Aluminium ≠ aluminium: Alloys, processing, and the production of raw material As Nic McCrae from Santa Cruz states, "There are super high-quality frames and super shitty frames made with all of these materials." So, let’s take a closer lookĪt what these differences are. There are considerable differences in the composition of the raw materials, their manufacture, and processing, which ultimately affects the performance, durability, and price of the end product. To delve deeper into the comparison of these materials, we must emphasise the crucial fact that carbon and aluminium are not all created equal. Materials science: Isotropy, layup, hydroforming – All Greek?! However, it’s a mistake to think in binary either-or categories that leave you blind to other good and worthwhile options! Instead of thinking in black and white, our aim is to consider both the strengths and weaknesses of the two materials and hopefully find out what is best for you and your bike. And while the general public is relatively well-informed about the debate between aluminium or carbon, we still encounter gaps in knowledge, half-truths, or downright false assumptions about these two materials in heated forum debates, bike park parking lots and numerous YouTube videos. Through further development and countless exciting refinements, both aluminium and carbon evolved from the first daring prototypes to highly resilient, high-performance mountain bike materials. After LOOK Cycle produced the first carbon road bikes in 1986, the Lotus Sport was the first carbon mountain bike frame to appear in 1992. Over the years, other industrial processes such as hydroforming and machining made their way into bicycle production. variable wall-thickness tubing, was already common on steel frames and was quickly adapted for aluminium.
Way back in 1978, Charlie Cunningham welded his legendary CC Proto frame from straight- gauge aluminium tubes in California. By contrast, steel and titanium have been pushed into niche markets. The most important mountain bike materialsĪluminium and, shortly afterwards, carbon fibre appeared on the then-burgeoning mountainbike scene as early as the 1980s and today they’re the two most used materials for frames and components. It’s part and parcel of our wonderful hobby. That's a hell of a lot of concentrated knowledge! Is carbon better than aluminium? If so, is it always? Prepare yourself for an exciting look inside the experts’ minds and see which myths hold true! Of course, we will also talk about ecological footprints, recycling, and responsibility.
Finally, DT Swiss’ wheel experts Andreas Tschanz and Nils Verhoeven tuned in from Switzerland. We also spoke to Mirko Filler from Dresden-based carbon component specialist Beast Components and Cesar Rojo, the mind behind Unno Bikes in Barcelona. Among them were carbon fetishist Nic McCrae from Santa Cruz in sunny California, the Finnish aluminium machining master Leo Kokkonen from Pole and the tech-heads from REIN4CED in flat Belgium, who have combined metal and carbon in a unique way. To answer this question, we did in-depth research and discussed the issue with renowned materials experts, developers, and product managers around the world.