Focus cayo TR....too good to be true???

BBH

Guys, am in the lucky position of buying a new bike. Now the sales are on us, I am overwhelmed by the choices on offer and really don't know where to turn.

One great deal that has caught my eye is the cayo TR with force g/set and DT swiss wheels, I can't help thinking what's the catch??

Is the frame poor quality carbon compared to others in the price bracket (e.g. scott CR1, kuota kharma) to allow them to spec it this well (i've only seen this level on bikes 2k+)??
Is the ride really as stiff as the reviews suggest? Will it be comfortable for a sportive or two?? What's the wiggle aftersales like if the bike goes wrong compared to a lbs?

Any thoughts would be much appreciated, Cheers!

nicklouse

the frame comes from the same place as most carbon frames do. Pannasonic so no probs there.

Gazzaputt

As I said many a time on here it's great frame. The Team replica is a stunner in my book.

No catches at all and I have always had a first class service from Wiggle.

I love my Cayo.

solboy

Pros

Frame is good as is the groupset and the brakes are excellent. The bike is very light and agile and looks much better in the flesh. DT swiss wheels roll well and Wiggle are great - much better than Evans in my experience.

Cons

Firm ride - as firm as my Aluminium road bike IMO. Handling can be a bit twitchy but thats because its a racer rather than a comfort bike. Compared to the Ribbles the frame does look a bit old hat but the the Ribbles are about 1.5 KG heavier.

I agree its the best value deal around right now and the 30 test ride makes its a no brainer - order one and see for yourself. If its not for you just send it back.

rjsmith

solboy wrote:

.Compared to the Ribbles the frame does look a bit old hat.

Really? The Focus frames have bb30 and tapered steerers this year, making them pretty up there in terms of technology.

Gazzaputt

solboy wrote:

P. Compared to the Ribbles the frame does look a bit old hat but the the Ribbles are about 1.5 KG heavier.

What Ribble frame are you comparing it to?

I tried Dedo Scuro frame and the Cayo was far better imo.

nochekmate

A young lad who comes out on our club runs has this Focus/Force/DT Swiss bike and I have to say that in terms of looks alone, it 'appears' to be a super bike - he loves it and he paid the full price a couple of months bike, prior to Wiggle's discount.

I've not ridden it but for that money, it is very competitive.

warrior4life

Not ridden this bike but i nearly bought one at £1999. At this price it as a bargain and after searching most shops and webisted i think its just about the best bike out there for value at the moment.
The planet x nanolight is also good.
Personally im just not keen on the ribble bikes, but thats just me, people do seem to like them.

giant_man

Not too good to be true. They are what they are. Some people wouldn't touch them with a barge pole yet others bought one and they like them. The money you pay is down to Wiggle's tough pricing marketing.

You pays your money and takes your choice .......

StanwaySteve62

expert is also nice at £100 less.
Just wish I was in place to pick one of these up

rokkala

solboy wrote:

Compared to the Ribbles the frame does look a bit old hat but the the Ribbles are about 1.5 KG heavier.

Eh?

syncro

StanwaySteve62 wrote:

expert is also nice at £100 less.
Just wish I was in place to pick one of these up

Correct. Just bagged one myself and I'm well happy with it.
I can't understand why some people turn their noses up at Focus bikes. Badge snobbery?

dru

I've recently put an order in for the PX SL Red but was considering this bike... only problem was they had no stock of the 52 frmae (my size) so the door closed. Otherwise I'm sure I would have purchased it and tried the 30 day test ride thing.

StanwaySteve62

Any rich guys on here that want to unload some stash so I can buy one of these
Forum Charity is the way forward

syncro

nicklouse wrote:

the frame comes from the same place as most carbon frames do. Pannasonic so no probs there.

That's an interesting fact, didn't know they made bike frames. Who else do they make frames for then?

BBH

Cheers guys for the responses. Think I have read every focus discussion on the forum in the past few weeks :oops: and I am still so cautious. I guess its because its an online purchase. I think for the money I will probably give it a go for the 30 day trial as it does look a super set-up. Cheers all for your help

ukroadster

Recieved my Focus Cayo TR yesterday Its a stunning bike. The finish quality and detailing are superb as the groupset works great. The bike is also lighter than the Ribble Gan fondo that i was originally buying.

I had to cancel my Ribble order as when i went to pick it up the paint was chipped on the rear stay right through to the carbon and also chipped on the bottom bracket. The paint looked very soft and the finish was poor. The carbon finish on the new GF has also lost the weave and can look a bit rough with natural blemishes etc.

The finish on the Focus frame and forks is in a different class to be honest. The paint is glass smooth and looks very durable. The carbon on the bottom of the forks and through the Focus motif on the frame looks smooth and even. The detailing on the frame is excellent.

Took it for a quick ride yesterday and am very impressed. The drivetrain is very smooth with instant precise shift. There are no unwanted noises and the bike feels very well made but still light and agile. Id also disagree with SOLBOY regarding the ride, I found it very comfortable with road surface vibrations very well damped out.

I am well chuffed with the Focus TR and hiighly recommend one

ukroadster

Forgot to say, Wiggle have been excellent, ordered on Friday, got a confirmation phone call just to check credit card details against fraud and it was posted on Monday and received on Wednesday

It comes almost ready to ride, just handlebars to fix and tighten head stem, fit pedals and you are off. Wiggle even supply instructions for this and a free set of tools.

They were very helpful on the phone and hapily weighed a Large 56cm Focus TR they had just built on request for me. The 56cm Lrage fully buily weighed in at 8.2KG making my 54cm Medium about 8kg dead. Will weigh it today actually to see.

With the 30 day money back guarantee you cant go wrong!

rick1967

I must admit I've been drooling over one of these for the last 2 weeks (kept looking at it on the laptop and pointing while the gf sat and rolled her eyes). I finally cracked last night and ordered it. I figured that it was a "bargain" I couldn't miss at this price and I'm never going to need anything "better" (yeah, right we all know how that works...)

Was torn slightly between this and the Cayo Expert (as it seems to be even lighter as well as being cheaper).

Glad to hear it appears to be as good as it looks in the flesh!

father_jack

How heavy is 54cm ocus Cayo Team Replica 2010 ?

StanwaySteve62

post some nice pics up, the wiggle pics are not that good

sturmey

I took delivery of my Team Rep 9 days ago.Am ashamed to say I still haven't taken all the wrapping off the frame let alone ridden it.

Few points:

1) Trying to work out why they fitted those 24mm 'lorry' tyres to the wheels.

2) Also, the seatpost is a cheap alloy one which is surprising as the bike has a high spec. otherwise.

3) Minor gripe with the quality of the cabling on the bike but likely to be the factory's fault and not Wiggle's-rear mech cable cut way too short.

Still think I will keep it though.
Just leaves me to wonder about the drag co-efficient of that downtube.
It has to be the fattest one I've seen on a bike...

ukroadster

Father Jack

Weighed my 54cm today using the weigh yourself and then with the bike method on digital bathroom scales.

With Look classic keo pedals it averaged 8.1KG with a low measure of 7.9kg and a high measure of 8.3kg. Measured it five times to get an average.

Will get some pics up when i csan find my phone to laptop lead:(

There are some pics at the bottom of this page for ref: http://www.singletrackworld.com/blogs/2 ... ve-i-done/

Here is a very good pic which is very representative:
http://www.cyclespassieu.com/wp-content ... o-Team.jpg

Regards

father_jack

How much does the wheelset go for? Is it a cheap wheelset or a pretty good one? I have Ventos already, and Hope hub on my other one.

mr fandango

Hey guys looking in to this bike a lot at the moment and a quick review or rundown of the bike would be great a few pics comfort on a long ride and build quality...... and so on. im taking part in a LEJOG ride next may and want a new bike for the challange.

father_jack

Still considering this bike, best value/spec for the money? how do people find the double tap levers, a bit tricky?

Bar Shaker

Cayo looks a great bike and you will never look back once you have tried double taps.

Some people used to (still do) diss budget carbon frames. The manufacturing techniques and cad/stress design mean these frames are as good or better than what people were paying £3k for 3 years ago.

The fact is that the sub £1500 carbon bikes are becoming the mainstream of club level cycling and the Market is so competitive it won't tolerate sub standard quality.

Buy in confidence.

bendertherobot

Father Jack wrote:

How much does the wheelset go for? Is it a cheap wheelset or a pretty good one? I have Ventos already, and Hope hub on my other one.

£434 RRP though around £350 on the net. So RS80/Fulcrum 3/Kysrium Elite standard.

So, £350.

Add £650 (cheapest at moment) for Force. There's your grand.

£100 for finishing kit.

So a bloody great frame for £300. What's not to like?

bendertherobot

Father Jack wrote:

Still considering this bike, best value/spec for the money? how do people find the double tap levers, a bit tricky?

Tricky? In what way? Absolute piece of P**s.

father_jack

yeah found them at £300, plus £600 for Force...amazing. As to shifters seem a bit more tricky than campag, I do like the seperate thumb and finger lever.

bendertherobot

They're not remotely tricky. Of course changing between Campag, Shim, SRAM does require you to think but doubletap is almost psychic, when your mind accepts it only has one lever it just works. And I had no issues at all within the 1st mile, let alone the 1000th mile!