Profile’s Tech Tip #25: Weight, What? Comparing Titanium to Chromo.
The eternal debate of Titanium versus Chromo.
When to, and when not to?
What do we recommend?
An overview of the material.
- Our Chromo 19mm and 22mm GDH Spindles, Hub Bolts, 14mm and 3/8 Inner Hubs Axles, and GDH Crank Bolts are 4140 “Cold Drawn Annealed” steel.
- Our Chromo Hub Drivers are 4140 “Hot Rolled, Quenched and Tempered” steel.
- Our Titanium 19mm and 22mm Spindles, Hub Bolts, 14mm Axles, 3/8 Hub Bolts, and Stem Bolts are 6AL-4V (Aircraft Grade).
***Note: Both the aircraft and race car industries have subbed out a lot of their steel components for titanium.
Our Opinions:
For Freestyle…
“From my experiences here at Profile, both on feedback from other riders and personally (using titanium as an upgrade on pretty much everything I ride), titanium is a great alternative to steel for light street (if you’re not hard on parts), trail riding, and especially when riding ramp.
The two parts I would recommend changing first (if any at all), would be your titanium spindle and titanium 14mm axle (If you’re riding a cassette hub). These two parts take a up a great deal of your component weight.
From there, your driver, hub bolts (do not use titanium bolts with pegs, use them on your non-peg side), crank bolts, and stem bolts (in descending order) would be my last complimentary additions for bike weight loss.
If you have any specific questions, please feel free to contact me direct and I can give you tips and feedback on potential product selection.”
For Race…
“First, titanium is remarkable for its amazing resistance to corrosion, where chromo is subject to rusting over time.
And, to get technical, titanium is remarkable for its base tensile strength of 138000 PSI. Given its weight, it is the supreme material to use as an alternative to Chromo when wanting to lighten up your race bike.
When asked what parts to change out for titanium, I always recommend starting with the Ti crank axle and Ti hub bolts first. However, we also have titanium cassette drivers for Elite and Mini hubs which also significantly reduce weight.
Titanium stem bolts are also a good compliment.
Please feel free to contact me at [email protected] if you have any technical or installation questions.”
Here are three, general, weight comparison photos.
For more complete weight info, feel free to check product specs here: www.profileracing.com/store/
