Road Cycling - cannondale questions

I am interested in getting a Cannondale R600 and I was wondering if any one had any long term experience with the caad 5 frame that would bring up issues not apparent on a 1/2 hour test ride. Any info on Gipiemme Techno 4.24 wheels? Other than that it fits great, the ride doesnt seem to harsh, and I love the orange paint job, thanks

Temp1

I ride the CAAD4 frame. Its a pretty good frame. Being a sprinter and climber I like the stiffness in the ride. The CAAD 5 is even lighter...by a few ounces. I definitely like the way the it handles coming out of tight turns and I really dont get any wobble doing high speed descents.

I road a CAAD4 frame for a year, and liked the crispness and agility of the handling. Eventually the rough ride over Texas' chip-seal roads got to me, and I switched to another frame. It's largely a matter of personal preference and your riding goals; if you prefer a stiff frame with a lot of road feedback (a lot of riders do), or you plan to do crits or high speed descents, the C-dale might be the ticket.

this is kinda off topic but does anyone know the reasoning behind cannondale's 'oversized' al tubing they use on a lot of their road frames?

Read Bicycle Metallurgy: http://www.sjsu.edu/orgs/asmtms/artcle/articl.htm
As I understtand it, aluminum is less ductile (able to bend without fracturing) than, say, steel. Repeated flexing beyond a certain point can cause metal fatigue, possibly frame failure. A large diameter thin-wall tube is stronger and stiffer than a smaller diameter thin-wall tube, and is better able to resist this flexing.

CAAD 5 is a great frame and there is no issue with it. Cipollini and Saeco raced that frame for a couple seasons with much success.
Besides that, it is a very well sorted frame.

Originally posted by RacerX

Besides that, it is a very well sorted frame. Sorted??

thanks for the input, you have reinforced what I am looking for. My wife and I are moving to Colorado next October, she's going to grad school, and I imagine I will be doing a bit of climbing and fast decending there. I also weigh 190 and all the steel frames I tried seemed to flex quite a bit, especially the Bianchis

My gratitude, Temp1

I know a couple guys your weight and they like the CAAD 5 better than the CAAD 7.
It's a great frame and does everything well.

Guys,

I would be very careful with Canondale right now. Word in the bike business is that they are running low on funds. From what I understand Canondale has roughly 4-5 more months worth of liquid assets then they are in trouble. I suspect that they will be moving to either Tawian or China as did Rock Shocks.

MY .02

Thanks Krafcik, I think you sealed the deal, I throwing my $ to Cannondale USA.

Keep in mind that the warranty on the bike may or may not be valid if they experience money issues. Be careful.

ck

What makes you think all Cannondale frames are built in the USA?

Not for the low prices and quantities they offer.

THink about it

evidence? or just a theory. Have we had any threads on crop circles?

Originally posted by Xavier
What makes you think all Cannondale frames are built in the USA?

Not for the low prices and quantities they offer.

THink about it

Maybe because they say "Handmade in the USA" and are very proud of that fact.
You need to prove your remarks.

I haven't really noticed the "low prices" for C-dale bikes. Maybe I'm looking in the wrong place.

Cannondale's financial woes stem from their foray into the motorcycle division. Their bicycles and ATV's are doing very well. I doubt that the big C will "go under" due to this. My guess is they'll finally drop the MX line and stick with bikes and the ATV's. Not that they don't produce a good MX bike, just have had a heck of a time cutting their teeth against Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, KTM...etc.

Plus, the whole Sept 11th and post 911 economy have resulted in major market share loss. They are involved with Financial Advisors who will help them sort things out. Time will tell, but I'm sure they'll still be around for quite some time.

BTW, yes, all their frames are made in the USA. That's one of their biggest selling points and justification for higher costs for their bikes.

Cannondale is a leader in the cycling community for research and devolpement of new ideas and fabrication techniques. If they do go under (once again, I doubt it), it would be a great loss!

L8R

To get back to the original question in this thread:

I have ridden cannondales for 13 years. Most of that time was on a single 3.0 frame. I raced that bike successfully for years. I found it to be very strong, very stiff. BTW, my racing weight varies between 175 and 190 lbs.

This past spring, my 3.0 frame broke at the seat post clamp. Cannondale replaced it (on warranty) with a brand new CAAD 5 frame!!! That's some serious customer service!

I also bought another 3.0 frame, to build as my "trainer" bike.

As much as I like the 3.0 frames, the CAAD5 is wonderful! Just as stiff and strong as the 3.0, but handles better. The carbon fork and hourglass seatstays muffle the "buzz" of rough pavement and bumps, but don't make the frame fell "dead". The bike climbs great. Careful when "jumping" into a sprint, the front wheel wants to come off the ground on the first couple pedal strokes. The bike is absolutely solid on high speed descents.

If you have any other questions, just ask...

Well Im glad to see at least someone is getting good customer service from C'dale.

I think that Cannondale will be fine. I heard from a old fellow bike shop employee that's still selling their bikes that the MX side is crashing and burning, but they're scaling back and I would expect them to be alright. This isn't the first economic downturn that they've seen, after all. I'm going to get a CAAD7 in a couple of weeks to see how it rides. Hope I won't be disappointed. I'm running about 187 now, some would say big for that bike. Funny thing is that I've not heard from anyone that's ridden one for more than a test ride.

Anyway, congrats on a good purchase. Like any bike company, the relationship they have with the customer is filtered through the shop you get the bike from. A lot of the "Cannondale bad customer service" stories I hear are because the shop mis-handles their end of things. Not all, but a lot. I trust them and am looking forward from the upgrade to the 7 from a CAAD3.

I went for another test ride really concentrating on the ride, and I really like how the road is brought to the rider (me). Its also good to hear the up side to c'dale's customer service. I think I will be ready to purchase the first week of January.

Any info on the Gipiemme Techno 4.24 wheelset?

Thanks

I have 2 caad5 bikes, and really love both of them..Cannondale has been really good for me and my mom, between both of us we have 3 caad5 bikes and their mt800 tandem..

Great bikes!!

Benjamin

My next roadbike will likely be built on a caad5 frame, unless:

1) Cannondale comes to their senses, and starts making better frames that accomodated non-Coda bearings
2) Somebody other than Coda starts making decent BB bearings
3) Cannondale goes down the tubes

I like the quality and build of Klein frames, but they are just too d@mn expensive!!

I have a CAAD5 and love it. Fast and smooth for an Alum frame. Canondale is an American company and like a lot of others is experiencing some difficulties at the moment. From what I read out of the deal is that the bicycle end is strong but the motorized side has drug it down. I would look for them to drop the motorcycle dept. soon and concentrate on what made them one of the best bicycles in the world.
I bought My CAAD5 through GVH Bikes. Centaur 10 sp. group,Mavic Ksyrium Elites, Team Saeco Red,TTT forgie bar and stem. 1559.00shipped to my front door. It looks fast sitting still and is without a doubt the the best race frame I,ve had. Great climber even though that is not my strong point.Hope this helps, Good Luck