As BMX racing is at the eve of the new age of carbon fiber frames I still find myself racing a cromo frame that weighs in a about 4 lbs 5 oz or 1950 grams.

Ah cromo, the stuff that cld schoolers ride, a material that’s dated…well, not quite. Most handlebars, forks and cranks are still made from cromo and still cut it on today’s tracks despite being pushed to their limits with multiple butting, heat treating and other processed to keep the weight down without sacrificing strength.

I’m not about to get into a cromo vs alloy vs carbon argument. I’m more interested in comparing weights. I’ve been so happy with the way my cromo frame rides I’ve never stopped to compare today’s most popular frames. When I say today I mean even well into the carbon era since the price of carbon will put the frames out of reach for many of us.

Carbon was first introduced into the BMX frame market by Supercross BMX in 1989, it had the two main tubes in carbon, while the rest of the frame was cromo, although the technology wasn’t quite there at the time and the 20 frames were recalled. Mongoose and Huffy entered the carbon market shortly after as well (you can read more about that, and see some photos,  over at Fastlane BMX – http://www.fastlanebmxmag.com/products/842-carbon-frames).

Since then we have seen brands like FMF and Avent toy with similar set ups, but not with too much success. FMF had problems with failures and eventually pulled the pin on their BMX program. Avent are still around but simply don’t make a carbon frame any more.

GT released it’s carbon Ultra Box 2 in time for the 2008 Olympics. I’m sure it was created as a marketing tool to make the brand stand out from the ocean of alloy frames. There were a number of them used at the Olympics too. GT even tried to market it as the lightest production frame at the time. It weighed in at 3 lbs 11 oz or 1672 grams. Which isn’t heavy however there was an alloy frame on the market which was still nearly a pound lighter.

Supercross BMX started working with Easton developing new tubing about 8 years ago driving the weight of the BMX race frame down to places it had never been before. At the end of 2013 it’s reign in the feather-weight class may come to an end with the introduction of carbon frames.

It was Redline’s carbon frame, the project 79 that really shook things up and proved that carbon was here to stay. It weighs 2 lbs 13 oz or 1,270 grams. The race is now on for other brands to join them, Haro, GT, Supercross and I believe DK are in development too (which could be just a rumour).

For some people riding a carbon bike will be a dream come true, for others it could well remain a dream. I’ve never ridden a carbon frame, and to be honest I’ve never felt the need. As long as the bike has good geometry and it feels comfortable that’s all I need to be happy.

So all of this thinking about BMX frames past and future has lead me to think about the present. There are many frames on the BMX market today, all of them looking for a differentiator, for something to stand out but all of them calling themselves the ultimate race frame, and striving for BMX world dominance, or something similar.

The only thing that is 100% measurable is the weight, stiffness, etc, well it’s not something that’s easily measured or compared.

We’ve put together a list of some of the most popular frames around at the moment that shows the weights. To compare apples with apples, we have used the weight of the Pro XL frame in each case. Clearly weight doesn’t make a frame. While the Ssquared CEO frame is the heaviest in our list it’s also the current USABMX Pull Magazine Bike of the Year, which says a lot in a reader voted poll.

Another interesting point is the Supercross Blur, often hiding away in the shadows of the ENVY, is up amongst the lightest frames around.

I have ridden a few of the frames listed above and noticed differences between them, it’s probably best to read through the review section of this site to find out specifics. But I still prefer the feeling of cromo, I’m sure I’ll eventually take a carbon frame for a spin but for now I don’t see any need to change.

What does the future hold for you? Will you move to carbon? Will you move to a lighter alloy frame. Or will you be like me and settle for what you have and just enjoy the ride?

One thing is for certain,  we have have some exciting times ahead, but it’s clear to me that alloy will out sell carbon and still rule the roost.