Why Is Carbon Fiber Better Than Aluminum

The effects of choosing carbon fiber over aluminum The sport of mountain biking has come so far from where it all started back in the late 1970’s. Today when it comes to frame material more and more people are choosing carbon fiber instead of aluminum. But why are they choosing carbon fiber instead of aluminum? Carbon fiber has many advantages that make it better than aluminum. So is carbon fiber really better than aluminum? What is carbon fiber? Carbon fiber is a very lightweight carbon material used to in many things such as cars, aircraft, and bikes. What does carbon fiber have that’s so much better than aluminum? Carbon fiber is a very lightweight material that can be molded to any shape that is desired. It can also be repaired when damaged without the hassle of welding like you would have to to repair aluminum.
Carbon fiber is molded into any desired shape and then coated with a special resin then is wrapped in a vacuum sealed bag. After it is in the bag the carbon fiber is put into a large industrial oven which bakes the resin making the carbon fiber very stiff and rigid. The carbon fiber also has no flex whatsoever compared to aluminum. The synthetic fibers in the carbon also can be easily identified when damaged. Aluminum is a very strong lightweight yet when compared to carbon fiber it is no match. Which is why choosing carbon fiber over aluminum would be the best way to go. The only downside to carbon fiber is the cost. Carbon fiber is not a cheap material as machines cannot make the whole frame alone. Carbon fiber will put a dent in your bank account costing up to $10,000 or more for the top of the line bikes. Another downside is that with carbon you have to use a torque wrench so that you don’t over tighten a bolt and damage the frame, but with aluminum you don’t have to use a torque