Pegoretti Aluminium ride qualities

[skiezo]

It's been years since I had an alum roadie, cadd 3 days.
I have been thinking about a Pegoretti Aluminium or other high quality alum frame.
So I am looking for/ wondering what the ride qualities of higher end alum bikes are compared to steel and Ti both of which I own now.
A LBS has a few Carrera alum I was looking at or a Pegoretti or equivalent custom.
Let me hear your thoughts.
Brian

[fredd]

I know somebody here is going to comment it "doesn't ride like normal aluminum" or it "rides like steel" or something of the kind, but from my understanding -- besides geometry -- tube shaping, including butting, is going to be the #1 factor to influence how an aluminum bike rides.

With that in mind I can't see how something like a Love, a Stoemper or another high end custom alu frame can ride as good as or better than a caad10/12/13. I know somebody is also going to comment that their love is a lot smoother than their caad10, but I'm skeptical of how much of that is wishful thinking.

And this is coming from somebody who lusts for a stoemper alu frame, and has little interest in a caad (9 being the exception).

[Ralph]

I agree with you 100%. No way would I consider swapping my CAAD 10 for a Peg aluminum (or any other aluminum frame) for a bike to ride. Although if I owned a peg, and wanted to sell it, would be happy to get maybe 4-5 times as much for it. Imagine the Peg is a much more valuable frame. I think the main problem with the CAADS, is they don't cost enough.

[rallizes]

Lol

[fredd]

Originally Posted by Ralph

I agree with you 100%. No way would I consider swapping my CAAD 10 for a Peg aluminum (or any other aluminum frame) for a bike to ride. Although if I owned a peg, and wanted to sell it, would be happy to get maybe 4-5 times as much for it. Imagine the Peg is a much more valuable frame. I think the main problem with the CAADS, is they don't cost enough.

With all I said, I would swap a CAAD for a Love in a heartbeat.

And probably convince myself the Love rides better.

[lavi]

Having owned THREE Love #3s, I think I'm qualified to speak. I also cut my teeth with an early 00s Giant TCR Aluxx.

Both being aluminum, there was nothing similar between the two bikes in terms of ride quality. The Giant, with 23s pumped to 100 psi (as was the norm back then) would make me piss blood after 3 hours. And this was when I was "young" at in my early-mid 30s. My first two Loves where of the older generation (pre Falz) when the clearance was tight that I ran a 25 up front under the Ouzo Pro and a 23 in the rear as that's all that would fit. So, still pretty skinny tires. The Love rode like the my current Love (clearance for 28s with room to spare)....It rode very, very well. I would not ever compare the ride quality of a Love to any other aluminum bike. There's magic in them pipes.

Sidebar: I was/am so into Al bikes. I wanted a Spooky Skeletor for a long time. Remember those bikes? The reports on them is that they were also kidney beaters. That's seemingly how those AL bikes were.

I'm not going to say my current Love rides like steel because it doesn't. It's smooth, but also has the jumpy/immediate quality of Al. I also have an Mxxxxxo and ride them back to back....so ride these comparisons happen regularly for me. Did I mention how smooth the Love rides even though it's made from massive Al pipes????

I'll leave this here: if I had to choose one bike of the two, I'd choose the Love. This is no knock on the Mxxxxxo. It's that the Love does all those things with some added "pep" to boot. It's a marvelous machine.

I've also ridden a number of CAADs. Those are aluminum bikes that ride like my my Giant used to. That's how aluminum gets its reputation for stiff/jarring ride qualities. The Love exhibits none of that.


All of this is so subjective. If you want to experience what a Love rides like, you won't find that riding some other brand's Al offering. A Love is a Love is a Love is a Love. There's a reason why Love owners wax poetic about them. They are different rigs.

[lavi]

CAVEAT: as I don't want it to seem like I think a CAAD or other AL bikes are crap. They aren't! They just don't have the ride quality of a Peg....which is what the OP was asking about.

If I were on a more limited budget and had say $3k to build a bike out of: I'd be perfectly content riding a CAAD with C12 and some handbuilt wheels. I would have zero issues if this were my one and only bike. With the new allowance for fatter rubber, many of the jarring ride qualities are absorbed in the meaty rubber.

[callmeishmael]

I have an ageing Ridley Helium SLA that I refuse to sell, because it has a wonderful ride quality and handles beautifully. The seatstays are as thin as I have ever seen on a metal bike (apart from English). It cost me £400 (admittedly ~4 years back) and iirc it's 1300g painted with a derailleur hanger. I really should revive it at some point!

I have, however, ridden more than 1 alloy bike that made me think I was going to lose a filling at some point during the ride.

So my 0.02 would be that not all alloy bikes ride the same. I haven't ridden a Peg (of any material) but I would be surprised if it was a boneshaker, given their rep and focus on ride quality.

[einreb]

I have a Fina Estampa and adore it.

https://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=169413

I bought it years back for what I considered to be a really good deal assuming I'd ride it for a while and then sell it. That was 7+ years ago. I still have it.

[bigman]

Trek ALR a great frameset which happens to be aluminum, way better than any cdale i have owned 3,9, optimo,12

[R3awak3n]

Originally Posted by fredd

I know somebody here is going to comment it "doesn't ride like normal aluminum" or it "rides like steel" or something of the kind, but from my understanding -- besides geometry -- tube shaping, including butting, is going to be the #1 factor to influence how an aluminum bike rides.

With that in mind I can't see how something like a Love, a Stoemper or another high end custom alu frame can ride as good as or better than a caad10/12/13. I know somebody is also going to comment that their love is a lot smoother than their caad10, but I'm skeptical of how much of that is wishful thinking.

And this is coming from somebody who lusts for a stoemper alu frame, and has little interest in a caad (9 being the exception).

but if we go by this then all steel bikes rides the same, all the carbon bikes ride the same, all the ti bikes ride the same... all the same besides geo, tube shaping, ect...


Different alum bikes ride differently, it is what it is.

I have had 2, 1 was a spooky which was an incredible bike but beat the crap out of me (yes I know the geo on that bike was more agressive) and the other was a rock lobster which imo rode like a good steel bike, it was fantastic, could put miles upon miles on it.

[jawnzcapital]

after riding a steel road bike for a bit, my Standert Kreissage is no cushy ride. But when i was putting in big miles on the Kreissage I never found the aluminum a noticeable discomfort. If anything the limiting 23/25mm tires was more of a factor of discomfort

[fredd]

Originally Posted by R3awak3n

but if we go by this then all steel bikes rides the same, all the carbon bikes ride the same, all the ti bikes ride the same... all the same besides geo, tube shaping, ect...


Different alum bikes ride differently, it is what it is.

I have had 2, 1 was a spooky which was an incredible bike but beat the crap out of me (yes I know the geo on that bike was more agressive) and the other was a rock lobster which imo rode like a good steel bike, it was fantastic, could put miles upon miles on it.

I'm gonna bet that that spooky and that lobster had different tube selections.
What makes different steel bikes ride differently is much more so how the tubes are shaped (diameter, butting profile, tube forming) than the alloy itself.

My point is that big brands have more resources at their disposal to tune the ride quality of alu bikes because they can hydroform the tubes. Peg can only play with butting profiles and tube diameters (the exception being the chainstays). This isn't to say that you can't make two very different riding bikes from round aluminum tubes to the example of your spooky and your lobster, just that hydroforming opens up yet another dimension of ride tuning, and I'd expect that to allow the big brands to make better aluminum frames. If they actually use it to its fullest potential being a different story.

[dcama5]

Originally Posted by lavi

Having owned THREE Love #3s, I think I'm qualified to speak. I also cut my teeth with an early 00s Giant TCR Aluxx.

Both being aluminum, there was nothing similar between the two bikes in terms of ride quality. The Giant, with 23s pumped to 100 psi (as was the norm back then) would make me piss blood after 3 hours. And this was when I was "young" at in my early-mid 30s. My first two Loves where of the older generation (pre Falz) when the clearance was tight that I ran a 25 up front under the Ouzo Pro and a 23 in the rear as that's all that would fit. So, still pretty skinny tires. The Love rode like the my current Love (clearance for 28s with room to spare)....It rode very, very well. I would not ever compare the ride quality of a Love to any other aluminum bike. There's magic in them pipes.

Sidebar: I was/am so into Al bikes. I wanted a Spooky Skeletor for a long time. Remember those bikes? The reports on them is that they were also kidney beaters. That's seemingly how those AL bikes were.

I'm not going to say my current Love rides like steel because it doesn't. It's smooth, but also has the jumpy/immediate quality of Al. I also have an Mxxxxxo and ride them back to back....so ride these comparisons happen regularly for me. Did I mention how smooth the Love rides even though it's made from massive Al pipes????

I'll leave this here: if I had to choose one bike of the two, I'd choose the Love. This is no knock on the Mxxxxxo. It's that the Love does all those things with some added "pep" to boot. It's a marvelous machine.

I've also ridden a number of CAADs. Those are aluminum bikes that ride like my my Giant used to. That's how aluminum gets its reputation for stiff/jarring ride qualities. The Love exhibits none of that.


All of this is so subjective. If you want to experience what a Love rides like, you won't find that riding some other brand's Al offering. A Love is a Love is a Love is a Love. There's a reason why Love owners wax poetic about them. They are different rigs.

Lavi, we meet again. I have an aluminum Zank along with a steel Kirk JKS and a steel Alliance by Erik Rolf, The steel bikes have spectacular and smooth rides and I love them both, but my aluminum Zank can match them in ride quality. The Peg may be great but I doubt that it would beat my Zank.

[R3awak3n]

Originally Posted by fredd

I'm gonna bet that that spooky and that lobster had different tube selections.
What makes different steel bikes ride differently is much more so how the tubes are shaped (diameter, butting profile, tube forming) than the alloy itself.

My point is that big brands have more resources at their disposal to tune the ride quality of alu bikes because they can hydroform the tubes. Peg can only play with butting profiles and tube diameters (the exception being the chainstays). This isn't to say that you can't make two very different riding bikes from round aluminum tubes to the example of your spooky and your lobster, just that hydroforming opens up yet another dimension of ride tuning, and I'd expect that to allow the big brands to make better aluminum frames. If they actually use it to its fullest potential being a different story.

yes but cannondale wants the caad to be a budget race bike so geo, tubing choice will be about that and also how they can make it for as cheap as possible. Same will not be on the peg