Wednesday 7 August 2013

Condor Acciaio long-term review


Over half a year and several thousand kilometres since I bought it, the Acciaio frame-set is still here. That's not something to take for granted: the turnover in the shed can be brutal. More than that, though, it's still built up. And more than that, it's the bike I ride more than any other. So, what else to add to my early-days review?



Gearing
I played with the setup more or less continuously until about a month ago. The basics have stayed the same: frame plus standard Condor full-carbon fork, Easton seatpost, Ritchey 110mm stem, Deda RHM02 bars, and mainly Ultegra groupset. The fiddling has been with the gearing: I started with a compact, switched to a (105) triple, switched back to the compact but with a 38-tooth inner ring, then switched back to the triple. 

The conclusion? I remain a fan of triples, and an out-and-out heckler of compacts. For me, the jump down from 50 to 34 on a compact is just too big. You shift the front derailleur, then have to crash down multiple gears at the back to get anything like a similar cadence. On a triple, especially a 110PCD triple (50-39-30), one change down at the front and one at the back is just about perfect.

The 30-tooth inner ring is little used, hence the experiment with a 50-38. I would have stuck with that, but the TA 38-tooth ring refused to shift smoothly, getting hung up on the downshift from the 50. So, back to the triple and its extra 100g or so. 


Contact points
I've tried various saddles, ending up with a Fizik Aliante. Fizik say this saddle is good for people who lack flexibility, but I'm actually quite flexible (at least by their simplistic can-you-touch-your-toes measure). The reason I prefer it is that when you want to extend your legs for a bit more power, you can slide back on to the rear of the saddle for a slightly higher, longer seating position.
















I've also played about with the bars a bit. After a brief flirtation with some old Big Piegas, I've been using Deda's RHM02 bars. The jury's a bit out on these: the drop and curve are very comfortable, the forward bend (in the photo on the right) less so. A shallower radius would be more comfortable; this bend is so square it forces my hands further out than I'd like, making the bars feel wider than others of a similar size. On balance, I find the old FSA compacts, which were slightly narrower at the top than the drops, preferable.


Wheels
Wheels can make or break a bike. I've used the lightweight Ksyrium SLs shown in the photo on the Acciaio, and also some nice-but-sturdy Harry Rowland 32-spoke wheels on Ambrosio hubs and Open Pro rims. The difference is marked, as you'd expect. With the SLs, the bike responds very readily to a press on the pedals, and accelerates quickly. The Rowlands give the bike a different character – not necessarily less enjoyable. It feels like a machine you can happily ride on cobbles and dirt roads, a real bruiser. Still, though, lightweight enough for fast riding.

Weight
We had to come to this in the end, didn't we? Depending on what bits it's wearing, the Acciaio (a size 55 frame) comes up at a bit under or a bit over 9kg: pretty heavy, relatively, for a bike that would cost about £2000 to build up to this spec from scratch (though about the same as a £1500 Specialized Roubaix). So, you could easily get something lighter for less. It just might not be as satisfying to ride or own.

Summary
It's possible to disguise a good frame using poor kit (especially wheels). It's also possible to make a so-so frame ride better with expensive equipment (especially wheels). I've built up and ridden the Acciaio frame with a range of middling and (in the case of the wheels) a-bit-better-than-middling kit, which has given me a good feel for its capabilities. I'd summarise it as a thoroughly modern version of an old-school steel frame. It's stiff enough to transfer power from your legs efficiently, is still comfortable on long rides (probably the most comfortable road bike I've owned), and is engaging to ride. (I'm trying really hard not to say "lively" here...)

Most of all, the Acciaio has a versatile nature that's welcome in an age of niches within niches. Build it light, drop the stem, and it feels close to a flat-stick race bike. Use more robust components, and you've got yourself a cobble basher. Strike the middle ground, and you have something that can do everything.

And it looks pretty, too.


Monday 21 January 2013

Condor Acciaio review


Until now, only three bikes have been permanent residents in my bike shed (though many more have passed through): a 2003 Specialized Allez; a Cotic Soul mountain bike; and a Condor Pista fixie. I've now bought a Condor Acciaio frame because, though stiff and responsive, the Specialized can be uncomfortable on longer rides. 

First impressions of the Acciaio are good. The frame seems well made, the paint’s beautiful, and the pre-sale prep by Condor is excellent. These guys do really care about making sure you’re happy with your bike. I chose to build the frame up myself, and it’s kitted out with mainly Ultegra from about 2008, Mavic Ksyrium SLs, and fairly ordinary bars/stem/pedals/saddle from the shed.

Contrary to Condor's reputation, the Acciaio seems good value. A hand-built frame made of triple-butted Deda Zero Replica steel, it costs £749.99 including full-carbon fork, headset, and (rather useless) seat clamp. Similar frames from builders such as Enigma, Duell, Pegoretti, Milani, or Zullo cost over £1000 once you include the forks; some of them, double that.

This is an early-days review: the bike’s only covered a few hundred kilometres since I bought/built it. That’s long enough, though, for the shining eyes of new ownership to dim, and the reality of day-to-day riding to come to the fore. So, how’s it doing so far?

• Ride quality
I’ve seen a couple of reviews suggesting that the ride’s a bit stiff on this frame, but for me, the balance between road feel and smoothness is very good. I built the Acciaio up with parts taken off my Specialized frame, which gave a near-direct comparison of the feel. It's certainly not as stiff, and feels a lot less chattery over rough surfaces, but the response to harder pedalling is still quick: it doesn't feel like a bike you have to wind up to speed. For me this frame has the same liveliness as my friend Hammy’s old steel Colnago, but with a much stiffer bottom bracket and modern geometry.
           
• Comfort/fit
This is excellent. I picked this frame because it has similar geometry to my Pista (and better materials), and I find that comfortable to ride for hours on end. Losing 15mm of spacers compared to the Pista (10mm for the taller head tube, 5mm for the lower bottom bracket) gives the same riding position, as the frame angles are the same.

• Handling
73.5ยบ parallel frame angles should equal zippy handling, and they do. The front end feels particularly sharp. Cornering is precise, with no oversteer or understeer, as are sudden changes of line, but the ride doesn’t feel twitchy. There’s no high-speed wobble to the bars going downhill. I'm currently riding with a 110mm stem: I think the frame would happily take 120mm or 100mm without the handling being affected.

• Weight
The Acciaio frame weighs a claimed 0.5 kg more than the E5 alloy frame it has replaced (I suspect that might not be the whole story, but I didn't weigh it before building it up). I can feel the extra weight when I pick the bike up, but not so on the road; I couldn’t honestly say the bike ever feels slower than an alloy or carbon one. Generally, weight in a frame hides itself far better than weight in the wheels and tyres. (The Ti frame I used to own, which was actually lighter, DID feel heavier on the road because it was so soft at the back.)
            Of course, physics demands that on a long climb, extra weight has to slow you down: in the Alps or Pyrenees, maybe I’d be less sanguine about that extra half a kilo. On the other hand, on descents the Acciaio feels more planted and quicker – and I’m not as good at going downhill as pedalling up.

Overall
So far, I’m really pleased with the Acciaio. For general road-bike riding it seems like an excellent choice, with the handling and ride feel particular highlights. The positive ride characteristics of the frame material, plus its durability and reliability, outweigh the theoretical negative of a full water-bottle's worth of extra weight. (True weight weenies probably won't have got this far with the review anyway, of course.)

One likely change: I may try a triple on it. It currently has a compact, but I feel there's a lot of duplication of ratios, and the rouleur character of this bike feels like a natural for a 39-tooth front ring – with a 30-tooth bailout option for safety.