OK, its time to retire the old Cervelo P2 and get a new bike. I’m not as young as I once was, and figure I need to get something with a slightly higher front end. I also want 700c, and I have a buyer lined up for the old steed and wheels.
I’m trying to decide on the size of my new mount. If I went with a Cervelo, I could fit comfortably on a P2K 52 (with spacers under the stem), P2K 55 (no spacers) or Dual 54 (no spacers).
The basebar reach is not adjustable (Cinelli Angel bars), the extension is adjustable. The larger size, due to the longer reach, will be more comfortable climbing out of the saddle, but a stretch when seated, and vice versa for the smaller size. When climbing, I generally have a 50/50 ratio standing / seated.
My P2 (54cm) has the same toptube length as the Dual, but is about 3 cm lower. I feel it is on the long side, so good when standing, crappy seated, but that is also a function of the low bars.
I welcome anyone’s comments, which way should I go? Short or long?
BTW, I am not limiting myself to Cervelo. But they do offer a variety of geometries, so it’s easiest to compare them.
The new Cervelo Dual sure seems very interesting, especially at that price. I’ll bet Cervelo have hit another home run with this bike. Haven’t seen one yet but will this weekend. I’m taking a friend to Toronto on the weekend to look at both the P2K and the Dual. He’s not sure yet which one to get but eitherwill be a big step up from the steel 10 sp that he normally rides.
One comment. You mention that your P2 top tube feels a bit long but the Dual has the same length but is 3 cm higher. Seems like it could be a near perfect fit since elevating the bars gives the same effect as shortenning the top tube.
Honestly, I am kind of leaning toward the Dual, as it has a couple of things in its favor over the P2K.
paint scheme, and longer chainstay (so fewer chainline issues).
I’m just waffling over the geometry. Do I sacrifice a bit standing for seated comfort? I don’t care about the components, as I’ll swap out stuff anyway, and I’ll often donate unused parts to the juniors.
Also, Anyone know what the crank length on the Dual 54cm will be? Gerard? Need to know whether to keep my old cranks and bb.
Looking at toptube length, the 54cm P2 is not similar to the 52cm P2K. Over the years, our frames have gotten a bit shorter (as they teach you in Relativety Theory 101, matter gets shorter at higher speed :-).
But seriously, a 54cm P2K/P3/Dual is around 1cm shorter than a 54cm P2. The 52cm P2K/P3 or the 51cm Dual is another 2cm shorter than the 54’s. As for headtube heights, be sure to take into account integrated vs. non-integrated headsets and 700c vs. 650c. Add 2cm to your P2 headtube to compare to the current P3/P2K/Dual and decuct 5cm to compare it to any 700c frame.
Sorry, I should have been more clear, I was comparing whether I could achieve the same position as on the 54cm P2. The ht length on the P2 is 120mm, add 20, subtract 50, gives 90mm equivalent ht length on the P2K 700c = 52 cm P2K frame according to the charts. Right now, I ride with the bars all the way down, so ht length is the limiting factor, and tt length I can easily adjust for.
Using that as a baseline, I know I need a higher bar, ergo, 55 cm P2K or 54cm dual. Which brings me back to is the 55 P2K going to be too long for me if the 54 P2 was a stretch, but also lower. Moving the bars up by 3cm will decrease the effective reach, but how much? Or do I live with the stretched position when seated, and be in a better position when out of the saddle? It’s a matter of opinion more than any hard and fast answer, i know. I am just curious as to what other folks lean towards?
I think I’ve settled on the 54 Dual. It’s a nice bike, nice stock specs, but I’m the type who cannot leave well enough alone. I don’t want the bars to be too high, and I’ve also had a couple of bad experiences with Profile bars and just don’t trust them anymore, so I’ll probably replace the stock bars with a set of Vision Techs. Also put on a set of real brake levers, eg Campy Record Carbons or my old ultegras. replace the seat with my flite, add the 175mm cranks and I’m set. Just wish it came with 2 water bottle mounts.
-Buy the one that fits the best. Having said that, the Dual is a very strong bike that offers more (in my opinion) than anything else below $1700. Perhaps the most attractive quality is the variable geometry seatpost. There is a lot of size latitude. The component spec is solid and the frame typical Cervelo: Awesome. Remember, before I sell a bike, first I have to BUY it, and I bought a lot of dulas this year. They are a very strong value.
Really Tom ?? how bout you starting to tell the truth ? It goes something like this …
Cervelo offers cookie cutter bike that *promises a wide range of VIRTUAL FIT (5 ridiculous degree 75 - 79). Much like a combo of Compact Geometry with a forward Seatpost
With Cervelo, you have to stock less bicycles. With *REAL and not VIRTUAL (LOL) Tri bike like Felt, Cannondale , you have to buy more bicycles to fit your customers. ref: Cannondale Ironman 800 has 14 sizes both 700c and 650 c. Cervelo Dual has less than 8 sizes.
So Hey, stock Cervelo, your inventory overhead is less. ALso now you can afford to buy more Cervelo so you get greater volume discounts.
If you are meaning to “ignore” Orang - I am not to certain why. He has stated fact. Often in marketing they want to to think something - be it true or not.
Cervelo makes a great bike - that we know is a fact. However there is no way that they can get all people on a limited number of sizes. That is why we have options. I think that the only bikes that are out there that can claim to be a “one size fits more” is with the Softrides and other beam bikes.
But - if the ignore was not directed at the Cervelo -vs- another bike I am just a slow reader and you should ignore me.
Wow, dug this one out of the archives. I ended up with a really small Klein road bike, which I really liked except the handling was crap out of the saddle. It was fine when seated though. I have actually just replaced the Klein with a 51cm P2SL, which I have yet to ride.
Cool,
Ya I thought it would be interesting to find some several year old, which bike should I buy threads, and find out what people bought and what their long term feelings were.