datepalm3@earth

I'm getting back into road cycling and would appreciate any feedback on my bike choice.

I'm 40 and want something to go out on easy 30-60 mile rides (i.e., no racing), with the option of putting on a rack/panniers to do a periodic tour...maybe 1-2 times a year. I looked at a lot of bikes and seem to have settled on the Some ES Smoothie. I'm planning to build this up with either 105 or Ultegra, and also to note, I definitely want a steel frame.

One question was the top tube seemed a bit long here compared to other bikes, and I don't want to be stretched out in a pure race position. The relaxed geometry of this bike is one of the things that appealed to me, but I didn't know if the top tube should be a concern.

Thanks for your help.

Turboem1

Do you want to buy a frame and build it up or do you want a complete bike? I am looking to build up a "cheaper" steel frame and these are what I am looking at

1. Custom Road from curtlo.com
2. Soma Smoothie or smoothie es
3. Salsa La Raza
4. Gunnar Roadie (they also have a sport which is more relaxed)
5. Custom Road from tom teesdale

As far as complete bikes look at the lemond sarthe

Surferbruce

top tube length should be a concern if you want a good fit.
i'm considering a new steel road frame and don't want anything fancy or lugged (that's what my fixed gears are for!) and am leaning towards a Soulcraft right now. check em out, they are very reasonable for a custom frame.
Salsa cycles a nice stock steel frame too.

PatrickVA

I just finished my Smoothie ES build last night, and hopefully will have my first shake-down ride tonight. My other bike (Fuji carbon Team Pro) is a 54, and so is my Soma. The numbers aren't that different, but the Soma feels larger than the Fuji. I'm glad for this, because I think this'll put me in the right position for all day, long distance comfort.

The top tube does seem a little longish, but still not bad. I'll probably drop from the 110 stem I have now to a 100 with more rise/less spacers or even a 90.

If anyone's interested, I'll post some initial impressions after a good ride or two. For now I can say the welds and paint look great, it was affordable ($300), and for my first build gave me no problems. The total build weighs less than I'd expected, too, at about 22 lbs. with bottle cages, pedals and fenders (no computer, seat bag or pump yet), and I'm running mid- to low-end components and a 11-32 and a 48-36-26 Deore triple. I did splurge and get a carbon fork though.

mx_599

i have a Smoothie!

datepalm3@earth

So...I got to a local shop today and while they didn't have an ES Smoothie in stock built up, I test rode both a Double Cross and a Speedster.

The Double Cross was my correct size (58cm) and rode great! I was very comfortable, felt like I could ride for hours, and very little road shock. The Speedster -- which apparently is identical to the ES Smoothie -- was really not a good experience though. But...don't blame the Speedster, it wasn't a fair comparison: it was a smaller 56cm frame, the handlebar was too low so I felt very stretched out, and I realized the seat was too low as well after I was already out.

So...the result is I'm now confused I was really hoping for more of a road/sport bike I could do a periodic tour on, and while it's very possible the ES Smoothie in the proper size and properly fitted would be great, I'm a little nervous now that I liked the Double Cross so much.

Also, one odd note: My main concern prior to today about the ES Smoothie was the long-ish top tub. While I'm 5'11", I think most of my height is in my legs and I didn't want to get stretched out in a race position. The odd thing was that I loooked up the geometry of Double Cross when I got home, and it has a TT 13cm longer than the ES Smoothie and I was extremely comfortable, so again...I'm confused!

Oh well, I need to sleep on things I guess.

PatrickVA

I switched to a 90 stem last night, and my Smoothie ES is just right. Amazing what 2 cm can do.

If you like the Double Cross that much, test ride it again, for as long as they'll let you take it out. From the description of the type of riding you plan to do, I think it's a great choice. Tons of folks like cross-type bikes set up for road... they're very flexible for day trips, light tours or fast short rides.

Test ride the Speedster again too, but have them properly adjust it for you. At 5'11" a 56 shouldn't be that much off.

I don't think the Speedster and Smoothie ES are identicle. The Speedster is lugged and costs a bunch more, and the geometry is a little different.

ethebull 

I bought a Smoothie ES and set it up custom. It's everything I hoped it would be. You can see photos of it at www.cyclofiend.com and I wrote a review on road****************

As to your concerns on toptube length, yes they seem long for a given frame size but this is deceiving. What makes a racing possition less comfortable is the lack of handlebar height. When you set up a Smoothie ES, you will get a fork and elongated headtube that allows the bars to be even in height with the saddle. This shortens the reach. Why?, because raising the bars also moves them back - because of the headtube angle. So, compare a racing frame, say a 57cm ctc seat tube with a 56.5 ctc toptube, to a Smoothie ES 58 ctt seat tube and a 57.5 toptube. The racing bike will be set up with the bars a good 6cm or more below the saddle height. The Smoothie raises the bars 6cm or maybe more. Not only are the bars higher, they move back 2cm due to the 73 degree headtube angle. The rider's "net reach" is 1.5cm shorter on the Smoothie. Make sense? Higher bars, shorter net reach.

stonooka

Hi,

Your comments on Soma Smoothie ES are very enlightening.

I'm interested in the Soma Smoothie ES or the Soma Double Cross. I'm a short guy with a 29.5 " inseam and the 46cm Smoothie is cutting it kinda close for standover. However, the top tube length is close to my present heavy vintage lugged Bianchi which is quite comfortable. The Soma 42cm Double Cross seems to be a better fit plus I already have the latest Shimano canti brakes that I can transfer over. I think the Double Cross has 132.5 mm rear dropouts so I can use my present wheels that I recently built.

The other problem with the Soma is that the dealer in my area is a boutique shop serving a rather affluent customer base.

I was curious about the headset. Is it integrated? Hopefully not. Did you have the proper tools to install the headset for pressing the races on the head tube and on to the fork or did you have a LBS do it? Did you use a Soma fork?

Sinchi

datepalm3@earth

I'm not sure if your questions were for me, but I'd started this post when I was considering the ES Smoothie and I did in fact end up buying one...so here are my responses:

Regarding the headset, no...it's not integrated. I simply had a LBS press the headset, and really...for $20 (at least at my shop), it was definitely the right thing to do. Plus, they tapped out the BB as well. I had a lot more confidence in things just knowing these two things were done correctly. I knew I could pretty much handle everything else.

I got the Soma recommended steel fork, which is from IRC, but I suppose you could find another brand if you wanted. It's a bit heavy but I didn't want carbon, so that was that.

Personally, I wanted to put my own bike together, so if you're the same then by all means forego the boutique bike shops. Plus, the bike I ended up building cost me $600 less than what the local shops were quoting me for building up the same bike with a worse gruppo and worse wheels. For what it's worth, www.bikemania.biz had the best prices I found and that's where I got my frame and fork.

I'm never sure if these links will work, but here are a few pics from the build (the stem has been dialed in/reduced since these were taken): https://www.flickr.com/photos/8212808@N07/

niknak

I've had my Smoothie ES for about two years. If you enjoy building up a bike on your own and want something with a more relaxed road geometry, the Smoothie ES is a good bet. I have the steel fork. My handlebars are just slightly below the saddle. Like one of the other posters said, don't worry as much about the TT length if you're going to raise your handlebars close to saddle height.

You could easily set this bike up for short tours as it has rear rack eyelets and clearance for larger tires.

I like it.

jinkies

I'm also a happy Smoothie ES owner. (See it here.) It's non-race, more relaxed geometry has been great for a more casual rider like myself. I'm a small gal, at 5'2", but the 48cm frame has been just fine for me. I was able to get fitted for a bike, then spec it out for a custom build. My poor mountain bike hasn't gotten any love since the Smoothie ES stole my heart.

bsyptak

Nice build jinkies! I imbedded the image for all to bask in.

stonooka

Hi,

Thanks for the response with respect to the headset, type and installation thereof. I've been thinking of doing the same because the investment in the proper tools would not be worth it.

Great pics! Informative.

Thanks a lot.

Sinchi

niknak

Here's a pic of my Smoothie ES in the alternate silver

battery guy

that's a lot of spacers

bsyptak

Not really. It's about the same height as an older style quill stem would put the bars at. It's just that we don't have them around anymore to raise and lower the stem at will. Unfortunate evolution.

Lambo

Quill type stems are SO much easier on the eyes than threadless stems are.

stonooka

Hi,

Thanks for posting a pic of your bike. It looks like you have a carbon fork with calipers. Is the rear brake calipers also?.

Thanks for your height input and the frame size. I'm 5'4" so I guess the 48 should work our for me as well.

Sinchi

slug89

I have the "regular" smoothie in 62cm. No complaints so far.

Second Mouse

How tall are you, slug89?

jinkies

Not sure if this is directed at me, but yes, I have a carbon fork on the frame. It's the carbon fork that SOMA sells with a 45mm rake. The brakes need to be long-reach, so I have the Shimano A550 brakes, front and rear. (You can also get Shimano's R600s for Ultegra-quality brakes.)

At your height, the 48cm frame will probably work, but I would recommend getting properly fit before choosing a frame size.

acorn_user

I don't want to start any debate, but you should at least consider the Campagnolo Veloce and Mirage groups, as they are both a lot cheaper than Ultegra.

slug89

6'3" and a 36" inseam. The frame is probably a little small for me, but I'm comfy using a 130mm stem.