Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 93 total)
  • Cotic Escapade – arrived / built
  • Ben_H
    Full Member

    I’d been waiting for Cotic to produce something to replace my Cotic X for ages – it needed to have drops, discs and pannier mounts.

    So, I was pleasantly surprised to find a “hidden” page on Cotic’s site with all the details about the Escapade a couple of weeks before it was official. I wasn’t sure if they’d take an order at that stage (I must have been one of, if not the, first), but it all went though ok.

    The frame arrived 10 days ago – but there was a problem… they hadn’t sent the forks! I waited another week to build it up. Here it is:

    Bolt though 9mm fork ends were fine with my XT QR hub – I just popped the end of the QR skewer and slotted it though. I won’t be able to take the wheel off when I park the bike, but equally it would take a tea leaf ages to work out how to nick it.


    Back end is straight from the Roadrat:

    With its sibling – a repainted Soul:

    I think Duckegg blue is becoming a bit of a Cotic cliche, but I fancied it over the purple-ish alternative. Looks nicer than my X’s gloss black, but will show marks a lot more I’d guess:

    It’s running 105 drivetrain, with XT chain and SLX 11-32T cassette. Wheels are XT M756 hubs on Mavic TN719 rims and Conti GP 4 Season 28c tyres. Braking is courtesy of BB5s and finishing is Easton EA50, with a Fizik Gobi saddle.

    Frame weight is 2,060g / 4.8lbs – a bit lighter than I expected. Complete bike weight is just under 23lbs.

    I’ve only ridden it around the block, but it’s very different from the X. The BB feels lower and the top tube slightly longer. Feels quicker (to me).

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    Nice that. Weight sounds a little optimistic 🙂

    renton
    Free Member

    ohh that is very nice that !!

    Floor looks good to 😆

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    Ben_H
    Full Member

    I used kitchen scales… 🙄

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    Blimey, do they go up to 23lbs? That’d be quite a cake. Anyway with this sort of bike I don’t think it matters too much. Does look good.

    dragon
    Free Member

    I shouldn’t be rude, but that looks rubbish. It’s how I’d imagine a 20 year old Kona or Orange Clockwork would look if you stuck drop bars on it, and daft dropouts. Seems identical to the Roadrat also.

    The Soul looks nice though 🙂

    cynic-al
    Free Member

    Is there much difference to the X?

    iamsporticus
    Free Member

    I think Duckegg blue is becoming a bit of a Cotic cliche, but I fancied it over the purple-ish alternative. Looks nicer than my X’s gloss black, but will show marks a lot more I’d guess

    Im not too sure of that, the paint finish of my (black) Soul started to look pretty shabby after only a few weeks and my mates bike wasnt finished particularly well either

    For a premium product I expected better

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    It’s how I’d imagine a 20 year old Kona or Orange Clockwork would look if you stuck drop bars on it, and daft dropouts.

    Funnily enough that is why I like it 🙂

    sv
    Full Member

    Looks fun, enjoy!

    miketually
    Free Member

    It’s how I’d imagine a 20 year old Kona or Orange Clockwork would look if you stuck drop bars on it, and daft dropouts.

    The Roadrat and X, and now the Escapade, are ‘road’ bikes for MTBers who’ve been MTBing for 15 to 20 years.

    brassneck
    Full Member

    It’s how I’d imagine a 20 year old Kona or Orange Clockwork would look if you stuck drop bars on it, and daft dropouts.
    Funnily enough that is why I like it

    Likewise, perhaps we should print age in the interests of full disclosure

    brassneck (42) 🙂

    DaveyBoyWonder
    Free Member

    It looks like the X has been dropped now – are these things CX-able?

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    Wonder if you need to be 40+ to like this sort of thing?

    mrblobby (40)

    PJ266
    Free Member

    I like it.

    PJ (23)

    maximusmountain
    Free Member

    Looks very slack and tall, what frame size is it? Looks like the X to me.

    MM (20)

    whinge
    Full Member

    spot on miketually
    i have raced my X too.
    bloody hell im 57

    PJ266
    Free Member

    bloody hell im 57

    Don’t worry Gramps, age is just a number.

    Houns
    Full Member

    Nice, but duck egg blue needs silver finishing kit

    everyone
    Free Member

    Looks pretty tall and I’m not a fan of that crankset. I’m still not convinced by the looks of discs on road bikes either.

    Going to give it a light to decent 6.

    It does look pretty fun though.

    everyone (22)

    maximusmountain
    Free Member

    I didn’t realise you were that old nathan 😉

    everyone
    Free Member

    Old as the hills mate. I’m almost at the time limit of being able to leave Loughborough.

    Ben_H
    Full Member

    Well, to prove the point about old MTBs…

    Steel frame are just steel frames aren’t they? No – not in my experience.

    As you can see, the Soul’s frame was treated to a total refurb last autumn. Allowing for what I could have eBayed it for prior to the refurb, it probably cost me the same to refurb it as to buy a new one. But, with the X, I wasn’t 100% comfortable with the basic geometry; the Escapade has a lower BB and longer top tube.

    I did build up my Soul as a super commuter too, just to see whether I could use it as my daily driver (and thereby creating an opportunity to upgrade the MTB in my life). It was really quite different from the X and the Escapade. Fast? Yes – but not what I’d want to ride on a weekend road jaunt.

    So – even when they look alike, I don’t find that all frames ride alike.

    Ben (33) 🙂

    Northwind
    Full Member

    I like everything about that apart from the cranks, which wouldn’t look good on anything but look double mega awful on that. Sorry! But otherwise very nice.

    Front end still looks tall to me, seems to be a lot of head-tube.

    Ben_H
    Full Member

    Oh dear – the cranks aren’t getting much love! They’re just 105 5700 jobbies… didn’t think they were that bad!!

    steezysix
    Free Member

    I think you need a black outer chainring to make it fit with the rest of the kit. Also, bar tape would look better if it matched the saddle or frame colour. Otherwise, very nice!

    slimjim78
    Free Member

    I like it, is it a size large? I personally much prefer the natty purple version and when funds allow I shall be building one up.
    Looks just the job for hopping over kerbs, and blasting down rough tracks on the commute.

    Old school Konas never look wrong.

    Jim (35)

    doom_mountain
    Full Member

    Looks fun, I do think it would look nice brown bar tape and saddle…

    I’ve been toying with replacing my tourer with one of these.
    Are you going to put panniers on it?

    DM (33)

    dragon
    Free Member

    Any road bike is fine for hopping down curbs and gavel/lumpy tracks, see Paris-Roubaix for the abuse a road bike can take.

    I just don’t get the Cotic it looks like it was designed to take suspension forks with such a high front end. I’d have thought a 29er would be as fast over most ground and you wouldn’t need another bike, what niche is the Cotic trying to fill? Bizarre. Plus dropping the X makes it look like Joe Burts review of it was right all along. Why didn’t they make a proper cyclocross bike as that could have been interesting.

    garage-dweller
    Full Member

    I like that (37)

    However tea towels and other cloth items need straightening I can see creases.

    The cranks are uglier than me.

    shermer75
    Free Member

    What size frame is that?

    Shermer75 (39, natch)

    Ben_H
    Full Member

    It’s a Medium (56cm top tube).

    I rode it to the station this morning. A full lowdown is hard as I’ve not managed to fit / adjust the headset properly (resulting in tight steering), but on second impressions it feels like I will need to put a shorter stem on. (No surprise, given that all parts were a swap from the shorter top tubed X).

    I used to have a brown saddle on a pre-X frame to match the brown tape, but it didn’t look right TBH as the shades of brown were different!

    reggiegasket
    Free Member

    how did the GP4Seasons go on the rims – easy or tight?

    Jamie
    Free Member

    Croix De Fer owner here, I am jealous of your mud clearance.

    Jamie (34)

    wobbliscott
    Free Member

    I would have thought the high front end is to accommodate the large clearances. Cy has always maintained that with the Roadrat and now the Escapade, he wanted to provide alot of clearance, so that would push up the front end.

    I love it. I’ve just converted my Roadrat into road/drop bar mode as a wet/bad weather road bike and commuter and it rides great and is not that much slower than my proper road bike (Giant Defy Composite). So if the Roadrat is anything to go by then the Escapade should be every bit as good. Having said that, one of the things I like about the Roadrat for the commute and bad weather is the more relaxed handling compared to my Defy. I’m guessing you might lose this with the Escapade as it has a steeper head angle?

    Jamie
    Free Member

    Crap. The more I am looking at this, the more I think I might go for the purple….

    andytherocketeer
    Full Member

    how easy/fiddly is it getting the front wheel in, when splaying the forks apart whilst trying to align the disc in the caliper?

    is the back end still the 132.5mm dropout or did it swap to 135mm (would be more logical if it’s disc only now) ?

    Looks alright. I’d have black everything on it though.

    D0NK
    Full Member

    I did build up my Soul as a super commuter too, just to see whether I could use it as my daily driver

    I temporarily built up a (26″ wheeled) inbred for commuter duties, 1.2″ slick tyres, p2 forks, narrow bars, 100mm stem. It wasn’t as fast or comfy as a proper road bike but I loved the way it handled, could corner and nip in and out of traffic soooo well.

    What’s the deal with the fork ends? Does anyone other than DT do 9mm bolt through? Have they dumped the forward disc tabs now the wheel is disc brake ejector proof?

    BigDummy
    Free Member

    I’m afraid I’m another chainset hater. Needs to be black, or the rest of the finishing kit needs to be silver in my view. 🙂

    It’s a slightly odd beast. I quite like it, but I reckon weight plus annoying dropouts would probably grind me down. I’ve spent a while trying to use a Salsa Vaya as my main road bike, and have ended up retiring it in favour of something much lighter but with substantial tyre clearance.

    ahwiles
    Free Member

    Jamie – Member

    Croix De Fer owner here, I am jealous of your mud clearance.

    Jamie (34)

    what he said, except my name isn’t Jamie, and i’m 36.

    i’m also jealous of your long top tube, and tall head tube (the handlebars on my 60cm are somewhere down by my knees).

    s’nice that.

Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 93 total)

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