i have been a bicycle rider for most of my adult life. i currently own 3-ish bicycles, two i built for myself.
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a fixed gear bicycle
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a 1x11 speed surly crosstrek
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a 1x11 speed kona
materials
i enjoy a steel frame. i like that i can toss it around without much worry. but most steel frames are subject to corrosion sooner than aluminum frames. this is why i use an aluminum frame on my "workhorse" bicycle, and a steel frame on my other bicycles - my kona is frequently exposed to the rain, and often sits outside mostly unprotected.
on the other hand, my surly/fixie sit in a storage container, and are brought out in the summer.