MakersMark

Hello

I am in the market for a new bike. I am looking for a bike with endurance geometry. I am replacing a Jamis Xenith Endura that is well worn. I have been looking at at 2018 Canyon Edurace CF SL Disc 7 and a 2018 Spec Roubaix Elite. Both of these are 105 group sets and hydraulic discs. I was close to a decision, and then I stopped in a LBS and they had a 2017 Cervello C3 105 on sale at a significant discount. I have a test ride scheduled for this weekend.

I have searched the forum and the internet and can find little written on the C3 . Does anybody have any experience they would like to share? Any experience or insight would be appreciated. Thank you in advance

Seattle Forrest

I love my C3. Incredibly nimble bike, good climber, good descender, comfortable on long rides.

Slick Madone

I think that's something that will come after a test ride or two. I personally think you ride all three for extended rides and decide for yourself. I personally liked the Roubaix, but some people don't. The FS to me keeps me fresher longer and that was huge for me.

elledgedmd

I love my 2018 Roubaix. I did Lotoja in September, which is a 205 mile easyish ride on some pretty bad roads. I didn’t feel beat up at all afterwards which is a testament to how plush it rides.

underdog33

I went through a similar process last year. Both are great bikes. I test rode the 2017 models (Roubaix Expert versus the Cervelo C3 Ultegra) and decided on the Roubaix Expert. Although I was really impressed by both bikes, I found the Roubaix Expert more comfortable. It's been even better than i had anticipated for long distance rides due largely to the Future Shock and the cg-r seatpost.

Baldy1953

I have the 2018 Roubaix Elite. The difference in comfort from my Jamis Ventura is night and day. The Roubaix is extremely comfortable.Slightly over 600 miles in 3 weeks and I look forward to riding it. Never been on the others you are looking at, so do not have an opinion.

Campag4life

Read the thread active on the forum currently about the reliability issues associated with the Roubaix Future Shock. I own a non FS Roubaix but wouldn't own a new one.

I would consider the Cervelo, but would ride the Trek Domane and even Emonda with 28c tires if you need the compliance. An Emonda can be built to 14 lbs. That with 28c tires makes it win the performance category even though it isn't technically an endurance geometry. With H2 geometry, I can fit the same as my Roubaix.

Happy shopping

Slick Madone

Unlike Campag4life, I own 2 FS equipped 2017 Roubaix's. An expert, and after some time with it, I bought an S-Works. I haven't had a single problem with it in hundreds of miles now, and the posters above who made the same choice more than likely feel the same, as I didn't see any post not to go with one.

The comfort factor on longer rides makes all the difference in the world. I've tested the Domane, not for any real length of time, but am very happy with the FS and the Roubaix.

StanSeven

I know little about the Canyon but had a tough time myself deciding between the Specialized and the Cervelo. I ended up with the Cervelo C3 and liked it so much I later got a C5. I ended up doing almost all my road miles now with the Cervelo because it’s so comfortable and I lose very little over my road bikes.

Campag4life

Complaints about the FS aren't mine but rather from owners 'on this forum'. There are many accounts of FS clacking throughout the web. Further, there is suggestion the life of a FS is 500 hours for replacement.

To me, FS and no question you enjoy the ride characteristics..which btw can be achieved with wider tires...if you need more, buy a XC hardtail with full blown shock...but FS is overreach from Specialized if the reliability isn't full vetted.
Watching the video on FS removal and adjustment, my personal opinion is, the design is crap. Glad you like yours. I would NEVER own one.

pdoege

I have a couple thousand miles on my 2018 Roubiax.

Unlike Campag4life I have not had a single problem.

Slick Madone

I still think the issue is you don't actually own one, have no experience with FS personally, but are weighing in. Lots of people have no issues with them either.

You will never own one based on second hand knowledge from the Internet, but quite a few of us who've actually spent time on one don't have an issue.

IMHO, actual experience does account for something.

Campag4life

Your actual experience apparently doesn't. Glad you are happy with the FS.
There is great debate about the veracity of the FS even without its reliability issues. I have ridden the FS and don't like it. I developed products like it for over 4 decades. Its a crap design. The two allen preload adjustment is 'fiddly'.

You may not read other threads on the forum. Here is one for you:

Specialized Future Shok problems?

If I need a shock absorber on my road bike, I would simply purchase a PRE future shock Diverge OR equivalent that will fit 30mm+ wide rubber and run them at 65 psi. I don't need it. If I needed even more compliancy, I would ride a XC racing hardtail. The FS is a gimmick for guys who want to stick with 25-28c tire width when there is no reason to if getting beat up on the road. Monster trucks don't have tires like an ordinary passenger car either.

Further, pro riders of the modern Roubaix in grueling bumpy races like the cobbled Paris Roubaix race last year that my non FS Roubaix SL3 won when the bike came out, they run a 'solid' insert in replacement of the FS.

I am glad you like yours and have no issue. The world isn't flat. You are one data point in a sea of data. Products have tolerances. Tolerances are variable. A 130 lb rider doesn't put the same stresses on a bike that a 230 lb rider does. 3 inches of bar drop will put more stress on the FS than bar height just above saddle on a short inseam rider. A given design has to be robust enough to endure the entire spectrum of environmental variation. Reports are the FS is not. A front end design like what the Domane offers for some level of front end compliancy is reported to be more reliable and quiet. Most learned riding and racing off road that you match tires and suspension to the riding venue. If you ride on broken road, a gravel bike or equivalent with larger tires will be overall more comfortable and handle better than a Roubaix with FS.

motosonic

All of the arguing on here aside, Both are great bikes, but I prefer the botique bike manufacturers. When I go to a cycling event, I get completely lost in a sea of idential Specialized and Trek Bikes with a smattering of Cannondale mixed in. I just find what those manufacturers make to be.. boring. They're not bad bikes, they're just plain and blend in. I like a bike I can easily find in a crowd. So, I honestly don't even consider those brands anymore. In the end, it's up to what you like more.. but if you put them side by side and ONLY look at aesthetics(because you like them both equally and they're comparable bikes), It should be a no brainer.

Campag4life

Arguing? Isn't the purpose of the forum to share point of view that more often than not may not agree with others? I always laugh at your point of view about boutique or 'exclusive' bikes. Large brands being demonized for being boring? Why, because they are so dam good? You side with the boutique makers who make heavier, less laterally stiff bikes for the ruse of exclusivity.

Specialized, Cervelo and Trek all moved out of their parent's garage because their bikes were standout performers.
Boutique brands never move out because their products are technically inferior, heavier and stuck in the stone age of uniform section tubing. Of course, if you aren't a performance cyclist than performance doesn't matter does it?

No boutique brand makes a bike that will rival the pure speed of a Madone 9 series or Specialized Venge VIAS.
Inferior boutique brands don't have the technology to compete at this level and guys who really understand bicycles understand this and why boutique brands stay in boutiques for the majority of bike riders. FWIW, boutiques don't have an answer for an iPhone or iPad or iPod either for the same simple reason they don't have the technology to implement a product as good aka they lack the R&D even with the benefit of reverse engineering.

Sometimes companies overreach. This happens with BMW, happens with Apple and has happened with Specialized and it may even continue on some level. Why? Because companies want to beat the competition with a better mousetrap. What is the risk? Poor reliability. BMW is notorious for doing it with their flagship 7 series E-65 when it first came out. They bought a lot of them back because dealers couldn't fix them..Microsoft based I-drive was too buggy and core electronics would copiously fail. Iphones have had problems throughout their lifecycle that Apple addressed overtime and even mandated a volume control earphone on their shuffle that customers rejected and so they had to bring back discrete volume controls. Why did they do this? Because they wanted to sell earphones too. Profit. It always is about profit.

And Specialized with their beyond horrid narrow version of PF30 BB which after several years of high warranty and turning off customers with their most expensive bike, they had to default to BB30 which creates less of a marketing difference between S-works, Pro and Expert models. Profit.

And what about the new Roubaix? Overreach. Most that ride one like it. Not all. I am not a big fan but many average riders like it...until the shock starts to rattle and more than a few do. Not enough development. Process not controlled tightly enough. Specialized wanted that profit to create a watershed endurance bike and screwed the pooch. Overreach.

There is even backlash to so called aero bikes like the Madone and VIAS. With the VIAS it was first the rim brakes.
The bike wouldn't stop and still doesn't after they changed the design. Ultimately the bike stops better with disc brakes that likely rob a few watts at 30 mph and add fractional weight. But Specialized released those crappy bikes on a $8K bike because they wanted the profit to sell a 'flagship' aero bike that wouldn't stop.
And then there is integration. At what cost to a consumer? A stem and handlebar that are stuck together? And then there is cable routing of an integrated bike. Some never even signed on to internal cable routed bikes.

So, mfr's will do things to consumers they only figure out after bringing the bike home and living with it for a while.
Do you think they don't know better and its all an accident? The engineers and company managers know full well what isn't right with the bikes. The average consumer isn't technically enlightened enough to know what they are getting into is the bottom line. All said, there are some truly reliable, well engineered bicycles being sold by these companies. The consumer has to be informed however.

ColonelSanders

Whilst I am not making any claims about the FS on the Roubaix, your posts in this thread have been outstanding and truly thought provoking.


Unfortunately there is not enough posts like this being made.


I do have a soft spot for boutique bikes though.

Campag4life

Thanks. I have worn the hats of the decision makers at the bike companies that do what they do to the public.
It truly isn't pretty and the outrage is shared rightly on forums like this. We sure have lived it with Press Fit bottom brackets haven't we?...when bike companies 'experiment' with the public. How can they make a simpler more cost effective (for the bike company) bottom bracket that they can 'market' as an improvement as stiffer and lighter and an 'advantage', meanwhile the customer suffers with inconvenience and higher warranty. Heck, even a windfall of bike shops around the world because customers bring their bikes in more for repair. Can't make this stuff up really, truth being stranger than fiction.

Sadly, the Future Shock is following in suit. And make no mistake, a subset of the public loves the future shock. But not those with a bitter distaste that have had two replacements and the thing rattles over every bump. Think about the complexity of the FS. It isn't rebuildable. As expected, its a bit pricey to replace. And now a 500 hour bombshell gets dropped on the consumer. Is that really the replacement life? Is this some kind of hoax or premeditated scheme to extoll further money from consumers after already dropping $3-5K for a bicycle only to have a high percentage rattle?

And now its disc brakes. I am not a hater of disc brakes like some but I don't ride them on road because I ride in flat country and don't want the cost of maintenance. Don't need them and don't want them. If I get to Europe and ride the Alps I want them on my rental bike, but not in the flatland where I live. But now, pretty much all $3K bikes are being put on bike shop floors to sell disc brakes. Consumers don't know the downside, any more than they knew the downside of press fit bottom brackets or Future shock. They believe more powerful brakes are better and in some instances they are but certainly not all like where I live.

So upselling is common because it translates to higher profit for bike industry. And of course this strategy is ubiquitous in automobiles...now evolving to small displacement turbo motors which have higher engine stress and higher maintenance cost and lower durability and higher part replacement cost for failing head gaskets, waste gates, turbos etc out of warranty and of course to companies like Apple who sell a telephone for $1K when a $80 Nokia does almost as much. Some of the blame lay with the consumer of course because they aren't informed and get sucked in by marketing.

one4smoke

Which paint scheme do you have?

Baldy1953

I have the mint green fade to black paint job. Very distinctive. Wife liked it, so that is the one I got. LOL She did nit complain on how much i cost, so I figured I had better get it.

Bryan C. 

There is no doubt some wisdom in campag4lifes posts, however his long winded replies and asserting his opinion as fact in a provocative way leaves much to be desired. Maybe if he would cut out the grandstanding and chest pounding they would be taken more seriously.

We can all sit here and nit pick the new products coming into the marketplace. Some people embrace change, some people cling to the old ways and products like their life depends on it. Lots of products on the open market for everyone. Dont like it? Cool, make your point and move on. Same goes for the fanboy types, make your point and move on. No need to argue over every little point.

And to the OP. Don't buy into the hype or hate about the future shock. It has its shortcomings and advantages. I chose a FS bike because I wanted comfortable bike with a rigid frame that I didn't have to use oversized and underinflated tires on. My preference, my money, my decision. But it was an informed decision and I knew full well what I was getting into with a somewhat new and unproven design. For every person complaining about problems with the FS there is no doubt many more who simply enjoy the bike without issues of any kind. If it was so problematic then Specialized would be swamped with warranty claims and would be losing money. I doubt they would continue on with a seriously flawed product that was costing them money and marketshare.

Seattle Forrest

Everybody is talking about cushionyness, but no matter what tires you slap on, you can't make the other bikes handle like a Cervelo.

motosonic

+1

Slick Madone

I guess that's great if you like Cervelo.

sirkaos

+1
I have 4K miles + on a 2017 Roubaix and have had zero issues with the Expert model. Speaking from my experience, I am completely satisfied with the Roubaix and the FS. I am not a great climber, but tend to make up some distance with the group on the descents. Longest ride is just a few miles over a century. Most rides are 50-70 with 2500-5000 feet of climbing. We have some smooth roads, but many are in dire need of repair. This is where the FS shines. I have serviced the head tube bearings and changed the spring from the heavy to the medium and I like the medium. I am tall at 6'7" and weigh 210. So for a bike to allow me to ride with the group and keep up, is really satisfying. I also upgraded to tubeless 28C Schwabe Pro Ones on the new Reynolds Assaults. I run my pressure currently at 85psi. I am super happy with this set up. Previous posts that are extremely long winded comments are short on facts and 1st person experience. My LBS has had zero issues with the FS as well and they are the biggest shop in the area. Also one of the better riders in our group who rides even more than me, has absolutely no complaints and loves his Roubaix and FS.

winston63 

That's the thing isn't it? I bought a new road bike last year and spent loads of time test riding a number of bikes. I thought I'd love the Cervelo, but actually didn't quite like the handling and the way it felt when I was riding, at least as compared to several other bikes I tested.

While I liked the Roubaix quite a bit, I wound up loving a Scott Solace even more and bought that. Another candidate that came close was a Canondale Synapse, but something about the Scott just really worked for me.

Point being that the OP really has to test ride some bikes and see what he likes.

Edit: I see now that the OP is going to do some test riding. Excellent! Any of the bikes you are considering are high quality, go for the one that fits you best and handles the way you like.