The Search for a Carbon Bike that Feels like a Metal Bike

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by Bob Ross

I don't necessarily disagree with any of ^^^that, but I'll point out that every carbon fiber bicycle frame that I'm aware of* has some sort of joinery going on at the tube intersections that could be just as effective at "interface damping" as external lugs. Whether it's the external wraps of a Crumpton or the internal stubs of a Pursuit, there's plenty of additional mass being added.

Yes, but these are often questions of "where" and "how much." Molded frames often move the joints away from the traditional tube junctions. This picture from the Pursuit Cycles webpage shows where the pieces connect.



So does a reinforced joint closer to the middle of the top tube have the same properties as a reinforced joint right at the TT-HT and TT-ST junctions? Probably not, though I'm not sure if anyone would be able to notice the difference.

Similarly, lugged frames like those offered by Colnago and Calfee use a lot more material. The lugs on my Colnago are more than 2mm thick, more than doubling the overall frame thickness at that point. I haven't seen that much extra thickness from a molded frame I've chopped up (though I haven't seen everything). So even if both are damping to some extent, there's no reason to think they're damping to the same degree. Again, I'm not sure how much anyone would be able to notice the difference, but it's not impossible to imagine.