Are carbon forks on a road bike worth it?

[marl]

Are they? Apart from the weight advantages are they better than a steel set for shock absorption? Reason i ask is that i'm thinking of buying a road bike and am checking out a few in Halfords!

 

[6thElement]

Most bikes are currently aluminium tubed, not steel. It's lighter than steel, but also stiffer which gives a more rigid ride. A carbon fork is lighter again and gives better absorption for road vibration.

 

[marl]

Thanks for reply. In terms of shock absorption is there much difference between aluminium and carbon?

 

[MTA99]

Most bikes are currently aluminium tubed, not steel. It's lighter than steel, but also stiffer which gives a more rigid ride. A carbon fork is lighter again and gives better absorption for road vibration.

Just a small technical point but in absolute terms steel is stiffer than aluminium (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young's_modulus#Approximate_values) however.......

Aluminium has a higher specific stiffness (although this link demonstrates specific strength http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Specific_strength).

In simple terms this means that you although you need a thicker wall section or greater diameter of tube with aluminium to achieve the same stiffness as steel overall the mass will be smaller.

MTA99 MEng

 

[semi-pro waster]

I suppose it depends how sensitive you are to it (and to a certain extent how much cash you have to play with) but carbon forks should take the sting out of the road slightly better. If there isn't much difference in price I'd go with carbon forks.

 

[monkeypants]

I got my road bike from Halfords. The bottom of the range Virtuoso. It's really nice, replaced the pedals with some Look clipless but everything else is as it came. Mine has a steel fork and you can feel pretty much all of the road through it. I've ridden carbon fork and seatstay bikes and they're a less jarring.

It's all down to what you're willing to put up with against what you're willing to spend.