Carbon bike

[veloduffer]

Originally Posted by mcteague

After 10 years on a Seven Axiom I too lusted after carbon. Lots of research led me to the Parlee Z5. Geometry and size were nearly the same as my Seven. I was sure I was going to get one after reading all the reviews. Trouble is, I did not like the ride. It was not bad, just kind of dead. There was no feedback from the road. I did like the way the stiffness helped when climbing though.



I ended up back with Seven and got the mixed Ti/carbon 622 SLX. I seems to have the best of both worlds, stiff & light but also transmits a nice amount of road feel. Plus, the filament wound carbon tubes are a bit more resistant to cracking upon impact as compared to those molded in forms IMO. Still, I really do like the look of the new styles with hidden cables, so clean. But, as I do my own wrenching, I'll stick to external cables for the time being.

Carbon feels *dead* compared to other materials due to its dampening qualities. And there are degrees of *dead*...I felt my Madone felt more dead than the Parlee.

Carbon will feel a bit different but it will be hard to discern that on a quick test ride. You need to ride it over rough roads, rolling hills and big climbs. Then the qualities that you want will start to be more evident.




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