Questions tagged [aluminum]
Questions related to bicycle frames made from aluminum alloy.
111
questions
21
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14 "Trashed" bikes acquired for free. Worth repairing and reselling? What do I look for?
Very new to this, bike repair specifically. I tried my best with the tags. I'm mechanically inclined, like to tinker, and have many tools (not bike specific). Learning and time aren't really an issue. ...
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18
votes
6
answers
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How is this damaged aluminium frame likely to fail?
I had an unplanned collision with a car yesterday (everyone is fine, thankfully) but my bike – a Giant Revolt 1 – now has a lovely new pair of dents.
I cycled it home from the collision (~6km) and it ...
- 290
16
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3
answers
4k
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Is it safe to ride an aluminium bike with a big top tube dent?
Someone tried to steal this bike - they damaged the top tube. The frame is designed with a wide flat top tube. Is this still safe to use?
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16
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4
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Why use multiple materials on chainrings?
Why is it that on a typical mid-level road triple crankset, the outer rings (larger rings) will be aluminum, while the inner ring (small ring) is chro-mo?
It seems to me that if aluminium was good ...
- 538
15
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5
answers
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Are curved aluminum forks safe?
This is an entry-level road bike made by "Upland", a Chinese company.
That fork is aluminum. You usually only see steel (and sometimes carbon) forks curved like that.
The only reason you would have ...
- 5,690
13
votes
6
answers
9k
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What's the strongest way to bond a cable stop to an aluminum frame?
I recently picked up another well loved GT road bike frame- it's in great shape aside from a missing downtube cable stop. The model is a ZR 4000 probably from 1999, it's 7005 heat treated aluminum. My ...
- 761
13
votes
4
answers
6k
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Why would a bike feature a "carbon wrapped aluminum frame"?
I saw a link to what appeared to be a Carbon bike on amazon. The price was extremely lower than any carbon bike I had ever seen. After reading a bit, it seems that the bike frame is really made of "...
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12
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7
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What are the most basic parts of a bicycle which cannot be upgraded over a period of time?
After reading this question: Cheap MTB with future upgrades v/s costly fully ready MTB, I myself had a question.
What are the most fundamental parts of a bicycle? What are the things which we have to ...
- 383
11
votes
3
answers
1k
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non-steel frames and longevity
Until recently, I had a late 80's Schwinn aluminum frame bike (now a thief has a 80's Schwinn aluminum frame bike, but that's another story). I had heard a number of horror stories about early ...
- 427
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votes
2
answers
1k
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Last grand tour won on aluminum?
What was the last grand tour won on an aluminum frame? Also, any details about the bike itself and the rider would be appreciated.
- 5,498
10
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12
answers
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Steel vs. Aluminum Wheels
I was at my local bike dump looking for a spare set of wheels for an older bike I have. He said that they have lots of steel wheels but very few aluminum. Whats the deal on this?
What are the ...
- 8,446
10
votes
1
answer
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Is this aluminium rim saveable?
I have an 8 inch rear wheel off an adult scooter. It appears to have suffered crush damage - at a guess someone's driven a car over the wheel while on its side.
The bend is smooth and covers perhaps ...
- 121k
9
votes
2
answers
2k
views
I have a bent aluminum rim on my Merida MTB. Is it damaged beyond repair?
Consider:
I was riding my local trails today, got a flat tire (due to not riding tubeless) and before I realized it, I hit a jump with too little air in the tire and I bent my rear rim.
Is it is ...
8
votes
13
answers
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Aluminum seatpost broken into a steel frame
Similar to Aluminum seatpost stuck to a steel frame but worse, since the seatpost is broken exactly at the end of the seat tube. Image below.
Below is a suggested fix using a quill stem as a "...
- 213
8
votes
12
answers
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Aluminum seatpost stuck to a steel frame
I'm trying to free my aluminum seatpost corroded to a CrMo frame. One of the methods is to heat the aluminum seatpost and then to let it cool. In theory, the aluminum will expand twice as fast as ...
- 349
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1
answer
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carbon vs aluminium frame vibration absorption? bumpiness?
is there any data/measurements of any aluminium road bikes vs carbon road bikes wrt to vibration. it is widely stated that carbon is a smoother ride, but the best i can find out on the subject is ...
- 231
8
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2
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Can and should one install rivnuts into an aluminium frame?
I have an aluminium frame, and would like to add another bottle cage. But there are no mounts below the downtube. I've installed rivnuts into a steel frame before, which worked well.
Can I install ...
- 121k
7
votes
5
answers
7k
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Crack/fissure in the headtube
My 2007 Ghost AMR 5700 developed a crack or fissure at the upper end of the headtube. I do not know whether it developed over time or whether there was a specific event leading up to it; it looked ...
- 755
7
votes
2
answers
2k
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Aluminum frame quality - how much variation can there be and how to tell?
Take a look at these two aluminum frames. The first one is a $1k bike, and the second one is a $200 bike.
Is there a significant quality difference between these frames? And if so, how can I appraise ...
- 5,690
6
votes
2
answers
37k
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Knowing what bicycle frame material I have
I have a bicycle frame that's really heavy. It's a mountain bike frame with shocks, so I decided to replace the entire frame with a city bike aluminum frame(I only use the bike if I have to pick up/...
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3
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Very tiny dent on new aluminium frame -- anything to be worried about?
I bought a new aluminium folding bike frame last week, and this weekend while I was cleaning the bike, I noticed this very tiny dent on the top tube of my frame. It was barely noticeable and I didn't ...
- 149
6
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2
answers
1k
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Small dents on bicycle frame
Two weeks ago I bought Trek Checkpoint ALR5. Bike rides pretty well. It has aluminium frame. I bought it primarily for bike packing trips as it has ton of mounting points.
After riding it for 2 weeks ...
6
votes
1
answer
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What does the frame material name of "SC7 Scandium" mean?
I just realised that my frame material is SC7 scandium. What does that term mean? Is it aluminium alloyed with other elements?
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2
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Trek Aluminium Grade Comparison
Looking through the Trek archives, I see they have frame materials described as:
Alpha Black Aluminum
Alpha White Aluminum
Alpha Gold Aluminum
Gold Series Aluminum
100 Series Alpha Aluminum
etc
How ...
- 273
6
votes
3
answers
341
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Vertical Dropout Derailleur Hanger for a bike that did not come with gears?
I have a bike that did not come with gears. It is a rear hub driven ebike with a single speed. Eventually when the warranty runs out, I want to put gears in it and turn it to a mid drive. Now I know ...
- 63
6
votes
1
answer
270
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Stress on front fork from car transport
It's often easier to transport a bike in the back seat of a car with the front wheel off, rather than setting up the bike rack. I've noticed that, due to the way the car seats are built, there's often ...
- 17.8k
6
votes
1
answer
497
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Why have my crank arms started corroding?
I have a set of Rotor 3D cranks and I've just noticed that the non-drive-side crank arm is corroding at the end and around the pedal bore, beneath the surface finish. The drive-side arm is fine.
I ...
- 3,971
5
votes
6
answers
3k
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How long will this alum frame last?
I picked up this very cool 96-97 GT rage from Craigslist with the intention of restoration- a few rusty pinch bolts, spider eggs in the brake hoods, grinding bearings and pitted races, and all the ...
- 761
5
votes
5
answers
3k
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Is there anything special to pay attention to when preparing a bicycle for powdercoating?
I am thinking of having an old bike powdercoated to spruce it up a bit.
What do I need to do to prepare the frame? Remove all components? What about stickers and decals? Some kind of chemical etching ...
- 153
5
votes
1
answer
530
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Is it safe to strip paint + polish an aluminum handlebar or seatpost? Will this affect their diameter?
This is for aesthetic only. I would like to change the look of my aluminum black handlebar and seatpost.
First, I would sand them with a wire wheel + sand paper to remove paint.
Then, I would polish ...
- 53
5
votes
3
answers
544
views
How long should an aluminium frame last?
This question has been asked before, and there have been several answers to it - including links to interesting articles and scientific analyses. The general consensus appears to be 5-10 years, ...
- 121
5
votes
3
answers
11k
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Slipping aluminium seatpost in aluminium frame
I've already seen this question: Problems with a slipping seatpost
The main difference is that I have an aluminium frameset and a forged alloy seatpost - lightweight clamp.
After every couple ...
- 417
5
votes
2
answers
2k
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How bad is this dent?
I have found this used Specialized Diverge(aluminium frame) and am wondering how bad this scratch/dent on the side of the top-tube close to the seatpost is. I have looked at other posts and I don't ...
5
votes
1
answer
2k
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Repairing Carbon / Aluminum frame
My road bike is aluminum with a carbon rear triangle. The carbon rear slides into the aluminum, and I believe was bonded with some sort of epoxy. The pieces have begun to separate after 2.5 years ...
- 253
5
votes
1
answer
6k
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Steel vs Aluminum Spokes and Rims
I'm looking at a couple of cruiser bikes on Craigslist. I want to take them to my beach house for guests. How can I tell if the rims and spokes are steel or aluminum? The steel spokes on an ...
- 51
5
votes
1
answer
1k
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Can I repair this valve stem hole?
Today I got a stick wedged between my frame and tubeless valve stem. In addition to snapping the stem I widened the hole a bit.
Any suggestions on how to fix it? Current plan is to go over the whole ...
- 198
5
votes
1
answer
4k
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How serious is the dent on alu frame?
I have crashed on my cyclocross bike and got a dent on it's alu frame. I don't see cracks. How serious is this dent? Can it lead frame to suddenly fail?
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4
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Drilling hole in aluminium frame
I want to attach a pump holder to my aluminium frame. Can I drill holes in it ? I would then use blind rivets with some glue for waterproofing to attach the holder.
Is there a place on the frame where ...
- 272
4
votes
6
answers
14k
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Correct inflation pressure for old road bike
I have an old Fuji road bike that I got a garage sale a while back. It's probably from the 70s or 80s. This summer, I've been trying to fix it up into good condition for some longer-than-usual rides (...
- 51
4
votes
2
answers
3k
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Maintenance on an Aluminium frame
I have an aluminium frame.
The top tube has become slightly scratched or pitted (by something hard, presumably, I don't know what; maybe while it was parked).
Does it need maintenance (e.g. does the ...
- 12k
4
votes
4
answers
542
views
Reconciling the two aspects: carbon is stiffer for power, but offers a softer ride
At times composite (carbon) is touted as being stiffer than (aluminum) alloys as well as stiffer than steel (leaving Titanium to a different discussion).
This means that the frame will not yield (much)...
- 8,940
4
votes
3
answers
472
views
Misaligned frame — how much is too much?
I have an aluminium frame (Scott Speedster).
There's a fairly substantial difference in the amount of space between chain stay and tyre on the left and right side. This happens regardless of how true ...
- 823
4
votes
4
answers
667
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Aluminium rigid fork for winter
I'm looking for the bike for winter riding and found this one.
It's all good, except for the fork: some people say that aluminum rigid forks can not absorb vibration and therefore are bad for the ...
- 2,308
4
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2
answers
1k
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Seatpost maintenance : removing rust
I have an aluminum seat post in a steel frame. The post was really hard to extract and I don't want this thing corroding on me.
You've discussed how to take care of the rust on a steel frame and on ...
- 349
4
votes
1
answer
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Rear tire rubbing on both chainstays
I left my bike in our boiler room over the winter, and now the back tire is rubbing heavily on both chain stays. Before it was a very tight clearance, but it worked without a problem. Now, it ...
- 41
4
votes
2
answers
5k
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Suitable bicycle grease for aluminium and steel materials?
I hope you enjoy your day.
A few days after of using my bike I have some troubling feeling about it. I can hear a cracking sound or something similar, and on the internet I found out the cause.
I ...
- 63
4
votes
1
answer
504
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How can I tell whether any crank is cold forged, hot forged or cast aluminium?
I know that cold forging allows for sleeker designs because cold forged aluminium is stronger. Are there any other giveaways that indicate a certain manufacturing process?
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4
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1
answer
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How to evaluate different alloy types used for bicycle frames?
Only certain alloys are used for bicycle frames besides other materials like carbon fibres (at least for the mass market). I often stumble over aluminium alloy 6061 and 7005 (and I think I saw 8004 ...
- 164
4
votes
3
answers
568
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Fork done for? Has slight cut on the steerer that
Got this cyclocross frame with a fork, didn't see the cut in the steerer tube until much later. Has a 1mm? deep cut on half of the steerer tube. Is this fork done for? Or am I just paranoid. Aluminum ...
4
votes
4
answers
1k
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How do different frame materials affect the handling of a bike?
I can appreciate that some materials are lighter than others and some have more flex than others, but overall, how do different frame materials affect handling of the bike?
Assuming the same geometry ...
- 1,801