Very true, things seem to be built more solid these days for both materials - and good point about carbon taking over the light weight side of things.
It's awesome that if you can stay on top of rust prevention you can make a steel frame last almost indefinitely. I just think that the 'problem' of aluminium fatigue is very overblown. Like a lot of things in the world of bikes and MTB, people get a hint of some real technical materials science and then start spouting it off without really understanding the implications or the design process.
I love that most production steel frames come ED coated now, but all it takes is a scratch then localized rust can leave a problematic stress riser. I've also seen some frames where the coating was a bit patchy, I'd guess poor prep/cleaning on the interior. I still hit my coated frame with some framesaver in the off season. Not to worry anyone, steel frames rusting is another real but overblown 'problem'.
June 2, 2023, 6:42 a.m. - BadNudes
Very true, things seem to be built more solid these days for both materials - and good point about carbon taking over the light weight side of things. It's awesome that if you can stay on top of rust prevention you can make a steel frame last almost indefinitely. I just think that the 'problem' of aluminium fatigue is very overblown. Like a lot of things in the world of bikes and MTB, people get a hint of some real technical materials science and then start spouting it off without really understanding the implications or the design process. I love that most production steel frames come ED coated now, but all it takes is a scratch then localized rust can leave a problematic stress riser. I've also seen some frames where the coating was a bit patchy, I'd guess poor prep/cleaning on the interior. I still hit my coated frame with some framesaver in the off season. Not to worry anyone, steel frames rusting is another real but overblown 'problem'.