Pound for Pound best bike in Pro Peloton?

[justkeepedaling]

Why no one else uses lugs? Weight. Weight is still one of the best things to market about your design, it's what gets the consumer juices going. That it's cheaper to manufacture is a bonus, and allows consistent manufacturing at scale.

[Calnago]

I think "cheaper" is probably the primary reason. Lower weight is the marketing advantage for sure. Saying that it's also cheaper to produce would imply maybe some cost savings being passed on to consumers. And that's not going to happen. Lol

[ourmanflint]

My favourite peloto frame of the past few years.. No competition

[awjpca]

Love the classic looking brand decals and painted fork lugs of the ridley. Looks better in red though. Though I have to say, my favorite in the men's pro peloton is


and my favorite in the women's pro peloton is


I guess you could say I really like the S5. But the paint scheme and components on both bikes are also fantastic.

[MikeyBE]

Some of the best paint schemes this season have been in the women's peloton. That's where the nicest Tarmac paints are in my opinion!

Sent from my 6039Y using Tapatalk

[drchull]

Cal, again I didn't mean to turn this into an argument about Colnagos. Maybe it is just a throwback to make the guys in wool shorts happy.

I would think one of the primary benefits as you said is it allows custom geometry while minimizing the expense of labour. I would think custom tube to tube would be a little more labour intensive and require more quality control. Someone mentioned that is more expensive to use lugs, but likely if being built in Italy it is the man power over the cost of lugs that adds more to the expense, the flip side of Chinese production where the man power costs nothing. I could be wrong on all that though, after all I am a doctor not Jure.

Glad that Colnago really passes those savings on to the customer.

[Calnago]

@drchull: I had to go back and read what you wrote earlier because I in no way thought you were turning this into an argument about Colnagos. To each his own. I respect your opinion. And I chuckled at the end of your post when you mentioned a fondness for celeste because one of my first "nicer" bikes was also a Bianchi. But it was also one of the first ones they started making outside of Italy and had a Made In Japan sticker on it. And it wasn't even celeste in color, it was a deep maroon color. A Bianchi Super it was. Ha, I don't think I even knew how synonymously a color could be identified with a brand at that point, let alone such a godawful color such as Celeste. Once I did realize it, I laughed about how I could ever have owned a Bianchi made in Japan and how, God forbid, I could have gotten one in any other color BUT Celeste. Eventually sold it off to a friend but it served me well at the time. Kinda wish when I started on this forum I had chosen a more generic username. I like a lot of brands. Certainly respect Colnago for sure and it's probably my favorite. But as long as it fits and is made well and the geometry suits ones needs, that's what counts. And I certainly never implied Colnago passes any cost savings to the consumer. I think I may have implied somewhere tongue in cheek that that "would never happen", from any brand.

[FreaK]

chop chop............................. own one of these frames...great. Enjoy the ride. I was simply stating my opinion. Yes, the C-40 in Geo paint was amazing and I wanted one badly...in 1998. Lugged frames kept my fancy as I owned three LOOK lugged carbon frames, but since, I have also enjoyed my LOOK 695, and I can honestly say the ride is much more amazing than the 381, 481, or 585 I rode previously.

Having never spent the money on a lugged Colnago, but having spent a solid couple weeks riding one, I'd say there's definitely something to the ride feel of their lugs. But as you've proved, there's almost no space for that idea in the market. From all accounts the 555 and 585 were far from stellar in the ride department, far surpassed by their contemporaries from Colnago.
The design of the new frames and the design of their lugs is rather moved on from the '90s and early 2000s such that you can be pretty sure they don't ride the same. I look at the current ones tantalized by what i see as improvements in the areas i found deficient in my time on an Extreme Power, that being mostly the upsizing around the lower headtube area. I found it to be the part of the bike that let me down the most. Anyhoo, back on topic, i'd probably throw my lot in with the Katusha Canyons, but what do i know?

[stanseven]

I may have missed reading this point about lugs, but lugs also don't really allow for aero design. With the weight limit, I don't see that's the principle drawback. But rather it's the lack of aero. Aero is proven to matter and every little bit helps in races.

[sawyer]

Having never spent the money on a lugged Colnago, but having spent a solid couple weeks riding one, I'd say there's definitely something to the ride feel of their lugs. But as you've proved, there's almost no space for that idea in the market. From all accounts the 555 and 585 were far from stellar in the ride department, far surpassed by their contemporaries from Colnago.

Hi, as a 585 owner I have to take exception to this

Google for reviews of the 585 from wherever - cycling sites, owners, this site etc etc, and you'll see it's one of the highest rated frames of its time.

I've ridden it back to back with frames from each generation since and while it's less direct and stiff than modern frames, it still holds its own as a great all-rounder to ride

No comment on whether or not it was as good as the Colnagos of the day. I'd expect C59 and C60 and noticeably better

[drchull]

I think ride quality is something that can usually be worked out if the fit is good. I am riding a first generation Foil as my race bike now, which is supposed to be one of the harshest rides out there. With wide tires and low pressure and a saddle that fits, I am more comfortable on that bike then I ever was on my old Italian steel road bike, not too bad on my racing tubs either. Switching over to my "comfort bike" really doesn't make that noticeable a difference.

The pro bikes are all so good it really comes down to fit and preference. The Ridley and MTN S5 above are two of my favourite looking bikes though if you described the S5 to me I never would have thought I would like it. One is very traditional looking, one is very modern.

So many great choices, none of them are wrong.

[AJS914]

Having just gotten my first Colnago, a C59, I have to say that it has exceeded all my expectations for ride quality. Before I got it I was wondering if it would live up to the hype and it did.

On the other hand, I've heard great things about even the cheaper Colangos like the CX-Zero. Maybe it's the Colnago geometry and they spend more time than others tuning the ride?

[airwise]

I'd agree vis a vis the C59.

I've owned S Works Tarmacs, Cervelos, Supersixes HM's and some others and the Colnago not only had by far the best ride quality, but was also the bike I set all my best times on.

Very quick. Very comfortable. The perfect all day bike IMHO and one I would buy again.

[Philbar72]

the BMC teammachine SLR01 is a wonderful bike. handles, descends, climbs really well. not very aero though. You can get a 790gram frameset for not too much, if you look out for last years bike.

i've got one, and its my favourite all rounder.