Any Cannondale enthusiasts here?

rosborn said:

Looked at the R700 at a local bike shop today and fell in love with it. I realize that it is pretty much an entry level bike but it's much better than the Giant OCR3 that I currently ride.

Any thoughts or comments about Cannondale in general and the R700 specifically? I noticed that the frame has a decal that says it's handmade in the USA. Is this true even for the R700 or is it just assembled in the USA?

It is true that the frames are handmade in the US including the R700. Obviously the rest of the parts are made outside of the US. I ride a 6-13 and love it. Never tried the R700 but if it fits you and rides well - enjoy it.

I've been talking with the LBS about the six13 and plan to get one this summer....hopefully. Anyway the owner said the Synapse frame is the only Cannondale frame made outside of the USA and it is made in Asia. But he said that Cannondale has placed very strict quality control on the frame build for the Synapse. Hopefully he was right and I am not misquoting his information.

Felt_Rider said:

I've been talking with the LBS about the six13 and plan to get one this summer....hopefully. Anyway the owner said the Synapse frame is the only Cannondale frame made outside of the USA and it is made in Asia. But he said that Cannondale has placed very strict quality control on the frame build for the Synapse. Hopefully he was right and I am not misquoting his information.

There are a lot of good bikes out there and where they are made is not as important as how it feels for you. I tried the Synapse and liked it but I liked the 6-13 and the cadd 8 Cannondale better. Just my experience which is not really all that important.

I have looked into the 6-13, CAAD8 and the Synapse and finally chose the Synapse Carbon.

Both the 6-13 and CAAD8 are a little faster in terms of steering and geometry, and it really depends on the type of cycling you will be doing. Unless you race all the time, the CAAD8s will tire you out faster. I was doing more 70-100kms and the Synapse Carbon had the best ride and I did not feel as tired. But if racing is for you, I heard the CAAD8 was even faster than the 6-13... (dont quote me though)...

Frame quality wise, the Asian frame was made beautifully. Not a problem there....🙂

rosborn said:

Looked at the R700 at a local bike shop today and fell in love with it. I realize that it is pretty much an entry level bike but it's much better than the Giant OCR3 that I currently ride.

Any thoughts or comments about Cannondale in general and the R700 specifically? I noticed that the frame has a decal that says it's handmade in the USA. Is this true even for the R700 or is it just assembled in the USA?

For 18 years, I have been riding nothing but Cannondale Road bikes. My first one cost $450 and I used in in duatholons and club rides. It was awesome for a low end entry level bike and never held me back. I just replaced the wheelsets, replaced the biopace chainrings with a round 53/39, and put in a more agressive 11/19 rear freewheel. When I was a poor college student, there was nothing more fun than dropping a guy on a high end bike. It was great on hills. In '92, I upgraded to a Cannondale 2.8 pound frame with Ultegra components and had no trouble with it. Very stiff bike and good climber. I still ride my '88 Cannondale with a six speed freewheel and downtube shifters as my "down the shore" trainer. The Sports LX components that the bike came with are still on the bike and shift like a charm, (the Sports LX brakes are admittedly pretty scary).

But now I am 40 and have lost my love for that stiff unforgiving fat tube aluminum ride. All the things that were great about it in when I was in my 20's are just damn cruel to a 40 year old spine. It is still a rigid responsive bike but man, a century is just brutal. I understand that the frames are more forgiving today, but it just can't compare to the plushness of a well designed titanium bike. SO now I pass the tourch to the younger guys. I will now become that pathetic middle age guy with a high end bike who gets smoked by some 20 something on a cheap cannondale. Enjoy riding it until you are 40 and dollars become less dear than finding time to get out and ride.

kopride said:

But now I am 40 and have lost my love for that stiff unforgiving fat tube aluminum ride. All the things that were great about it in when I was in my 20's are just damn cruel to a 40 year old spine. It is still a rigid responsive bike but man, a century is just brutal. I understand that the frames are more forgiving today, but it just can't compare to the plushness of a well designed titanium bike. SO now I pass the tourch to the younger guys. I will now become that pathetic middle age guy with a high end bike who gets smoked by some 20 something on a cheap cannondale. Enjoy riding it until you are 40 and dollars become less dear than finding time to get out and ride.

40?.......geez...you are making me feel like grandpa since I will turn 43 in a couple of months. 😄

I still like the abuse.🙂

Felt_Rider said:

40?.......geez...you are making me feel like grandpa since I will turn 43 in a couple of months. 😄

I still like the abuse.🙂

It's not just the stiffness of Cannondales, it has a tough geometry for longer rides. Don't get me wrong, I love a cannondale for any rides up to 2 hours, after that, they are tough. I haven't ridden the new ones. And age is relative, I mean, 40 is the new 30. But still if I am going to be riding a bike for the next ten years, I have to think about whether I will want to jump on it when I am 50

kopride said:

I understand that the frames are more forgiving today, but it just can't compare to the plushness of a well designed titanium bike.

kopride said:

It's not just the stiffness of Cannondales, it has a tough geometry for longer rides.

In reality, isn't that a personal preference sort of thing? I'm 37, and a few months back, I rode a bunch of bikes while looking for a new one. I remember thinking that whenever I was on a Ti bike it was like riding a slug. I bought a Carbon/Al felt and revamped the old cannondale for my wife to ride. Again, my choice, for my riding style...

L

kopride said:

Enjoy riding it until you are 40 and dollars become less dear than finding time to get out and ride.

I am 50 and last year rode the Cannondale Six-Thirteen for 4 century rides and a total of 2700 miles between mid May and mid August. I lost track after mid August because I returned by HAC 4 and only recently replaced it with the Edge 305. The FSA carbon fiber handlebars in combo with the frame make it a delight to ride. It rides better than my steel 1977 Medci frame (1972 and 1975 campy parts!) I have not had a problem with being dusted either with a bike weight with pedals under 16 lbs.

Felt_Rider said:

I've been talking with the LBS about the six13 and plan to get one this summer....hopefully. Anyway the owner said the Synapse frame is the only Cannondale frame made outside of the USA and it is made in Asia. But he said that Cannondale has placed very strict quality control on the frame build for the Synapse. Hopefully he was right and I am not misquoting his information.

So . . . . .

How would you rate Cannondale bikes vs Felt bikes? My LBS has 2005 models of both manufacturers on sale for markedly lower prices. For example, they have a Cannondale R700 on sale for $899 and a Felt F65 on sale for $1100. The Cannondale has a 105 front derailleur and Ultegra rear derailleur with 105 shifters. The Felt has Ultegra all the way through.

Any thoughts?

I have to admit, I have fallen in love with Cannondale for a number of reasons but, for about $200 more, the Felt F65 seems like a much better bike. Plus, the F65 has not only carbon forks (as does the Cannondale) but also has carbon seat stays.

Rob

I mean, 40 is the new 30.[/QUOTE]
Yippee I haven't turned 30 yet!!!

rosborn said:

So . . . . .

How would you rate Cannondale bikes vs Felt bikes?

As the proud owner of both I'll say this. Cannondale makes a better frame (look closely at the welds on both bikes to see what I mean). Felt (for the price) has better components. It really depends on how they feel when you ride them. If you're not racing, I'd say there's not much difference. I rode a cannondale R400 for several years and I rode the F60 or F65 (which ever one was the triple) when I was demoing bikes. I didn't really like that one, but loved the way the F55 rode. I was also on somewhat of a budget, so in that regard the felt also made a little more sense. I guess if you were to press me, I might get the cannondale since you could always upgrade to components later (if you felt it was needed). Just ride them both and get the one that you like better.

L

Cannondale...cos it sounds nice...😎 🙂 😄

rosborn said:

So . . . . .

How would you rate Cannondale bikes vs Felt bikes? My LBS has 2005 models of both manufacturers on sale for markedly lower prices. For example, they have a Cannondale R700 on sale for $899 and a Felt F65 on sale for $1100. The Cannondale has a 105 front derailleur and Ultegra rear derailleur with 105 shifters. The Felt has Ultegra all the way through.

Any thoughts?

I've have been going back and forth for about 2 months between the Felt F4C and the Felt F55. I have also considered the F65. (all equipped with compact cranks)

First, I will explain my purpose for buying a second bike is for a few different reasons, but it is not necessarily to get something better than my current Felt F45 ultegra/dura ace equipped bike.

• I want to have 2 good bikes available in case one of them needs work so I don't miss a ride.
  
• My F45 is setup with a 53/39 crank that makes it hard for some of the rides that have tough hill climbs. My new bike will have a compact crank.
  

I finally decided that if I go with Felt F4C cost about $2200 and comes with Ultegra group and low end wheels. The bike weighs over 19 lbs. without pedals.

The Cannondale six13 Pro2 compact sells for about $2400, has extremely great reviews from bike shops and owners posted all over the web, comes with equipped with full ultegra 10spd, has a better wheel set, is reported to weigh less than 17 lbs even with pedals, bottle cages, computers and heavy wheels. Upgrade the wheel set which is my intention at the time of purchase and the bike will be even lighter. Another big plus is that it is equipped with the Shimano compact crank which is reported to be more reliable than the FSA compact crank. The LBS says this it will even feel better on longer rides than my F45. So for $200 more than the Felt F4C I think there are a number of reasons why I have settled on this being my current primary choice. The only thing I haven't done is do a test ride.

I really like my Felt F45 and I just added a new set of hand built DT Swiss wheels so I plan on using this bike on flatter terrain.

......I think Felt bikes are a great value and the F65 will be a good choice for the price range that you are seeking.

vascdoc said:

I am 50 and last year rode the Cannondale Six-Thirteen for 4 century rides and a total of 2700 miles between mid May and mid August. I lost track after mid August because I returned by HAC 4 and only recently replaced it with the Edge 305. The FSA carbon fiber handlebars in combo with the frame make it a delight to ride. It rides better than my steel 1977 Medci frame (1972 and 1975 campy parts!) I have not had a problem with being dusted either with a bike weight with pedals under 16 lbs.

As I said, the newer 'dales might be a different animal. The old '92 2.8 frame I have been riding was rumored to be one of the stifffest frames ever made and had very tight geometry. I loved it until I started heading closer to my 40s. My 88 'dale with the old 3.0 frame and a carbon fork is much more forgiving, but still mighty stiff.

My initial point was that the 'dale historically gives a tremendous value for the buck for the club rider on a budget, and for tri and du athletes. The frames will never hold you back and the spec'd components usually always work fine. I always thought they were great climbing bikes as well. But even you most diehard 'dale fans have to admit that they are no comfort bikes. And yes, I rode many a century on my two 'dales and many long Sunday group rides, (but I also had no choice). Plus, if the 'dale geometry is a good fit, it will beat a poorly fitted titanium, steel, or carbon bike, for you. Good fit is always the true issue. And, putting aside the weight and assuming proper fit, steel is still pretty hard to beat from a comfort perspective. There is just something so sweet about humming along on an old steel frame. And the old farts I have ridden with on long sunday rides (guys in their 60's and 70's) are not riding fat tube aluminum, they are riding steel or titanium.

Felt_Rider said:

I've have been going back and forth for about 2 months between the Felt F4C and the Felt F55. I have also considered the F65. (all equipped with compact cranks)...

...The Cannondale six13 Pro2 compact sells for about $2400....

....The only thing I haven't done is do a test ride.

Haven ridden both, I think you'll find the geometry of the Felts and the Cannondale to be fairly similar.

One more thing to consider, if your looking for a "climbing" bike, think about the F55 and have the LBS switch out the rear casette to a 12x25 instead of the stock 11x23.

L

Lonnie Utah said:

Haven ridden both, I think you'll find the geometry of the Felts and the Cannondale to be fairly similar.

One more thing to consider, if your looking for a "climbing" bike, think about the F55 and have the LBS switch out the rear casette to a 12x25 instead of the stock 11x23.

L

Doesn't that depend upon how compact he goes with his large chain rings. If he drops down to a 50, I would tend to agree with you, you want a 25 in the back. If he is going to drop down to a 46 large chainring, then he may want the 11 x 23, unless he rides like Bill Cosby used to walk to school (uphill both ways). Big climbs usually mean big descents.

kopride said:

Doesn't that depend upon how compact he goes with his large chain rings. If he drops down to a 50, I would tend to agree with you, you want a 25 in the back. If he is going to drop down to a 46 large chainring, then he may want the 11 x 23, unless he rides like Bill Cosby used to walk to school (uphill both ways). Big climbs usually mean big descents.

Sorry, looks like most road configurations only allow a 50/34, and you may have to start looking at Cyclocross setups to get a 46. In that case, the 12/25 probably makes way more sense if you really need a gear that low. I have heard that a 48 is readily available but I don't know who makes it