Cannondales?

the full nelson
the full nelson Posts: 47
edited June 2007 in Road beginners
Quite new to cycling and have myself a cannondale. Are they generally frowned upon by experienced cyclists. If so why? Is is because they are american or just not that good or what.



beow
beow

Comments

  • allaction
    allaction Posts: 209
    Just bought one today (see earlier thread). Bought it as was great value. Who cares what the others think, you love it dont you!
  • spasypaddy
    spasypaddy Posts: 5,180
    what cannondale do you have? i have a r400 which is awesome. I love the make and the build quality.
    http://img501.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bikeim9.jpg
    BMC TM01 - FCN 0
    Look 695 (Geared) - FCN 1
    Bowman Palace:R - FCN 1
    Cannondale CAAD 9 - FCN 2
    Premier (CX) - FCN 6
    Premier (fixed/SS) - FCN3
  • Akirasho
    Akirasho Posts: 1,892
    ... you didn't mention which year and type of 'Dale you've got but some folks might frown on them cuz of their very early reputation (back in the mid 80's) when they were incredibly stiff (too stiff for some light weight riders over rougher roads) and somewhat prone to frame failures (back in the 80's, aluminium frames were rare and most makers, had some teething problems).

    By and large, they make a quality product (I've got 5 'Dales from R2.8 to CAAD5) which is light years from their earlier products (plus, they now make composite and composite/alloy hybrids as well as straight on Al). Ride quality can be a personal preference, but I've always enjoyed the overall stiffness of the old R2.8 (arguably the stiffest production frames Cannondale has ever built).
  • Steveorow
    Steveorow Posts: 162
    Build quality is excellent and comes with Lifetime warranty on the carbon frame synapse I have "irrespective of your weight" .

    Liquigas won the Giro this year on Cannondales ; after Liguigas turfed Bianchi into the pro team wilderness last year ; you can argue that money talks but results speak for themselves .

    Seen the reviews of their new Super 6 as well which is going to hard to beat everything else being even .

    Who cares about some of the so called "superior" European brands resting on past glories thats just snob factor . As someone said on this forum your choice is Corporate America or European Gangsters either way you pays your money .
  • rohloff-rich
    rohloff-rich Posts: 232
    <blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by allaction</i>
    Just bought one today<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

    Me too!




    I've tried the darkside and now I want a slice of the action...
    An MTBer, but with skinny wheel tendencies...
  • Diogenes
    Diogenes Posts: 1,628
    I've a R900 CAAD8, see the pics below. Awesome machine, light, stiff but comfortable for hours in the saddle. Even gets a little fat thing like me up hills.

    Build quality is excellent. My only complaint is that mine does not go as fast as Di Luca's!


    D[:D]

    Too short for my weight!
    The Bikes
    White Rose 2007
    C2C 2006
  • spasypaddy
    spasypaddy Posts: 5,180
    your r900 caad8 is beautiful!
    http://img501.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bikeim9.jpg
    BMC TM01 - FCN 0
    Look 695 (Geared) - FCN 1
    Bowman Palace:R - FCN 1
    Cannondale CAAD 9 - FCN 2
    Premier (CX) - FCN 6
    Premier (fixed/SS) - FCN3
  • allaction
    allaction Posts: 209
    congrats rohloff-rich. You'll certainly find it a bit quicker on road than the MTB! Ca't wait to get out on mine, windy as hell today. Now I know what kids are like at Xmas!
  • peejay78
    peejay78 Posts: 3,378
    i tried one once, after testing a bianchi. it came up really big and wasn't that skittish considering it was aluminium.

    had a big fat top tube as well. kind of put me off. nice bikes though.
    winter: http://tinyurl.com/2xkbbs
    summer: http://tinyurl.com/2hsagv
    http://traumradfahren.wordpress.com/
  • the full nelson
    the full nelson Posts: 47
    In reply to the above questions it was originally an r500, bought in 2006. upgraded to ultegra groupset on mavic open pro rims with dura ace hubs + everything else really. only the original frame and fork left.

    Im very happy with it but have no comparison. recently did the northern rock cyclone and didnt notice one other cannondale among just under 800 cyclists.

    Have kept an eye on liquigas and seem to be doing well. maybe im just a touchy cyclist.

    cheers

    beow
    beow
  • scapaslow
    scapaslow Posts: 305
    I'm not an experienced cyclist but i have a Cannondale Synapse 105 which i picked up about 6 weeks ago for a good price (last years model). Its light, fast, super comfy ride - in short fantastic compared to anything else i've ridden. I believe it was Cycling Weekly's bike of the year last year so it can't be too bad. I've not noticed anyone frowning at it so far. A lot of respected retailers stock them so they don't think they are duff. A friend has a CAAD5 bought quite some years back which is in super condition and rides very nicely IMO (not as good as the synapse though).
    Ignore prejudice and buy a Cannondale if you fancy one.
  • Alexei
    Alexei Posts: 76
    I bought an R500 3 years ago, and its done me absolute wonders.

    Upgraded the wheels to Mavic Cosmos and the saddle and seatpost but was happy with everything else.

    Its taken everything I've thrown at it.

    Get a Cannondale- you wont regret it.

    Even though I'm just about to go Celeste....
  • spasypaddy
    spasypaddy Posts: 5,180
    alexei i know exactly what you mean, i had a cannondale for a few weeks before my crash did œ400 worth of damage to it (hopefully the insurance will pay out though!). I'm also attempting to go celeste but im now waiting for th 08 models before i do!
    http://img501.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bikeim9.jpg
    BMC TM01 - FCN 0
    Look 695 (Geared) - FCN 1
    Bowman Palace:R - FCN 1
    Cannondale CAAD 9 - FCN 2
    Premier (CX) - FCN 6
    Premier (fixed/SS) - FCN3
  • HungryCol
    HungryCol Posts: 532
    I've got on of the Red Saeco CAAD5 and upgraded the wheels to Fulcrum 3's. It's a really great bike and as one of my non-cycling friends said "If Nascar did bikes..." I'm thinking of either upgrading my groupset to 105 (from Tiagra) although I have falled in love with the the Bianchi 928 C2C 105. Now, I've just got to see how much money's fallen behind the sofa... hopefully I'll find œ1300 [;)]


    _______________________________________________
    I used to be a elephant once but I'm ok now...
    ______________________________________________
    Every winner has scars.
  • Tomonabike
    Tomonabike Posts: 69
    IMO, great bikes - I can only say that I wouldn't part with my Cannondale.

    I've got a 2003 R600 (Caad 5), its been ridden in all weathers, used and abused (crashed, raced etc) and its still a great bike to ride and look at. Pretty much original spec apart from new wheels (open pros on dura ace) too.
  • wastelander
    wastelander Posts: 557
    I loved my Cannondale CAAD5 from the moment I bought it to the moment it got written off in an RTA :o(

    One more turn of the wheels...just one!
  • ColinJ
    ColinJ Posts: 2,218
    <blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by HungryCol</i>

    I've got on of the Red Saeco CAAD5 and upgraded the wheels to Fulcrum 3's. It's a really great bike and as one of my non-cycling friends said "If Nascar did bikes..." I'm thinking of either upgrading my groupset to 105 (from Tiagra) although I have falled in love with the the Bianchi 928 C2C 105. Now, I've just got to see how much money's fallen behind the sofa... hopefully I'll find œ1300 [;)]
    <hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
    Hi, I'm named Col too, and I'm feeling hungry, but I'm not <b>the</b> HungryCol! By coincidence, I have a red Saeco Cannondale CAAD5 and I love mine too.

    BTW - people always go on about how uncomfortable Cannondales are. Well, if you pump your tyres up rock hard - they can be. All I do is pump my 23c Pro Races to about 95 psi rear and 90 psi front and I don't have a problem, and I'm quite fussy about comfort because I tend to suffer from cramp in my feet.

    A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...
  • monty_dogcp
    monty_dogcp Posts: 382
    I used to have a Cannondale - a 2.8 and indeed it was way too stiff and uncomfortable. There was also an aknowledged problem with the design of the rear drop-out which lead them to be nick-named "crack-and-fail" - because they often did! They used to try and command a price-premium in the market, but judging by the deep-discounts they sell them at the end of the year, buying one at full price isn't really good value as often they are fitted with cheaper, non-branded parts. Also, their insistence in sticking to aluminium frames has caught them out with comparable-quality frames coming out of Taiwan for far less money, plus their first carbon designs didn't really catch-on. They were genuinely innovative back in the early 90's but I would say that they've lost their position in the market and been resting on their laurels a bit too much. Re the sponsoring of Liquigas - anyone with a big enough budget could have done that and beside, it was down to problems with Bianchi that forced them to look elsewhere - but that's another story.
  • dgibby
    dgibby Posts: 662
    I have a 2006 Cannondale Touring Classic - love it and it served me well on my recent Land's End to John O'Groats tour. Have a Specialized road bike but would definately consider a new Dale to replace it one day.

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