Why no love for Cannondale?

[shaun]

Glad you agree Raging Bull, I had problems with my SRAM SX5 as well, the worst being when the rear mech snapped in half through the thickest part of the metal while riding at speed through town when the bike was only 6 months old. The chain and parts of the mech whipped up and damaged the rear wheel and chipped and gouged the frame at the rear as it jamed up grinding me to a halt. I only use Shimano XT now as they never fail. The latest problem is the inner gear cable has snapped inside the frame and the inner plastic cable guide has snapped also. Can I get someone to fix it - no, can I get a new Cannondale inner cable guide - again NO! I nearly bought the headshock version at the time, very pleased I didn't waste even more money.

 

[sunchaser]

Always liked Cannondales as they seem to do their own thing. Maybe not as pretty as Klein but they do seem a bit more workman like, guess that's what appeals to me..

I own & ride two of their modern road bikes

 

[FST4RD]

Love Cannondales! I really want a Killer V with a headshock! But I am only missing 1 bike in my DH collection. I have my Giant ATX1 DH, Yeti Straight 4 ex Team bike, Shaun Palmer Specialized Rep, just need the Cannondale Super V 4000 DH Active!
They must have been 1 of the first purpose built DH bikes ever?

I still remember going into the LBS back in 1995 and they had one up on a stand with a small fence around it. It retailed for around $10,000nzd and I was in awe! I said then and there that 1 day I will own one!

 

[CAPIN]

Cannondale has always been my favourite big brand. Things they did were reserved for small garage companies and Cannondale pulled it of on a big scale.

A lot of time, there is comparison with KLEIN.
Although both were preminum ALU specialists, a simple look at the difference in the volume, range of models speaks for itself.
They were different companies. What united them though was will to step out of stereotypes and do things their own way.
In my opinion KLEIN has been able to keep attention to detail by basically sacrificing/giving up on suspension.
KLEIN with any stock suspension fork on looks rediculous. No fork ever matched the perfection and the beauty of the frames, which is pitty and the reason why nobody wants those bikes now.
Cannondale went a step further by matching innovative, distingtive looking frames, with their own unique suspension creating a unmistakable bike with unified esthetics and no compromise.


Also now when i read comments by Shaun and Raging Bull I cant help but feel your objections are bit unfair.
No disrespect guys, but all those three models you were unsatisfied with were/are very very low end models that dont have ANY features people always loved cannondales for..
Its like if you wrote that Klein as a company sucks because you once had FERVOR, tires wore too fast and grips kept rotating on them...
That would also be a bit misleading in terms of what was Klein really about..

cheers
jan

 

[saltyman]

Had a few dales over the years, they are ok, like the looks more than the ride however.

Strange how I prefer the older ones yet my modern badboy has been my favourite to own and ride.

£400 (in this years sales) new and it's done 1,000 miles this year in the summer without needing any parts and never ever faulted or needed any adjustments bar a tighten of the brake cables.

A far cry from my blinged out XTR equipped ones that are 18-20lbs......

 

[sinnerman]

I do have a preference for the way steel frames ride.

But i do like also like aluminium from time to time. I can also appreciate how Cannondale managed to achieve remaining a worldwide volume seller of quality handbuilt American aluminium frames for so long, whilst others chose the far east option...KUDOS to them for that.... in my eyes anyway.....

 

[yeti-man]

I have had many C'dales. The two I have left is my 1989 NORBA beater I got from a shop I was a hang around at. It has plenty of mileage, and still holds after wearing out two group set and three wheel set.

http://terrengsykkel.no/ubb/ubbthreads. ... dale89.jpg

The other is later 1994 M2000 I bought as frame and fork, built it with hugi, race face, Maura etc

 

[Raging_Bulls]

No disrespect guys, but all those three models you were unsatisfied with were/are very very low end models that dont have ANY features people always loved cannondales for..
Its like if you wrote that Klein as a company sucks because you once had FERVOR, tires wore too fast and grips kept rotating on them...
That would also be a bit misleading in terms of what was Klein really about..

None taken.

As for the features people always loved Cannondales for : I love predictable, precise handling and good value for money, and I'm sorry to say that both the F400 and F6 failed on those criteria.
The F400 is a very distant memory nowadays and I'm not sure if I even want to remember how bad it was, so I'll only go in-depth on the F6.

I'm perfectly aware that the disintegration of the SX5 mech and all the broken shifters were SRAM's fault, not C'Dale's. I'll even accept that the broken V-brake arm could have been a freak accident. So I'll take the reliability (or lack thereof) out of the equation. Still it's no fun if you can't complete a single trip without technical problems.
However there's no excuse for the amount of frame flex the F6 had, or the resulting catastrophic handling. IMO those kinds of issues are in a completely different league than rotating grips or excessive tyre wear. I could live with rotating grips, but not with that kind of handling.
Actually that's not entirely true. I wouldn't be able to live with a rotating grip either, but at least that can be fixed.

Even if it really is an entry-level bike, a brand like Cannondale, who pride themselves on their frames, should do better. I can understand that they skimp on the groupset, but not on their frames. It really reminded me of a £99 Decathlon Rockrider.
And it's not like they used thin-walled tubes either. I'm actually surprised that a medium size aluminium hardtail could weigh 32lbs, especially one that costs 899 EUR (£750). For close to half that price you have lighter, better equipped bikes that can actually take a corner without trying to kill you.

She was beautiful though ...



Maybe a £2K+ C'dale is actually a good bike. It probably is. However I'm not keen on spending more money to find out.

 

[CAPIN]

Hmm. Thats weird.
I can believe F6 frame is not the lightest one, but the flex issue is strange.
All i can imagine when looking at the picture is lower spoke tension and slightly less pressured tires, that could result in some flex feelings..
Otherwise, frame has the "made in usa" sticker, so it means good old Bedford factory, same material as the top frames, although minus butting but still very similar diameters of tubes. same welders. Small frame.. tight rear triangle...
Its hard to believe laws of physics can be bent that easily..
I actually think the only thing that has some quality on that bike IS that frame made by cannondale.
Its a pity your experience with the brand was damaged by all that heavy crap attached to that nice frame

 

[ez054098]

None taken.

As for the features people always loved Cannondales for : I love predictable, precise handling and good value for money, and I'm sorry to say that both the F400 and F6 failed on those criteria.
The F400 is a very distant memory nowadays and I'm not sure if I even want to remember how bad it was, so I'll only go in-depth on the F6.

I'm perfectly aware that the disintegration of the SX5 mech and all the broken shifters were SRAM's fault, not C'Dale's. I'll even accept that the broken V-brake arm could have been a freak accident. So I'll take the reliability (or lack thereof) out of the equation. Still it's no fun if you can't complete a single trip without technical problems.
However there's no excuse for the amount of frame flex the F6 had, or the resulting catastrophic handling. IMO those kinds of issues are in a completely different league than rotating grips or excessive tyre wear. I could live with rotating grips, but not with that kind of handling.
Actually that's not entirely true. I wouldn't be able to live with a rotating grip either, but at least that can be fixed.

Even if it really is an entry-level bike, a brand like Cannondale, who pride themselves on their frames, should do better. I can understand that they skimp on the groupset, but not on their frames. It really reminded me of a £99 Decathlon Rockrider.
And it's not like they used thin-walled tubes either. I'm actually surprised that a medium size aluminium hardtail could weigh 32lbs, especially one that costs 899 EUR (£750). For close to half that price you have lighter, better equipped bikes that can actually take a corner without trying to kill you.

She was beautiful though ...

Maybe a £2K+ C'dale is actually a good bike. It probably is. However I'm not keen on spending more money to find out.

When I bought my 2008 Rush, it came with the worst parts imaginable and I paid $1200 for it! I was having a problem with my brakes and finally had to take the bike into the bike shop where I bought it. The service tech took one look at my brakes and told me that my brakes had been recalled. Sweet . At that point I decided to replace all of my components. I striped it of all of the crap that came on it and replace it with top of the line SRAM, Avid, Thomson, etc. It is a completely different bike. Oh, and it stops now...