kergin

I will likely end up with one of these in the fall, to take me through commuting in winter, but also to enable riding technical MTB single track. Everything I've read on this bike seems to say: this bike will do everything, from grocery getter, to rainy-day commuter, to MTB. Somehow, it also pulls off all these tasks with grace, which is not a word normally associated with a hybrid.

Is there anything about this bike I should be aware of? Limitations, difficulties with fenders, racks, tire sizes?

I was originally looking at the Fisher Mendota, but the ability to kill two birds with one stone (disc hybrid commuter & MTB) is too tempting.

barturtle

While the Bad Boy may just be the perfect bike for you, I would suggest riding some of the similar hardtail "fast hybrid" models, such as the Jamis Allegro 3X, KHS Urban Xcel, Kona Dew FS, and Specialized Crosstrail Comp. If nothing else, riding them will confirm that the Bod Boy is just right, or even help find a bike that fits you even better.

lordzarj

I have a Bad Boy 700 (European model roughly equivalent to the "Disc"), its comfy, reliable and pretty fast (mebbe 2mph slower average than my CAAD roadbike). I use it daily for commuting and dragging my son around on a Trail-A-Bike. In winter I use a bolt-on fender that mounts to the seat post, haven't tried mounting a rack on it.

Any journeys over 15 miles or so and I'd rather be on my roadbike though as I start to get some hand numbness around this point. Commuting, family trips, popping to the shop, leisurely rides around the coast the Bad Boy is perfect for.

Hate the name though! Glad there isn't a big sticker on the bike with it on.

dynaryder

Only problem with fender mounting will be on the front. The valve stem for the Hadshok sticks out from the fork crown. You'll have to drill a hole in the fender to get them to fit with 700cc wheels. Also the current models have touring triples instead of MTB triples,so your gearing may be a bit tall for offroading.

aley

I have an '07 Caffeine F3, which is the same frame, fork, and most components as the Bad Boy Ultra, but with 26" wheels and a mountain triple (44/34/22 instead of 48/38/28, if memory serves). These comments relate specifically to mine; I don't know precisely what components are different between the '07 BBU and Caffeine F3, and I certainly don't know what the differences are between the '07 and '09.

The good:
* It's fast, and will be faster when I get around to lacing up a set of 700C wheels. I'm currently running 26x1.5 Armadillos on it, and it's no slouch even with that. A lot of that is the riding position, which is pretty aggressive - it's much less upright than most hybrids I've ridden.
* The fork is a nice addition. I had doubts as to the usefulness on-road, and I figured I'd ride on-road with it locked out. As it turns out, I rarely lock it out - when the air pressure is set right it takes the edge off of big stuff (potholes, curbs, and steps) without bouncing during normal riding.

The bad:
* It's heavy. OK, you have to expect that with what amounts to a hardtail mountain bike, but I really notice the extra weight on climbs compared with my Jamis Aurora. (Speaking of climbing, though, it climbs like a mountain goat off road - the aluminum hardtail really shines there!)
* The gears are very widely spaced. Again, this is to be expected on a mountain bike. One of these days I'll drop a road cassette on it and be able to find a gear for any speed I want to ride.
* No rack mounts. This may be specific to the Caffeine, although I seem to recall not seeing them on the '08 BBU that I looked at. I believe this is rectified on the '09, but be sure to check - it was a rude surprise for me.

Overall, I've been very happy with mine. It's a great utility rig for hauling my kids (one on a Trail-A-Bike and one in a trailer, so a pretty serious load), it's great fun to ride around town, and it's nice to be able to go hit the dirt trails once in a while. It's not as comfortable for longer rides as my road bike (I finally broke down and added bar ends to give me some more hand positions), but it's not half bad either. If it got stolen, I'd probably shop around a bunch, and likely as not I'd end up buying another one.

kergin

Thanks! It's good to hear that the headshock doesn't affect you much on the road - I guess that means it's a high quality shock. I will be certain to check whatever year/model I end up buying to ensure it has rack eyelets, though I can deal with kludging a front fender on. After dealing with SKS raceblades, anything can be tolerated

Any word on whether the 2010 models will be USA made or if they played with the geometry at all? I looked at the various BB models that Cannondale distributes around the world, and its very clear that the USA/Canadian BBU is not the same as the BBU they sell in the UK or other parts. Geometry is more hybrid-oriented for international models. I hope Dorel doesn't consolidate the frame design for 2010, but if they do, I'll have to seek out an '09 USA BBU.

aley

Some of it has to do with the pressure I run in it, which is near the maximum (although, to be fair, I'm at the maximum weight listed on the tables of air pressures). I believe it is a pretty decent shock, though, in an case.

dynaryder

The pic on C'dale's site def shows rack mounts on the '09 BBU. I'm about 95% certain a regular(non disc specific) rack would go on my '02;hydro calipers don't stick out as far as mechs.

AsanaCycles

i've had plenty of Cdales
the issue i always end up with them, is that they tend to use proprietary parts.
so the headshok will need to be serviced by a Cdale dealer, unless you can manage to score the tools.

29ers have the same bead seat diameter as 700c
so you can run 29er tyres and road tyres.

racks are a no brainer
www.OldManMountain.com

personally, I've been using a custom Hunter 29er.
https://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.ph...67#post5168467
its rigid, i've been using MAVIC SpeedCitys for the wheelset, and use Old Man Mountain racks, with some custom bags from Jeff Boatman at www.CourselDesignworks.com

this bike, is my do everything bike, from MTB, club rides both dirt and road, commuting, etc...
in fact, I actually managed to pull of doing The Eastern Sierra Double on it.

its got standard parts. no need to seek a dealer for use of special tools.

a Karate Monkey is also an awesome bike. i think the frame and fork is going for about $465

i just sent my brother my 1999 F900. its got a ton of miles! honestly. that bike is seriously a kick butt bike. its had so much use, its crazy.

AsanaCycles

a quick word on gearing
a 29er tyre with the typical MTB gearing 44/32/22t x 32/11t
nominally speaking the big gear combo with a 29er tyre... 44x11t
is the same gear inch as a road bike 53x12t on a 700c tyre.

plus of course there are all the low gears.

the thing i like about 29ers is that you can actually go in the dirt. which is really what they are designed for. so they take 2.35" wide tyres.
and of course they take touring tyres too 700x47c, 38c, whatever
cyclocross tyres too 700x32c
road tyres too 700x23c

being a MTB, 29er's have their bottom brackets at typical MTB heights
as you use smaller tyres, like a CX tyre, or road tyre, the BB height drops, as well as your over gear inch.

so of course, when you mount a 23c tyre on your 29er MTB
with the 44x11t
its eactly that... 44x11t
its no where close to a road bike with 53x11t

however, the taller 29er tyres make up the difference.
currently I'm on my 2nd set of WTB Vupline 2.1's
1 set lasted me a bit more than a year.

i also use a set of NanoRaptors
a set of Conti Top Contact 47c touring tyres.. that are absolutely awesome!

aley

One thing I appreciate about my Caffeine is that I can mount 26" mountain bike tires or 700C road tires (on different wheelsets, obviously) and my gearing stays essentially the same.

Can you find a rim that will properly hold both a 700x23 and a 2.35" 29er MTB tire? It seems like it would either be too wide for the one, or too narrow for the other.

As far as the BBU goes, it is (or at least in 2007 and 2008 it was) built on the same frame as the Caffeine F3, which is a mountain bike. You can surely take a mountain bike in the dirt, whether it's painted as a BBU and has trekking gears or it's painted as a Caffeine and has mountain gears.

kergin

*crossing fingers* I want to find one of these for "cheap" at the local fall bike show. Heck, even if I end up shelling out $1200, I would have made out like a bandit.

aley

I saw one a couple of months ago on Craigslist for $500 or so, so they're out there for cheap. Almost made me regret shelling out $1200 or so a year ago, but then again, I've had a year's worth of enjoyment on mine. It's been well worth it.

dynaryder

I don't think you're going to get 29er tires on a BBU. 700x28's come fairly close to the shock's valve,I think 2+" 29ers would hit. Remember,wider tires are also taller.

kergin

True enough. I might just have to run 26" MTB wheels.

aley

No, definitely not 29er tires - I hope I didn't sound like I was implying that they'd fit. If you want MTB tires on a BBU, they'll have to be 26", and you'll need a second wheelset to do that since the BBU comes with rims for 700C tires.

AsanaCycles

yes... MAVIC SpeedCity wheelset. MSRP is about $430, ebay around $150... for THE SET
i think they are 17mm wide... i've been using them for years... never had a single problem. but i ride alot on pavement. I don't slam the bike around on single track... too much.

AsanaCycles

i think i've seen a GT Peace 9er Multi for around $600
https://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=504367

AsanaCycles

BINGO!!!
here it is!
https://www.performancebike.com/bikes...00_20000_28505
in blue
$499

use Old Man Mountain racks.
www.OldManMountain.com

AsanaCycles

a rigid 29er rocks
you'll be able to use a ton of various tyre
and you can ride it everywhere

you might not be able to hammer like a FS bike
but mixed terrain, its awesome!

PaulRivers

I just remembered the drawback of the Bad Boy - to get wide mountain bike tires on it, or winter studded tires, you have to buy a second 26" wheelset. It comes with a 700c wheelset which doesn't have enough clearance for fat tires. Also, if you switch the size of the wheels you may need to reposition the brakes.

dynaryder

BBU's are all disc. You won't need to mess with the brakes.

PaulRivers

That's a good point, had forgotten about that.

...though I have trouble keeping my disc brakes from rubbing without swapping wheel. I would imagine you might have to readjust the brakes every time you switch wheels, though that's certainly better than physically moving them like I was thinking.

usmcmarathonman

I'v been commuting on my '06 BBU for close to 3 years now. I'd echo most of the comments here - it is a pretty fast commuter, equipped with high quality parts, and has been rock solid reliable. My '06 is rack ready. Fenders are a real custom fit issue, as has been noted. I still run 700x28 tires, and no fender is going to fit between the tire and the shock valve, so cut-out is necessary. The shock is a great feature - I also keep the shock pumped to the high end of pressures for my weight. Speaking of weight, the bike weighs a lot, so going uphill on the roads is going to be a bit humbling, but good training. Cannondale tweaks the spec every year - mine was the last year with true mountain bike gearing, if that matters to you. The bikes also have changed disc brake specs -Magura/Avid and mechanical or hydraulic. If you want a used one, watch Craigslist - I see them fairly often.

meanwhile

If you're allergic to flatbars on medium to long hauls, you could convert the bike to drops while keeping the current power train and controls using the Minoura Space Bar Hack:



A Badboy (I don't like the name either) with the right tyres and cyclocross type drops - probably Bell Laps - would be about as general purpose as any bicycle could be. (I'm planning on a similar bike myself, only using a classic Age Of Steel mtb - a Kona Lava Dome - as the donor, and maybe going for IGH. I'm not sure whether I'll have disc mounts added to the bike.) Of course if you're not bothered about offroad, then your choice of drops opens up.