General: EAI Bareknuckle vs. Bianchi Pista Concept...

Both are very popular fixie framesets rode by tons of you guys on and off the track. Both are about the same price, but of course totally different bikes. Which do you prefer and why?

Steel is real.

Aluminum = Kidney surgery

Steel = Happy riders

Yeah, Bareknucles are most likely going to be tougher.

I'm sure it matters most on the rims/tires, rather than the hubs, right?

I've never really been THAT concerned with having a light bike, but I think if we could, we would all like to have ours lighter. Even if it does not make riding more efficient...it makes your bike easier to carry up tons of steps and such.

I went for the Bareknuckle frame because I got a really good deal on it, and could not be more pleased with it.

If that is your bike, then I want it. Looks like Deep Vs laced to Profiles. Mmmmmmmmmmm. I like.

the bareknuckle is nothing more than your run of the mill kilo tt . and the kilo is around 200 bucks . I cant believe people are paying what theyre paying for a bareknuckle . The pista concept is a amazing bike, but yeah , you do feel more of the bumps on an aluminum frame. You can compensate with a carbon fork , which it comes with ,and carbon seatpost and a nice saddle . BUT, the concept is made at the same factories that mouth, fuji, leader, and so on are made at now , so just save your money and buy a fuji track pro . Ive owned both and , if anything, the fuji was better constructed.

I'd say that the right decision was made with the Bareknuckle, it's a nice frame and it won't rape you over expansion joints like a pista concept would.

another thing, when you start approaching the price of the BK, i don't get why people don't just buy a sweet classic frame

or even a used njs frame cost about the same

i'd rather have the classic frame or a keirin frame than a $700-$800 bk, not that the bk is a bad frame, i just don't get it maybe i'm too old to get it

the new EAI Toyo looks pretty nice, nice cratfsmanship

pricey though for what it is, i think

you cant really tell the quality of a brand new bike by its looks, there are too many other factors that go into making a good bike. for example, if you compare two identical looking bikesbuilt with different tube sets and manufacturers with one with the better manufacturer/ tube set will be a better bike and also more expensive, what is it that people dont understand?

i almost bought a BK, but it's too overpiced for what it is.


from sheldon:

Steel vs Aluminum:

The situation with aluminum is even more pronounced. the "identical" aluminum frame would be 1/3 as stiff as steel, roughly half as strong, and 1/3 the weight. Such a frame would be quite unsatisfactory. That's why aluminum frames generally have noticeably larger tubing diameters and thicker-walled tubing. This generally results with frames of quite adequate stiffness, still lighter than comparable steel ones.

Steel vs Titanium:

Look at the chart again. You'll see that identical steel vs titanium frames would be about equal in strength, but that the titanium frame would be about half the weight and half the stiffness.
Such a frame would likely have a whippy feel due to the reduced stiffness, especially in loaded touring applications. To compensate, builders of titanium frames use somewhat larger diameter tubes to bring the stiffness more into line with what riders like. This tends to increase the weight a bit, but by making the walls of the larger tubes a bit thinner, they can compensate to some extent, and come up with a frame that is still lighter than a normal steel frame.

when you are comparing 2 different steel track frames with similar geometries

the bottom bracket and the hubs are going to dictate your experience, and will make you feel one is better

Coming from a Concept owner... if you're riding the bike with mainly street in mind, get the BK.

I love my Concept and I don't find it very harsh at all with low profile rims, nice tires, a comfy saddle and carbon post. But the tubing is thin as hell and not good for locking up. You may come back to your bike heart broken when there's a fat downtube dent because someone knocked their POS department store bike into yours while locking at the rack. If you're going to use the bike for street AND track though, the Concept would IMO be a better bike for racing.

Both bikes have true track geometry. The Kilo is on the other hand close to traditional track geo., but not all the way. The front end geometry of the Kilo TT (for 53cm) has a 72 degree headtube and 40mm of fork rake... typical track geometry features steeper head tubes (74-75 degrees usually) with less rake (28-33mm usually) for a tighter wheelbase, stiffer road feel and better tracking in the banked walls. What's this mean for the street? Not that much, a Kilo still works great for traffic riding. On the track, I raced my KHS (Kilo rebadged) and did pretty well, though the bike didn't track the steep walls quite as well as my Anchor.

Either way, I used to shit talk the BK but really it's not a bad bike at all, just way overpriced with the current price it is. Don't pay more than $500 for one. They're nicer tubes than the Kilo, more all-around track geometry and handbuilt in Italy instead of Taiwan, but the current price of the frameset is way too much vs. other frames you can get for the same price (pretty much all the aluminum frame/carbon fork track bikes out right now). And I wouldn't doubt the people above saying the BK is stiffer than the Kilo - the steeper seat tube (and in turn, shorter chain stays) and slightly larger tubes will stiffen things up for sure.

Personal preference. Find someone with both and go ride them, that is the only answer.
My roomie has a GTB and that shit is fast and rides very nice.

I've ridden the Concept on both the track and street. Felt more natural on the track than the street.

The BK is my everyday bike and I couldn't be more happy with it.

I decided I need a Pista Concept.

Bareknuckles are no longer in production. Don't waste money on things that are currently being overproduced like concepts and FTP's because they aren't worth anything. They look incredible (not so much the FTP) but they are not meant for the street at all, they are more of entry level track bikes The bareknuckles were handmade in Venezia, Italy and ride like an Italian bicycle. Get one if you can find one.

Posted By: mrymeskiBareknuckles are no longer in production. Don't waste money on things that are currently being overproduced like concepts and FTP's because they aren't worth anything. They look incredible (not so much the FTP) but they are not meant for the street at all, they are more of entry level track bikes The bareknuckles were handmade in Venezia, Italy and ride like an Italian bicycle. Get one if you can find one.

That is not true at all.
Bareknuckles are factor made.
No "track" bike is "meant" for the street
Fuji track pro looks are completely bias (as it would be for any bike) so fo you to say done get one, its ugly is stupid.
They are not overpriced AT ALL. Bareknuckles run 600-800 for semi-high quality steel
Fuji Track Pro riders professionally have done VERY WELL, might I add better than the team that rides Bianchi Concepts.

without a doubt, however I feel that the Fuji track pro is cast in the shadow in comparison to the Bianchi concept because of the hype from mash/macaframa and those guys riding them making a good amount of people search for them
Dont get my wrong, they are really fantastic bikes but I feel that because some people do not like them look wise, they them think their performance is laking.
All Im saying is the fuji track pro is a great bike for the street and track, that has been proven by professional velodrome racers along with really solid riders out of SF, Chicago, Seattle, and NYC. So it shouldn't be cast to the side when considering a concept.

Those models of the panasonics are shit.

lolz, this thread is hilarious.

Posted By: backdoormanare you able to do barspins on the bareknuckles?

no

steel>aluminum for the streets. aluminum is stiffer, thus transfers energy better, but you feel the road doing the same to you.

I have been considering to order a Bareknuckle as well, but since i've heard they were being discontinued, i ordered a Gorilla Bicycles "Zengang" frame, wich is pretty much identical to a BK.
Never would i choose an aluminum frame for street use, but that's personal preference with no logical reason..
However, if i would have known Gorilla would take so much time to react and keep me waiting, i would have gotten a Bareknuckle instead!
(Especially now they're being re-continued, apparently?!)

I know T1-49 already owns a Bareknuckle by now, so sorry for a completely useless comment :|