Steel Vs Carbon Vs Titanium Vs Aluminium - Which Is Best? | GMBN Tech Show 296

In this week's GMBN Tech Show, Anna is joined by Neil Donoghue from @gmbn and special guest Cy Turner from Cotic bikes to ask the question, is steel real? Frames can be made out of different materials and varying raw material prices will often dictate the price of the bike. The most popular frame materials are Steel, Carbon fibre, Titanium, and Aluminium.

⏱️ Timestamps 👇
00:00 - Intro
00:29 - Is steel real? [Feat. Cy Turner]
09:30 - Back to the set
10:08 - News
12:45 - NEW GMBN Shop Shout out
12:53 - Quiz
13:18 - Bike Cave
14:48 - Comments
16:41 - Quiz

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What material is your bike made from? Would you change it if you could? 🤔 Let us know 👇

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[gmbntech]

What material is your bike made from? Would you change it if you could? 🤔 Let us know 👇

[outdoorsandiego]

Aluminum is the blue-collar choice, both for the price and durability. It's for the hard-working, hard riding people who don't mind scratching and thrashing their bike.

[markpeterson]

I would love to see a show dedicated to Titanium and the builders that create these masterpieces. It would be interesting to see how their processes vary from other materials and where the expense comes from. I love how GMBN Tech Show explores these kinds of subjects. Well done Anna & Neil for another wonderful show. Cheers - M

[dhrracer]

We need a discussion about material composition not just steel, carbon, aluminum or Ti. Get Cotic back and discuss what steel and the why and why not to each. There are plenty of steels out there that need to be explored.

[burningatthetrailhead]

Steel is Infact real. I definitely prefer it for hardtails because of the ride quality and they don't just split like aluminum eventually will. I've broken and folded a few aluminum bikes. All at the head tube, downtube and top tube. I've never owned a carbon or Ti frame so I can't speak on durability over a long period for those materials

[backinthesaddle]

Thanks for the display of my bike cave...😉👍 ps, Turner bikes still exist they are only making Ti MTB and gravel frames. I had a Turner 5 spot absolutely loved it.

[frankpetersen]

I completly agreed with the comments on Steel. I have riden an aluminium hardtail back in the day but never managed to really like since than it has alway been steel. In September I will gift myself a Titanium 8bar Mitte V3 and am enormously exited about it.

[CoticBikesUK]

If you gave any specific questions, particularly about steel, drop a comment and I'll try my best to answer it. Thanks for having me @gmbntech

[GSNorrie]

Taking CheeseGrips to it's natural evolution, I have a CheeseFrame. The big problem is that when I'm particularly hungry I'm heading home on a unicycle.

[floydblandston]

If you're a full grown dedicated rider who's ever had bike fit/sizing issues, a custom frame in steel or ti is worth every penny. Get a basic hardtail with moderate geometry and let the bike evolve along as you do; 30 speed, 1x12 speed, SS,

[PuddyIzzy]

Thanks for the video! Props to showing the perspective for bike builders!

[RayHarmon]

I think it's interesting carbon has become so popular due to it's stiffness but it has been over built and now steel bikes are less weight. I have a 2020 Patrol Carbon on coil and it weighs 5 pounds more than a REEB SST! As well as was said less weight doesn't always mean a better bike. I'm concerned for the life of carbon over steel, aluminum and titanium. I really want a Ti gravel bike, I feel I would buy a full suspension Ti bike if the right geometry for me.

[brianspeed]

Im an alloy person. Both my bikes are aluminum. Picked up my Stumpjumper Evo Alloy frame with Fox Float X shock for $1315 shipped. Full build under $5k. Titanium would be ultimate dream build.

[danielcobb]

HG is Hyperglide. The new GRX has Micro Spline hub drivers. Happy with aluminium - modern geo and components often compliment the frame stiffness.

[YouFearMe]

I have a custom 853 steel frame made by Marino in Peru for $650. Took 8 months to build but well worth it.
Aluminum might be slightly less heavy, but the terrible ride quality makes it unenjoyable.

So steel is the only material worth using.

[deividas_kimontas]

My Vitus Sommet 2020 model has carbon from end and steel back! And I got to day what a bike! So playful and agile. It can take any jumps or drops 🤘

[Azoth]

Always had Aluminium, but would love to one day have a Ti hardtail.

[ltrtg]

Yes Turner Bikes are still in business. They have a new hardtail coming soon called the Scrub. It's a titanium hardtail running 160mm fork, 64.5 degree head angle, 76 degree seat angle, 435mm chainstays and comes in 2 sizes with 440mm and 465mm reach.

[AntonRiddell]

Agree with Neil. Got a massive soft spot for titanium and lucky enough to own the superb Stanton Sherpa Ti. Great bike, great brand. Deserves more publicity.

[floatinginfutility]

There's so much about steel that just speaks to me. I like the looks, I like how it feels when I touch the frame, I like how it feels while riding and I like what it does to my riding style - and that means different things for several kinds of bikes. All my bikes have steel frames and I'm convinced that I'll never go back to aluminium. I'd like to try a titanium frame some day, carbon on the other hand is out of question for me because I'd like my stuff to be long lasting and repairable. That all being said, I'm not a racer.