Via Nirone 7, Korsa Lite or CAAD10????

Mogsy23

Guys,

Hope you can help me, I'm after a new bike for the spring. Each week it'll be ridden for a couple of 20 mile training rides, a 60 mile club run and a 10 mile time trial with some clip on aero bars. I'm currently on a 2006 Allez sport which came off eBay and is undoubtedly a poor fit, it was my first bike and has done well for me for the past year.

I'm booked in for a fit at my lbs, but from talking to them about my requirements it's looking like a choice between the Bianchi Via Nirone Tiagra, the Cannondale CAAD10 105 and the Kuota Korsa Lite.

Via Nirone - £899
Pros - It's a Bianchi and looks outstanding!!! As it's a bit cheaper bike i could get it with a wheelset upgrade.
Cons - Lower spec groupset, many reviews say it feels heavy (not sure if a wheelset upgrade would rectify this)

CAAD10 - £1400 WITH Mavic Aksium WTS wheelset
Pros - Supposedly the best Aluminium frame on the market
Cons - Vile Liquigas colours, I've not seen it in the flesh, perhaps its not as bad in real life.

Korsa Lite - £1050 with SRAM Rival
Pros - Can be made to my exact spec throughout.
Cons - I'm struggling to find any, probably not as "sexy" as the Bianchi or as sporty as the CAAD perhaps.

I'm going to get fitted up in a couple of weeks and have a proper look at each individually, but I just wanted to hear any opinions anyone might have on these bikes before I go. I've never been fitted for a bike before and to be honest I'm not really sure what to look for.

Cheers

smidsy

Only real way is to test ride each of them and get the one that you get on with/like/fits the best.

letap73

smidsy wrote:

Only real way is to test ride each of them and get the one that you get on with/like/fits the best.

C'mon it has to be the dale

In all seriousness, Smidsy advice is good.

smoggysteve

Mogsy23 wrote:

Guys,

Hope you can help me, I'm after a new bike for the spring. Each week it'll be ridden for a couple of 20 mile training rides, a 60 mile club run and a 10 mile time trial with some clip on aero bars. I'm currently on a 2006 Allez sport which came off eBay and is undoubtedly a poor fit, it was my first bike and has done well for me for the past year.

I'm booked in for a fit at my lbs, but from talking to them about my requirements it's looking like a choice between the Bianchi Via Nirone Tiagra, the Cannondale CAAD10 105 and the Kuota Korsa Lite.

Via Nirone - £899
Pros - It's a Bianchi and looks outstanding!!! As it's a bit cheaper bike i could get it with a wheelset upgrade.
Cons - Lower spec groupset, many reviews say it feels heavy (not sure if a wheelset upgrade would rectify this)

CAAD10 - £1400 WITH Mavic Aksium WTS wheelset
Pros - Supposedly the best Aluminium frame on the market
Cons - Vile Liquigas colours, I've not seen it in the flesh, perhaps its not as bad in real life.

Korsa Lite - £1050 with SRAM Rival
Pros - Can be made to my exact spec throughout.
Cons - I'm struggling to find any, probably not as "sexy" as the Bianchi or as sporty as the CAAD perhaps.

I'm going to get fitted up in a couple of weeks and have a proper look at each individually, but I just wanted to hear any opinions anyone might have on these bikes before I go. I've never been fitted for a bike before and to be honest I'm not really sure what to look for.

Cheers

I have a Bianchi Via Nirone as a winter bike. It s a lovely bike but as with a lot of the Bianchi range, the wheels and brakes are shoddy. If you got one, swap out the wheels as soon as possible. Although not as heavy as it sounds it is no where near as light as a Cannondale if lightness is what you are after. I love Bianchis and everything about them but don't base a bike solely on looks. Get the bike you feel most comfortable on,.

LittlePlums

For just another £100 over the Caad10, you could get a full carbon Bianchi Vertigo with Veloce group set .

Worth considering? I thought so (see below)

smoggysteve

LittlePlums wrote:

For just another £100 over the Caad10, you could get a full carbon Bianchi Vertigo with Veloce group set .

Worth considering? I thought so (see below)

That is the one Bianchi I have not seen in the flesh yet. Is it more upright or race orientated? I thought the frame looked a bit quirky. Not in a bad way. Just different. Would be a good choice also. But would prefer to see the OP stick to his guns.

Mogsy23

Appreciate the comments guys, I've not really got any guns to stick to though! I've basically had a good chat on the phone with the guy at my lbs about my budget (1500 incl a couple of basic accessories) and those were the 3 that he mentioned, he thought it would probably be a better bet to go for a high end alu bike rather than a budget carbon bike (ie around the £1000 - £1200 mark).

They're a great store, very impressive guys, knowledgable, enthusiastic and caring, can't recommend them highly enough. Check them out epic-cycles.co.uk.

LittlePlums

Nothing budget about the Vertigo apart from the price.

It is C2C geometry, so will be more like your Via Nirone, Smoggy, than your Sempre (mmmm, Sempre!).

Here's a thread from the Show us your Bikes Forum: viewtopic.php?f=40044&t=12887405&p=18027058&hilit=Vertigo#p18027058

Take it out, give it a spin, you can always say no.

Mogsy23

Just looked up the vertigo with my lbs, I'm personally not keen on the thumb shifting on the campagnolo, but they offer a Vertigo with 105 for 1500, which certainly seems worth a look!!

rolf_f

Mogsy23 wrote:

...... he thought it would probably be a better bet to go for a high end alu bike rather than a budget carbon bike (ie around the £1000 - £1200 mark).

It's a tough one! Epic don't sell cheaper end carbon so they would say that wouldn't they! But then I went to Epic aiming for a Via Nirone and spent 3 times that on a carbon Look. But buying that Look then enabled me to have the confidence to buy a £1200 carbon bike which is actually a superb bike. I'd rather that than any alloy bike but then I couldn't have got that bike at Epic and the whole Epic experience was worth a lot to me.

The above probably helps not at all. Nor does the observation that you are wrong about the Liquigas colours. One of the few attractive and interesting colour schemes in the pro peloton!

My final advice - ask Epic what the cheapest carbon bike they would recommend is!

Mogsy23 wrote:

Just looked up the vertigo with my lbs, I'm personally not keen on the thumb shifting on the campagnolo, but they offer a Vertigo with 105 for 1500, which certainly seems worth a look!!

Have you tried the thumb shifters or is it the idea of them? They do work very well. I prefer them to the wobbly brakes on Shimano but you'd get used to whatever you pick anyway so it's really a matter of taste. And nobody with taste puts Shimano on a Bianchi!

iandennis

Cheapest Carbon at Epic is probably the Korsa Lite Carbon at £1349. It look a nice bike, with the Apex groupset. It's a difficult choice as the service at Epic is just superb. I'm trying to weigh up whether its worth buying at Cannondale SuperSix Apex at £1159 mail order or taking a day out to drive to Ludlow and test ride the Kuota. Whilst the Kuota is more expensive, the fitting and purchase experience at Epic might be worth the expense.

Good luck with your purchase.

Mogsy23

Never tried the thumb shifters, it's the idea of them really. Obviously need to give them a test to see how i'd get on with them.

zx6man

must admit, I don't mind the thumb shifters on the shimano 2300/sora setup.

rolf_f

iandennis wrote:

I'm trying to weigh up whether its worth buying at Cannondale SuperSix Apex at £1159 mail order or taking a day out to drive to Ludlow and test ride the Kuota. Whilst the Kuota is more expensive, the fitting and purchase experience at Epic might be worth the expense.

It's worth going - I went three times for my Look - from Leeds!

Mogsy23 wrote:

Never tried the thumb shifters, it's the idea of them really. Obviously need to give them a test to see how i'd get on with them.

Epic will set up a bike for you with them if you want.

zx6man wrote:

must admit, I don't mind the thumb shifters on the shimano 2300/sora setup.

The Campag thumb shifters are vastly better than the Sora ones.

t4tomo

Hard to compare a £900 bike with a £1400 bike. I have a via Nirone, they used to do one with carbon rear stays as well as carbon forks but they don't any more, but I guess the Vertigo cuts into that pricing territory. Its a great bike mine has Askium wheels and Ultegra (yes I Shimano on a Bianchi - so strike me down). With the £500 spare vs the CAAD you could upgrade the wheels to something better. Epic would probably swap what they have on out for some Askiums or similar.

That said the Vertigo looks a great bike for the money, and prettier than the undoubtedly very capaable CAAD10