He posted this picture on the FS thread. As someone on the thread said, it raises many questions about WTF is actually going on here. The bike looks reasonably normal tho.

Long back, short legs? Why have you got a short stem and the saddle forward?

Short legs might justify the saddle. But long back doesn’t work with the short stem, unless you have arms like a dinosaur. Probably why it feels like an mtb.

Pub Hotel in Canterbury ^

Stem was 110 on a M/L Defy. I’m 6ft1

Personally I would have another look at a CAAD12 as what you get for the money is much much better. I love mine and the feel is amazing, certainly wouldn’t swap it for a carbon model. The frame is bloody light and really comfortable, much more so than steel frames that I have had.

CAAD12 105 hydro disc for £1500 is a great price. Evans worked out the cheapest for me with their various discounts, club card pints etc.

Black bar tape one side, badly wrapped white tape on the other?

What. The. Flip….

The Defy probably feels too much like a mountain bike because with a 110mm stem and 6ft 2 with long arms it’s too short. Try a 130mm stem to flatten yourself out? Use the Defy as a mule to set the dimensions you want and pick another bike?

And anyway, manufacturers make a big deal about ‘endurance’ and ‘race’ frames. In reality it’s 1 – 1.5 degrees out the head angle, a CM off the top tube and 1-3cm from the headtube.

Then again, what you really want to do is buy another bike. Amarite?

Caad12 ultegra with hydraulic discs £1499 from Drakes Cycles in Leeds; 54 & 56 in stock.

For general riding the Synapse is a very good bike. As said above if you want to blast it the Supersix is more racy, with steeper angles and a less compliant frame. The CAAD 12 if anything is more racy than the Supersix, certainly the CAAD10 was set up at the racy end of the spectrum. In truth I’m not convinced you’ll see a massive amount of difference from the Defy. Might be worth playing around with stem length (110 is pretty short on a road bike) and saddle position before you plow into another expensive bike. After all you can pick up a cheap 130mm stem for not much more than a tenner if you shop around. Surely worth a try?

Regardless, let me know when you’ve made a decision and we’ll hit the Cheshire lanes again!

I would go with Ti if I where you Hora resell values are very good 🙂

Had 2 supersix evo hi mods, 2 caad10s and caad9 – great bikes, for me the geometry is spot on – the evos are mega light at about 850g or so but the caad10 is a great bike and I’ve raced it loads and the difference is less than you’d think –

6’2″ with short legs?

Or, to put it another way, from the pelvis up you’re really very tall.

You’re going to need much more than a 110mm stem to get a decent ‘fit’ on a M/L…

That concludes my internet fitting session, that’ll be £250, PayPal gift etc.

fifeandy – Member

@cynic-al: Is your Supersix a hi-mod version? Should come in a fraction under 1kg

It was a low end model – 1150gm when I put on my scales.

NEVER believe catalogue weights.

Anyway back to the op.

Ever thought of finding bricks and mortar retailers you like, test riding some bikes, buying the one you like most?

Probably cheaper than your current method.

Could I interest you in a 56cm Ultegra Hi-Mod? 😛

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/fs-cannondale-synapse-carbon-hi-mod-ultegra-disc-56cm-road-bike-1895-1896?replies=1#post-7986470

I couldn’t drop nearly two grand cash on any used bike. Sorry. 🙂

Cash probably 1k max or 0% finance. Anyone explain that thinking?!

At 6’1″ with short legs and a long back, a 58cm CAAD or Supersix will be the perfect size for you. The Giant looks all to pot, if you’ve got a long back, you’ll probably require a lot of setback on the seatpost.

If you have an Evans near you, they may have some in stock to try out sizing guilt free (I think this could be known as a McSit…)

I have a supersix and IIRC the geometry is almost identical to the CAAD frames, which helped to get a feel for the size and fit

It’s a great ride, although I’m not a racer I just find it suits my lanky frame quite nicely. Really comfortable and sharp handling.

There’s a barely used 58cm Synapse Disc AL with 105 going for £550 on a local roadie forum, made me think of this thread.

I tried both carbon models around London over lunch one day. They both felt good, with the Six being a tad harsher. The shop felt the Synapse was a better fit. The Six was too long or too short depending on size. Regardless, I went for a Defy Advanced Pro 2 which is great. I chose that because I really wanted hydraulic discs. Too used to MTB brakes to go back to rim brakes. A year on, with the Shimano hydraulics fitted, I’m very glad I did. The TRP weren’t up to much.

I still lust after the Six though, but a long ride reminds me that my 40+ aging frame wouldn’t cope so well on the Six.

Two riding mates have the two Cannondales in question. The racer shaped one , who is a racer says the Super Six fits him beautifully, the non racer shaped one says the Synapse is perfect. So back to the racer/mamil conundrum.

really liked my SuperSixEvo – bought the entry level 105 bike from Evans (external cable routing, PF30 BB) heavily reduced, just to get the frameset for a rebuild.

Frame in 54cm was sub 1kg.

But if you need a front end that high, you should have probably gone with a synapse 🙂

Evans do a price match 🙂

But if you need a front end that high, you should have probably gone with a synapse

I realise you’re probably just joking, but the differences between sportive & race-style bikes extend to more than just head tube length.

After a couple of years on a Defy I’ve gone back to a racier frame because it just wasn’t as fast as my previous bike – and I’m willing to trade a bit of comfort for snappier acceleration and that feeling of zero energy being wasted.

In short, I’d rather ride a race frame without the stem slammed than a sportive frame with.

🙂

I’ve got a defy, had a supserix hi-mod – the defy is dull, after 8 months of ownership and very few miles because i didn’t get a buzz from it, its been relegated for a allez sprint

In short, I’d rather ride a race frame without the stem slammed than a sportive frame with.

+1

a friend has a caad12, its a lovely looking bike

Just messing. I’m not one of the slammed stem brigade.
My Cervelo s3 has a healthy cone spacer too 🙂

Hora, are you sorted yet? I was in Keswick MTB today and they had offers on Cannondale road bikes including an offer on a 2015 synapse. May be worth dropping them a line?

I have a supersix 105, bought from Evans for 1170 with pedals thrown in, feels great to me but that’s only compared to a ribble and old ally trek. Don,t find in uncomfortable at 4 – 5 hours. I am 6 foot on a 56

I’ve just got a secondhand Dolan Pre Cursa/Elippse wheels for Cheshire lanes duties. 20miles today 🙂

23rd October.

Apart from Cannondale, any others worthy?

Scott CR1 105 for £1100, or the Addict 105 for £1400.

hora – Member
Apart from Cannondale, any others worthy?

What criteria?

Or are you just asking for recommendations blindly?

I can think of (probably) 300 others.

Personally, I’d avoid both as they have the spawn of satan BB30 bottom bracket. What do you want it for? What are you looking for that the Ritchey did not offer aside from light weight carbon-ness? This end of the market is saturated with great bikes, but if it isn’t suited to your needs, it will never be right.

There are Endurance bikes and endurance bikes. The Synapse has a nice long MAMIL-friendly headtube, the Roubaix even more so. The Defy is basically a racebike that doesn’t need spacers. The head angle is half a degree shallower then the TCR and Propel.

And anyway, manufacturers make a big deal about ‘endurance’ and ‘race’ frames. In reality it’s 1 – 1.5 degrees out the head angle

Is actually an over-exaggeration. I;ve raced my Defy SL and sportived my Propel. Personally, I’d choose a nice steel Ritchey with carbon 300g monocoque fork 😉

I bought a supersix evo HM frame from Paul’s in the spring (2015 model) and built it up using the ultegra groups from my old bike and added some campag Bora carbon wheels. Utterly brilliant bike, really really fast, light (6.9 in current build for a size 58) and also far more comfortable that my ‘endurance’ carbon roadie before it, and way more comfortable than the obscenely expensive cervelo R5.

It’s racy yes, but if you get it fitted by a pro it doesn’t have to be uncomfortable (don’t slam the stem) but the biggest thing I love is how it handles, it’s so precise and secure at speed it really builds confidence, but also doesn’t bite when you’re tired. I’ve ridden mine in the alps, done the dragon in the UK and just blown away by it. Yes BB30 is a pain and yes the cable routing is external (will just HAVE to buy etap if going electronic) but blows the socks off every other carbon ‘race’ bike I’ve ridden, which is a few!

Scarily, the 2016 is supposed to be better. If you can find the frame though, custom is the way fwd.

will just HAVE to buy etap if going electronic

Don’t, unless you like hanging around an eternity waiting for it to shift compared to Di2