Steel is too heavy

Myth busting part 1:  Steel is too heavy.

When people hear I make bikes out of steel there are 2 reactions:

People who have never ridden a good steel bike say:  Isn’t steel too heavy?

People who have ridden a good steel bike say:  I love steel bikes.   Invariably they can then tell you the exact make, model and year of their favourite and how much they regret selling it.

This steel is too heavy idea is bollocks.  Yes a cheap supermarket steel bike is heavy.  But I don’t make supermarket bikes.

I make bikes for the mountains.  For the roads, tracks and trails in the mountains.  Bikes to be ridden, abused, put away dirty then taken out the next day for more of the same.

I use double or triple butted steel tubes. The tube walls are thinner in the middle of the tube than at the ends. These walls are between 0.5mm and 0.9mm thick.   

Thin walled steel tubes do not make a heavy bike.

They make a good bike.   

They make a bike that feels alive, that springs and responds.

They make a bike that is comfortable to ride for hours.   

They make a bike that lasts.  A bike that doesn’t wet its pants at the sight of a rock. A bike that can be dropped on the ground without developing a terminal crack.

I am not claiming that a steel frame will be lighter than a top end carbon road frame.

But let’s be realistic about the difference a few grams makes.

You won’t feel those 36 grams when you are riding one of my bikes.  And you will be so busy enjoying the ride that you won’t care any longer.