Weaknesses: foam grips, handlebar width, attaching a computer to the Lefty fork
Bottom Line:
Although I am 6'3" 170lbs I was hesitant to make the move to a 29er because I like a fast accelerating rear wheel. My Ibis Silk Ti has Crossmax SL wheels with Specialized S Works Fast Trak LK tires set up tubeless with Calfelatex and 177.5mm XTR cranks. I don't notice any difference accelerating with the Flash wheel (Schwalbe Racing Ralph/Calfelatex/Stan's Arch rims) using 180mm XTR cranks. The ride is as compliant as my Silk Ti which I attribute to the Flash's engineered microsuspension/S.A.V.E seatpost and the larger wheels. I am running 28psi. The traction is awesome. So nice being able to get out of the saddle to hammer and not losing rear wheel traction as on my 26'er. The handling is great overall. I am still able to negotiate tight slow speed switchbacks and still feel ultra stable at high speed. The cranks spin effortlessly on the BB30 bearings. I changed out the stock light foam grips to Oury's for some cushion and more grip. I cut off 3/4th of an inch of each side of the bars. Amazing bike. I am a 29er convert.
Strengths: lightness and overall ride compliance and Lefty fork
Weaknesses: stock bars and seat post clamp
Bottom Line:
I have a couple other nice AL Cannondales but this bike's ride is noticeably more compliant. Don't know if it's the 29er wheels or Cannondale's carbon layup. specifying Stans rims is great. tubeless is no problem and they're light. The stock stem,185mm f. rotor, seat and 38t cassette are all wayyy too heavy. the seat post clamp sucks. nice post but ditch the clamp.
Strengths: Weght, compliance, ride, design, and lefty fork.
Weaknesses: Stock bars are too wide. Swapped bars and seatpost for Ritchey WCS carbon.
Bottom Line:
Right now at approx 22.5 lbs for a medium. This bike is extremely nimble, compliant and fast. At first, the bike was a bit squirrley, but after putting a longer stem and a set back seatpost, this is my favorite bike to ride. Unless I am in Tahoe or a real Rocky area, this is the bike I am having the most fun on and my 26" full suspension rig is gathering dust.
Bike Setup: X/O gripshift, maguras, Stan's arch wheelset.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Chain-L
a Cross Country Rider
from Stellenbosch, South Africa
Date Reviewed: March 4, 2011
Strengths: Cannondale Frame (no weight limit, lifetime warranty, light) Lefty is awesome, Great wheels (ZTR Arch), Brakes, Seatpost.
Weaknesses: Massive problems with front shifting. Gets Chain suck even though the bike has only done 300km. Chain drops on the inside was sorted with adjustment, but changes from large to small ring is extremely BAD. Chain stays on big ring and gets caught in the FD from below. Have seen a few owners complaining about this-but Cannondale has not come up with a solution yet. Don’t know if it is the Crank, chain, FD or RD spring tension? Not acceptable for a bike in this price range-any price range for that matter-just POOR! The chain drops is irritating and causes unnecessary damage to frame, FD, Chaining and carbon cranks! Can accepts damage through wear and tear, but not when caused by equipment problems.
Bottom Line:
If it was not for the irritating shifting problems the bike is 5 chilies overall. Bike is expensive compared to Scott but well priced compared to Specialized. With full X0 and SL Crank, value will be 5 chillies. Will come back to update when bike is back from my LBS and a few more rides.
Climbs much better than a 26". Traction is outstanding. I don't know if this is attributable to the wheel size, tires, geometry, or a combination but the difference is impressive. The 29er "contact patch" benefit claim is bogus because tire PSI, by defintion, determines the size of the contact patch, regardless of wheel diameter; but the roll-over benefit is real and the gyro-effect stability is dramatic. This bike is smooth and fast.
Downhills are fast and handling is responsive but very stable. This bike outperforms both of my other bikes (Cannondale Raven Super 4000SL and Cannondale F1000 hard-tail) hands down. The Flash handles fast corners better than my other two bikes, which tend to push in corners where the Flash tracks like it is on rails. I have had to learn that I can take tight corners much faster than I was previously used to. In fact, I sold the Raven and am giving the F1000 to a friend because, after a few weeks on the Carbon Flash, I knew I would never ride them again. Going back to the 26: F1000 felt like riding a BMX bike.
My number two choice was the Specialized carbon 29er but the fork paled in comparison to the Lefty.
Weaknesses: Stock handlebars way too wide. Need to be cut to a comfortable size.
Bottom Line:
I am 45 years old, 5'11", and 170 lbs. I am an advanced intermediate rider with 25 years of mountain bike experience. I ride three to four times per week.
The Carbon Flash 29er is not cheap but it is state-of-the-art and, at my age, I cannot imaging buying another mountain bike in the years I have remaining to ride. As for value, my Carbon Raven was almost $6,000 ten years ago, which makes the Flash 29er a comparative bargain. The Specialized carbon 29er was about the same price and had slightly better components but, oh, that Lefty Carbon fork -- it's Cannondale's ace in the hole.
At some point, I will probably replace the drive train with a Roholff hub, having ridden one on a Spot and fallen in love with the precise shifting and zero maintenance. I will gladly take the small weight penalty.
If you are in the market for an upper-end 29er, definately consider the Carbon Flash. This bike has made me a better rider and I would definitely recommend it.
If you have not ridden a 29er, take one out for a few rides.
Anybody buy or sell a used Flash Carbon 29er 2 lately? I'm thinking of picking one up and I'm curious what they are selling for (lightly used).
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Hi All
Have some serious shifting problems with my new bike which has SRAM X9 2x10 and FSA crank. Anybody with advice, or similar experience?
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Got it on Friday! Rode twice over the weekend with long climbs and some fast decent single track and fire roads. All I can say is WOW. Im 5' 7" on a long day. Im coming from a T Read More »
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I'm in the market for a 2012 Flash Carbon 29er 2 and was wondering what current owners in the forum paid. Also what were the first things that you upgraded - just curi Read More »
