Close, but I think this is actually low quality bait. Or maybe more like:
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No need to discuss, as we know the writer is wrong. 
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Yeah, noā¦ Opinion =/= Truth
Not to mention, arguing for steel in 2024 mostly means getting a bike from a custom builder, which is going to be expensive as hell on its own (typically $3k+ for the frameset), not to mention how long the wait lists are for the better known builders.
If weāre talking production bikes, thereās what - the Kona Rove? I had one and itās a great bike. I think Norco makes a steel gravel bike, too? There are some steel hardtail mountain bikes, I know. How many companies are making steel road bikes now?
I guess there are still plenty of aluminum frames out there, but a proper purist should only find steel acceptable, since the aluminum bikes of the 70s (Iām looking at you, Vitus) were too whippy and nothing made after that counts.
I refuse to click through the link, but being well-versed in these arguments from my retro-grouch past, I think I probably have a good handle on them.
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Clearly, Mr. Carbon H8R owns stock in Surly Bikes 
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Leaving the merits of the article asideā¦
Is buying aluminum even worth it beyond entry level bikes? From my limited knowledge, if consider the current pricing, it seems like itās hard to find alu bikes with mid or high tier components. Some of the larger brands have them (specialized, trek, etc) but then you can find other brands selling carbon bikes with similar components for less money.
I wish there were more aluminum options but then again Is there a reason to choose aluminum over carbon at the same price and performance level?
Isnāt carbon stronger, more comfortable and repairable (as opposed to aluminum) after all?
Yes! The scam that the bike industry has perpetuated on us is that carbon is exotic and thus should command a premium price. That has changed a little but itās taken a long time.
Itās still crazy to me that Specialized pricing is:
S-Works $5,500
Tarmac $3,500
Aethos $3,000
Allez (alu) $1,700
when an open mold frame can be sold for $500 retail when they are built in the same country with similar labor. Iām not saying that open mold is equal but there shouldnāt be such a giant price disparity.
A couple of years ago there was talk of cheaper, greener thermoplastic composites for making bicycles but that doesnāt seem to have gone far. I imagine that the industry is not super interested in cutting into their own higher profit items.
As has been pointed out many times, you can buy a motorcycle for the price of an S-Works frameset.
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Exactly
The Allez Alu is a great frame but for a bit more you can get a full Giant Carbon bike with 105.
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A productās value is not the summation of the associated costs.
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True, if people are willing to pay an extra $4000 for carbon, lighter weight, and whatever else. Then thatās what itās āworthā. If a company could make tons of money by undercutting the big guts and selling a $1500 S-works level frameset then they probably would have done it by now.
And there are cheaper carbon frames out there. But until thereās greater confidence in the quality/safety/reliability aspect as well as warranty, I doubt itāll catch on.
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Not to mention the R&D and brand appealā¦all of those things add to the value of a product.
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And @mcneese.chad
Avoiding the yes-it-is, no-it-isnāt argument for a momentā¦.isnt it true that most people think all carbon frames are the same?
They/we say āitās carbonā but is there a significant difference between cheaper and more expensive carbon frames, and so most people are buying carbon thinking theyāre getting the better thing when the cheap carbon frame isnāt better than the aluminium frame at a similar price point.
I try not to care too much but I am procrastinating over buying my first carbon roadie and the alu argument keeps popping up delaying me furtherā¦!
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- I try to avoid overly broad generalizations, but make them with noted qualifiers when I am on top of my game
The facts are that there is a wide range of carbon materials, layups & processing methods that lead to real differences when you really dive into it. Same as the history of steel or any other metal bikes. There are different alloys, heat treatments, tube butting (if even present) and joining methods that all lead to potential differences in feel & related performance. That is generally true when you look at all materials including carbon.
Itās all far more detailed and complicated than some people (lots, many, mostā¦ I donāt really know?) realize or want to think about at times. Thatās one reason I rather dislike the āThis material vs that materialā discussions we tend to see. People whittle a complex situation with many actual answers down to one that is oversimplified and likely wrong as much as right. It is frequently cut to a point that the conclusions are potentially useless or even harmful.
Just another example showing a couple of my pithy phrases: āNuance is deadā, āDetails matterā, and the TR favoriteā¦ āIt dependsā are necessary more often than not 
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I took time to scan the article andā¦ I want my 30 seconds back. Itās baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad.
It doesnāt even touch my main beef with composite bikes (and Iāve own/owned a few): composite layup is pretty wasteful. Each piece of prepreg has two sheets of plastic attached, curing takes lots of energy and resources, thereās no practical method of recycling, unused scraps are generally thrown away, and bagging also takes a ton of materials (multiple layers of non-stick, layers of breather, etcā¦ this mostly applies to open mold).
On the plus side, it is repairable, but so are other frame materials.
Again, my XC bike is carbon, I own plenty of carbon accessories, and I work in the composites industry (not bicycles), but I donāt think Iāll buy another composite bike frame again.
And thatās what the argument is trying to address.
People do whittle it down to two options, and think carbon is better than alu. Therefore at the same price point or for a bit more, buy carbon. I donāt think youāve answered so Iām assuming some degree of agreement.
So detail asideā¦ Itās right for people to challenge what is really a marketing exercise not an engineering one.
Making an exception for truck nutz. I donāt need them. And neither does anyone else.
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I didnāt answer that because that was not the question I read from you above. And I really disagree with your assumption of my agreement on something I didnāt even address in my comment.
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That seems like a pretty big leap to me, considering the bulk of what I wrote about how there are real differences among the entirety of this world of āframe materialsā. I canāt endorse such a basic level conclusion.
- Again, that concept was not mentioned specifically in the comment you tagged me. Regardless, I am fine with people doing whatever research (or not) they choose to make their spending choices. Thatās entirely on them and I try not to judge that (unlike the author of the article above).
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Fair enough 
I agree. Itās the reason why I have an SL7, Epic Pro, etc. I did not want cheaper bikes that presented much better value. I wanted top shelf bikes.
However, thereās not doubt that Specialized, among others, perpetuates the myth that carbon is still an exotic material that costs a lot to manufacture. I think their Allez Sprint frames are artificially priced low. Donāt get me wrong, their markups across the board are very high and I believe theyāre still making good money on the Allez. Itās just not the cash cow like their S-Works and Pro builds.
With Trek advertising their ALR as good as their SL, I suspect the ācash cowā is in higher spec alu .
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