These bike frames designed specifically to be used over rough terrain. These frames make your ride over the rocky hills a comfortable and pleasant adventure. The frame is tough enough to endure jumps, drops boulders and divots.

Downhill mountain bike frames provide comfort and stability and resistance on difficult terrains. Keeping the end use in mind these off-road bike frames are usually sold to adventure sport enthusiasts. Who also like to perform stunts on hilly and uneven terrain. Downhill mountain bike frames are getting stronger and  lighter as new technologies, designs and materials are being introduced over a period of time.

Downhill Mountain Bike Frames are designed for a multitude surfaces and terrains; hence the bike design makes it heavier and more stable than a regular bike frame. These frame design makes the bike adept at handling obstacles at high speeds. But it should be mentions these frames are not built for speed they are built to last.

Downhill Mountain Bike Frames use materials made of alloys with a composition of carbon and aluminum.

Carbon being use for increase strength and aluminum makes the frames lighter and easier to handle without compromising on their strength. The unique material used to make the frame is an important factor in designing and making the frame.

Size matters for downhill mountain bike frames

An important feature in the Downhill Mountain Bike Frames is the seven inches of suspension travel which allow accommodating the bumpy ride of the mountain. This also allows the bike to absorb shocks more effectively than any other design. Another special feature of the Downhill Mountain Bike Frames is the slack head angle is angled at 64 degrees. The sag or bend provided by the angle allows for more traction on the mountain.

You can choose the size of your downhill mountain bike frame depending on your height and inseam measurements. The measurement of the bike frame is taken from the center of your head tube to the center of your seat tube. As a general rule the longer your wheel base the more stable your bike will be at high speeds. Taking into account the size and stability is very important if you are going to perform tricks on your bike.

The Downhill mountain bike frames are built particularly to go down a mountain and not for the traditional commuting as they are specifically designed to go down a rocky terrain or a mountain slope and not ride at high speeds on plain surfaces.

Downhill MTB Frames – Suitable for rocky surfaces

Downhill mountain bike frames can be used on a rocky mountain, a ski lift, around the countryside valley and for many adventure sports that are gaining mainstream media attention around the world.

Awareness and demand for these frames has increased over a period of time especially with the advent of television and the news media, as customers are given more options and off-track biking has become a mainstream adventure sport around the world. In conclusion don’t try to go up the mountain using a The Downhill mountain bike frame on your bike. The name The downhill mountain bike frame is given specifically for that very special purpose.

Read Full Post »

Full suspension and Hardtail are the two main types of mountain bikes.The full suspension mountain bikes have a front and rear suspension as a part of the bike frame. Hardtail bikes on the other hand do not have a rear suspension. Some of these bikes do have a suspension fork. Hardtail mountain bike frames are preferred for  are a rough terrain. Earlier hardtail bikes were more in demand than full suspension. Now that trend has changed, but there is still a significant demand for hardtails.

Hardtail MTB Cheaper

Hardtail bikes are much cheaper than full suspension bikes. They are also more sturdy and lighter in weight. They have lesser parts in the frame and no rear suspension. Hardtail mountain bike frames are easy to maintain and their spare parts are also inexpensive. Hard tail bikes are good for somewhat rugged terrain or for bike racing. They are versatile and work for most terrains of cross country. That is why they are popular.

Over the past few years, hardtail bikes have improved a lot in terms of tubing. There are also special bikes for women and people of a small build. In order to give extended support to the bike rider, hardtail bikes have an S-bend seatstay. This makes for comfortable seats on the bike. The hardtail bikes have a derailer hanger that is replacable. Incase the derailler gets crushed, it can be replaced and the whole bike doesn’t become unusable. The tubes are shaped to assist the rider yet make the bike stiff.

Hardtail Mountain Bike Frame Materials

The hardtail bike have frames made of various materials like titanium, aluminium, carbon fibre or steel. These frames are sturdy. The quality of the suspension used in the bikes has also improved in the recently. The brakes used are disc brakes. Even the inexpensive varieties of the hardtail there are good suspension forks. Depending on  the budget and application of the hardtail, the bike variety and accessories can be selected. Buying a hardtail bike in winter months is a good idea since the prices are the lowest at that time of the year.

In terms of hardtail bike frames, steel and aluminium are the most inexpensive and commonly used materials. Carbon and titanium frames are expensive. Titanium frames are resistant to corrosion and are polished. The suspension forks on the bike can be air sprung and light and they can be tuned. The coil spring forks, on the other hand last longer.

Hardtail MTB Brakes

The brakes on the hardtail can be either disk brakes or liner-pull rim brakes. Disk brakes are more durable. Linear pull rim brakes are the more conventional brakes. Their spare parts are easier to find. Disk brakes however work in most unfavourable weather conditions. For hardtail bikes, tubeless tires or any light tires are a good option. Most hardtail bikes do not have pedals or have clipless pedals. In terms of prices and varieties there are a lot of options available. The rider should actually test-ride the bike and see the comfort before buying it.

Read Full Post »

Specialized mountain bike frames are tailor made frames to meet the requirements of the customer. In most cases customers take standard mountain bike frames and ask for certain modification made on them to suit their needs. Several factors including weight and special design of the frame are key factors that play a vital role in making the bike.

Conversions in bikes from hard tail to soft tail and vice versa, any other modifications like fixing a water bottle cage on the frame can be made. Certain customers get their mountain bikes made on the basis of their weight, height and inseam measurements. The material used to make the Specialized mountain bike frames is a very important factor to manufacture the frame to meet the requirements of the customers. The weight and strength of the bike will depend a lot on the content of alloy carbon and aluminum used to make the Specialized mountain bike frame.

These bikes are designed depending on the activity the Specialized mountain bike frame is going to be used. Some bikes are used to perform tricks on dirt tracks. Some are used to ride on Rocky Mountains; others are used to move on other unpaved environments. The frames of these Specialized Mountain bikes are made to withstand the stress of the harsh environments.

Specialized Mountain Bike Frames – Size Matters!

The frames of Specialized mountain bike are in most cases made to accommodate large diameter knobby tires. The different applications of a Specialized mountain bike frame is used in is the cross-country, endure and free rider. The wheel base or size of tires is large for mountain bikes but it is usually much larger for Specialized mountain bike frames, it can go up to twenty nine inches or more. Hence keeping that in mind the designing of the frame needs to be done. Because of this special feature Specialized mountain bikes can go at higher speeds than a regular mountain bike.

The Specialized mountain bike frames may also be used to attain higher flexibility than a regular mountain bike frame.

If the customer wants a softer ride on the rough he or she can have suspensions fit both in front and behind making the ride shock proof. This can be an important technical specification to be considered while making specialized mountain bike frames.

Specialized MTB Frames – 40 years old!

Specialized mountain bikes came into the market in 1970s. These bikes were different from regular road bikes. They had wider forks, frames and tires. The handles were straight and mounted transversely. The brake was put on the bike frame and the disk was bolted to the hub using six bolts. Two bolts were used to combine the brake pad assembly to the frame. The bikes had a front suspension fork. This made it easier to ride the bike on uneven terrain.

Specialized bikes are on the heavier side, so that they endure rough patches of land well. They have varying suspension in different areas of the bike. The rear doesn’t have much suspension and has a soft tail. The specialized mountain bike frames are flexible and suited well for the rider’s purpose.

Read Full Post »

A mountain bike is that which is meant for cycling on conditions other than city roads. This includes riding conditions that are rough and rocky. These bikes are more sturdy than ordinary bikes. They have bigger tyre rims, front and rear suspension and many gears to facilitate the rider.

These mountain bike frames became popular during the 90s. Initially the full suspension frames that came out were bulky and made riding the bike difficult. There were problems with the brakes and a lot of effort was required while riding up hill. These problems were solved by Mert Lawwil. He designed full suspension mountain bike frames, known as Gary Fisher RS – 1. It had an A arm suspension design and four- bar linkage which was a new concept for full suspension mountain bikes of the time. Certain problems in the bike were then rectified by Horst Leitner, who came out with a bike known as Horst Link. His company, AMP, was involved in Research and manufacture of Mountain Bikes. AMP manufactured Full Suspension Mountain Bikes for about 10 years.

Full Suspension MTB – Made for Downhill ..

For mountainous downhill terrain, full suspension bikes are the best option. These bikes are preferred by professionals due to the front and rear suspension in the entire body frame. The bike is meant for heavy duty use on the most rough terrain.

Bikes with a full suspension are meant for heavy duty usage. The rear suspension is especially to absorb the bumps that are associated with rugged terrain. They make it easier for the rider to pedal and control the bike.

A full suspension frame is more expensive than say, a hardtail bike. The rear suspension also makes the bike heavy. This additional weight on the bike frame makes it more difficult while climbing uphill and consumes more energy of the rider.

Full Suspension – Worth its weight (well not literally)..

Although these are disadvantages of the full suspension mountain bikes, the many advantages that outweigh the cons. The bike is very comfortable while riding and when riding downhill, the bike frame works very well. The bike is just as good on rough terrain as on the pavements. The rider also has an option to lock out the full suspension.

The full suspension bike also has to oiled and serviced regularly especially the rear suspension. Is this is not done, the bike’s chain may break unexpectedly.

The full suspension bike frame may be made up of various materials, like aluminium, carbon fibre, steel and titanium. Titanium frames are resistant to rust and corrosion. They are polished, not painted. The lighter the material of the frame, greater the expense of the bike. The rear derailleur hanger is replaceable and can be replaced easily when required. The brakes on the bike are either  disk brakes or liner-pull rim brakes. The best option for full suspension mountain bikes is fully hydraulic disc brakes. These brakes are good during muddy and rainy conditions.

Special full suspension mountain bike frames for women are available. They have a smaller, lighter frame and a wider saddle.

Read Full Post »

A bike frame is the main body of the bicycle to which the wheels are attached along with other bike parts. The diamond frame is the most common of the single speed mountain bike frames and has two paired triangles. Today, most bikes have gears. Often riding a bike is cumbersome because of changing gears. A single speed bike works better and faster than a geared bike.  A single speed bike is one which has a single gear ratio. It doesn’t have any way to change the gears.

As mountain bike frames go, a single speed bike is much more sturdy than a geared bike. It is also much easier to maintain. While gaining speed also, a single speed bike is much faster than a geared bike.

Types of Bikes using Single Speed Bike Frames:

• BMX Bikes
• Most children’s bikes
• Cruiser bikes
• Classic commuter bikes
• Unicycles
• Track racing bikes
• Fixed gear bikes – Road
• Fixed gear bikes – mountain

Another kind of single speed bikes is the fixed gear bike. The fixed gear bike doesn’t have the freewheel mechanism. This mechanism is a favourite with single speed lovers who can cruise down a road without peddling the bike.

Single Speed MTB Frames = Cheaper!

The single speed bike is much cheaper than a geared bike. It is lighter and easier to maintain. It can be used in all weather. Since it doesn’t have the fancy pulleys and chains, it can work better and much faster.

A single speed bike is great for use on levelled roads. But while going uphill more effort is required than a geared bike. Also while going downhill, this bike is slightly hard to control.

The single speed bicycles do not have a lot of options while riding, in terms of gear variations but is very easy and comfortable to ride. A rider of any age will be at ease to ride the single speed bike.

The frames for the single speed bikes can be ‘frame and rigid steel fork’ or ‘frame and fork’.

The main advantage of single speed bikes is their simplicity. That has ensured its wide scale popularity. These are also used for training by athletes.

There are many variants of the single speed bike. They can be built in carbon and titanium.

The science of Single Speed Mountain Bike Frames..

The chain of the bike springs and pulleys are used to maintain tension but not as extensive as geared bikes. The bike’s hubs are threaded on both the sides. The track type threading is intended for a standard freewheel of a single speed bike. In a single speed bike, the chain is directly connected from the chain wheel to the sprocket. A geared bike has a derailer and the chain has to move through that. It complicates the functioning of the bike to a large extent.

For those who are looking for a simple bike without unnecessary frills by which they can commute or use to keep fit, the single speed bike with its light frame is the best option. It is inexpensive and easy to maintain.

Read Full Post »