carbon or titanium frame

moggie123

Hi Im looking to build up a road bike and Im looking at differant frames .what are the pros and cons of both.I love the clean stripped done look of ti but really wonder is carbon where its at ? I do a good few sportives and am considering joining a club . thanks any advice would be great

mh_cork

Titanium looks great and should last forever. Some say they are more comfortable than carbon. Generally heavier material, so few people use it for racing (although you can get racing Ti frames, they are very expensive). If you damage the frame in a crash it may be repairable.

Some might say that carbon frames degrade over time but I think that does not apply to frames now. Carbon frames can be built to any spec, so can be built for comfort, aero or pure speed. Not really repairable if you have a crash.

For sportive, commuting, cycling with a club, either are fine. You can race on Ti, but if racing could be something that you aim for then carbon is probably the way to go.

Also consider carefully the geometry of the frame. While getting the stiffest, most aero carbon frame might sound great, it would not be a comfortable ride for a long sportive.

kuro_man

Entry-level carbon-fibre bikes will be cheaper, probably lighter and you will have greater choice

Ti is for those who want a steel-like comfort with less weight.

Both can be great. If you only have one bike and/or limited budget, I'd probably go with CF.

moggie123

Thanks very much for your cogent replies ... I hav a alu/carbon fork bike at the moment which is great its a felt Z75 just wanna move up (cant utterly justify it tbh ) think I might get a s/h ti frame and save for a cf planetx ultegra set up . It seems one bike cant do everything (also you cant hav to many bikes.)!!! A related question is will I simply be able to swop everything over allthings been equal from the felt to a ti frame as alu and ti would share same threading I guess if its standard ? r is that well off the mark.

countrykid

most ti manufactuers use BSA thread so yes...
the odd italian maker uses italian but would most likely only set you back a few quid for a new bb

all that said...

if i had a alu felt...id go to carbon..

lower end Ti isnt much different in ride quality to alu as its generally a mix of titanium and alu...

a good ti frame is upwards of €2000 euro...and well upwards.. and usually have carbon somewhere in it!!!! stays etc...

enigmas cheapest ti frame is €1400...

youd get a lot of carbon for that secondhand...

moggie123

you make a lot of sense ,guess either get an amazing bargain in ti even as an alternative to alu or go get cf .CF seems to be the intelligent choice. Thanks a lot