Specifically this:

http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/products.php?show=4506
(105 group, 2012 model, £50 more expenive, possibly nicer looking)

vs this:

http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/products.php?show=4906
(Ultegra group, 2013 model, £50 cheaper, possibly not as nice looking)

Whayareckon? Head says Giant, heart says ‘Dale and practice my one-handed Sagan-esque wheelies…

Supersix all day long. Depends what you want though- TCR is hard/harsh- racerish.

I tried a Defy, a TCR etc etc and by far the TCR was hardcore. The Supersix(haven’t ridden) is supposed to be awesome.

I was out with a guy last night with exactly that supersix. Looked lovely, and thats a great price. I think you summed it up perfectly with

Head says Giant, heart says ‘Dale

Whats its planned use? They are both quite racey rather than sportivey bikes

Planned use is hour to two hour blasts.

The spec on the Giant is really quite a lot better though…

The TCR Advanced is more harsh than the standard composite, for me it would be a no brainer and i would go for the Giant, full ultegra, the Crack’n’Fail, sorry Cannondale isn’t full 105 and has wheels made from chocolate…

As much as I like the SuperSix, I’d get the one with the ultegra groupset. I’ve got both and although I can’t say there’s a huge difference, the 105 feels just a little more agricultural.

So far it’s two all. Good old STW 🙂

and by far the TCR was hardcore

Have a TCR Advanced. It is racey but then it is a race bike! I love it and happily ride it all day.

Planned use is hour to two hour blasts.

Training rides on it are typically this sort of thing and it’s brilliant if you want to go fast. If you just want a comfortable pootle down some country lanes while enjoying the scenery then it might not be the bike for you.

Strongly recommend you get down a LBS that does Giant and Cannondale and take one for a spin.

I’ve previously had three TCR’s, when looking to change, (end of last year) I had a similar connundrum, I too fancied the look of the ‘dale, but the more I considered it, much more bike for the money with Giant, penny dropped. I bought a Propel.

C’dale has a better frame, which makes the ride. OK the wheels aren’t great but it would be my choice – 105 is way good enough also.

Note CAAD10 frames are as light as the cheaper Supersixes.

Speaking as a previous alloy TCR owner, who now rides a Propel Advanced and a Defy Advanced SL, I think at your price point I’d pay the extra £50 for the CAAD10 Ultegra (if it is in your size).

105 is good, but the TCR would be my choice of your two. It was a pro-level frame ten years ago. White frames are a pain to keep clean, they show every scratch.

I’d get the cannondale, I’ve had my CAAD for 10 years now and upragded every component apart from the forks! I just don’t feel the love for Giant for some reason even if in reality both are just faceless mega-corps churing out equaly great bikes. A bit like a Honda NSX Vs a Dodge Viper, the Asian one just looks a bit too cold and clinical for my likeing.

The spec on the Giant is really quite a lot better though…

Both groupsets are now ‘obsolete’ 10speed, so if spec bothers you then I’d be more worried about being on n-1 gear than the groupset itself, especialy as the newer groupsets are supposed to be much nicer shifters than the internaly cabled 10s groupsets.

Road bikes don’t seem to be that much cheaper as complete bikes than their parts compared to MTB’s, you can get a CAAD10 frame only (which by all accounts is nearly identical to ride as the base level supersix) for £800, 5800 groupset is already down to £330 on pre order at CRC, 6800 wheels for £225 at merlin. Ok that’s the budget blown before you get finishing kit or tyres, but ones consumable, the others personal preferance, and neither of you’re options have anything but cheep in-house alloy kit that could be got from planet X for <£10 a piece (2xtyres, stem, saddle, post, bars ~£60) or splash out on nice stuff that you find comfortable.

I’d pay the extra £50 for the CAAD10 Ultegra (if it is in your size).

It’s not, unfortunately (and I’d be breaking the £1300 barrier which would cause increased scrutiny from High Command)

Both groupsets are now ‘obsolete’ 10speed,

Yeah, true, but one’s still better than the other.

I have a Supersix HiMod and love it! Although the spec on the giants components are good for the money I think the ride is largely determined by the frame and I can’t fault mine.

But that is obviously coming from a biased cannondale owning point of view. (I was fortunate enough to buy the frame second hand off ebay and fit the components from my PX ultegra that was a bargain a couple of years before)

Electric worry- how do you find the hi mod to your old PX?

I’m all new to road-stuff. Wonder how good a decent (non-full racey posh frame is to my carbon PX)

Ok, the typical “I love my bike” response, but… I really love my Supersix Himod Red. Super stiff and fast, but bizarrely comfortable on 200+ milers. It’s admittedly a bit garish and says “Cannondale” four or five times too often on the frame, but if it broke I’d probably go straight out and get another one.

It’s not, unfortunately (and I’d be breaking the £1300 barrier which would cause increased scrutiny from High Command)

Pity

TNS makes a good point about finishing kits. Both will have 6061 alloy stems and bars (not bad – we have a bike with each!), but the seatpost on the TCR will be the proper carbon Vector (as opposed to carbon “wrap” – plurleeees). That and being longer will help with comfort.

As for geometry, Cannondales are a good racey geometry, but so is the TCR. Both will have a 73 degree head angle in a medium, but the seatangle is slightly different, so wheelbase may be a touch different. When I switched from alloy TCR to alloy CAAD8, the increase in stiffness was noticeable, but not much else. Now I have a Propel and the carbon frame is an even nicer ride.

Giant wheels tend to be well made, particularly the higher models. We’ve had no problems with a set of P-SL1’s.

Looking at the stock for the Cannondale, I am assuming you are over 6’2″ because their frames come up pretty large (I’m 5’10” and ride a 54 ‘dale and medium Giant) – the smallest 58 listed is equivalent to the Large Giant TCR; and the TCR has Med and Med/Large listed as well!

I am assuming you are over 6’2″

I’m 6’1″ with a 33/34″ inside leg. The interweb research I did yesterday sugested that I was slap in the middle of the size range for the 58cm ‘Dale or the 55.5 cm Giant

Speaking as a previous alloy TCR owner, who now rides a Propel Advanced

How do you find the propel, I have a TCR and was thinking about changing at the end of the year.

I’d say 56 cm Cannondale and M/L Giant. Probably with a 110-120 mm stem. Others of loftier persuasion can chime in on their Cannondales, but they are “big” for their frame size. I think Al is your size.

The Propel is a lovely bike. Stiffer than my Defy (and teh alloy TCR) due to the tube shapes, faster due to wind cheating (allegedly – but the power meter bears this out). Brakes are a little annoying to modulate compared with Ultegra. Paint jobs are “an acquired taste”. I have the frame only black/red/silver and It is a nice looking bike. I am not a fan of matte carbon, though as it marks easily. Contact points, groupset and wheels (pslr-aero) are the same as the TCR (it was the donor bike), so it is a fair comparison. It makes me feel fast when I race it 😀

Sounds about right, I’m 6ft and have a 56, but occasionaly umm and ahhh over a bigger frame.

I think my point was missed that a 5800 groupset and 6800 wheels on a CAAD10 frame would be on budget (bear in mind you may/may not get on with the OEM kit and need to upgrade anyway) and a significant upgrade over either of those bikes, lighter and futurproofed wheels, and x800 groupsets are getting much better reviews than the x700 equivelents so I’d rather 5800 over 6700.

Hmmmm, I’m also 6’1″ with a 33″ inside leg and have just ordered a 58cm CAAD 10.

So hopefully you are all wrong 😆

Some opinions here: CAAD 10 sizing thread

Hey there hora. The Cannondale is completely different to the Planet X. I had the Superlight carbon and rode it for John O’Groats to lands end and it was very comfortable. The Supersix is a much racier frame, and it really handles well, I used to get speed wobble on the PX on some fast descents and had to really force my weight forward (counterintuitive for a mountain biker).

The Supersix is lighter and this helps on the climbs. I think for sportive type riding the planet x was brilliant, but for the frequent flat out loops and the occasional long ride that I tend to do mostly the supersix is better.

I’m 5’10” with 32″ inside leg and I’m pretty much spot on with the 56cm supersix, although my flexibility is pretty good.

Pic of the SS

IHN – Member

I am assuming you are over 6’2″

I’m 6’1″ with a 33/34″ inside leg

Exactly me. I have a 58, which I like for the length, but it does look a bit big.

Half tempted to sell the frame too!

Half tempted to sell the frame too!

Oh, reeeeeeeaaallly……? 🙂

I’ve got a TCR comp 1, after looking at that, the defy and the super six Evo I plumped for the TCR.

It’s more than comfortable enough for long rides, it’s also very stiff and fast. It’s plenty light and looks nicer IMHO. The wheels are even pretty good, they feel almost as good as the RS80’s I had on my last bike.

Size wise I’m on a M/L with a 100mm stem and I’m 181cm tall

Email in profile IHN…it’s pretty mint

One other thing to note if buying last years or older bikes; the 2014 supersix 105 frame is from the ‘evo’ mould, but without the hi-mod carbon and weighs a claimed 950g, the original supersix is 1150g, half a lb difference and ‘only’ £100 more for the current model year from some places.

Be aware my CAAD10 weighs 1320gm(58) instead of the listed 1150gm(56) and the fork 450gm, the carbon weights me be as inaccurate.

TCR is a proper racers bike, the supersix more sportive. Choose whichever suits u best

the supersix more sportive

Eh?

What is Cannondale’s proper race bike then? 🙄

I’ve got a Ultegra super six and find it’s really comfy.

Synapse is Cannondale’s sportive bike and the super six is the race bike

My mate does alright on his supersix hi-mod to be fair

I’ve posted before on the dullness of Giants and am a bit of a Cannondale fanboy if for no other reason than their persistence with a flat top tube.

However…that particular model Cannondale is ott on the logo front IMO and 105 bothers me as the grips are too big for my hands, it does have good wheels for the money but then so does the Giant.

Onto the Giant..when I test road loads of bikes in 2012 both of these were in the group and that TCR (White/Purple looks better in the flesh) was the best of a big group.

So for me it’s the Giant you could ride it as it is or stick some £1k wheels on it for a proper race day job. The purple paint job is even not quite as dull as the usual Giant blue and black thing.

In fact if you’ve reminded me how much I want one!

Personally I would go for a 56/ml in both if I were you. I’m 180cm and ride a 54 or 56 quite comfortably, these online guides always seem to recommend bigger sizes don’t know why.

What is Cannondale’s proper race bike then?

Not a racy as a TCR. Y

What’s your experience road racing, or of these bikes RD?

However…that particular model Cannondale is ott on the logo front IMO and 105 bothers me as the grips are too big for my hands, it does have good wheels for the money but then so does the Giant.

6700 Ultegra levers have exactly the same shape and profile hoods as 5700 105, so a very moot point!

Both bikes have got their plus points and their negatives. I’m normally a big fan of both Giant and Cannondale, but IMO the TCR composite isn’t such a frame to write home about (the next level up Advanced is), and it’s in perhaps the most boring colour scheme I’ve seen! The Cannondale will be making a much bigger statement…

On the Ultegra vs 105 thing. Both 6700 and 5700 Shimano can work very well, yes the newer 11spd stuff is slicker still, but the biggest enemy of poor shift performance on “under the bar tape” STI’s is poor cable routing. Can’t speak for the Giant per se, but Cannondale persist with external cable routing which in general is a good thing mechanically if not aesthetically. I’ve owned both 5700 and 6700 groupsets on the same bike, and can tell you that both perform very similarly, Ultegra feels slightly more tactile (Carbon levers as opposed to ally) but performance is very similar if not the weight. If you want smooth, lightweight shifts though, buy Tiagra! I prefer the snappiness of SRAM red myself anyhow so read into that what you will…

If it were my money, I’d not buy either of those 2 bikes. I’d either save £300 and buy the CAAD10 with 105 that looks identical to the Supersix from more than 5 feet away, and spend the change on a good set of wheels like RS81’s or the like, or I’d save up some more and take a look at the Advanced version of the Giant TCR also on offer from Paul’s, or the silly prices they’ve got on SRAM Red equipped Dale’s!

Or look elsewhere entirely (no not Planet X or Ribble), £1300 would likely net you an end of season deal on something like the excellent KTM Revelator 3500 (guess who makes the frames for them!) which uses the same frame as the model reviewed in this Month’s Cycling Plus where they scored it 4.5 out of 5 and have it best on test! road.cc quite liked the bike too when they tested it.

You can borrow my SuperSix Mr. Nettles, next time you’re near Biddy Land ( aka Marple ). It’s a 54 though so it might be a bit small. I can whack a 130mm stem on and a shove the saddle back. Won’t be ideal but you’ll get a feel of the frame.

I have a supersix which I bought 2nd hand but mint
Actually it’s the same year/colour/model as the one you link to

Before this I’ve only ever owned steel road bikes so I was worried it would be a harsh ride but is very comfortable. I’ve done some longish rides and the frame itself is forgiving although I don’t like the saddle it came with much.

Overall I’m really happy with it

I am 6’2″ and a 58 is spot on

Downsides…
Average wheelset
Generic finishing kit
Bb30 – some folk complain about creaking, although mine has been fine after the last grease-up. It does give some super light crank options though

I have had that Supersix for a couple of years. I absolutely love it. Tried comparable Giants also but did not get on with the fit.

It has out and out race geometry, so handling is fantastic, and for that type of bike it’s pretty comfy although I fitted 25mm tyres when the original ones wore out.

The frame is a strong point and is ripe for upgrading, although as others have pointed out it is a non-evo version. Don’t know how much that matters unless you’re scraping for grams.

The only non-105 part is the crankset, which I’ve had no problems with.

My advice would be find a newer supersix or CAAD10 as they have similar if not identical geo.

edit: regarding ‘generic’ finishing kit it’s worth noting that cannondale’s own stems/bars are well known to be excellent quality. You need to spend quite a lot of money to get anything better.