I've been riding bikes since the 90's and followed trends/fads/gimmicks across multiple disciplines from BMX, MTB and Road. The issue with cycling is the pursuit of creating a need for the consumer to keep on consuming. Its a nuanced discussion, but ultimately the most important thing to remember is that riding bikes is awesome and the bike you have, whatever its made out of, brings you health, happiness and takes you to amazing places!
I've often thought that if you're a marketing professional and want to test your marketing chops then go work for a bike company where every year you have to convince the public that the bicycle has been reinvented. The past 20 years in cycling has basically been selling changes in aesthetics. Disk brakes maybe the exception.
"... free from unwritten rules, and the pressure to conform..." with fully internal cable routing, dropped seat stays, single chainring drivetrain, and fully NON-adjustable bar/stem combo... yeah, totally not conformist to modern-day bike industry marketing trends actually, the one and only thing i see on this bike that's actually not following trendy marketing rules is the standard round seat post and clamp
At least the bar/stem combo will not be mandatory to make the bike functional as with other bike brands where you need to have the same branded stem etc because nothing else will fit the dimensions and forms of the other components.
@ Yep! You can use a regular non integrated bar and stem, or any brand integrated bar and stem or barstem. 31.6 round seatpost, T47 threaded bottom bracket, SRAM UDH. We try and make everything as simple and future proof as possible 🖤
Ya I feel like the whole bike industry is in a weird place right now. People buying bikes like they're shoes, what do you mean "is aluminum coming back"? Still riding my 2016 roadie just fine
It's a 7005 double butted basic alloy frame with a lot of color choices. Certainly nothing wrong with marketing that but $2k for frame fork and generic seatpost plus $200+4weeks for matching fork is delusional.
the only frame i would buy for over $1k would be a italian steel bike. 2k for an alloy frame is wild. i just built a carbon bike from longteng with custom paint etc, the frame was $700....
Yup my Marin Gestalt is all aluminium and still going strong after 8+ years of gravel + road commutes + cafe rides. It is stiff, but in a good way, any power I put down just picks up immediately.
Thanks for the comment. Note that the frameset includes an ENVE Gravel In-Route carbon fork, carbon seatpost, and custom Cerakote paint with the frame and logo color of your choice 🖤
yeah pretty much with you on this. Retail on that fork is $575....let's pretend the seat post is $125 (a generic carbon post isn't but it gives us a nice round number here)...Professional Ceracoat kit for less than $100 and an AL frame from China for $150. Problem is there's cost to import from China and the overhead of the website and someplace to store frames, gotta pay people to ship them and they do deserve to make a profit here. Sadly $2k is probably the going rate anymore to buy from a smaller company even if the stuff is just factory catalog offerings. Really it shines a light on how good of a deal a frameset like the Giant Revolt Advanced Pro is at $2,400 retail. Full carbon, Giant actually had to pay a team of engineers to design each part, ride quality is fantastic, light as heck, lifetime carbon warranty against ANYTHING happening to it...even in a crash or your garage. Kudos to small companies like Black Heart for giving it a go and trying to make a living.
Back in the day when aluminum frames were 🔥 we were all riding on 19-23mm tires @ 120 psi. The harsh feel has now been muted by wider tires and lower psi . . . Full circle . . .
Yeah I’ve got an allow gravel bike running 50mm tyres at 30ish psi. It could be the stiffest thing in the world and it wouldn’t matter with that much pneumatic help.
I’m going full grouch here : I miss the old DK videos. Big rides with the homies, candid takes, real shit. The internet has a gear problem. The amount of generic, show-n-tell reviews has become nauseating. I understand, it’s what pays the bills anymore but god damn it’s mind numbing. Everyone in here either has waaaay too much gear or does not have the means and is just made to dream about it. DGMW that Blackheart is cool as fuck, but so are 100 other gravel bikes on the market. Should I buy them all. Should I spend more time researching than I do riding. Anyway, if you’re still here, I’m just projecting. I’m not a content creator. I’m just a sucker for consumption, so nothing I can do about it. But man, what happened to just riding.
Yo Dustin, love your reply to Steve Bunn,he asked a good question and your response to being burnt out, made me wake up to the amount of work those vids must take out of you Always admired your work,but a deeper appreciation of the input that goes on to produce your content Bigluv bro
@@EverythingsBeenDone I will always appreciate you and the work you put in man. Keep doing it. Everything’s got to change at some point. Your content has always been a huge motivator and inspiration for me and I’m sure many others to get tf out there. You are a real one.
@@EverythingsBeenDone Refreshing honesty! You've got to do what's best for you, and you're still making great content...........Like the previous guy though I loved the old DK group ride videos, but can appreciate the work involved and disruption they must have created on group rides.
I've recently bought an aluminium gravel bike from German Brand "Standert" just like you I can't feel the difference in responsiveness, comfort and playfulness of the frame compared to my carbon bike. Thant Standert aluminium bike is awesome !! Made me completely rethink my hierarchy of bikes
Same, I think it’s pretentiousness…steal dudes like the idea of being old school, carbon people like to flex their weight weenie wallets. Aluminum is for the average normal person. That being said, I have never broken a steel frame but I have trashed an aluminum one.
Same, but im shallow so I like the appearance of skinnier steel tubes and lugs. And rim brakes are good enough for anything except mtb. I drank the Rivendell koolaid
Big tires and the amount of exposed seatpost (and seatpost material) will have more impact on harsh vs compliant ride than frame material of a double diamond style frame.
I will say, I rode a Six13 and I own multiple CAAD10s and Supersix Evos, all with the same tire and pressure. That Six13 was ridiculously stiff to the point where I was having fillings shaken. The CAAD10 rear end in comparison is plush
I had 2018 Rocky Mountain Blizzard. So stiff you could feel every knob on the tires. At 4 psi. My carbo BMC with 29mm tires at 65psi feels better than it did.
Once I discovered steel, I cant ride anything else. My custom Samsara MTB is 8.5 years old, still brings a smile to my face and i will never get rid of it. My gravel is a Soma Wolverine, steel, rides great. It is over 5 years old and im looking at steel builders now to replace it. Steel is real! Long live steel! 😂
Really top end steel bikes are becoming increasingly rare now, so I think lots of people just haven't spent enough time on one to realise how good they are. I also remember how horrible aluminium frames were compared to steel when they 1st turned up on the market. Cannondales were just nasty to ride compared to Tange Prestige frames, jittered all over, but they looked cool, were fairly light, & were priced well. Steel is also far tougher than aluminium or carbon, its just a better material for all but top pros where every ounce counts & bikes are free.
All internal routing is a deal breaker for me. It's cool the frame is aluminum. But companies coming out trying to charge carbon prices for aluminum? More sketchy moves from bike brands. And they don't even have cable routing for mechanical shifters. Now that there is no external cables, or partially external cables, it takes them less time and costs less money to make the frame, too.
Aluminum has its place as a light weight and affordable frame material. This allows for cheaper bikes. Much needed in parts of the world where even a 1k bike would be considered astronomically expensive.
On the Superteam wheels: 1. Superteam is not, it's a relatively well known brand. I woulnd't be surprised if they actually have good support. 2. I'm willing to bet the bearings are a standard, widely-available size. I'd also bet that it uses DT-Swiss star ratchets like everything else these days. 3. Sealed bearing hubs are generally pretty good for many years no matter what. Long story shop: they'll be fine.
And to be fair, support for DT Swiss wheels in the UK is shite. It is taking 4 weeks for their official UK distributor / service centre to replace my Spokes as they don't stock them. This is on a 4 year old wheel! So long that I have had to buy a cheap wheel while I wait.
Of course. But a bike shop won't tell you that. They will tell you that you need the most expensive wheelset they have on offer to not be a loser and bring it in for full service every 6 months 😂
yeah this is typical bike shop bullshit where they just passive aggressively shit on Chinese wheelsets. superteam and elite wheels have support and are responsive.
Ever wondered why everybody and their brother is making carbon wheels now? Might it be the INSANE profit they generate? Seems to me these wheels are just priced the way they all should be.....
I picked up a Ripmo AF recently, and it’s been an incredible ride. It’s really made me rethink the need for carbon frames, especially for mountain biking, even though I consider myself a bit of a weight weenie. For the wheels, I’ve found the perfect balance by sourcing rims from China and having them built locally with quality known hubs and spokes.
Internally routed bikes have been around for years, long before electric group sets existed. Yeah sure its easier to maintain an externally routed cable bike... but the whole point of internally routed cables is to protect the housings and cables from the elements and create a neater overall package. This also helps bring the maintenance interval down overall. So the statement that internally routed bikes are made for electric shifting doesn't make any sense. Internally routed bikes are made for cables and hoses that need to get from A to B and be protected from the elements. Electronic group sets and electric bikes are cool and all, but mechanical group sets and bikes still play a very large role in the industry, similar to how electric vehicles relate to internal combustion vehicles, yeah they seem cool and all, they are new, sexy and the hot trend, but they realistically take up a small percentage of the overall cars in use. ALSO, with the increase in electrical cars and group sets, the right to repair/ ability to repair risk is at threat more now than ever, which could devastate the fix it mentality and allow the use once and throw out culture. This both hurts the end user, mechanics, the industry, the cost of entry and the planet as a whole. Furthermore, to break out the full on hippie logic, take a look at the carbon footprint of building a mechanical AL bike versus a plastic (carbon) electric bike, and relate that to the expected life expectancy of the product. Batteries are a nasty thing when you really dig deep into the resources required to manufacture them, not to mention the inability to recycle them in this country, there are a few places, but it is a very infant process in this day and age, hopefully we get better as time goes on, but the future does not look too bright for that industry. - Long time viewer of your videos, hope this message does not seem to aggressive, i work in the automotive field as an mechanical engineer and think about this type of thing regularly. Funny enough, i ride my AL mechanical internally routed gravel bike to work every day (26 mile round trip) with a road wheelset and a nice set of paniers.
I’ve heard a lot about the limitations of an aluminum bike, I currently have 4 bikes, an aluminum road, Carbon road, aluminum mountain, carbon gravel. Honestly, I love all of them. I’ve never felt any limitations on the aluminum bikes.
Wide tyres and low pressures is what makes the bike feel so good. Early days of aluminium frames we had skinny tyres and 120psi. Carbon fixed that but since the advent of discs the tyre restrictions have been removed and aluminium is really relevant. Awesome looking bike by the way 👍
I just bought a road Ti from Zack as well. I actually stopped riding my carbon bikes. And I’ve had almost every big name flagship frame. From pinarello to Colnago to factor to Bianchi. I don’t think I’m going back!
Back in 2001, I bought an all-aluminum Bianchi, with a ChroMoly fork and seat post, and I commuted on it for several years. At one point, I calculated that I put about 12k miles on that bike. Then in 2011, I replaced it with a Specialized that still had an aluminum frame, but had a carbon fork and carbon seat post, and that made an absolute world of difference. It got me probably 80% of the ride quality of the two all-carbon bikes I've had since then - one with aluminum wheels, and the newest with carbon wheels. Each step up the food chain has made a noticeable difference in ride quality, but for sure the biggest bang for your buck is getting a carbon fork and seat post - I think that makes an aluminum frame totally reasonable by modern ride quality standards
Thumbs up on Aluminum. Totally agree that with 40mm+ tires, frame 'compliance' doesn't matter much, especially at 30 psi. For $1900/frame I would expect hydro-formed tubes. In 2014, I paid $400 for a 61cm AL Scattante cross frame that weighs 1800g. My 61cm Crockett weighs 1581g. The older bike is 2x with a 561% range. The newer bike is 1x with 520% range. Both bikes can use 44mm tires. Explain to me again why this Blackheart Gravel frame is differentiated performance-wise?
I've actually only owned 3 true road bikes. A steel Lemond, an aluminum Ridley, and a carbon Colnago CLX (the one NOT made in Italy). That Ridley descended like a rocketship. It was so fast. I loved that bike, and it ended up as scrap after I was hit by a car. The Colnago rode like a dream, but the chainstays weren't up for my weight + the bad Montreal roads, so I sold it for cheap to someone that was willing to repair it (I was all-in on cyclocross at the time anyway). Aluminum is a fine material, and with big tyres and a carbon bar like that, there was never any doubt in my mind that that would be a great bike.
Just a heads up for my fellow Clydesdales, I spent some time looking at the Gravel AL today and apparently it's got a 220lbs/100KG weight limit. I asked why and was told it was due to the material they used and should be on the lookout for the Gravel Ti... Sigh, I really wanted to like this one.
Correct. With all materials there are trade offs, and we wanted to make an aluminum frame that rides well meaning thinner tubes for some flex, spring, and compliance. If we made an aluminum frame with a high weight limit then it would require thicker tubes and compromise the ride quality. However, with our Ti frames with similar tube thicknesses we can have beautiful ride quality and a weight limit of 275 lbs. Just the nature of the materials.
@@spinnetti saddle comfort is so individualistic. My wife is on her 5th and still hasn’t found one that works for her. And that starts to get expensive. I feel very lucky to have found one that works for me. Especially lucky that it only costs $65.
I guess gravel frame material matters less than road because the amount of flex the frame provides compared to large tires is a very small amount. I think Peak torque explained it in a video.
I guess I fallen into the camp that aluminum is harsh and all the other bad things said about it. The fact that it’s recyclable is a big bonus, hey you may be riding on somebody’s old beer cans, lol. I’ve gone to steel, and the frame was made in Austin, Tx.. Steel is also recyclable over and over like aluminum. Like you I’m riding a frame material that is likely recycled. Enjoy the ride.
I’d love to see you do a “blindfold” test ride between the black heart and the willier!! Same wheels and tires. Same route! Put a visor under your eyes to block which bike your on!! Then be honest!!
I ride an Aluminium framed gravel bike from UK brand Mason Cycles. It's a great bike, and certainly not uncomfortable. It's possible to make a good frame that's comfortable and rides well from any of the main bike building materials.
Great video, and love the bike! Watching, one thought kept jumping into my head… Perhaps you need to ask where the “aluminum is harsh“ theory came from. Sadly, I’m old enough to remember. Back in the day (a.k.a. the late 1980s / early 1990s), when carbon was just coming to bikes and aluminum was “the thing”, it was all about getting a stiffer bike for better ride quality as compared to the then current standard of skinny (aka flexible) steel tubed frame sets. Add new-school oversized aluminum frame tubing to the then currently in use ultra low volume tires (19c-20c on road; 1.75”-1.9” off road), and voilà… hello super harsh ride. Fast-forward 30 years, with the road/gravel space finally catching up and adopting mtn hike evolutions by swap out rim brakes for disc brakes, allowing for internal rim width expansion, in turn allowing for lightweight / high volume tires on road and gravel bikes, and voilà… good bye super harsh ride. Unconstrained by the UCI’s road and CX rules, mountain bike riders figured out the benefits of large volume tires 15-20 years ago. Roadies and gravel riders (who are mostly road or CX converts, and thus broadly unfamiliar with mtn bike design evolution) are just figuring this out now. Welcome to the future!
$2K for a frameset only is a bit much, is the USA built frame? Because for a little more I can get an Otso Warakin Steel complete with a GRX build kit. The all road AL is priced better imho. Blackheart use to be out of their bike shop Luft in Venice Beach. They still have the bike shop there to test ride their bikes. You should take a winter trip down here to check their shop out. Plus, my friend's shop, LA Cyclery, that's woman owned & part of the dirt culture.
That’s not a woman owned bike shop. If you want to support women, support women. And if you want to support trans, that’s cool too. But calling it woman owned when it is not is inaccurate.
Aluminum got a bad name because carbon does tend to ride better if all things are equal. But by the time you add carbon wheels and premium tires aluminum's durability far outshines the small gains the average rider gets in a slightly lighter bike. I traded my Trek sl5 in for a al5 added 2 pounds but am glad that I made the swap. Lifetime warranty on the frame and piece of mind. haha I ride for fun and fitness not to go pro.
Haha. Carbon isn't evil and has clear advantages in certain applications like you mention. But for the frame aluminum can be superior to carbon in many instances. And if you can reduce your impact then all the better 🖤
Aluminum is more environmentally friendly, which is true. But I think we as a community should talk more about our clothes which are full of PFAS. Your beloved Goretex started it all and now there's this toxic stuff everywhere. And I'm not free of guilt as I have some PFAS rain gear as well, but it's very difficult to find something in the cycling industry which is high quality but free of these chemicals. A carbon frame can easily hold up for a very long time, yes aluminum is better for the environment, but ultimately it's better to only buy a bike when you really need it, not just if you want it.
last year i built a diverge evo with drop bars thinking it would ride harsh from riding previous alum track bikes. big tires helped a lot (700x47) seriously one of the best drop bar single track purposed bike i built.
The aluminium frame is very reliable on long rides. Your not gonna worry if u crash it, durable. You got a peace of mind. And, of course to go faster, you need lots of practice...🙂👍🚴♂️
"free from unwritten rules, and the pressure to conform..." and " ...this bike is essentially made for wireless or electronic groupsets only..." Of course it is 😂
Thanks for the comment. We're talking about the rider, not the bike. i.e. you don't need to have the right sock height or wear your glasses in the correct way. You do you. And you can run 1x mechanical on the Gravel AL. We don't see too much demand for 2x mechanical on a gravel bike so that's why we didn't include this is the design 🖤
Thanks for the comment. Outdated thinking based on aluminum bikes from decades ago. Today with modern aluminum alloys, double-butted tubes, and custom tube molds you can make aluminum frames that have great ride quality. Just like you can make a carbon frame that rides like wood or one that is sublime. It comes down to the design, material, and manufacturing.
People saying $2k for a frame being a lot is in reference to a gravel to road frame right? Because for an aluminum mountain bike, $2k is pretty damn reasonable
I remember when aluminum was the prized frame material. I have nothing against riding an aluminum bike again. I am kind of curious about the environmental impact of carbon frame manufacturing. That I’ll have to look into.
I suggest you compare it to the Specialized Crux DSW! Would be very interesting, because the media basically doesn‘t cover the crux dsw at all, even though it‘s a great bike, proven geometry etc. (except pretty cockpit). I love mine :)
Hey Dustin, I don't ride road, or gravel, but I love your channel. I'm 42. From my early teens through my 30s I rode BMX, specifically skateparks. Those bikes were all 4130 chromoly. I got into MTB about 4 years ago and have had two aluminum bikes. While I imagine that my next build will be steel. It's real. I have to mention that my current aluminum hard tail is a dream to ride. The geometry is aggressive, synonymous with perfect, and the tubing is designed to flex and deaden much of the chatter. I ride it in the skatepark occasionally and definitely feel the flex. Not great. But on the trail it is perfection. The compliant aluminum mixed with the weight savings keeps me from longing too hard for my future steal forever bike. I chose my current bike for the geo and many reviews noting it's "special sauce". I hear that more companies are really trying to tune their aluminum tube thickness and diameter to reduce harshness.
my Mommy bike is a hearty and proven AL hybrid. It tows. Offroad. It's comfy. It won't rust. It doesn't weigh a ton. I have a lithe lugged vintage touring bike, a burly Ti gravel rando, a beast of a carbon MTB and this do almost all AL mommy bike which I also love. Hype is hype. Don't like rust? you have options. don't like weight? you have options.
I will say and I am sure you have heard this before. I miss the mega adventure days you used to post about more often. I feel now your channel is mostly about bikes and not the adventures you can have on them. I will still follow/watch
AWESOME steed. I would LOVE to barrow the bike and put it thru some test here in Michigan, in Detroit and everywhere between. Just saying that would be awesome. 😉
My main road bike (50mm carbon wheels w/ 25mm tires) is aluminum, my gravel bike (38mm carbon wheels/tires and widths vary) is titanium, my mountain bike (AL rims w/ 29x2.6" tires) is aluminum, and my trainer bike is carbon fiber. With that being said, my trainer bike (Ridley Fenix SL) with 30mm tires on it out on the road is like riding a Cadillac in the comfort/smoothness department on rough roads. My titanium gravel bike on rough gravel terrain feels no different than any other frame material (i.e. beats the crap out of me). My road bike is comfortable on good/decent roads, but still snappy/responsive.
I’ve been eyeing an all road ti from black heart. But, I love all black bikes, so if the Alu one rides just as nice, I may get that to keep the cost down a little bit, and get their second wheel set option.
I have a Mason Cycles Bokeh for 4 years and this bike is amazing! Unfortunately this model has 42mm tyre clearance which for 2024 standards is limited, but I love this bike and have done very long amazing rides with it. It’s a UK brand and they do amazing stuff
I used to have an aluminum Bombtrack that I used for gravel riding some pretty rough stuff and it was surprisingly smooth for what I expected for aluminum. And pretty light to boot.
Thanks for the comment. You can run mechanical 1X, just use a flexi bit of Jagwire housing through the BB. And you can run a standard bar and stem combo as well. 🖤
@@blackheartbikeco 7005 is inferior to 6061 in every way. More expensive to work with, anodizing, heat treatment and welding needs more precision. Offers nothing over 6061 at bike level tube thickness. Funny hearing cheaper from you when you outsource to China where workrs being paid nothing.
Confused… stoked about recycling aluminum but puts all carbon components on? Also mechanical shifting works fine on internal routing. Pretty sure this exact frame is sold on Temu for $250
Thanks for the comment. We believe in the right material for the right application. At times carbon is the superior material. At other times aluminum. And just like riding a bike to work when you own car is a great thing, incorporating aluminum when possible is a great idea. And no, this frame is not sold on Temu for $250. Our frames are designed and tested at our shop in Northern CA, manufactured to our spec in our partner factories, and independently tested to CPSC 1512 and ISO 4210 standards in Southern CA 👍👍
Once you put on 40+mm tyres there is no discernible compliance difference between carbon, alloy, Ti, steel. I’ve had them all. Only thing that matters is geo. Plus weight if that’s important to you.
I'm a heavier rider. 100kg and can't afford a new bike every 2nd year. Seen too many failures with Carbon so my mountain bike as well as road are both Aluminium. My gravel build will be much like yours as well. I guess I'm also not a good enough rider to feel or get any benefits from carbon.
As a bike mechanic from the mid 80s - early 2000s Aluminum frames were way more expensive than steel. I got out of the business for about 10 years as the tech was just getting ridiculous. Getting back into it I saw that Aluminun was cheaper and steel cost a premium over it. I have never been a fan of aluminum bikes, but own 2 because of cost. I think builders have Aluminum dialed right now because they feel better and more importantly, they don't break as easy as they used to. Love the channel btw.
I've had a couple of aluminum Cannodale CAAD road bikes that I loved. They were quick and nimble, didn't rust in the Seattle winters, and I didn't notice that they were harsh. My only problem with aluminum is that I've only cracked or broke an aluminum frame. I don't tend to be that guy that's always breaking bike parts, but I cracked the headtube of a Yeti DH303, and snapped the rear triangle of a Foes mountain bike. Maybe aluminum has a shorter shelf life? Cool bike build. Would love a long term review on the Apex AXS stuff
Back in the day, before suspension , we rode aluminum Cannondales and Klein with big tires and they were great. It’s no surprise to me with big tires and low pressure that it’s a nice ride.
Super fatty tires on that rig!! Plus you got carbon bars, fork, and wheels! I can see how you have no fatigue! 🤷🏻♂️ AL has its place. In Downhill and enduro rigs for sure if you want to ride the same frame for a while! Carbon is going to break eventually! Bad for the environment is carbon, for sure and just all the consumption as well. Thinking of getting an e bike soon! Is it because it will save the planet? Hell NO- because it will be fun. If we want to save the planet we could all pull out that 80’s steel frame and good old human power, rigid and painful = builds character! E bikes and e transmissions. More batteries, more electrical use of the grid, more energy used to manufacture them!! People making a living!
I bet the big 45c tires (& Carbon rims/wheels, bar/stem, fork, and seat post all also) 'help' the frame, to not make the ride feel too harsh ... Aluminum's harshness is/was especially felt (back) on road bikes with 23c tires, and/or bikes accompanied with other mostly alloy parts too. That's a sweet bike! (I see on their website it's built for and you can also spec it with the short travel gavel forks too) honestly wasn't familiar with this bike brand, looked them up, really cool looking and quality stuff, also cool they're in Truckee. And as always great video Dustin, keep em coming!
Don’t we have to factor in the fact that your major components (fork / cockpit / wheels) are carbon fiber so you benefit from the dampening from everything besides the frame?
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You should try the day saver multi tool it super light and really small 👌
I've been riding bikes since the 90's and followed trends/fads/gimmicks across multiple disciplines from BMX, MTB and Road. The issue with cycling is the pursuit of creating a need for the consumer to keep on consuming. Its a nuanced discussion, but ultimately the most important thing to remember is that riding bikes is awesome and the bike you have, whatever its made out of, brings you health, happiness and takes you to amazing places!
Strong comment. Absolutely agree. Dont buy bikes.
🖤🖤🖤
I've often thought that if you're a marketing professional and want to test your marketing chops then go work for a bike company where every year you have to convince the public that the bicycle has been reinvented. The past 20 years in cycling has basically been selling changes in aesthetics. Disk brakes maybe the exception.
@@LeonForsterHulst ride what you got!
"... free from unwritten rules, and the pressure to conform..." with fully internal cable routing, dropped seat stays, single chainring drivetrain, and fully NON-adjustable bar/stem combo... yeah, totally not conformist to modern-day bike industry marketing trends
actually, the one and only thing i see on this bike that's actually not following trendy marketing rules is the standard round seat post and clamp
Not talking about the bike. Talking about the rider 🖤
It has Ritchey bottle cages.
@@gregoryneal2852 *carbon i think...
At least the bar/stem combo will not be mandatory to make the bike functional as with other bike brands where you need to have the same branded stem etc because nothing else will fit the dimensions and forms of the other components.
@ Yep! You can use a regular non integrated bar and stem, or any brand integrated bar and stem or barstem. 31.6 round seatpost, T47 threaded bottom bracket, SRAM UDH. We try and make everything as simple and future proof as possible 🖤
I feel like Aluminum frames are highly underrated, but there’s zero chance I would spend 2k on one in 2024.
2k for a Taiwan made aluminum frame is just bonkers. You can get a complete Marin for that and it rips just as much.
Ya I feel like the whole bike industry is in a weird place right now. People buying bikes like they're shoes, what do you mean "is aluminum coming back"? Still riding my 2016 roadie just fine
It's a 7005 double butted basic alloy frame with a lot of color choices. Certainly nothing wrong with marketing that but $2k for frame fork and generic seatpost plus $200+4weeks for matching fork is delusional.
the only frame i would buy for over $1k would be a italian steel bike. 2k for an alloy frame is wild. i just built a carbon bike from longteng with custom paint etc, the frame was $700....
@@eto2352 every little hipster brand wants you to think their stuff is special when it isn't at all...
Yup my Marin Gestalt is all aluminium and still going strong after 8+ years of gravel + road commutes + cafe rides. It is stiff, but in a good way, any power I put down just picks up immediately.
No way can anyone of any experience level convince me this frameset is worth $2k...
Thanks for the comment. Note that the frameset includes an ENVE Gravel In-Route carbon fork, carbon seatpost, and custom Cerakote paint with the frame and logo color of your choice 🖤
Also no way can anyone convince me a S-Works frame can worth $6K either. 😅
Yes, not even close to 2k
yeah pretty much with you on this. Retail on that fork is $575....let's pretend the seat post is $125 (a generic carbon post isn't but it gives us a nice round number here)...Professional Ceracoat kit for less than $100 and an AL frame from China for $150. Problem is there's cost to import from China and the overhead of the website and someplace to store frames, gotta pay people to ship them and they do deserve to make a profit here. Sadly $2k is probably the going rate anymore to buy from a smaller company even if the stuff is just factory catalog offerings. Really it shines a light on how good of a deal a frameset like the Giant Revolt Advanced Pro is at $2,400 retail. Full carbon, Giant actually had to pay a team of engineers to design each part, ride quality is fantastic, light as heck, lifetime carbon warranty against ANYTHING happening to it...even in a crash or your garage.
Kudos to small companies like Black Heart for giving it a go and trying to make a living.
@@blackheartbikeco Enve is just a rip-off, not much better than cheaper brands...
Back in the day when aluminum frames were 🔥 we were all riding on 19-23mm tires @ 120 psi. The harsh feel has now been muted by wider tires and lower psi . . . Full circle . . .
Amen to that !
Yeah I’ve got an allow gravel bike running 50mm tyres at 30ish psi. It could be the stiffest thing in the world and it wouldn’t matter with that much pneumatic help.
I’m going full grouch here : I miss the old DK videos. Big rides with the homies, candid takes, real shit. The internet has a gear problem. The amount of generic, show-n-tell reviews has become nauseating. I understand, it’s what pays the bills anymore but god damn it’s mind numbing.
Everyone in here either has waaaay too much gear or does not have the means and is just made to dream about it.
DGMW that Blackheart is cool as fuck, but so are 100 other gravel bikes on the market. Should I buy them all. Should I spend more time researching than I do riding.
Anyway, if you’re still here, I’m just projecting. I’m not a content creator. I’m just a sucker for consumption, so nothing I can do about it. But man, what happened to just riding.
I got burned out on all the ride videos.
Plus’s not as many views.
@@EverythingsBeenDone That’s the most honest reply I’ve ever seen 👍 Thanks for all you do.
Yo Dustin, love your reply to Steve Bunn,he asked a good question and your response to being burnt out, made me wake up to the amount of work those vids must take out of you
Always admired your work,but a deeper appreciation of the input that goes on to produce your content
Bigluv bro
@@EverythingsBeenDone I will always appreciate you and the work you put in man. Keep doing it. Everything’s got to change at some point. Your content has always been a huge motivator and inspiration for me and I’m sure many others to get tf out there. You are a real one.
@@EverythingsBeenDone Refreshing honesty! You've got to do what's best for you, and you're still making great content...........Like the previous guy though I loved the old DK group ride videos, but can appreciate the work involved and disruption they must have created on group rides.
I've recently bought an aluminium gravel bike from German Brand "Standert" just like you I can't feel the difference in responsiveness, comfort and playfulness of the frame compared to my carbon bike. Thant Standert aluminium bike is awesome !! Made me completely rethink my hierarchy of bikes
I ride a Liteville😃
2k puts you in gucci steel frame territory
I like the way you’re thinking 😉
@@EverythingsBeenDone and also - I have NEVER had an AL MTB frame that didnt crack at some point...
and I have had many many
Steel frames can be awesome, but offering a high end aluminum alternative is our goal 🖤
@@blackheartbikeco”high end aluminum “ 😂😂😂😂
I’ve ridden steel, carbon and aluminium bikes…they all felt good…perhaps I’m not discerning enough 🤷🏻♂️
Same, I think it’s pretentiousness…steal dudes like the idea of being old school, carbon people like to flex their weight weenie wallets. Aluminum is for the average normal person. That being said, I have never broken a steel frame but I have trashed an aluminum one.
Same, but im shallow so I like the appearance of skinnier steel tubes and lugs. And rim brakes are good enough for anything except mtb. I drank the Rivendell koolaid
When we said alu was harsh maybe it was a mix of the frame and probably the tiny tires we used to run at like 180psi.
Big tires and the amount of exposed seatpost (and seatpost material) will have more impact on harsh vs compliant ride than frame material of a double diamond style frame.
I will say, I rode a Six13 and I own multiple CAAD10s and Supersix Evos, all with the same tire and pressure. That Six13 was ridiculously stiff to the point where I was having fillings shaken.
The CAAD10 rear end in comparison is plush
I had 2018 Rocky Mountain Blizzard. So stiff you could feel every knob on the tires. At 4 psi. My carbo BMC with 29mm tires at 65psi feels better than it did.
And what else?
No it's always felt harsh 😂
Ive put nearly 10k miles on alluminium Allez Sprint the last two years and I love it, No notes
Once I discovered steel, I cant ride anything else. My custom Samsara MTB is 8.5 years old, still brings a smile to my face and i will never get rid of it. My gravel is a Soma Wolverine, steel, rides great. It is over 5 years old and im looking at steel builders now to replace it.
Steel is real! Long live steel! 😂
Really top end steel bikes are becoming increasingly rare now, so I think lots of people just haven't spent enough time on one to realise how good they are. I also remember how horrible aluminium frames were compared to steel when they 1st turned up on the market. Cannondales were just nasty to ride compared to Tange Prestige frames, jittered all over, but they looked cool, were fairly light, & were priced well. Steel is also far tougher than aluminium or carbon, its just a better material for all but top pros where every ounce counts & bikes are free.
All internal routing is a deal breaker for me. It's cool the frame is aluminum. But companies coming out trying to charge carbon prices for aluminum? More sketchy moves from bike brands. And they don't even have cable routing for mechanical shifters. Now that there is no external cables, or partially external cables, it takes them less time and costs less money to make the frame, too.
frame material's effect on ride quality is so over stated. your tires, seat, grips, and suspension reduce vibration FAR more than frame material
Aluminum has its place as a light weight and affordable frame material. This allows for cheaper bikes. Much needed in parts of the world where even a 1k bike would be considered astronomically expensive.
meanwhile broh goes ahead and pay 2000 for an aluminum frame lol
The whole frame have like 40€ worth of aluminium in it.
On the Superteam wheels: 1. Superteam is not, it's a relatively well known brand. I woulnd't be surprised if they actually have good support. 2. I'm willing to bet the bearings are a standard, widely-available size. I'd also bet that it uses DT-Swiss star ratchets like everything else these days. 3. Sealed bearing hubs are generally pretty good for many years no matter what. Long story shop: they'll be fine.
And to be fair, support for DT Swiss wheels in the UK is shite. It is taking 4 weeks for their official UK distributor / service centre to replace my Spokes as they don't stock them. This is on a 4 year old wheel! So long that I have had to buy a cheap wheel while I wait.
Of course. But a bike shop won't tell you that. They will tell you that you need the most expensive wheelset they have on offer to not be a loser and bring it in for full service every 6 months 😂
yeah this is typical bike shop bullshit where they just passive aggressively shit on Chinese wheelsets. superteam and elite wheels have support and are responsive.
Ever wondered why everybody and their brother is making carbon wheels now? Might it be the INSANE profit they generate? Seems to me these wheels are just priced the way they all should be.....
Lost me at electronic shifting.
You can run 1x mechanical 🖤
@@blackheartbikeco or a triple
Dude, I ride flat bar big tires but I love your channel and I watch in a religious fashion solely because your attitude is correct. Don't go changin'.
🤜❤️🤛
liking the product review videos very much! more of these, less races/events lol
I picked up a Ripmo AF recently, and it’s been an incredible ride. It’s really made me rethink the need for carbon frames, especially for mountain biking, even though I consider myself a bit of a weight weenie. For the wheels, I’ve found the perfect balance by sourcing rims from China and having them built locally with quality known hubs and spokes.
Internally routed bikes have been around for years, long before electric group sets existed. Yeah sure its easier to maintain an externally routed cable bike... but the whole point of internally routed cables is to protect the housings and cables from the elements and create a neater overall package. This also helps bring the maintenance interval down overall. So the statement that internally routed bikes are made for electric shifting doesn't make any sense. Internally routed bikes are made for cables and hoses that need to get from A to B and be protected from the elements. Electronic group sets and electric bikes are cool and all, but mechanical group sets and bikes still play a very large role in the industry, similar to how electric vehicles relate to internal combustion vehicles, yeah they seem cool and all, they are new, sexy and the hot trend, but they realistically take up a small percentage of the overall cars in use. ALSO, with the increase in electrical cars and group sets, the right to repair/ ability to repair risk is at threat more now than ever, which could devastate the fix it mentality and allow the use once and throw out culture. This both hurts the end user, mechanics, the industry, the cost of entry and the planet as a whole. Furthermore, to break out the full on hippie logic, take a look at the carbon footprint of building a mechanical AL bike versus a plastic (carbon) electric bike, and relate that to the expected life expectancy of the product. Batteries are a nasty thing when you really dig deep into the resources required to manufacture them, not to mention the inability to recycle them in this country, there are a few places, but it is a very infant process in this day and age, hopefully we get better as time goes on, but the future does not look too bright for that industry. - Long time viewer of your videos, hope this message does not seem to aggressive, i work in the automotive field as an mechanical engineer and think about this type of thing regularly. Funny enough, i ride my AL mechanical internally routed gravel bike to work every day (26 mile round trip) with a road wheelset and a nice set of paniers.
Aluminum was too harsh until we started putting bigger tubeless tires on it.
Aluminum can also "fatigue" and crack over time... I found that out the hard way.
I’ve heard a lot about the limitations of an aluminum bike, I currently have 4 bikes, an aluminum road, Carbon road, aluminum mountain, carbon gravel. Honestly, I love all of them. I’ve never felt any limitations on the aluminum bikes.
It’s not all about the frame material, but rather, the frame design that makes how a bike feels.
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Wide tyres and low pressures is what makes the bike feel so good. Early days of aluminium frames we had skinny tyres and 120psi. Carbon fixed that but since the advent of discs the tyre restrictions have been removed and aluminium is really relevant. Awesome looking bike by the way 👍
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It would be interesting for a comparison between this frame and your aluminum Canyon
I was thinking the exact same thing I appreciate this comment because it helps encourage me to actually do it
I just bought a road Ti from Zack as well. I actually stopped riding my carbon bikes. And I’ve had almost every big name flagship frame. From pinarello to Colnago to factor to Bianchi. I don’t think I’m going back!
Thanks for being part of the fam 🖤
@ thank you I’m super happy with my bike frame. Love the aesthetics and the ride quality and performance. She’s fast!
Back in 2001, I bought an all-aluminum Bianchi, with a ChroMoly fork and seat post, and I commuted on it for several years. At one point, I calculated that I put about 12k miles on that bike. Then in 2011, I replaced it with a Specialized that still had an aluminum frame, but had a carbon fork and carbon seat post, and that made an absolute world of difference. It got me probably 80% of the ride quality of the two all-carbon bikes I've had since then - one with aluminum wheels, and the newest with carbon wheels. Each step up the food chain has made a noticeable difference in ride quality, but for sure the biggest bang for your buck is getting a carbon fork and seat post - I think that makes an aluminum frame totally reasonable by modern ride quality standards
Cmon Dustin looks like you've just reinvented the topstone 😂 serious note look at Hosking bikes from aus
Thumbs up on Aluminum. Totally agree that with 40mm+ tires, frame 'compliance' doesn't matter much, especially at 30 psi. For $1900/frame I would expect hydro-formed tubes. In 2014, I paid $400 for a 61cm AL Scattante cross frame that weighs 1800g. My 61cm Crockett weighs 1581g. The older bike is 2x with a 561% range. The newer bike is 1x with 520% range. Both bikes can use 44mm tires. Explain to me again why this Blackheart Gravel frame is differentiated performance-wise?
I don’t think DK needs to explain anything to you. You should just go back to 2014 and keep buying $400 frames.
I've actually only owned 3 true road bikes. A steel Lemond, an aluminum Ridley, and a carbon Colnago CLX (the one NOT made in Italy). That Ridley descended like a rocketship. It was so fast. I loved that bike, and it ended up as scrap after I was hit by a car. The Colnago rode like a dream, but the chainstays weren't up for my weight + the bad Montreal roads, so I sold it for cheap to someone that was willing to repair it (I was all-in on cyclocross at the time anyway).
Aluminum is a fine material, and with big tyres and a carbon bar like that, there was never any doubt in my mind that that would be a great bike.
Just a heads up for my fellow Clydesdales, I spent some time looking at the Gravel AL today and apparently it's got a 220lbs/100KG weight limit. I asked why and was told it was due to the material they used and should be on the lookout for the Gravel Ti... Sigh, I really wanted to like this one.
Correct. With all materials there are trade offs, and we wanted to make an aluminum frame that rides well meaning thinner tubes for some flex, spring, and compliance. If we made an aluminum frame with a high weight limit then it would require thicker tubes and compromise the ride quality. However, with our Ti frames with similar tube thicknesses we can have beautiful ride quality and a weight limit of 275 lbs. Just the nature of the materials.
I just bought my 2nd aliexpress fake saddle. I absolutely love that thing. Thank you again for that recommendation!
I got one too, but it wasn't as comfortable as the basic saddle that came with my bike.
@@spinnetti saddle comfort is so individualistic. My wife is on her 5th and still hasn’t found one that works for her. And that starts to get expensive. I feel very lucky to have found one that works for me. Especially lucky that it only costs $65.
@@rug212are you able to share a link to it or otherwise share the seller/name so I can find it?
I have the real one, have you compared? Thinking about buying the fake one for my gravel bike
@@rug212Get your wife a proper bike fit. My saddle was uncomfortable until i found out my saddle is 1.5 cm too high
this is such a great channel. love this dudes glases :DDDDD
For this money, you can by a complete Canyon Grizl Alloy…
Got a TI from Blackheart and really like that. Happy that they keep it good to all of their frames.
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I guess gravel frame material matters less than road because the amount of flex the frame provides compared to large tires is a very small amount. I think Peak torque explained it in a video.
I guess I fallen into the camp that aluminum is harsh and all the other bad things said about it. The fact that it’s recyclable is a big bonus, hey you may be riding on somebody’s old beer cans, lol. I’ve gone to steel, and the frame was made in Austin, Tx.. Steel is also recyclable over and over like aluminum. Like you I’m riding a frame material that is likely recycled.
Enjoy the ride.
Don't be scared of Aluminum. There are a bunch of companies making great frames these days.
I’d love to see you do a “blindfold” test ride between the black heart and the willier!! Same wheels and tires. Same route! Put a visor under your eyes to block which bike your on!! Then be honest!!
I ride an Aluminium framed gravel bike from UK brand Mason Cycles. It's a great bike, and certainly not uncomfortable. It's possible to make a good frame that's comfortable and rides well from any of the main bike building materials.
The bounce test is the golden standard
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Glad to hear all the fun facts about aluminum. It’s a good looking whip too. 👌
Stoked you like those bits about aluminum Teve I was also very surprised by them
Great video, and love the bike! Watching, one thought kept jumping into my head…
Perhaps you need to ask where the “aluminum is harsh“ theory came from.
Sadly, I’m old enough to remember. Back in the day (a.k.a. the late 1980s / early 1990s), when carbon was just coming to bikes and aluminum was “the thing”, it was all about getting a stiffer bike for better ride quality as compared to the then current standard of skinny (aka flexible) steel tubed frame sets. Add new-school oversized aluminum frame tubing to the then currently in use ultra low volume tires (19c-20c on road; 1.75”-1.9” off road), and voilà… hello super harsh ride.
Fast-forward 30 years, with the road/gravel space finally catching up and adopting mtn hike evolutions by swap out rim brakes for disc brakes, allowing for internal rim width expansion, in turn allowing for lightweight / high volume tires on road and gravel bikes, and voilà… good bye super harsh ride.
Unconstrained by the UCI’s road and CX rules, mountain bike riders figured out the benefits of large volume tires 15-20 years ago. Roadies and gravel riders (who are mostly road or CX converts, and thus broadly unfamiliar with mtn bike design evolution) are just figuring this out now.
Welcome to the future!
We make custom aluminum frames in Portland and we approve of this message!
🫡
Hell ya 🖤
As overpriced as in this video?
@@kazuviking What's your perfect aluminum bike?
@@blackheartbikeco My local alu frame shop can pump out identical diamond shaped frameset for 300€ which offers the exact same features.
$2K for a frameset only is a bit much, is the USA built frame? Because for a little more I can get an Otso Warakin Steel complete with a GRX build kit. The all road AL is priced better imho. Blackheart use to be out of their bike shop Luft in Venice Beach. They still have the bike shop there to test ride their bikes. You should take a winter trip down here to check their shop out. Plus, my friend's shop, LA Cyclery, that's woman owned & part of the dirt culture.
I don't think these are USA made, they'd be flexing that in all their marketing material if it was, and they don't.
That’s not a woman owned bike shop. If you want to support women, support women. And if you want to support trans, that’s cool too. But calling it woman owned when it is not is inaccurate.
Been riding for real since 1999. The only frames I’ve ever broken have been aluminum.
I’m 6’6 and 230lbs.
Carbon has payed out well for me.
Aluminum got a bad name because carbon does tend to ride better if all things are equal. But by the time you add carbon wheels and premium tires aluminum's durability far outshines the small gains the average rider gets in a slightly lighter bike. I traded my Trek sl5 in for a al5 added 2 pounds but am glad that I made the swap. Lifetime warranty on the frame and piece of mind. haha I ride for fun and fitness not to go pro.
Pretty cool idea Dustin! My second bike is aluminum too with carbon fork and I too just use it as something to experiment with.
Talks about recyclability of aluminum as opposed to carbon. Proceeds with carbon fork, bars, wheels, seatpost and saddle.
Haha. Carbon isn't evil and has clear advantages in certain applications like you mention. But for the frame aluminum can be superior to carbon in many instances. And if you can reduce your impact then all the better 🖤
@@trilitronikas so do you ride an aluminum or glass saddle?
Aluminum is more environmentally friendly, which is true.
But I think we as a community should talk more about our clothes which are full of PFAS.
Your beloved Goretex started it all and now there's this toxic stuff everywhere. And I'm not free of guilt as I have some PFAS rain gear as well, but it's very difficult to find something in the cycling industry which is high quality but free of these chemicals.
A carbon frame can easily hold up for a very long time, yes aluminum is better for the environment, but ultimately it's better to only buy a bike when you really need it, not just if you want it.
last year i built a diverge evo with drop bars thinking it would ride harsh from riding previous alum track bikes. big tires helped a lot (700x47) seriously one of the best drop bar single track purposed bike i built.
Love hearing this!
That's some serious schizzle Yo. Time to rethink my frame snobbery. Nice review Amigo!
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Perfect tire combo.
The aluminium frame is very reliable on long rides. Your not gonna worry if u crash it, durable. You got a peace of mind. And, of course to go faster, you need lots of practice...🙂👍🚴♂️
"free from unwritten rules, and the pressure to conform..." and " ...this bike is essentially made for wireless or electronic groupsets only..." Of course it is 😂
Thanks for the comment. We're talking about the rider, not the bike. i.e. you don't need to have the right sock height or wear your glasses in the correct way. You do you. And you can run 1x mechanical on the Gravel AL. We don't see too much demand for 2x mechanical on a gravel bike so that's why we didn't include this is the design 🖤
@@blackheartbikecoyeah... Still out of touch charging 2k for an aluminium frame
Doesn't aluminum have next to zero compliance when going over bumps? Isn't it generally uncomfortable compared to a carbon bike?
Thanks for the comment. Outdated thinking based on aluminum bikes from decades ago. Today with modern aluminum alloys, double-butted tubes, and custom tube molds you can make aluminum frames that have great ride quality. Just like you can make a carbon frame that rides like wood or one that is sublime. It comes down to the design, material, and manufacturing.
People saying $2k for a frame being a lot is in reference to a gravel to road frame right? Because for an aluminum mountain bike, $2k is pretty damn reasonable
I remember when aluminum was the prized frame material.
I have nothing against riding an aluminum bike again.
I am kind of curious about the environmental impact of carbon frame manufacturing. That I’ll have to look into.
I suggest you compare it to the Specialized Crux DSW! Would be very interesting, because the media basically doesn‘t cover the crux dsw at all, even though it‘s a great bike, proven geometry etc. (except pretty cockpit).
I love mine :)
Hey Dustin, I don't ride road, or gravel, but I love your channel. I'm 42. From my early teens through my 30s I rode BMX, specifically skateparks. Those bikes were all 4130 chromoly. I got into MTB about 4 years ago and have had two aluminum bikes. While I imagine that my next build will be steel. It's real. I have to mention that my current aluminum hard tail is a dream to ride. The geometry is aggressive, synonymous with perfect, and the tubing is designed to flex and deaden much of the chatter. I ride it in the skatepark occasionally and definitely feel the flex. Not great. But on the trail it is perfection. The compliant aluminum mixed with the weight savings keeps me from longing too hard for my future steal forever bike. I chose my current bike for the geo and many reviews noting it's "special sauce". I hear that more companies are really trying to tune their aluminum tube thickness and diameter to reduce harshness.
Those bars are anything but custom, they're all over aliexpress
my Mommy bike is a hearty and proven AL hybrid. It tows. Offroad. It's comfy. It won't rust. It doesn't weigh a ton. I have a lithe lugged vintage touring bike, a burly Ti gravel rando, a beast of a carbon MTB and this do almost all AL mommy bike which I also love. Hype is hype. Don't like rust? you have options. don't like weight? you have options.
Join the club Dustin,my two gravel and cross bike are Ali,I don't do plastic,I think Kona and Fuji have been in the game nuff time to get it right
I will say and I am sure you have heard this before. I miss the mega adventure days you used to post about more often. I feel now your channel is mostly about bikes and not the adventures you can have on them.
I will still follow/watch
I’ve got two bikes with internal routed mechanical and they’re completely fine-shift great no issues. Not sure why that’s “not advised”
You can build with mechanical 1x. Using a flexi section of Jagwire cable housing (which we include) solves the problem
It's probably not advised because changing the cables is a much bigger hassle with fully internal
@@youdontgettoknowthat1928 mountain bikes have been doing it for years!
What's really shown here is how much carbon wheels can make any frame fun and rideable.
It's part of the sauce, but modern materials and frame design have come a long way! 🖤
AWESOME steed. I would LOVE to barrow the bike and put it thru some test here in Michigan, in Detroit and everywhere between. Just saying that would be awesome. 😉
My main road bike (50mm carbon wheels w/ 25mm tires) is aluminum, my gravel bike (38mm carbon wheels/tires and widths vary) is titanium, my mountain bike (AL rims w/ 29x2.6" tires) is aluminum, and my trainer bike is carbon fiber. With that being said, my trainer bike (Ridley Fenix SL) with 30mm tires on it out on the road is like riding a Cadillac in the comfort/smoothness department on rough roads. My titanium gravel bike on rough gravel terrain feels no different than any other frame material (i.e. beats the crap out of me). My road bike is comfortable on good/decent roads, but still snappy/responsive.
Nonsense review. How much were you paid?
$0
Hunt Wheels!! Best of both worlds...Great Value. Been on a gravel wheel set for 5 years, still true.
I’ve been eyeing an all road ti from black heart. But, I love all black bikes, so if the Alu one rides just as nice, I may get that to keep the cost down a little bit, and get their second wheel set option.
They ride really similarly. Hit us up and we'll schedule a time to jump on a call to discuss 🖤
I have a Mason Cycles Bokeh for 4 years and this bike is amazing! Unfortunately this model has 42mm tyre clearance which for 2024 standards is limited, but I love this bike and have done very long amazing rides with it. It’s a UK brand and they do amazing stuff
The only composite bike I own is my 1988 Mantis X/C R. Literally thousands of miles later, still riding.
I used to have an aluminum Bombtrack that I used for gravel riding some pretty rough stuff and it was surprisingly smooth for what I expected for aluminum. And pretty light to boot.
I'd bet the origin of the aluminum being uncomfortable comes from road racing. What size are those tires?
The tire size is mentioned in the video
Lol no, the original Cannondale MTBs were absolutely horrid to ride, that where it comes from.
Steel is real.
Another integrated pile of junk. No mechanical and an expensive faff except for the most minor of bike fit adjustments.
Thanks for the comment. You can run mechanical 1X, just use a flexi bit of Jagwire housing through the BB. And you can run a standard bar and stem combo as well. 🖤
@ I take that all back then,kudos to the designers for that. Far too many current bike offerings do not allow it.
IIRC Blackheart uses 7005 aluminum , not like the 6000 series alloy used for most most other bike frames.
That frame is not going to last. There is a reason why most companies use 6061 aluminium for their frames and forks.
@@kazuviking It will and we stand by our products. And there is a reason why most companies use 6061, it's cheaper 🖤
@@blackheartbikeco 7005 is inferior to 6061 in every way. More expensive to work with, anodizing, heat treatment and welding needs more precision. Offers nothing over 6061 at bike level tube thickness. Funny hearing cheaper from you when you outsource to China where workrs being paid nothing.
@@kazuviking Disagree, but all good. You can use 6061 when you manufacture your bikes. 🖤
geometry is more important than frame material
Confused… stoked about recycling aluminum but puts all carbon components on?
Also mechanical shifting works fine on internal routing.
Pretty sure this exact frame is sold on Temu for $250
Thanks for the comment. We believe in the right material for the right application. At times carbon is the superior material. At other times aluminum. And just like riding a bike to work when you own car is a great thing, incorporating aluminum when possible is a great idea.
And no, this frame is not sold on Temu for $250. Our frames are designed and tested at our shop in Northern CA, manufactured to our spec in our partner factories, and independently tested to CPSC 1512 and ISO 4210 standards in Southern CA 👍👍
Once you put on 40+mm tyres there is no discernible compliance difference between carbon, alloy, Ti, steel. I’ve had them all. Only thing that matters is geo. Plus weight if that’s important to you.
I'm a heavier rider. 100kg and can't afford a new bike every 2nd year. Seen too many failures with Carbon so my mountain bike as well as road are both Aluminium. My gravel build will be much like yours as well. I guess I'm also not a good enough rider to feel or get any benefits from carbon.
“…. I don’t know why he won’t go inside.”😂
What? Why would you never run mechanical with an internally routed frame? I understand it can be tricky to thread the cable but it's not that hard.
It works fine. We recommend using a section of Jagwire Flexible Housing through the BB area and include with our framesets.
As a bike mechanic from the mid 80s - early 2000s Aluminum frames were way more expensive than steel. I got out of the business for about 10 years as the tech was just getting ridiculous. Getting back into it I saw that Aluminun was cheaper and steel cost a premium over it. I have never been a fan of aluminum bikes, but own 2 because of cost. I think builders have Aluminum dialed right now because they feel better and more importantly, they don't break as easy as they used to. Love the channel btw.
No too dear
Yes, I would like to borrow it sir.
aluminium isnt making a comeback , IT NEVER WENT AWAY!
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Right!
I've had a couple of aluminum Cannodale CAAD road bikes that I loved. They were quick and nimble, didn't rust in the Seattle winters, and I didn't notice that they were harsh. My only problem with aluminum is that I've only cracked or broke an aluminum frame. I don't tend to be that guy that's always breaking bike parts, but I cracked the headtube of a Yeti DH303, and snapped the rear triangle of a Foes mountain bike. Maybe aluminum has a shorter shelf life? Cool bike build. Would love a long term review on the Apex AXS stuff
I fit two road tubolitos and a Spare sram battery in the same saddle bag, and the tyre levers go into straps, no more overfilling the jersey pockets
Thank you for trying all this combo! I’d like to see you doing upgrades to ebikes with the sx motor ;)
Love you colorful fleece jacket. Where can I get one? Also your riding glasses with the side protection?
Back in the day, before suspension , we rode aluminum Cannondales and Klein with big tires and they were great. It’s no surprise to me with big tires and low pressure that it’s a nice ride.
Super fatty tires on that rig!! Plus you got carbon bars, fork, and wheels! I can see how you have no fatigue! 🤷🏻♂️
AL has its place. In Downhill and enduro rigs for sure if you want to ride the same frame for a while! Carbon is going to break eventually!
Bad for the environment is carbon, for sure and just all the consumption as well. Thinking of getting an e bike soon! Is it because it will save the planet? Hell NO- because it will be fun. If we want to save the planet we could all pull out that 80’s steel frame and good old human power, rigid and painful = builds character!
E bikes and e transmissions. More batteries, more electrical use of the grid, more energy used to manufacture them!! People making a living!
I bet the big 45c tires (& Carbon rims/wheels, bar/stem, fork, and seat post all also) 'help' the frame, to not make the ride feel too harsh ...
Aluminum's harshness is/was especially felt (back) on road bikes with 23c tires, and/or bikes accompanied with other mostly alloy parts too.
That's a sweet bike! (I see on their website it's built for and you can also spec it with the short travel gavel forks too) honestly wasn't familiar with this bike brand, looked them up, really cool looking and quality stuff, also cool they're in Truckee. And as always great video Dustin, keep em coming!
Got to love a solid aluminum build
Carbon wheels on aluminum helps so does a carbon fork, but a suspension fork would be perfect
Don’t we have to factor in the fact that your major components (fork / cockpit / wheels) are carbon fiber so you benefit from the dampening from everything besides the frame?
Part of the sauce, but the frame is 7005 allowing for thinner double-butted tubes and better compliance/flex compared to cheap aluminum frames.