These are the four titanium wheels
Titanium is considered particularly desirable among the materials used to build racing bike frames. This is not because the light metal is particularly rare - on the contrary, it is one of the most common elements in the earth's crust. Outstanding technical properties are also only a limited argument, as it is on a par with good aluminium frames in the important disciplines of weight and stiffness, although these only cost a fraction of the price. Compared to carbon, the shimmering grey metal even has a clear disadvantage; with the same stiffness, the weight of a carbon frame can be reduced to almost half that of a titanium frame, allowing it to be shaped much more freely.
Titanium: History in bicycle construction
Nevertheless, the material has remained in the industry since its beginnings in the 1990s and plays a small but important and consistent supporting role. It is mainly small, specialised suppliers who are still able to survive well from selling wheels made of titanium. Even new companies have been founded recently, despite the overwhelming dominance of carbon and aluminium on the market. In this test, we take a look at what still makes the precious metal so fascinating today: We invited a good 20 manufacturers and gave them the choice of sending us a road racing bike or a gravel bike. Nine accepted our invitation; in the first part we present four road racers, The second part with gravel bikes will follow.
Initially, it was mainly frame builders from the USA who established the metal in bicycle construction and established the material's reputation with exorbitant prices for meticulously crafted frames. For a short time, it even looked as if titanium was the material of the future for high-quality bikes, because it could be used to build frames that were around 20 per cent lighter than those made from the steel tubes that dominated the market at the time. However, the hype was quickly overtaken by developments in aluminium and carbon: carbon made it possible to produce significantly lighter frames, and thanks to mass production in the Far East, they also became increasingly cheaper. Aluminium is easier to manufacture and therefore unrivalled in terms of price.
In a nutshell: Titanium in transition
Manufacturers from China allow favourable prices and also enable young brands such as Vpacethat do not have their own manufacturing expertise to realise fresh ideas. With hydroforming and 3D printing, titanium can be moulded into shapes that were previously only possible with carbon, as shown by Falconry and Van Nicholas exemplary. But the perfectionist-looking production quality of established welders is still a feast for the eyes, as the Moots. However, the price remains high.
Titanium wheels: Forever beautiful
What remains as an argument in favour of titanium is a property that is actually not particularly important for racing bikes, but is very special: its resistance to external influences. The material is considered to be absolutely corrosion-resistant, even salt water cannot harm the surface. Painting is therefore unnecessary, which makes the frames extremely durable and resistant. Even after a long bicycle life, titanium frames often still look like new. This aura of immortality seems to exert such a great fascination on a certain clientele that they still fork out a lot of money for it today.
The fact that the cost of titanium frames is so high is mainly due to the complicated extraction and processing. The metal occurs almost exclusively in mineral compounds, from which it has to be extracted using a great deal of energy, which drives up the price of the raw material to many times that of steel or aluminium. Extremely hard tools are required for mechanical processing, and it can only be welded in the absence of oxygen, which requires special tools and a great deal of experience.
Price erosion due to production facilities in the Middle East
For a long time, titanium frame builders were revered as demigods among bicycle builders, and the frames of renowned manufacturers were marvelled at like works of art. However, in recent years there has been a considerable drop in the price of titanium frames. This is once again due to production facilities in the Far East - initially Taiwan, today mainly China - where the frames are produced at absurdly low labour costs.
Examples of this in this test are Van Nicholas and VpaceThe prices of these bikes would be competitive with carbon bikes; a simply equipped titanium road bike can be purchased from Van Nicholas for less than 3000 euros. For that money, you wouldn't even get half a frameset from competitor Moots: the cheapest here costs 6,500 euros, although it does include a seat post, headset and bottle cage. The US brand is one of the pioneers in titanium frame construction and still welds its frames in the USA today. The range shows the influence that labour costs have on pricing.
A new future for titanium wheels?
However, there is a small detail on the frame of the Moot that could revolutionise the processing options - and therefore the entire market - in the long term: The rear dropouts of the Vamoots RCS come from the 3D printer. They are created in a bed of very fine titanium powder, which is heated by a laser beam at specific points to such an extent that the powder grains fuse together. In very thin layers, a part is built up piece by piece, which is no longer subject to any restrictions in its shape, as would have to be taken into account in casting or forging; even almost closed hollow bodies are possible.
Titanium is perfect for 3D printing because the material does not corrode even in powder form despite its huge surface area - the process cannot be implemented with aluminium or steel. The parts from the printer now offer a similar level of strength to classically manufactured parts. The German brand Falkenjagd goes one step further, on the Aristos R the head tube, fork crown and bottom bracket shell also come from the printer.
The process is still relatively expensive, and the Falkenjagd is no lighter than conventionally built frames - on the contrary. Parts with larger dimensions are particularly inefficient because there are hardly any printing machines for them. However, it is probably only a matter of time before parts the size of an entire bicycle frame can be printed at a reasonable cost. It is quite possible that titanium will become the frame material of the future after all.
The results of the titanium wheels at a glance
*LL = Lifetime | CR = Crash Replacement | RA = Racing exclusion
Jens Klötzer
Editor
