Conference noted::bicycle

    
    A Raleigh Super Course frame is straight-gauge 531, not exactly
    the best riding or light in weight.
    
    There are many frames available under $300 made of Ishiwata or Tange
    double butted tubing that are far superior to the Super Course.
    Construction on the Raliegh leaves a lot to be desired as well.
    
    I haven't seen the Super Course available mail order, but I have
    seen the Competition available from Michaels Cyclery, Ames Iowa.
    515-232-7027.
    
    CdH
    
    

    I thought that the Super Course had double-butted top and seat
    tubes, single-butted everything else.  I almost view single-butted
    tubing as an asset, because the frame has to be very strong.
    (I'm almost 190lbs, and most of that is legs.)  To get that
    kind of strength any other way, I'd have to buy an extremely
    expensive Columbus SP frame or an aluminum canondale, or stick
    with my old battle axe, a Fuji S10S (about as strong, heavy,
    and slow-steering as the Queen Mary).
    
    If I was going to list my criteria in order, they'd be:
    
    Price, Strength, Handling, Weight, Beauty
    
    Beauty of finish or lugs comes dead last.  Price comes first.
    Maybe my criteria are wrong?
    
    MATT 

    PS - I saw an �lan Vitus steel(!) tubing frame in my size (60cm)
    the other day for $199.  Anybody know what this is like? Nobody
    in the bike shop had a clue.

    Last time I looked, a new Cannondale frame could be had for less
    than $250 including headset.  Seems you would be hard pressed to
    come close in the strength/weight department with a steel frame
    at that price.  Especially if aesthetics are not a major concern
    (although personally I've always liked the look of those fat tubes).

    /rick

    The tone of most cycling people I've talked to about Canondales
    could be called "damning with faint praise."  No one denies
    their strength and light weight, but they claim that the 
    seat tube's too steep (74.5 degrees) and the steering tube's
    too slow (72 degrees), the aluminum doesn't absorb shock,
    the frames are always out of alignment, and there are numerous
    recalls.  Is this true, or are these people just trying to 
    sway business their way?
    
    MATT

    
    Matt, 190 lbs is nothing. I've got a guy on my team at almost 250
    who has no problems with SL/SP combo Italian frames.
    
    Your priority should be construction, components, price, finish
    in that order. The above mentioned person has broken 2 Miyata TEAM
    frames, both in the same place, because of inferior droputs. The
    tubing is Tange #2, more than strong enough. So put frame components
    much higher on your list (I mean things like lugs, BB shells, drops
    etc. not cranks et al). 
    
    The Super Course is fully straight 531 from what I know. You could
    go with the Tange #2 (Japanese SP) or Ishiwata 093?. Also, Columbus
    Aelle is fairly light and strong, and more responsive than the Tange.
    
    I don't like the Cannondale's because they aren't as lively as a
    good steel frame. True, liveliness is wasted power but I like it.
    Each to his own, that's why this is America.
    
    CdH
    
     

    It sounds like I need a tutorial on the virtues and vices
    of frame componetry.  How can you tell a good dropout when
    you see one (the kind that hold wheels, not the kind with
    torn jeans and greasy hair :)?  Or a good BB shell?  Or a
    strong fork?  I've listened to salesmen describe "beefy"
    fork stays, and "precision cast" lugs, the same way the 
    supermarket describes "golden ripe" bananas or "vine ripe"
    tomatoes.  It wouldn't matter if the lugs were cast in 
    sand, just as it doesn't matter when the tomatoes and 
    bananas are all green: that's simply a saleable characteristic
    of a frame.  Yet I do know they make a difference. Can
    someone offer a more objective survey?
    
    MATT  

    
    Matt, I said construction first, components second. The best components
    in the world won't ride worth a chicken pellet if they're not put
    together well. 
    
    This is a long and involved subject, so I'll be brief. Insofar as
    construction is concerned, you can get he best idea about how the
    frame was built by looking inside the bottom bracket. The tubes
    should be mitred flush to the shell. There should be no excess brazing
    material around. Is the shell cast? Look at the frame lugs. Were
    they brazed neatly, or are there bubbles/pits under the paint? Were
    they filed neatly? Look at the fork crown, it should be cast. Is
    it straight, ie is it perpendicular to the wheel? Look at the seat
    stays. Are they straight, or bowed at the brake bridge?
    
    These are just a couple of ideas as what to look for. Next time
    you're at a good bike shop, have the salesperson take a top quality
    bare frame off the shelf for you. Look at it real close. Then take
    a look at your FUJI or other lesser frame, and you'll see exactly
    what I mean.
    
    CdH
    
    

The 60cm Cannondale racing frame is 73 degrees in both the head and seat tubes.
Wheelbase is 39 inches.  The steering is slower than some (not all) racing
frames I've tried, but far from sluggish.  It's just not twitchy.  I think the
contributing factor is a rather large 2.5 inches of trail, which tends to make
the front wheel very stable.  As far as road shock, I find just the opposite.
The Cannondale is one of the most comfortable racing frames I've ever been on.
People I've met who own them say the same thing. 

There have always been these rumors about alignment.  The problem is that the
tubes bow during heat treating (normal for their process) so the frames always
"look" a little out of whack.  The frames still come out perfectly aligned,
however.  I hear comments from bikeshop owners (who don't sell Cannondale)
like  "well, I'd sure like to get one on an alignment table and check it out".
Of course, they never do.  They prefer innuendo.  I have heard of cases of
quality problems with new frames but no problem with responsiveness from
Cannondale; they do replace em promptly.  Just buy from a good, reputable
dealer.

I suggest you try one out if you haven't already.  Don't take anyone's word
for it.  Cannondales seem to be a very emotional issue.  Some people love'em
cause they're different.  Other people hate'em for the same reason.
My view: a lot of people in the bicycle biz have a vested interest promoting
the idea that expensive steel alloy frames with exotic finishes and Italian
names are the way to go, regardless of the facts.  I like a stiff frame.
The Cannondale is lighter AND stiffer than any SL or 531 frame on the market.
For less than $300, that's pretty good.

/rick

    Well, I ended up with a classic Italian road frame: a year-old 
    Olmo.  It has Columbus SL tubing throughout, gorgeous lugs with 
    cutouts, and two-tone paint.  Now I've got to figure out what 
    components are worthy of hanging off of this frame!
    
    Thanks for all the advice.

    MATT