Wheels sez "But one point I would make is that a cromoly or titanium hardtail with 3 1/2 - 5" travel forks is a whole different ballgame to an aluminium one with 2 - 3" forks. Now those are harsh..... "
I think you're right on that level Wheels. Just as there is many different flavours of fully suspension there is also many different flavours of hardtail.
If you went out for a ride on a your modern entry level straight gauge aluminium punter bike and then rode a well built cromo (or dare I say titanium) frame you would notice a huge difference.
The death of the cromoly hardtail is a badge of shame for the bike industry. God knows what marketing geniuses decided to push alloy as the "proper mountain bike frame" material can go back to their cushy bike paths. Now days it is very difficult to get a decent steel bike, with steel being relegated to either -
1) Totally shit heavt farm gates on wheels.
2) or really expensive works of art which are quite unaffordable for the average punter.
When I used to work in a bike shop people would come in and ask for steel bikes and the sad truth was that there just wasn't anything decent out there for under $NZ2500. Crying shame!
A rather brilliant thought just crossed my mind. Aren't full suspension bikes in the same situation? You must be hard pressed to find a decent full suspension bike for under $NZ2500 which won't lead into an endless nightmare of upgrades and frame repair. The rash (and I meant that rash the inflamed, itchy, visit the doctor term) of budget full suspension bikes is a waste of everyone's time and money...
(Ranting is healthier than running outside and kicking puppies.)
