Cannondale CAAD4 Budget Weenie Build

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thisisnotaspoon
Posts: 93
Joined: Thu Aug 30, 2012 8:42 pm

by thisisnotaspoon

After not really riding it much for quite a while, mainly because I'd ruined it with a few not very well thought out 'upgrades' and it's general worn-out ness making it a chore. I decided it was time to strip the frame and re-build with new consumables, finishing kit and wheels and re-grease/threadlock everything to get it back to it's silent, squeek free, best.

Image

Cannondale CAAD4 frame (56cm) and slice fork. Literally the only stock bit left. I added everything up and it's only cost me £1200 for what's in the pic (so not including consumables and past upgrades) spread over the last 8 years which i reckon is pretty good going! The frames the only heavy thing left, I reckon it'd be under 6kg with a 900g frame and <400g fork. I'm keeping an eye out for something like a felt F4 frame/fork.

Wheels:
KCNC Ti QR's
Sokin (novatech?) 288g hubs,
24/28 DT revolution spokes,
brass nipples,
Stans Alpha 340 rims (de-stickered)
Continental supersonic tubes
Schwalbe Ultremo ZX racestar tyres.

Groupset:
DA 7800 STI's and r.mech
FSA SL-K MegaExo chainset, 36/50
FSA compact f.mech
Ultegra 11-23 cassette
Mavic chain
Planet-X forged brakes with swisstop pads
Black SP41 outer
KCNC inner cables (red)
Rithey cable adjusters mounted on STI hoods.

Finishing kit:
Ritchey WCS C260 stem (110x6deg)
Ritchey WCS EvoCurve bar (42cm)
Canyon VCLS seatpost (believe the hype, it's good)
Selle Italia C2 saddle
Lizard Skins DSP 2.5mm bar tape.

Other:
105 pedals
CC S3 headset
Carbon effect seat clamp

Weight 7.4kg as seen in the pic, so nearer 7.3 without the cage and garmin sensor and a bit of mud from yesterdays test ride.

Bits i really like:
7800 was a high point for DA (IMO)
Seatpost; it really is more comfortable than letting 5psi out of your tyres.
Chainset; probably placebo, but they feel both stiffer and less harsh than the alloy ones they replaced. And as long as I assemble them with the correct loctite rather than grease they've never squeaked.
Bars; just the right amount of stiffness in the drops, and I really like the shape.
Cable inners, geeky but KCNC red inners match the red in the letterign perfectly, and the red able ends match the red on the arms of the planet-x brakes, it's the little bits that matter!

Bit's I'd like to change:
Red chainring bolts
SLR Flow team edition saddle (white with red bits)
Fibrelite jockey wheels (pimp!)
Red alloy bolt kit
Frame? Maybe, it's over 1700g if my memory's correct and the forks are alloy/carbon so changing to something newer would probably drop the whole bike under 6kg. But then I really like the colour, and aside form lacking a little stiffness in the headtube compared to oversized frames it's perfect.

edit: someones pointed out that I might be confusing the 1700g frame for the frame+fork weight, I can't remember an I'm not stripping it again!

by Weenie


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WileEcoyote
Posts: 45
Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2012 10:33 pm

by WileEcoyote

Good no-nonsense build. I quite like it.

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tinchy
Posts: 902
Joined: Sun Feb 22, 2009 9:53 pm

by tinchy

Solid build, theres life in the old dog yet! Good on ya for upgrading instead of just plumping for a new off the shelf steed

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