• Titanium fixings, i.e. screws and bolts, are not Tester approved IIRC. Can you remind why this is? I'm guessing the extra cost doesn't give a corresponding return and the quality is likely to be dubious as medical and aerospace buyers will get all the good stuff.

  • Can you remind why this is?

    No worthwhile benefit in bicycle service conditions.
    Direct replacement of steel fasteners is potentially dangerous, connections should be made with the materials they were designed for.

    There are a couple of places where titanium alloys properly deployed can substitute for steel in a way which provides tolerable value for money. The most common is saddle rails, the less common one is suspension coil springs. In both cases, the ability to endure large cyclic elastic strains proves useful while retaining the same spring rate as steel parts at a significantly reduced weight. With springs, at least half that weight is unsprung (a bit more in the case of rear shocks where both ends move) so there is a ride and handling gain as well as slightly less mass to lug up the hills.

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