Originally Posted by
Doug64
PS. She also uses it to commute to work. It is really similar to the T1. I think the main differences are the components. 105's or Ultegra vs Tiagra.
The differences are a little more fundamental than the difference between Ultegra and Tiagra. The T1 uses a mostly 105 drivetrain. This means that your choices on gearing are limited. The crank is a 50/39/30 and the inner bolt circle on the 105 crank only allows for a 24 tooth low gear. The T2 uses a Shimano trekking crank (48/36/26) that is a mountain bike crank with a larger chain ring. The trekking crank allows for a 22 tooth low.
The T1 uses an Ultegra rear derailer which is being stretched past its capacity. Shimano says that they can only take a 27 tooth low on the cassette. Cannondale is using an 11-32 IRD cassette. Some people can make a road derailer work on a 32 but others have had problems. The T2 uses an LX mountain bike derailer and an 11-34 cassette. This is easily in the range of the LX. You might even be able to use an SLX cassette and push the low down to a 36 tooth cog. Even I would consider a 22/36 gear ratio to be stupidly low...but I still want it
The Tiagra front derailer on the T2 is also a superior triple derailer. It's wider and more forgiving than the Ultegra. I have both on two bikes and the Tiagra doesn't require nearly as much futzing as the Ultegra.
Overall, I give Cannondale cudos for having two touring bikes. It'd be nicer if their T1 were designed around touring equipment instead of race equipment.