[norbar]

Well I can see why many ppl are for steel in urban but I want sth light that won't break as easily (well cro-mo uber light stuff has very thin walls and you end up with crap like ns sub 08 where you can kick out the top tube from the frame)

Also any1 has any info on the new banshee frame? It looks amazing.

 

[Sombrio69]

if you want it lighter get a 20'', that will be your best DJer

 

[DJskeet]

Aluminum is stupid. your stupid, you can not kick out the top tube from the frame.

 

[t1maglio]

Chromo is good stuff, not sure what the deal was with that NS, but my MOB is killer. Strong, light, what more could you ask for? I have had several AL DJ bikes, The Evil Imp, Ellsworth Specialist, and the 24 cycles Letoy. Honestly, I dig my new MOB better then any of them. The other frames were the same if not heavier and cro-mo is much lower profile and has a better feel, IMO.

I'm not trying to suggest you shouldn't get AL, if thats what you want, awesome, but personally, and I've tried a lot of stuff (I didn't even list all the cromo stuff I've had), steel just seems to work better.

 

[norbar]

t1maglio i know you can get light cro-mo but alu will be lighter no matter what. To get cromo as light as alu the walls have to be crazy thin and so - prone to dents. If cro-mo was superior in terms of weight/durability other disciplines would also use it. Also the frames you posted are quite old. I'm thinking about the new breed of alu dj frames that are easily below 2kg and have nice geo. There are not many for the moment as cro-mo is trendy etc. but for non street use (so dirt) alu is imo better.

DjSkeet - There was a movie of a russian guy doing that floating around the net. I've heard of at least a dozen broken 08 subs which is quite easy living in the coutry of orgin of ns.

BTW. Your retorical skills amaze me Cicero. Kinda explain why other ppl see the dj community as a bunch of idiotic kids... Sad

 

[.WestCoastHucker.]

the rest of us here think DJskeet is an idiot as well...

 

[rickthewelder]

Well I can see why many ppl are for steel in urban but I want sth light that won't break as easily (well cro-mo uber light stuff has very thin walls and you end up with crap like ns sub 08 where you can kick out the top tube from the frame)

Also any1 has any info on the new banshee frame? It looks amazing.

The 10-74 was the best AL dj frame ever created. True 15'' chainstays that held a 2.5 tire.

RTW.

 

[pancho4]

the only aluminum dj frames i can think of are the ellsworth and sinister dna.

 

[L4NE4]

Stp?

 

[Dave Moore]

STP or Santa Cruz Jackal? The SC looks overbuilt and heavy, so I don't know.
My STP frame is around 4.5 lbs FWIW.

 

[t1maglio]

Dude, no disrespect intended, get the AL.

My MOB isn't exactly what I would call Old Skool. I would say its one of the best DJ frames, not to mention popular. Aluminum is ok, but just doesn't have the fatigue strength going for it. If your jumping, your casing, your ditching your bike, your bike is taking a beating, and to be honest I like the security of knowing my bike can take it. My MOB is 5lbs, that .5 more then the STP. I will take a .5lb hit to know my bike will hold up and not crack and fail. On top of that, I don't think anyone will argue that steel feels better for absorbing landings and bumps. AL is harsh, and for me the forgiveness of steel makes it that much more appealing.

Now if your racing, awesome, maybe I can see it. But day to day thrashing, I dunno...

 

[Demo-9]

Dude, no disrespect intended, get the AL.

My MOB isn't exactly what I would call Old Skool. I would say its one of the best DJ frames, not to mention popular. Aluminum is ok, but just doesn't have the fatigue strength going for it. If your jumping, your casing, your ditching your bike, your bike is taking a beating, and to be honest I like the security of knowing my bike can take it. My MOB is 5lbs, that .5 more then the STP. I will take a .5lb hit to know my bike will hold up and not crack and fail. On top of that, I don't think anyone will argue that steel feels better for absorbing landings and bumps. AL is harsh, and for me the forgiveness of steel makes it that much more appealing.

Now if your racing, awesome, maybe I can see it. But day to day thrashing, I dunno...

Word. My MOB weighs in at 28lbs even. If I put on my Table Tops I gt to 27.25lbs Go ahead and build a lighter 26-inch bike in Aluminum. When it breaks you will wish that you had a high end steel frame.

Most of this thread is sheer ignorance. High end butted CrMo tubing like S&M uses (Mob) far and away exceeds any Aluminum frame any manufacturer could put together. The simple fact is that Aluminum may be ever-so-slightly lighter, but the ride characteristics are totally different.

The only time I would ever ride an aluminum frame is for BMX racing on a race-specific geometry.

 

[frisky_zissou]

I went with an STP frame. Why? Its light(ish), I like the geo, There are so little negative things about it besides the fact that it is common. And if something were to go wrong, giant are pretty down on the warranty side of things.

My friend bent his frame real bad on a few cased 15ft. drops. Replaced in a couple of weeks which might sound like enough downtime but for a brand new frame, free of cost, I think thats pretty damn good service.

Another frame I think highly of is the cannondale chase. Don't listen to what everyone says. Steel may work but so does aluminum.

 

[DJskeet]

t1maglio i know you can get light cro-mo but alu will be lighter no matter what. To get cromo as light as alu the walls have to be crazy thin and so - prone to dents. If cro-mo was superior in terms of weight/durability other disciplines would also use it. Also the frames you posted are quite old. I'm thinking about the new breed of alu dj frames that are easily below 2kg and have nice geo. There are not many for the moment as cro-mo is trendy etc. but for non street use (so dirt) alu is imo better.

DjSkeet - There was a movie of a russian guy doing that floating around the net. I've heard of at least a dozen broken 08 subs which is quite easy living in the coutry of orgin of ns.

BTW. Your retorical skills amaze me Cicero. Kinda explain why other ppl see the dj community as a bunch of idiotic kids... Sad

If you are riding hard enough to not get a frame because you are afraid it breaking, while thousands of other people still riding them, yet you still have ask what frame to get. Do you even ride a bike?

The difference between cromo and alum is obvious, ask any single rider that actually rides and they will tell you cromo is better. The weight difference is by grams, you are not going to notice it. The majority of cromoly frames are stronger then Aluminum frames.

Just so my ranting was not a waste:

 

[t1maglio]

Don't listen to what everyone says.

LOL, always good advice.

I guess it depends on what your doing. If your smooth and are experienced, AL I'm sure will be fine. On the other hand, if your working on 3's or Tailwhips or not that experienced a bike that will hold up to the abuse really makes sense, and its not even a bad choice.

I'll post my MOB and Fallguy up just because they are awesome.

I really think steel looks so much cleaner, AL bikes just look clunky to me.

 

[XSL_WiLL]

Weight difference is not a matter of grams.

OP is right, some of the light bikes use heavily butted tubes that dent very easily. The Mob doesn't have that problem. Saying that it's better than ANY aluminum tubing is going a bit far though...

My Addict frame weighs just under 5 pounds. The build comes in at 27 with a squishy front end, 2 brakes, heavy wheels and tires. It's not going to fail any time soon. I've slammed it into ledges and cased hard. I've barely scratched the anodizing. I've botched 3s without any complaints from the bike. Will the bike fail eventually? Yes. Fatigue life. That is a trait of aluminum. Are the tubes big and fat and clunky? Yeah. The geo is alright, wouldn't mind dropping the BB a bit.

I can drop about 600g (1.25lb) in just tires. More of the seatpost can be chopped. Spokes are all straight gauge. Hubs are heavy. Rims are no lightweights. Pedals are chunky.

Picture is a bit dated... it's on 25.4 Deitys, Syntace stem, 140mm rear rotor (still 160 up front), and slammed the wheel with a half link.

 

[DJskeet]

just under 5 pounds.

Superco Charger (5.1 lbs)
Superco Satellite 24" (4.8lbs)
Dobermann Pinscher(5.5lbs)
BlkMrkt MOB(5.3lbs)
BlkMrkt Riot(5.7lbs)
Tonic Fab howie(5.25lbs)
Ns suburban (5.2lbs)

I would not buy a frame based an the fact that that is is 2 or three grams lighter then something else, in the end it should come down to the geo, build material, and price.

 

[DJskeet]

Basicly what i'm saying is theres plenty of other ways to drop weight then on the frame.
Check out some of these light parts:

Forks
Fox 32(3.9)
Gold Label(5.2)
Argyle 409(5.2)
Pike(4.5-5.4)
Revelation(3.75-4.5)

Rigid forks
DMR Trialblade2 20mm(3.9lbs)
Dobermann Prototype(3.1lbs)

Rims
Mavic 521(540g)
Mavic 719(460g)Front
DT 5.1(500g)-Front


Tires
Kenda Kozmik Lite 2(450g)
Kenda Small Block 8 1.95"(420g)
Kenda Short tracker 1.95"(435g)


Pedals
Welgo MG-1(390g)
Odyssey PC(400g)
DMR v12 mag(434g)

Bars
Easton EA70(250g)
Easton EA50(300g)
Sunline V1(OS)(260g)
Answer Protaper 1"(207g)


Stems
Thomson Elite(150g)
Sunline AM(140g)
Thomson X4(170g)
Atomlab Pimplite(160g)


Hubs Front
Hope Pro 2(180g)
King(190g)
Atomlab Pimp(210g)


Hubs Rear
Hope Pro 2(295g)
King(302g)
Pimp SS-freewheel(360g)
DMR Revolver-freewheel(280g

 

[t1maglio]

Lets just say this, my Tonic weighs just a hint over 25lbs. Thats with different pedals then in the pic, but everything else the same. Nothing crazy light, all super solid for jumping and I have no fear of my bike failing. I COULD drop more weight, but why? I think bikes below that point get a little twitchy. If I had to factor things I would go with a reliable bike, at a good weight, with awesome ride feel and be psyched.

My frame weighs 5 even, btw.

 

[XSL_WiLL]

Superco Charger (5.1 lbs)
Superco Satellite 24" (4.8lbs)
Dobermann Pinscher(5.5lbs)
BlkMrkt MOB(5.3lbs)
BlkMrkt Riot(5.7lbs)
Tonic Fab howie(5.25lbs)
Ns suburban (5.2lbs)

I would not buy a frame based an the fact that that is is 2 or three grams lighter then something else, in the end it should come down to the geo, build material, and price.

There are 28g to an oz... and 16 oz to a pound... That is not 2 or 3 grams. The Supercos have crazy thin tubing... note some of the "disclaimers" that had surfaced in previous threads. Plus the price is just bojangles.

I am happy with the geo of my Addict and I got it for a price that I can't complain about.

t1... sick bike, but it's on 24s and rim brake. Less weight in the rims. Less weight in the frame (less material). And rim brakes are lighter than discs. And the Al bikes you compared the Mob too are by no means light... or progressive.

Likewise, I have no fear of my bike failing.

I'm not saying that cromo is not the way to go. It does have a nice ride quality. It can be stronger. Etc. But being cromo does not automatically make it ride better or stronger or lighter. And there are plenty of different tubesets out there... Look at the Mob vs the Riot. Same bike, different tubes, It's .4 lbs different.