Atlanta Owners

[97CSI]

Am looking at purchasing an Atlanta and would appreciate any feedback from any/all present Atlanta owners. Obviously, will be standard Serotta quality, but am wondering if you could contrast the ride to other lugged steel bikes you have riden. Stiffer, not as stiff, etc. Thanks.

[victoryfactory]

I would say the ride of my Atlanta (2000)
is stiffer than the classic steel frames of the 70's and 80's that I've ridden.
(Masi, Cinelli, Zeus, Bennoto, Olmo etc.)
It may be due to Serotta's use of swaged (colorado concept) tubing
vs the old simple tubing designs of the past.

My Atlanta is still pretty smooth, though. Also I prefer a threadless setup
with modern carbon fork. I found the original F1 carbon too heavy and harsh.

I believe that Serotta was going for stiffness in general on their steel bikes
because they were still designing steel with a racing mentality in an age when
alum was taking over. As a result their steel bikes have a unique feel.

I like that balance, you may too.

Hope this helps;

VF, heart of steel, legs of cement

[Birddog]

I have an Atlanta, a CSi, and an older middle of the line Giant (Allegre) that are all lugged. The Atlanta and the CSi are very similar even though I have an Ouzo Pro on the Atlanta and the steel fork on the CSi. The biggest difference that I have noticed is that the Serottas seem to have much better power transfer than the Giant. I attribute that to the Colo Concept which no doubt makes for a stiffer BB. I first noticed this in longish events with lotsa climbing like the TBP. At the end of the day, I was faster and less fatigued on the Serottas. So I'd say they are stiffer but not harsh at all, really a sweet steel ride.

Birddog

[dave thompson]

On my 2nd Atlanta now and I have to say they are great bikes! I wish I had it for the hills in Italy.

[Serotta PETE]

it is a nice ride.....Stiffness is a hard term to quantify...by this I mean is it "ride harshness" ? The Serotta is not. If it is drive train stiffness - then the SEROTTA has this. It is a neutral ride and not slow or twitchy.

Additionally "plushness" is directly affected by tire size, pressure. and to some extent wheel.

Net is the ATLANTA was a good everyday ride. By today's standards the frame would be a little heavy - but no more so than any other good steel from the era.

:D

[itsflantastic]

Hi,

I've had an Atlanta and I currently ride a CSI.

Both have been great, fast, comfortable bikes. . . I mean, come on, they are Serottas!

That said, Having done a lil racing on each I can say this for certain:

When I stepped on the pedals of the Atlanta it was slow to accelerate in comparison to my csi which is much snappier. The Atlanta had light wheels too (relatively, 1500 g clinchers) so it wasn't wheel deficiency that I was detecting. Overall it just felt, I dunno, Mushy.

If you can find a CSI, I'd recommend it as it seems to me to be a considerably better ride! If not, go for the Atlanta, they are an exceptionally good value!
Good Luck!
Dan

[slowgoing]

I have an Atlanta and a CSI, both stock in the same size.

The Atlanta can feel somewhat harsh with stiff wheels. With more comfortable wheels, it is one fantastic ride. I like it better than the ride of the CSI, which seems more flexy in the top tube, especially on descents.

The Atlanta excels at seated climbing. Great power transfer, and the bottom bracket seems to give back a lot of what I put in so the pedals just seem to keep on turning on steep grades.

[Elefantino]

I had an Atlanta and then a CSi. I loved the Atlanta, liked the CSi. I felt the Atlanta was a nicer ride with Protons than the CSi was with CXP-30s. The CSi was definitely stiffer in the BB than the Atlanta.

Now I have a Concours frame that has just been delivered to my office by T-Crush. It's sitting next to my desk.

Is the day over yet?

[itsflantastic]

Well,

Apparently my opinion of Atlanta V. CSI is different than the majority.

That's OK, I stand by my observations :)

Really, you can't go wrong with either.

:beer:

[Ken Robb]

quoting my Serotta catalog: "Atlanta offers 85% of the ride of a CSI at 65% of the price." Average frame weight:Atlanta 4.2 pounds; CSI 4lbs.
Prices in 2000 were $1650 and $1175.

FWIW Legend$2655; Concours $1875

I still have a stock 58cm CSI w/F1 fork I can sell.

[mtflycaster]

I love my Atlanta. Just rode the Ironhorse on it last weekend. Comfy and reassuringly stable on those big descents. Mine is stock 56cm with F1 fork.

PM Dave Kirk. He may be able to offer other insights on Atlanta vs. CSI.

[mtflycaster]

Here's mine....

[97CSI]

Here's mine....Very nice!! Mine would look very similar, if I get. Record 10-speed Ergo with Centaur triple, Record carbon triple FD/Chorus carbon RD and Open Pros on Record hubs. Will be riding it from Boulder up over Trail Ridge Road to Steamboat and back via Poudre Canyon with a couple of friends the end of June. All are welcome to join us. Doing some credit-card camping (motel rooms).

BTW - what is the clamp size for the FD on an Atlanta?

[shinomaster]

My Atlanta is built like a brick **** house imho..

[93legendti]

My 52 Atlanta was stiffer than my Rapid Tour and my Fierte steel, but less stiff than my CDA.

[vaxn8r]

it is a nice ride.....Stiffness is a hard term to quantify...by this I mean is it "ride harshness" ? The Serotta is not. If it is drive train stiffness - then the SEROTTA has this. It is a neutral ride and not slow or twitchy.

Additionally "plushness" is directly affected by tire size, pressure. and to some extent wheel.

Net is the ATLANTA was a good everyday ride. By today's standards the frame would be a little heavy - but no more so than any other good steel from the era.

:D
My observations did not support this. I found mine to ride pretty harsh and fatiguing on longer rides. Changing tire pressure and wheelsets made no appreciable difference in ride quality.

Having said that, it was a fun bike to ride for the first 25-35 miles. It handled great and descended wonderfully. Very stable. After that, not so fun and mp for >60. ymmv.

Mine was a fairly early model with steel fork. Perhaps the variations in opinions reflect different expectations as well as perhaps different tubesets from year to year and or which fork is used. Mine was marked "Reynolds".

ATMO, it's a dated design. Stiffer and quicker of the mark than some classic SLX bikes but also less comfortable. If you are expecting performance by today's standards I think you may be disappointed. Even with my Rolf Elan's (1,300 g) the bike still weighed close to 21 pounds. Add another 0.75-1.5 pounds for most wheelsets. I'd look for a used CIII in a heart beat over the Atlanta, unless you're racing crits or you just have to have lugs or you're just tooling around on it.

[Elefantino]

My Atlanta is built like a brick **** house imho..

Is that a good thing?

[mtflycaster]

The Atlanta is NOT a good crit bike, IMHO. Not quick steering.

[97CSI]

I'm old enough to draw money out of my IRAs, so don't really care about much of anything but longer term comfort (3+ hours in the saddle) and good stability as I roll off the backside of those mountains at 50mph. Just have to decide whether I want to put the triple on an Atlanta, CSi or Paramount and use the other bike for my 'flatlander' with a double.

[vaxn8r]

The Atlanta is NOT a good crit bike, IMHO. Not quick steering.
It's not slow steering either. Very neutral. Why do you need a quick steering bike in a crit? All stock Serotta's feel very balanced and can handle anything you throw at them.

My comment about crits was in regard to shorter races, usually fairly smooth courses and it's a decently stiff frameset.

[shinomaster]

It's not slow steering either. Very neutral. Why do you need a quick steering bike in a crit? All stock Serotta's feel very balanced and can handle anything you throw at them.

My comment about crits was in regard to shorter races, usually fairly smooth courses and it's a decently stiff frameset.

If neutral means that the bike wants to go straight into a guard rail the I'm with you....A brick house is as stiff as f*** imho. I'm not a poet laureate imho.

[97CSI]

Thanks to everyone for the replies. After doing some additional reading and looking around I bought a '98 CSi from one of our formulites. Looking forward to a great ride for many, many years. Anyone interested in a new Colnago Master X Light? Just posted mine in the classifieds.

[bikemoore]

I have a 1990s Atlanta with a flat-crown steel fork. I love the ride of the bike. I also have a lugged-steel Pinarello (TSX) and a couple of custom English bikes made with 853. What I really like about the Atlanta is its buttery-smooth ride and its very stable handling. That thing just cruises all day and I'm just as fast on the Atlanta as I am on the other bikes. Definitely one of the all-time best values in a steel bike.

[Orin]

When I test rode an Atlanta sometime around 2000, I found the ride harsh and uncomfortable, especially in comparison to the Ti Rapid Tour that I ended up buying.

Eventually, I attributed a lot of the difference to the Conti GP3000 tires on the Atlanta vs the Michelin Axial Pros on the Rapid Tour.

Orin.

[slowgoing]

Did 85+ hilly miles on my Atlanta + F1 this weekend. Smooth, comfortable, stable, great climber, better descender. One of the best bikes ever.

[Ken Robb]

When I test rode an Atlanta sometime around 2000, I found the ride harsh and uncomfortable, especially in comparison to the Ti Rapid Tour that I ended up buying.

Eventually, I attributed a lot of the difference to the Conti GP3000 tires on the Atlanta vs the Michelin Axial Pros on the Rapid Tour.

Orin.
When all else is equal a bike with longer chainstays like a Rapid Tour will have a bit cushier ride so that may account for some of the difference that you noted.

[Orin]

When all else is equal a bike with longer chainstays like a Rapid Tour will have a bit cushier ride so that may account for some of the difference that you noted.

Longer chainstays definitely make a difference.

In this case the contrast between the two bikes stuck in my mind - as in how could the Atlanta have been so harsh?

For whatever reason, the Ti Rapid Tour is pretty cushy - I've ridden over what others call "BAD chip seal" on it and wondered what the fuss was about.

Orin.

[97CSI]

Did 85+ hilly miles on my Atlanta + F1 this weekend.That's amazing! The Atlanta is also a time machine. :D