Mountain Bikes For sale

What a mountain bike frame is going to cost you is directly proportional to the material used as well as the treatment this material receives. When purchasing a mountain bike frame you will be asked to choose between five types - 1) high tensile steel, 2) chromoly steel, 3) aluminum, 4) titanium, and 5) carbon fiber. Some of the tubing material treatments that will increase the cost of the frame are 1) oversized diameters, 2) heat treating, and 3) butting.

High tensile steel is a very durable alloy that's found in lower priced mountain bikes. It offers a high carbon content which makes it less stiff than chromoly steel, so more materials are needed to make it stiff enough for bicycle frames, which will in turn make it that much heavier.

Being relatively inexpensive to produce, high tensile steel is used in the manufacture of trail bikes, city bikes, and entry level mountain bikes. You'll find some bikes manufactured with high tensile steel but having a seat tube manufactured with chromoly.

Chromoly (short for steel alloy) is the next type of framing material on our list and can better be described by its major additives which are chromium and molybdenum. Of all the materials, chromoly is probably the most refined and can give you up to 100 years of dependability.

Dependent upon the kind of heat treating and butting, you may see this material contained in bikes from as little as $400 dollars on up through and beyond $1500. The chromoly steel used in the manufacture provides excellent durability and a compliant ride characteristic.

For the past 15 years, aluminum has been refined in pretty much the same way as chromoly. There have been various alloys developed, as well as heat treatment, oversizing, and butting. With dual suspension bikes, aluminum is the preferred material as it's the stiffest and most cost effective.

Because of aluminum being stiffer than chromoly, it will tend to crack before chromoly will. This depends of course on your riding style and how much abuse you subject your frame to. One of the major advantages to the use of aluminum in mountain bike frames is that the frame is very light and stiff with oversizing and butting.

Even though titanium is somewhat exotic, the prices for this material have come down over the last few years. Frames made of titanium remain expensive because it takes longer to weld the tubes to the frame.

Small amounts of aluminum and vandium are normally mixed with titanium making it an alloy and improving its weldability and ride characteristics. Providing enhanced fatigue and corrosion properties, titanium is more compliant than is chromoly.

Regardless of the frame material you choose for your new mountain bike, a big factor determining its life and longevity is where you ride and your riding style. If you take care of your mountain bike and treat the frame with respect, most frame materials will last for years.

Mountain biking is a great sport and can take you places you've never been to before. Now be sure you get back to where you embarked with a GPS Garmin Watch. The Garmin GPS Watch such as the Garmin Forerunner Watch is going to be sure you don't get eaten up by the wilderness you set out to conquer.

Tags: biking, cycling, exercise, fitness, Mountain Bikes, outdoors, recreation, sports

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