to get the most out of it. Fiber frames are often not as durable as other materials, and can be weak where metal fittings are attached. This material is expensive, but also doesn’t corrode and is quite light.
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February 09 2008 | bikes | 5 Comments »