When I was kid, all bikes were steel. Not just any steel though, they were really, really heavy steel. It wasn't until the mid 1970's that Vitus and Alan introduced aluminum frames that I lusted after. These frames resembled conventional frames but had anodized finishes instead of paint and were very light weight (in comparison to the steel frames of that day). The ride was very soft, and worked best for riders who were of lighter weight, and rode with very high cadences.