CAAD 10 Redux.

This is now safely in my house.
This week it will be delivered to a lbs, who will do all the annoying bits I don't have the tools to do, and maybe more as I don't have the time at the moment to really get involved in a build/ do it justice.

BB's all good? can't wait to see the finish article.

BB's do indeed seem fine..
Mock up with wheels cos I'm bored of Paediatrics.

That look fun, I like how it look like you wanted the Geekhouse colour scheme, but without screaming "Geekhouse homage".

Paintjob looks great.

Shite photographs galore, but it is now built.
Tmw, we ride....

excellent

I love how your bedsheets and towels are the same colour scheme as your old paint, cute.

p.s bike looks sweet, favourite part is the down-tube

Could anyone mock up a sticker in the CAAD font which says "CAN'T" ?
Any humorous suggestions for stickers?

cracknfail

^ the staple of grumpy mechanics everywhere. I think it was mildly amusing in 1999.

The other popular one is can and ale

^ the staple of grumpy mechanics everywhere. I think it was mildly amusing in 1999.

They (the grumpy bike shop mechanics of central London) kept cracking wise with that one up until about 2004, by which time my CAAD 3 had outlived its 5-year warranty.

Just in case anyone was ever in any doubt- the CAAD 10 is an incredible frame.
Recently- we've done a century on top of a couple of long rides, 2 TTs, tonnes of accidental cyclocross*, its never felt out of place with any of these.
I love it.
You don't have to be prissy as with a carbon frame (yes, yes I know just how strong a carbon frame is, etc) and its lighter than a steel frame. It just works. Does what you want from it and gives you more than your (my) skill level deserves.

*

Also, it should actually be finished tomorrow all being well... Hopefully. Maybe.

What I do love about the CAAD10 is that it's surprisingly comfortable for a road race alu frame, best performance bike I've ridden, and actually have clearance up to 29mm tyres.

I'm torn.
Part of me really likes Cannondales, and wants a CAAD 10 frameset.
The other part of me counts how many CAAD 10s I see on the average 'quick' ride (within 25 miles I usually see at least 10 or 15) and thinks I should find a Jamis Eclipse 853 frameset and give it the mother of all repaints.

CAAD10 are getting less popular in the UK, won't be long before they won't sell it here due to customers thinking the cheaper Super Six = better than alu.

Very nice - so did this start life in the team colours? I'm wondering about one of these vs a crabon bike in the same price range for next year (maybe the Canyon Ultimate CF SL 7). Interesting to hear that this is a comfy ride too - I'd be coming from a steel road bike but you hear so much about alu frames being "harsh" which doesn't really appeal to me.

The cheap alu have a harsher ride quality, because the material is very brittle, the tubing need to be thicker to compensate for this, and doesn't absorb road vibration as well as steel.

Decent alu frame nowaday have way to absorb vibration (curvy seat stay for example), as well as finding technique to make the alu thinner without sacrificing strength.

Cannondale were considered to be the most comfortable and lightest alu frame you can get from an OTP, how true this is nowaday I don't know as I'm sure other manufacturer managed better as I write this.

The CAAD10 IMHO, were the best performance alu frame you can get for the money, as long it fit you, as it's a proper race fit.

You can make a great-riding frame out of steel, carbon, titanium, alu, whatever. You can also make a terrible-riding one. It's mostly down to design and the quality of the materials, and good alu costs a fraction of what good carbon does.

Carbon has become popular partly because even cheap carbon is pretty light.

@Mr B, problem solved: http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bikes/road/allez/allez-e5-smartweld-frameset

I have the S-Works one, have ridden the standard one, and despite noticing a bit more weight in the frame, I feel very little difference in ride quality. If anything I would've said it's a bit 'softer' feeling than the CAAD, but not at all in a bad way. Though I haven't ridden the CAAD properly set up for me...

S-Works one is crazy light too.

Well, I'm going to try and get my mitts on a caad 10 to test out at some point then!

So this is it finished:

Lovely. I used to have a Caad9 which I loved. I also have a Canyon Ultimate CF. The Canyon is livelier than the Caad9 was, but the Cannondale was definitely comfier.

What are you wheels eyebrows? And how are you liking them?