Titanium alloy not only weighs only 50% of steel,but its strength nad weight are 28.4% higher than that of CR-MO steel. The fatigue limit of titanium alloy is twice that of steel, and aluminum alloy frame can not be compared with titanium alloy frame in this respect after a long period of use. As a high-strength and low-density titanium alloy applied to bicycle frames, it not only makes them more durable.
Performance of aluminum alloy frame aluminum is a material with low elasticity and rigidity. its specific gravity is light but not hard enough. it is made into alloy and heat- treated for strength enhancement.Many aluminum frames are made of 6061T6. the T6 indicates heat treated and aged. Without Heat treatment, the strength is only about 1/2,or 1/5. the average small plant can not afford to buy heat treatment equipment . in addition to the usual 7005 and 7075 aluminium alloy materials used in bicycle frames, 7005 is not as strong as 7075. aluminum itself is a highly corrosive metal, and the more you ride it, the more stress occurs and the strength significantil changes. In recent years,in order to seek light weight , many frames are made of thin material(thin degree has reached the limit), its service life will be greatly affected.
chrome- molybdenum steel frame performance, chrome-molybdenum steel bicycle frame is the application of the earliest bicycle frame material, its processing performance, welding easy, the price is also relatively cheap , mainly used to produce low-grade bicycle frame.its outstanding disadvantage is easy to rust , metal fatigue (metal fatigue caused by stress concentration), which affects the strength of the frame, when the metal fatigue reaches a certain degree,the frame may have a sudden destructive fracture. Carbon Fiber material frame performance, carbon fiber frame is characterized by”light, non-bending, good impact absorption,” but ,give full play to the excellent performance of carbon fiber, technically it does not look so easy the quality of carbon fiber materials varies greatil from one manufacturer to another. Bike makers are unlikely to use high-grade carbon fiber for frames, given the cost. Carbon fiber is the thing that solidifies carbon fiber is the thing that solidifies carbon fiber with resin. it is very light, but it is a directional material (tensile strength is strong but shear strength is weak), so the method of overlapping thin layers is adopted to solve the defect.
Compared with titanium alloy material , and as an ideal material for the production of high-grade Bicycle frames,it has gradually become the mainstream of the production of high- grade bicycle frames in the trend of market development, but customers do not fully understand the properties of its materials we introduce the titanium alloy material and carbon fiber material in the customer comparison, should highlight the following issues of carbon fiber frame carbon fiber frame if the external force acting at a certain angle with the fiber direction, its strength will be greatly reduced,easy to produce cracks.
Titanium is also corrosion- free in normal conditions. but it has another kind of corrosion phenomenon namely dissimilar metal corrosion. For example: different types of alloy joint together, become electrode state, potential difference cause local electrification cause corrosion. the measure taken to deal with this phenomenon are to use grease and other insulating materials. This metal powder prevents the loss of grease and is used to prevent close contact even after it has been lost. it does not matter that the metal powder is conductive; it is destroyed on contact by a smaller load. this phenomenon is called” sticking “and it is different from “baking” . “sticking and biting”: joint between matals by means of corrosion . “Bake joint” : the heat produced in working metal to melt the joint. riding feels good, and titanium is also used in shock absorber springs. the frame is now made of titanium and is suitable for long riding. some rides love titanium frames and think they’re great to ride. however, individuals vary, and some people compare cr-mo steel frames with cr-mo steel and conclude that cr-mo steel frames have better impact absorptivity than titanium frames and better riding feel than titanium frames(this is also related to the shape of cr-mo steel frames and the resulting increase in stress due to the use of thin tubes). if the titanium tube processing technology is further improved, it may have the same riding feeling as chromium-molybdenum steel. some titanium frames make people feel wobbly, which may be related to the use of the plane tube. or the use of high-strength titanium alloys, but not with thin tubes and so on is also relevant. the disadvantages of titanium alloy frame,high price, titanium in nature in the form of titanium dioxide, refining and processing process complex, technical requirements, and spend time and therefore high cost. it is also very difficult to dissolve, because titanium and oxygen have a strong affinity, contact with air immediately become titanium dioxide, and titanium dioxide hard and brittle, the strength of the part will continue to decline,so weld it carefully with inert gas.Generally speaking, the TIG welding is :(Tig: Tungsten, inert gas abbreviation) with tungsten electrode and Argon gas for arc welding. titanium must be welded in an air-tight environment. for these reasons, titanium frames are expensive.