Carbon road frames, how to sort tbe wheat from the chaff?

So you’re saying the 10 or so people discussing the merits of top end frames in this thread outweigh the thousands of keen cyclists who just get ion with it oblivious to fhe musings of active forum members?

Yes, I am suggesting 100miles is a fairly insignificant distance for a seasoned cyclist, it’s 6hrs riding, hardly some sort of major achievement, especially if you’ve splashed the best part of 4k on a high end road frame.
I’m I still mpressed by the guy who did it on his BMX with the saddle slammed though.

Oh.. and I do ride an old frame and if you were to offer me a modern pro level frameset I’d sell it to someone like you

I don’t know why, but reading campkoala’s comments puts me in mind of this…

Haha..who’d a thought a thread about fancy bikes ends up with getting half an hour before you go to bed?

😆

8)

Cheap old road frame? LUXURY!

I ride 400 miles to work every morning on a brick.

So you’re saying the 10 or so people discussing the merits of top end frames in this thread outweigh the thousands of keen cyclists who just get ion with it oblivious to fhe musings of active forum members?

Well, I’d surmise that the vast majority of cyclists have an interest in good kit and lust after the bikes the pros ride. Whether or not the choose, or indeed have the means to afford such bikes is largely irrelevant. The whole point of this thread is to discuss the merits of those frames, so it strikes me as a little bit odd for someone that has no experience of carbon roadbikes would dismiss the opinions of someone that owns and has ridden enough to be able to discuss their relative benefits or shortcomings with some authority.
But you take 6hrs to ride a century, so you’re clearly a novice. 😉

I’m not sure if it’s just my threads he’s “stalking” or if all his contributions are like this.

I’m wondering if it’s someone who once left here under a cloud, come back under a new name so they can get back to their old games.

I think you’ll find the vast majority of cyclists have little to no interest in owning top spec carbon road race frames.

some folk need to take a break from online forums and speak to other actual real life people. (me included)

Back on topic, I really don’t think there’s ever been a better time to buy a top end carbon frame. My R5 was discounted by 50% and the Scott was less that 25% of its original list price!
And these aren’t simply ageing frames that were top of the pile 5 or 6 years ago, they’re frames that are currently being used by Garmin and Orica.
One reason is that manufacturers are selling off “mechanical only” framesets in order to stock a common product line that can be used for mechanical or electronic group sets.
So a rider like me, that has no intention of going Di2 for the foreseeable future, there are some serious bargains to be had.
In fact, in the case of the CR1, I’ve got a pro-tour level bike – and the warranty/customer support of Scott – for little more than Ribble/Planet X money.

I might actually be able to get a trek at a big enough discount to make it almost comparable to the plant x rt58 ultegra in terms of spec and value. It just compromises on the calipers and chainset.

Very tempted, just need to decide if I want a madone or a domane (which could be a who thread in its own right).

Plus, I don’t mind admitting, I do derive a certain amount of pleasure from owning nice kit.

I ride 400 miles to work every morning on a brick.

A brick? A whole brick?

LUXURY! We used to dream of having our own brick….

Back on topic, those Scotts were very good value if you like the ride/geometry. The Cervelo R3 black is also a great buy. In fact none of the big brands can afford to make a bad frame. But I wanted a pro-tested carbon frame to replace a best bike that was “borrowed”.

For mass appeal, I like Giant. Early adopters of carbon with a proper R and D effort – 60 prototypes for the new Propel is not the sort of detail that most companies can afford. Look are also a fibres to frames company, but they are more expensive and not quite as nice until you get to the top end pro-level.

And yes, the TCR or Defy Composite will provide all the frame you could want. The difference between the base Composite and the pro-level Advanced SL frames is a tiny increase in stiffness and the weight of a water bottle. (Actually the Defy Advanced SL is a different beast to the Composite and Advanced Defys but the TCR is not).

Of coure if you want a looker – buy the Colnago, but not the one Giant make for them, a REAL C50 😉 .

I think your last comment says it all… I couldn’t agree more!

At the end of the day, we’re all big kids at heart (gaykoala excluded of course) and we love shiny new stuff. I get a lot of pleasure from knowing I ride a bike that has won the Giro, several TdF stages etc, and I’m not ashamed to admit I get a lot of pride when other cyclists come and ask me about my bike.

Anyway, you can upgrade calipers and chain set in future for not much money… Do it! 😉

😀

Madone or Domane though?

I’d go Madone… But I like racier frames… I do like the innovation of the domane though, but not having ridden one, I can’t comment on the real-world advantages…