Which frames/bikes from the 1990s were bought (and survived)

[hookooekoo]

Ebay seems to have a lot of steel-framed 1990s bikes for sale, and not so many aluminium-framed 1990s bikes. What does this mean?

A few possibilities:

1. Alu frames were an emerging technology in a world where steel frame production dominated. Most frame production was not setup for aluminium, and so not many Alu-framed bikes were produced and sold in the 1990s
2. Many of the 1990s Alu frames that were produced and sold did not last as long as steel frames
3. Those who bought Alu-framed bikes tended to be off-road enthusiasts who rode them hard and often (eventually leading to frame failure), whereas many steel framed MTBs spent a lot of time in sheds and garages not being ridden
4. Those who bought/own Alu-framed bikes like them a lot, and rarely put them up for sale
5. Steel-framed bikes sold more because they were generally seen by the buying public as better value for money, or a more reliable, proven, tried and tested, traditional construction method

 

[hamster]

That's a really good question.
Aluminium really only appeared from 1994 or so. It meant that it was slightly behind the MTB boom which was really 1990-95.
So I suspect that less Alu is just lower numbers out there.

 

[hookooekoo]

One of my friends bought a new Trek 6000 in 1991, so Alu was definitely around, although I don't think many Alu-framed bikes were being produced and sold back then. If I see him I'll ask him what happened to that bike.

Does anyone remember Ozone Bikes? I think they were Alu frames. Are they still around? What happened to that bike company?

 

[MR OX]

Does anyone remember Ozone Bikes? I think they were Alu frames. Are they still around? What happened to that bike company?

There's plenty of Ozone bikes here, some really nice examples.

 

[Peachy!]

Simple.. the aluminium rigid bikes cracked and were binned, the steel didn’t and survived....

(Today’s lunchtime pootle)

 

[madjh]

The 90´s was the steel era. And with very good looking bicycles. Them comes the aluminium era in late 90´s and becomes popular in the 00s but early models are quite bad looking like my Merida Matts pro, it was awfull, any steel frame is better.

 

[Fatal Swan]

My guess is that most of the 90s steel bikes that are still around are rigid - there wasn't that much to wrong with them and it's still easy/cheap to replace the parts that did. Aluminium bikes are a little later and more likely to have had suspension, and even the better forks in the 90s were mostly rubbish or at least unlikely to survive until now. So my suggestion for a point number 6 for the list would be that some of those aluminium bikes would just have been scrapped and replaced when their rusted clunky forks became unrideable.

 

[Raumer]

Ozone as a bike company stopped a long time ago. But the owners run the Slam 69 bike shop near Gloucester.

Cannondale were probably the biggest manufacturers of aluminium bikes at the start of the 90's. Steel made up the majority of the ranges from entry level budget frames up to top of the range bikes like Kona Explosif, Bontrangers etc... Not forgetting the custom builders like Roberts.

Plus ali frames being built very light and having a bigger tendency to crack. Although I've still got my Cannondale Super V from 1993. It had a hard life being used for cross country, then downhill and dual slalom with triple clamp forks. Even wrote off a set of forks in a downhill crash. The frame is still absolutely fine. Also got a Cannondale F series from a couple of years later that is still in working order.

Plus a 1996 Scott DH frame at my brothers that he used very hard. Still with no cracks. So some ali frames did survive.

 

[FluffyChicken]

Re:

Alu production frames stated in the late 80s, production by the likes of Araya/ A-Pro/and such like was up there and *churning* them out.
Rocky, Orange, Trek, Claude, PACE, Klein, 'Dale, GT etc but in the early 90s you paid a lot more for an Alu frame than a better steel frame u til as mentioned above, the mid 90s


*ok no idea of the rate but I have both a nice Rocky Mountain Alu frame, Pace of course and they crop up for sale, and Orange with it's Alu-O from 91 onto the Elites.

Marin was later iirc, Spesh was not a cool brand in the early 90s (in my area anyway)

BE Boss and the Claud clones had frame out, probably among the cheapest to buy.

Kona, where late to the game but it replaced most there steel by the 00s.


Steel was just better, Alu were not particularly light and it was still a try and sell it phase.

 

[hookooekoo]

Simple.. the aluminium rigid bikes cracked and were binned, the steel didn’t and survived....

(Today’s lunchtime pootle)

I suppose it could be argued that mass produced Alu frames were still an experiment in the 1990s, whereas brazed and lugged steel frames had been proven through decades of building and use.

Is that an RAF base and a Hawk?