as always this group has no shortage so i wonder what everyone thinks of an aluminum touring bike? any experience with one? fishing here...

My "Dale touring bike is as solid as a girder. It's hardly lightweight, but still, 25 lbs for a heavy-duty touring bike is pretty good.

i thought the dales were all steel?

and I'll 2nd the praise for the cannondale touring bikes. The shop I worked at sold them as the only stock touring bikes, nice bikes. were I to go with something aluminum, cannondale would be on the top of the short list.

I can't really say from experience if aluminum is equal to steel, but, from what I've read, steel has more give and supposedly is more comfortable, especially when you'll be on the bike for hours. Another augument is that steel can be fixed, if the frame somehow breaks. Personally, I think one's physical condition has the most to do with comfort, along with the proper fitted bike.

I'll be touring this June and July on my new custom titanium frame and will have a better opinion about it, when I finish.

Ted

as always this group has no shortage so i wonder what everyone thinks of an aluminum touring bike? any experience with one? fishing here...


I have no problem spouting off here about things I have no actual experience with :)


I have read all the frame material debates and I begin to think that alu vs. steel vs. ti doesn't matter so much as other factors in terms of comfort:

tire pressure and tire width
seatpost/fork material
frame geometry - the more set back behind the back wheel you sit, the more comfortable.

On a touring bike, I imagine aluminum will be just as comfortable as any other material out there. In terms of durability, I can only defer to conventional wisdom.