Titanium alloy has long been considered the ideal material for long-lasting and smooth-riding bicycles. It has a high strength to weight ratio, is extremely corrosion resistant and can be turned into bikes that have, some say, special riding characteristics.
The drawback of titanium, however, is that it is expensive: both the price of the raw material and the specialized techniques required to turn it into bicycles are costly. For example, a titanium frame needs to be welded with shielding gas to avoid exposing the weld to oxygen and compromising its integrity, which makes the process more complex than TIG welded steel or aluminum.
