You think the days of steel are over? That carbon is the new thing? (Or ti, or aluminium.) Well, it might not be so.
Today you can readily get a steel bike that weighs 16 lbs. It looks like a steel frame weighs about a pound more than carbon. So just build yerself a 15-lb carbon bike and swap in your steel frame and, wa-la. : ) You’ll have a bike where any SUPPORT part failure won’t cause you any serious dismemberment. I agree that carbon is cool…except for the parts that truly keep you off the ground and off the sharp edges. Frame, fork, post, stem, bars: keep em real.
Have you ever ridden a classic 20-lb lugged steel bike on sew-up wheels with handmade tires? With 32 spokes in 16 gauge? It’s like a riding a high-tension spider web. The whole thing seems so delicate. Like it wants to roll and sing to the road. They’re so lively they’re musical.
They’re also way-sweet looking.
Now, I like the looks of hightech. But vintage, lugs, and paint COLOR and pinstriping all look SUPER. Classy, even.
Classy is making a comeback.
You can probably even find it in your area.
Not that I always practice what I preach. The flipside here is that I’ve been abusing my own UL carbon equipment in terms of XC skiing and canoeing for, like, 20 years now and no failures, knock on plastic. But one is not riding on TOP of a ski pole or canoe paddle at 40mph down a hill on asphalt… Ahem.
It’s probably a good idea, also, if you want to ride “crabon” (as BikeSnobNYC calls it) to know that you’re a “light rider” who is easy on stuff. I’ve broken one crank in 30 years (a 30 yr old crank!) and maybe 1 spoke a season. I haven’t hurt a rim in decades either. Nor have I crashed and rashed. (knock knock knock!) …So, know thyself.
But back to steel. You don’t have to worry about any of that with steel. It doesn’t snap, it bends.
Furthermore, the only reason why a 17-lb bike is handy is if you’re riding with a group of hard-chargers on 17-lb bikes. If you happen to ride with mellow types, just ride the prettiest bike you like. Weight only matters out at that far 2% of your top-end — it’s critical in situations where you might get dropped but it’s irrelevant otherwise. No, it’s RELATIVE otherwise. If you ride with folks who ride steel, join the fun!
Another point of relevance is: if you’re fit it don’t matter neither. If you’re not racing for your living then as long as you’re having fun and can keep up with who you like, why worry? If you ride plenty you might find that you’re in better shape than most others even on a sporty group ride, if so, then a couple pounds of extra weight is no great shakes. Ride the bike you like!
If you want some real steel action, there are more Vintage Steel bike races out there, too! You’ll be on par, no problem.
https://www.menofsteelracing.com/
