Steel then and now - is there really a noticeable difference

Boutique shed dwellers the lot of 'em!

Yo, P23, Zinn or Roberts - they would most likely pass but, to comply and be insured, your product has to exceed CEN standards hence the 'over building'. You dont want a product to barely pass and subsequently fail, you want to be proud that your product exceeds by a long way any standard set.

Imagine CEN in the 1990's - no Kooka cranks!

Interestingly, current bikes are already near the CEN head angle 'limit' of 65 degrees.
 
Re:

The art of riding a basic simple bicycle seems to be getting lost out there

I'm not sure I agree with that. Surely the whole fixed and single speed trend was about simplicity and a lot of brands now offer some single speed and fairly "no frills" city bike options.

Put a set of road tyres and maybe a set of mudguards and a rack on an early rigid mountain bike and it made a practical, durable and robust commuter or urban bike. More recent mountain bikes have generally become heavier and more complex, with bouncy bits one or both ends and don't readily convert into to a practical road or urban bikes. Perhaps another reason some brands now have something not dissimilar to a rigid MTB with road tyres in their line up; like this Marin Muirwoods:

2048x1200_Main_Gallery__0033_Muirwoods-Black.jpg
 
Re:

There is a bewildering array of specialist niche bikes made these days. I think modern frame builders are often building bikes that look and potentially perform like the top end steel bikes of old. I say potentially because many who own both still prefer their originals ;) I read a post on FB today from a guy who raced his original Yo against modern for a whole season last year !!! and placed 7th overall out of 110 riders ;)
 

Latest posts

Back
Top