Cervelo R3 (comfortable or not?)

bryangiggsy

I bought a Cervelo R3 16 months ago in Slane Cycles in Belfast for 2400 pounds without the wheels. At present i would class it as my occasional bike or winter bike as from March till September I ride,train and race triathlons on my tt bike Orbea Ora. The problem i have with my Cervelo is its such a stiff frame its not really a comfortable bike to ride . My mate Smitzer bought a Scott cr1 at the same time and when we switched bikes one day i was amazed at how comfortable the scott was when compared to the Cervelo. Maybe ill change my mind as i become adapted again to the cervelo through the winter but at present I dont think its a comfortable bike to ride. Do you agree or disagree?:cool:

100Suns

Raam is the official spokesman in the Cervelo R3. Always on hand with impartial, objective advice on the old R3;)

Raam

Not a lot of people on here know this, but I have one too.
I find it very comfortable to ride.

Lumen

I rode Raam's R3 once. It felt very stiff. Then I bought a Scott. That felt very stiff. Then I put some deep section carbon wheels on the Scott, and it felt great. But stiff.

Maybe you need to spend some more money.

Raam

Lumen wrote: »

I rode Raam's R3 once. It felt very stiff. Then I bought a Scott. That felt very stiff. Then I put some deep section carbon wheels on the Scott, and it felt great. But stiff.

Maybe you need to spend some more money.

How comfortable is your Scott? On a scale of 3 to 9.

Lumen

Raam wrote: »

How comfortable is your Scott? On a scale of 3 to 9.

Numbers cannot possibly do it justice. It feels like riding a table tennis bat.

Smithzer

Its an Addict not a CR1 and it's very comfortable.

Raam

People of boards.ie, know this... the Cervelo R3 is a pretty bicycle.

Lumen

You have carbon wheels and shiny metal cranks. This is an inelegant combination.

Raam

Lumen wrote: »

You have carbon wheels and shiny metal cranks. This is an inelegant combination.

I agree with you on that one.

victorcarrera

I don't have a cervelo but I have (stiff)2 carbon race bikes.

The forks are designed to be stiff so that they handle and steer as you want them to and the frame is made stiff so that strong sprinters dont break them. The downside is unless you are training on very smooth roads all the time it can be uncomfortable.

For this reason all my group training is done on a soft aluminium frame and wheels with an extra wide and padded saddle.
If I train alone I use a hybrid which even has a shock absorber in the seat post and big fat tyres.
If I had to train on my race bikes the way I have set them up I think would have given up cycling a long time ago. It may be the very reason why so many people don't stick with it.

niceonetom

victorcarrera wrote: »

I don't have a cervelo but I have (stiff)2 carbon race bikes.

I beleive I've seen you race on a Planet-X Pro Carbon... is that the (stiff) bike you're talking about?

levitronix

I don’t think stiffness equates to an uncomfortable ride on a bike, my present bike a canyon cf is deemed to be a very stiff its very comparable to the cervelo , my last bike a felt f5 hadn’t a patch on the canyon for comfort and the felt should of had less torsional stiffness but on the felt I could feel a lot more of the road under me, while on the canyon the ride is a lot smoother but the frame has no give on a sprint or out of the saddle climb.

The winter bike im riding an orbea al with a carbon seat stays hits you in the ass with every bump you ride over, and if I put the bike on the turbo I can cleary see the bottom bracket being pushed side to side when I pedal in a high gear, put the canyon on the turbo pedal in the same gear look down at the bottom bracket the bike stays firm. The bike feeling uncomfortable might not down be down to stiffness at all

victorcarrera

niceonetom wrote: »

I beleive I've seen you race on a Planet-X Pro Carbon... is that the (stiff) bike you're talking about?

A little OT perhaps but in response yes. I have a PX pro carbon and a Focus cayo. I find the Focus stiff all round. I think the planet X has poor lateral stiffness in the bottom bracket area and forks (flex if you like) but no vertical compliance in the forks. It is this lack of shock absorbtion from either the shape of the forks or physical properties of carbon forks and carbon wheels I refer to.
For example many posters on here have completed the Etap Hibernia this year on roads I am familiar with. I wasnt surprised when I read the complaints about the rough surfaces on the roads down there. I have used my race bikes occasionally and my training bikes on those roads.
There is just no comparison. Yes it may be OK if you only do 5 hours a week. But I have to do 10 hrs minimum to be competitive at the level I am at. I am happy to exercise the muscles for that length of time but I don't feel the need to train my teeth or vertabrae to rattle for a couple of 2 hour races in the summer.
In any case you also have/had one what do you think?

Quigs Snr

Comfort is relative to the rider and subject to many variables such as wheels, tyres, tyre pressure, seatpost material and length, stem / handlebar, saddle, bar tape etc.... Not to mention variables introduced by the characteristics of the rider, their biomechanics and the way they fit the bike. No particular brand will be universally more comfortable and anything you read to the contrary is marketing bullsh*t and opinion.

niceonetom

victorcarrera wrote: »

In any case you also have/had one what do you think?

Yeah, I have one too and find it pretty comfy actually. I'll concede that it might not be the stiffest around the BB but I've never found the front end to be harsh. It's much more cushy than the aluminium Cube Streamer I have and MUCH MUCH softer than the alu cannondale capo (fixie) I use (that thing is brutally stiff, but I like it most of the time). I haven't spent enough time on other full carbon bikes to form a real understanding of how the various moduli and weaves affect things (mores the pity).

One thing I hva noticed (and this might actually be on-topic) is how much the wheels and finishing kit affects vibration. In Wicklow I've used Mavic Cosmic Carbonnnes and found they really amplify any ripples in the road - they're strong and feel fast once up to speed, but they make some descents (Shay Elliot to Sliabh Mann for instance) pretty hairy as the bike bucks and skitters. There's very little vertical flex in those wheels. The same bike feels totally different with 32 OpenPros on it - much more forgiving.

I think I can tell the difference between my old cheapo alu seatpost (with no layback) and the Bontrager OCLV one I'm using at the minute too.

victorcarrera

bryangiggsy wrote: »

The problem i have with my Cervelo is its such a stiff frame its not really a comfortable bike to ride .:cool:

The cervelo is the only bike I have seen with box section tubes connecting the bottom bracket. I seem to remember this was a major developement in the 1980's in the motorcycle frame building world where frame stiffness is also revered.
What type of discomfort do you refer to? Is it road vibration through the seat post and forks or is it position as Quigs suggests?

niceonetom

victorcarrera wrote: »

The cervelo is the only bike I have seen with box section tubes...

Not box section - "squoval".

bryangiggsy

The discomfort i refer to would be vibration through the saddle. I probably have not rode it enough to get accustomed to it ..it just struck more how more hard and rigid it was compared to the Scott. The change in position going from aero on a tt bike to sitting up on a road bike might have something to do with it as well although one would think riding in the aero poistion would be more uncomfortable but i find it more comfortable.

Raam

What seat post and saddle do you have?

victorcarrera

What type of wheels and spoke count are on your Cervelo and on your friends Scott.
On your next spin swap wheels with your friend and see how it goes.
Correct saddle width for you and padding are important.

bryangiggsy

Selle italia saddle..fsa slk seatpost

leftism

Theres not nearly enough pics of cervelo bikes in this thread!

Very disappointing....

Chips Lovell

Isn't the R3 meant to be a stiff ass race bike?

Beasty

leftism wrote: »

Theres not nearly enough pics of cervelo bikes in this thread!

Very disappointing....

Try this one

niceonetom

OP - if you're coming from spending more time on tri-bars you might just be suffering from the fact that a higher proportion of your own bodyweight ends up on the saddle when in a normal road position compared to the aero position.

Can you not just console yourself with the notion that stiffness = efficiency and suffer on.

el tonto wrote: »

Isn't the R3 meant to be a stiff ass race bike?

According to Cervélo it's "Optimized for stiffness, lightweight, comfort - and Paris-Roubaix."

The S3 would probably be more of a "stiff ass race bike", the RS would be a fat-ass road bike (or at least a road-bike for people with fat asses - sorry, I have a thing against lax geometry roadbikes).

Smithzer

victorcarrera wrote: »

What type of wheels and spoke count are on your Cervelo and on your friends Scott.
On your next spin swap wheels with your friend and see how it goes.
Correct saddle width for you and padding are important.

R3 has Cosmic Elites
Addict has Ksyrium SL's

I get what Bryan is saying cause when I rode it I found it really stiff compared to the Addict and I dont think its anything to do with the set up, I just think it is "a stiff ass race bike"

Raam

Beasty wrote: »

Try this one

Wooooh, this one!

2old4this

Hi Raam,

Have you had any issues around the bottom bracket area? I was getting my groupset changed and my local bike shop noticed a crack around bottom bracket.
I'm sending it back to Slane Cycles this week.

Raam

2old4this wrote: »

Hi Raam,

Have you had any issues around the bottom bracket area? I was getting my groupset changed and my local bike shop noticed a crack around bottom bracket.
I'm sending it back to Slane Cycles this week.

No, but one of the guys in the club did. He got a warrantied frame.

I also got mine warrantied but it wasn't the BB area.

Staro

Gotta say Cervelo stand over their lifetime warranty,I had an issue with a frame and they looked after it. I got the 2011 model as a replacement, cant wait to get it built up. It has the new B Bright BB technoligy that is on the S5ca.

http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/eurobike-2010-cervelo-unveil-updated-road-range-27591