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£375 bike rides bet...
 

[Closed] £375 bike rides better than £3000 bike!!

 armo
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[#3736447]

Well I sold my Yeti 575 2007 as I just couldn't get on with it, so as I was unsure as what to buy next I bought a mint Cannondale prophet with a lefty for £375 as a inbetween bike, Oh my god the Cannondale rocks! It weighs about half a pound more than the Yeti but rides so much better (in freeride mode)its given me so much more confidence on the downs I'm thinking of keeping it as my main bike and spend abit on upgrades. Do you think the cannondale is worth investing in?


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 7:37 pm
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Definitely. Very capable frames, I can't see any reason to get rid of mine.


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 7:45 pm
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....it took you 5 yrs to realize you couldnt get on with it?


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 7:46 pm
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No find something you don't like and invest in that. 🙂


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 7:46 pm
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you got a bargin,,.. if you think this bike 'rocks' and 'performs well' for you, then yeah go ahead and get the upgrades you require..... no point in having a bike your not happy with and spending a fortune on upgrades...
off you pop them armo...be happy to see some pics when all the upgrades are done... 😛
just out of interest...how does a lefty feel.... the first time i saw pics of the leftys i thort 'how can they be stable enough' ? (i wouldnt have alot of confidence in just one fork... 😕


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 7:47 pm
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Yes, what's not to like about em, good weight, great angles, proper sized headset which you can fit a cheap 1.5 (or tapered) fork too.
Build it up heavy, or light, it's a highly adaptable frame, though some report the back end being a bit flexy.
I wished I bought my years earlier than I did.

Even have/had thought about getting some 650B wheels for it!
(I saw this in an MTRB thread from years ago, not the latest 'talk')

If you bought it that cheap, does it have the not so great Manitou shock... replace that with an Fox RP first...


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 7:51 pm
 armo
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The lefty is so plush and tracks fantastic, before I bought the Yeti 575 (fox 140 rlc)I had a 2005 Jekyll with a 130 mm lefty so I knew they were good but this is the 140mm lefty that rides even better. I've also got a Cannondale Gemini that I use for Stainburn that rides ace as thats what pointed me towards a prophet.


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 7:53 pm
 armo
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Yeah its got the Manitou shock but it performs ok so far, when I rode the Yeti I was always flicking the pro pedal switch to lock out on the climbs but the Manitou climbs great without bobbing.


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 7:57 pm
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Cannondale BB's are pretty low, which is why the handle so well. Pedal strike happens more but doesn't bother me.


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 8:00 pm
 jonk
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Great frames and the swinger is an ace shock


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 8:01 pm
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I had a Prophet in my days of 26er's and they were very capable bikes then. I'm not surprised that it still rides like a dream and for the money!


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 8:01 pm
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As for the lefty.. 1st time I got on a lefty equipped bike I pushed off, looked down at the headstock, and fell off.
After that it was fine, I've ended up with two of them!

There very stiff, I thought noticeably so, when swapping between it and my QR equiped bike. My main one was serviced after I bought it, and went 2/3 years without any intervention, other than the occasional bearing reset.
Had it upgraded (damper) last year (and still not fitted it!) and all the internal bits needed no replacement parts.
I had the SPV version and found the damping left a bit to be desired, and had tried a TPC version previously on a demo and thought that the better pf the two (rose tinted glasses?). The basic damping was the reason I had it upgrade (and cause I could)

Oh and yes you can just about take both hands of the bars, but I never managed a danger panda shot while riding it.


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 8:05 pm
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What would a new well specced Prophet have cost you in 2007? £2.5k? 😉

Fair point about not overlooking a decent s/h bike or frame (I have bought one new frame in last 10 years), but I bet you didn't sell your 2007 yeti for £3000. Whatever you sold it for, someone is probably having a right hoot on that too. A mate has just buuilt up a 2005 575 with newer parts, and it's a great giggle, especially for a seven year old sub 30lb 6" bike. But prophets are aaaaaace too. I think if I had to choose i would choose the old prophet over the old 575, but only just.


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 8:08 pm
 armo
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julian, your right hopefully the new owner of the Yeti is loving it (it was as new)but I found the top tube too long and it would blow through its rear travel far too quick (off a curb)which meant I had to pump the shock up which meant it rode too hard and there was no inbetween. I was also concerned about the strength of the rear triangle as a friend snapped his which put me off giving it some. I actually bought a second hand frame off here as a back but found a hair line crack in it (its still hung up in my garage if anybody wants it for £40)


 
Posted : 03/03/2012 8:40 pm