What's the benefit of using titanium skewer beside the fact that it's light? Is it strong enough to hold my weight?
-
14I would say that the primary benefit is that it removes money from your pocket and puts it in the pocket of the manufacturer & retailer.– Daniel R HicksCommented Feb 20, 2012 at 12:24
Add a comment
|
8 Answers
Aside from weight, there is no real benefit. Titanium is an alloyed steel, and has no limitation on weight or riding style, generally, although there are likely ultra light versions which do have limits.
-
What do you mean Titanium is an alloyed steel? Are you saying that in the skewer it would be an alloy or are you saying the element Titanium is an alloy? Commented Feb 22, 2012 at 4:45
-
1The material sold as titanium commercially is steel, alloyed with a small percentage of titanium, or the element titanium, alloyed with Aluminum and Vanadium to make it soft enough to work. In bicycles, it is actually the latter which is more common.– zenbikeCommented Feb 22, 2012 at 4:57
-
1@VincentAgnello: "alloyed steel" is redundant -- steel is an alloy, it is not listed on the Periodic Table of Elements. Commercially available titanium is an alloy, the most common being Ti6-Al4V Commented Feb 22, 2012 at 5:11
-
2@OMGPonies: Exactly. Steel is always an alloy. Sometimes, the material sold as Titanium commercially is a steel alloy, which uses titanium as an alloying element. Does that make it more clear?– zenbikeCommented Feb 22, 2012 at 5:51
-
2@VincentAgnello bicycles.stackexchange.com/faq#etiquette– jimchristie ♦Commented Sep 25, 2012 at 14:22
The rear wheel (with a Ti skewer) on one of my road bikes would flex and rub against the frame when I stomped on the pedals or climbed a steep hill no matter how tight I made the skewer. I fixed the problem by switching to a steel skewer. No more flex and even the rear derailleur shifts better.
For skewers, weight. That's it. Ti skewers will make your bike and your wallet lighter.
Titanium alloys are typically made of Aluminum and Vanadium: e.g. on a 3AL/2.5V Ti bike Frames for instance there is 3% Aluminum, 2.5% Vanadium and the rest is Titanium.
Main benefits of Titanium is no corrosion, immense resistance to fatigue (material failure due to cyclic constraints), and weight indirectly (i.e. stronger material allows to use thinner tubing, for bike frames for instance).
Titanium parts are usually very very long lasting, mainly due to resistance to fatigue and corrosion.
I have broken a
- Ti stem that held my handlbars.
- Ti seat rail
- Ti frame (in 3 places now, alas)
So Ti is not magical, but this is on a 18 year old frame now, so not that surprising.
I have broken several axles, but steel ones have been sufficient for the last few years for me. I suspect weight is the only benefit, however when you care at the level of a few grams, it seems silly when a full water bottle weighs almost a kilo. (1 litre of water weighs 1 kilo)
-
-
2@RickAnt: The density of titanium is nearly twice that of aluminum (though aluminum is the weaker of the two metals), but only 56% the density of steel. The stiffness of titanium is also about half that of steel. It therefore follows that the stiffness-to-weight ratio of the two metals is nearly the same. In English this means that titanium is nearly as strong as, but is lighter than steel. Commented Feb 21, 2012 at 1:51
-
2@RickAnt Nope, I was suggesting I am quite hard on bikes. :) I have broken steel frames, skewers, pedals, cranks, and more. Ti has worked MUCH better for me than steel. I just used to do a lot of mileage a year (8000K a year for about a decade) and am a big guy.– geoffcCommented Feb 21, 2012 at 1:59
-
3Geoffc: I would suggest this answer is more commentary than really an answer to the question asked. Not picking, but next time, maybe use the comment field.– zenbikeCommented Feb 21, 2012 at 6:57
Ti = really expensive = really light = usually racing parts = shortened lifespan due to the gram saving which actually weakens the parts for the long haul.
If you race and need every ounce shaved off and your sponser is paying then they're great.
If you don't race or are paying your own way then you'd be better off spending your cash on something meant for longer life and trying to skip that post ride beer to save on long term weight.
-
1I don't agree that titanium has a shorter life span. It fatigues less than steel and does not rust. I commute on titanium bike. Commented Apr 20, 2015 at 10:10
It is light, and doesn't corrode. The skewer doesn't take weight at all - that is all held on the axle. The skewer just provides compressive force to stop the axle dropping out of the forks.
For skewers, other than weight and durability, one unmentioned advantage of titanium is its resistance to corrosion. Rusty steel skewers can get stuck inside your hub, forcing expensive replacement which is much less likely with titanium (you should still grease them though).
