So the recent review of a Basso Diamante in Cyclist Magazine (the UK’s modernized answer to Playboy) reminded me to write a 3000 kms in review of this bike as promised
As an overview, I really love it. Looks great, fabulous descender, easy along the flats, and climbs as fast as my chubby old legs will go (ie not very). If you have difficulty following long, rambling soliloquies in the internet:
a) What are you doing on Weight Whineys and
b) Scroll down to the end for some photos
For those of you still left (hi, mum!), some more details:
Im a 47 yo mamil with a decidedly average 245 ftp who no longer races, but I ride 8-10,000kms a year, all hills/ mountains, with some really GOOD riders round here. Ive had in the past 5 years a Boardman SLR UHC Team edition, a Time NXRS, a Pinarello F8, and then this, which I bought when my Pinarello got nicked.
I loved the Italianness of the bike (my Wifes Italian so lefts leave the joke about riding an Italian, shall we?) and when I saw Cycle Republic in the UK had the frames on sale for less than 2000€ (and a REALLY, really nice bloke called Craig at Cycle republic head office agreed to ship it to me to Mallorca with no cost) I really wanted to have his children. Add Chorus for 850€, wheels for the same and you’ve got as banging bike for 4k€...It came well packed and its a FABULOUS/FABULOS shade of red with a little “reflective flecking” and white contrast headset extender and fork, which just makes people stop me and tell me how beautiful it is. When its clean. Which it never is.
Ive paired it with Bassos own stem and handlebars, Campagnolo Chorus mechanical 52-36 /12-27, and some of those BC Composite German made carbon clinchers which are made in the same place as the Smollke ones, with the same woven rim as opposed to a laid rim, plus a faithful old Prologo saddle. Total weight, a somewhat disappointing 7.2 kgs with a heavy saddle.
First rides were a little underwhelming, there was some considerable pulsing of the brakes under load which made me not really trust them, but the blocks (used Black Prince) have bedded in and the braking although still squeaky and a little grabby is actually stronger. Also found, as did Cyclist Mag, my right heel would clip the chain-stay. My solution was to go back to my Bonts which had a narrower heel, all good.
But I now, after 3000kms since Jan, I love love love the bike. Its on that real sweet spot between a real thoroughbred racer and an “endurance” bike – I can ride it for 200kms without any real aches and pains, but its so precise, so strait line sure of itself, and it descends like a [insert some kind of something very fast metaphor]. Its a world beater, and even a friends C60 I rode didn’t really impress as much as it was more a sit on than “be in” bike...
The cyclist mag review reckoned it was the SECOND best bike they ever descended on, (BMC better but that’s cost it had 25s and disks, they said) but the interesting thing was how fast I went downhill even without really meaning to as I was still a little nervous about the brakes – how do I know??..Strava (yawn) best descent times which, gods honest truth, I NEVER look at or try and break but this bike just blew them all out of the water. Apparently its to do with its very short chainstays with makes it tight, with a low centre of gravity, but its a way of tracking round the hairpins which is both effortless and sublime. It really is point and shoot, you pick your line and its there, no dramas.
In comparison, the Pinarello F8 really needed to be driven and sometimes bitchass hauled, round the tight lines, and was much more skippy and skittish. The Time NXRS; not a great feeling bike, was really like a plank of wood, rigid without being really stiff, and the Boardman, although a really good bike for the price and age, was just slower downwards
On the flat its dependable, smooth, (carbon bars and 25s) and good to accelerate, although NOTHING accelerates as fast as the Pinarello F8 does, (apart from a goat with a chilli up its ass but thats a story for another day. ) Frankly, I think its pointless reviewing a bikes climbing ability – as long as you dont get frame rub (which I didn’t) imho the rest is about watts in the tank- not many in my case... I loved the F8 but always got the slight sensation it was a racing horse, too much bike for me whereas this is like my Swiss Shephard Dog, quite happy to just trot along patiently waiting for me to go faster (must ask my mates what that feels like one day) but happy to scare the shit out of sheep when released.
Of course Im really reviewing the SYSTEM, bike plus wheels plus tyres, but given Ive used the same Vittoria Corsa G+ Graphene 25s with the same pressures on the Boardman, Pinarello and Basso bikes, so its at least something about the bike. Chorus, I love, Yes, its stiffer to shift (titter ye not!), and the mandos fit my hands better, but it just stays in tolerance much longer for a lazy sod who cleans his bike only when he has to avoid moving the lawn. We found a dinosaur bone in my back yard which tells you how often I mow it. Chorus is just better than the Ultegra I have on the Boardman and, imho, the Dura Ace mechanical I had on the Pinarello. Had Di-2 ultegra on the NXRS which was nice but not essential for me.
The “Fletchwerk” carbon wheels are light, 1280 grms, pretty stiff, and go whoop whoop when I get em up to speed like a cheerleader auditioning for “Bring It On 4” but if I had my way again Id go Boras or even back to theFulcrum racing quattros just for the whole braking thing
The stem on this thing is chunky and is as stiff as a sailor on shore leave (yes, I know Im struggling with the metaphors now) and the bars, with the dirty, dirty white tape, are comfortable and relatively light. The Basso proprietary headtube riser works fine and is a nice contrast colour, but I did get my bike shope (Thanks, Toni Collol in Inca) to fit it to make sure all was cushty
So there we go. Love the bike, love to ride it, and love the way it looks so much I may even clean it one of these days if Im not too busy riding. Or posting...
. Informative and funny!
