Getting interested in different steel tubing variants.
Only ridden straight Reynolds 531 and 531c bikes. However even with the straight 531 bikes, I find a significant difference between different bikes.
Did a quick search and found the following very subjective assessment.
Super Vitus 980 = Lightness at all costs. Very whippy for larger frames. The ideal thing for the steel-minded weight weenie.
Reynolds 531DB/Columbus SL = Traditional stuff, perfect for folks who want excellent tubing, but don't agonize over it.
Reynolds 501: Less fancy version of 531, and supposedly heavier. Never ridden it (and if I have, I don't remember it), so I don't know how it feels.
Columbus SLX = For someone who thinks SL isn't good enough.
Columbus EL = Arguably the liveliest, stiffest late-C&V-era tubing ever developed.
Ishiwata 022 = Underrated Japanese rough equivalent of 531/SL, possibly the most underrated of rough equivalents.
Reynolds 531 straight-gauge = Good for someone who wants to point to the Reynolds sticker and make a big to do about it, but could care less about ride quality. I haven't ridden a straight-gauge 531 frame yet that didn't feel deader then run-of-the-mill 4130.
Tange 2 = I've heard some say that it's about on par with Reynolds 501. Personally, I've found it to be quite similar to 531DB/SL in ride characteristics.
Tange 1 = Never tried it, probably a lighter form of Tange 2.
Steel tubing variants
I always thought the frame geometry and construction played a greater role in determining the ride characteristics b/n steel frames while tubing type is more directly correlated with the weight of the final frame. No?
Steel tubing has very similar properties, regardless of what the tubing is made of. The biggest difference between all those tubesets it weight.
Read this article on steel frame variants.
Read this article on steel frame variants.
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