Ya, the Steel frames are probably lighter because you need less metal to make it all stronger, the difference is that the steel frames aren't really updated anymore, they are old designs, so... The alluminum frame bikes tend to handle better. Although, KTM makes improvements to their steel frames still. What I am curious to is that, my 2001 cr125 is claimed to be 193 pounds dry weight, but, the KTM which is 9 years newer is 200 pounds, I wouldn't have expected this from KTM, although, the KTM sure does beat my bike in other areas, such as transmission and engine. My engine is kind of getting disappointing...