Strengths: Hard to find a better bike dollar-for-dollar. Carbon frame is stiff and compliant in all the right places; Lefty fork is the most laterally rigid fork I've used; mix of drivetrain components work in good harmony (no instances of chain suck - believe previous issues were the fault of the FSA crankset used in the earlier model). Geometry is well balanced so it climbs and descends nicely. SAVE technology saves your body from the abuse that the rocks and roots dish out. Lightweight - my large frame with pedals is 23.5lbs. The color scheme ain't bad either.
Weaknesses: For what the bike costs, I have no complaints. As I find extra money, I would like to upgrade the wheels to something a little lighter and stiffer. The Avid Elixirs were squeally mothers at first and had a shimmy. I think this was the result of the pads not being seated properly at first. I swapped the pads out for SwissStops and they've been good ever since. Doesn't say: "Handmade in the USA" on the seat stay.
Bottom Line:
For the price, Cannondale cooked up a great bike. I've riding an aluminum singlespeed 29er for serveral years, but wanted something with gears to add to the quiver. I had a budget of $2k, which can get you into a number of solid bikes. While checking out the aluminum version of the Flash, I stumbled upon the Carbon and felt that for a little extra, I could get so much more. So far, I feel the extra money has been well spent. It handles singletrack responsively, climbs efficiently, descends confidently and thanks to Cannondale's SAVE technology, doesn't kill your body after a long time in the saddle. There is so little left to be desired from the frame and fork. There are things I'd like to eventually upgrade, but out of the box this is a very solid bike with a good component mix.
Strengths: Overall Great Bike. Amazing Quality components and a Bargain for a Carbon Frame. Lefty fork was not what I exepect in good Way I was use to very stiff (XC) forks Manitou's Skareb's and Minute's, Cannondale Fatty comes to mind. Lefty is different Great small bumps absortion and does a great work when big drops and medium rocks come in the way. On rocky technical terrain the bike shines I may say better than a 26er Full Suspension ( Santa Cruz Blur XC ). Tires are great Schalbe Racong Ralph had no problems on wet terrain. Shifting is Flawlwss with Shimano XT and a Mix of SRAM X7. Great Brakes highly modular and versatile. I expected that due to the bike was a hardtail I will be wishing for my Full Suspension Bike but to my surprise the Flash 3 Carbon was better handling, bumps and rock eating machine. Only flaw was the grips, very chap and high fatigue on the hands. Handle bar is wide great until you hit extremely twisty single tracks with trees very close to the trail path. I think I will have to get use to that.
Weaknesses: Only flaw was the grips, very chap and high fatigue on the hands.Have to get use to Wide handlebar
Bottom Line:
Great Light Frame, Great component package. Lefty was a surprise in good great way. Very Happy with my purchase
Strengths: Lefty stifness, climbing capabilities, lite and smooth descender for a hardtail.
Weaknesses: Can't think of anything
Bottom Line:
Disregard the earlier reviews, because I have the 2012 model and it's an amazing bike. Super light out of the box. The lefty is awesome and super stiff. The geometry just feels good for super efficient climbing, but relaxed while descending too. The bike surprisingly eats up rough terrain very well. I want to upgrade the wheels to some Stans Crest though. I have a Trek Fuel EX8 as well, so I debated forever about FS or hardtail 29er. I am happy with my choice, especially after a podium finish at my first race with this bike.
Submitted by
lve2baik
a Cross Country Rider
from Kalamazoo
Date Reviewed: April 8, 2012
Strengths: Very lightweight frame, lefty fork
Weaknesses: Crankset, wheelset (Sun), Avid Elixir CR Mag brakes (spongy, unpredictable setup like a drama queen)
Bottom Line:
I essentially bought this bike for the carbon frame and lefty fork. It's the cheapest carbon flash in the lineup. Stiff front end with good traction due to the lefty, very light, and fast. The main highlight for me is the stiff frame and the Lefty Fork. Its one of the best Fork I've ever ridden in terms of trail compliance, traction, and being stiction free. With the current setup, this bike is an outstanding machine. If you're looking for a fast bike with a lefty, then this is your bike.
I ran the original setup tubeless (Sun rims) and got it down to 22++lbs. It ran ok for a couple of weeks, but wheelset was heavy. So I replaced it and it made a huge difference. I didn't have any chainsuck issues like the others, but keep in mind I ran a 9sp setup and I want to stick to my XTR Rapid Rise Derailleur.
One major issue I had was the stem. If it was installed improperly, it will creak!. I had to remove the OPI stem assembly, greased all the threads liberally with a stiff brush (a must), then reassembled them. Noise went away and never came back. You will need the "Ernie" lefty steerer install tool to remove the OPI stem available at www.cannondaleexpert.com. Otherwise, try to get creative with home made tools and you may just destroy the fine threads under the upper stem.
Bike Setup: Only thing left stock after 1 year is the fork and crappy Avid brakes. Stan's Crest Wheelset, Cannondale Flash Seatpost, FSA K-Force crankset, Niner carbon bars, XTR Rapid Rise shifter and derailleur (I'm old skool), Specialized Phenom Saddle, Maxxis Ikon Tires. Total wt: 21.25lbs
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
jaymueller
a Racer
from Arlington, MA
Date Reviewed: March 14, 2012
Strengths: Smooth for a hardtail, nimble, stiff. Lefty fork tracks better than any other, more responsove.
Weaknesses: Finish quality of adhesive chain guard, helicopter tape etc not perfect. Lefty's have to be serviced more often. Came with Avid/SRAM brakes which are spongy,have to be adjusted too often, and use corrosive DOT fluid. Switched to XTR with ICE rotors, big 180mm in front (even though I'm light) and stopping power and modulation is much, much better.
Bottom Line:
I rode a Gary Fisher SF100 last year and raced it a million times, broke 3 frames. THis year I am on a cannondale sponsored team and took the option of the least expensive flash, stripped parts from it, sold them, and put my own collection of parts on it. It is under 19 pounds without pedals, but incredibly solid, and for a hardtail eats up an incredible amount of chop. I would say for smoother, flowing courses, I don't miss the full squish at all. Riding the lefty is a dream. For the money, the Carbon 3 out of the box is about 22 pounds (if you run it tubeless on the Sun Wheels) and is an amazing platform to upgrade. If you already have fast wheels, it makes more sense to get the 3 than the 2. I have the same reservations with Carbon that others have and the rear derailleur guillotine problem is a known entity, more risky per the mechanics if you run SRAM as it tends to wrap around often. I love riding this bike. I just feel very connected and intuitive on it in a way that I did not on my full squish and more so than other hardtails. If comfort is less important and you only want rigidity for XC racing, the Stumpy 29er is amazing. I do longer races, so appreciate the supple ride of the 'Dale.
I just read the review posted by Cainam and experienced some of the same issues - and then some.
Within weeks of buying the Flash Carbon 3, my chain also came off multiple times and wrapped around the bottom bracket when shifting down from the big gear in front, without putting any real pressure on it. And since it is a light-weight high-end chain, it immediately got warped just a tiny bit and then caused the rear gears to jump unexpectedly until I replaced the chain.
But that was only the beginning. Four months after buying the bike, I was on a trail and rode over a small stick that got stuck in the rear derailleur. It ripped off the derailleur (stuff happens), but not until it first cracked the carbon frame right where the derailleur is mounted. I walked my $3,000 bike five miles out of the woods to be told by the shop that the entire frame had to be scrapped.
I reached out to the folks at Cannondale. Clearly, this had to be a warranty issue. The first email from the rep back to me was (and I quote): "Hey...you had some questions about the frame you broke?" It went downhill from there. The best they could do was offer me a 20% "crash discount" on a replacement carbon frame - for $2,000. Way to stand behind your product Cannondale.
At the end, I swapped the frame for the "cheap" alloy version. While they put the bike back together, the shop informed me that the Lefty fork had to be re-built and the bearings in the bottom bracket replaced. All after just four months of weekend riding.
Including repairs, I've spent $4,000 on a mediocre bike with mechanical issues. But it looked awesome for a while.
Submitted by
Cainam
a Cross Country Rider
from Bremerton, WA
Date Reviewed: August 25, 2011
Strengths: Geometry feels good. Light carbon frame, but still stiff in the right directions.
Weaknesses: HORRIBLE drivetrain - bad to the point of being dangerous.
Bottom Line:
When I got the bike, I was really excited. I've been wanting a Cannondale for years, but the price has been out of my reach. And although the Flash 3 is at the low end of the series, it still costs $3000. This should be a really sweet ride. . .
Unfortunately, it is a mix of pretty good and downright terrible. The frame and geometry setup is great, it rolls great, and as long as I don't hit any bumps or try to shift gears, it is a nice bike to pedal.
A small bump that you would normally ignore and keep pedaling over causes the rear derailluer to try to shift, then spring back. If you are pushing at the time, it will scare you half to death.
If you are pedaling with any force AT ALL - anything but freewheeling and just moving the drivetrain along to allow it to shift, the chain WILL wrap around the bottom bracket when going down from the big gear. Cannondale puts a little aluminum and plastic sticker on the bottom bracket to help protect it when this happens. Mine got ripped off the first time the chain hit it. True quality engineering there, folks.
The bike has been back at the shop, and there isn't anything out of adjustment. That's just how the drivetrain works.
I wonder if the problem is the big mix of components they are using: FSA crank and front chainrings, KMC chain, Shimano rear cogs, and SRAM deraillures. 10 speed systems have alot closer tolerances, and mixing the drivetrain group may just be a bad idea.
The bike looks very good, and now that I have spent some time with it I get the feeling that is really what Cannondale is all about - looks and snob appeal rather than making a functional piece of machinery. I can go to Toys 'R' Us and get a low end bike that actually works for less than 1/10th of what I paid for this. (Actually, they have a Huffy mountain bike there for $80.) It would weigh a ton, and it would break if I hop off a curb, but it would work.
Yes, I did just unfavorably compare Cannondale to Huffy.
Bike Setup: Factory setup except for the hand grips.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
billeke
a Cross Country Rider
from Baton Rouge, LA
Date Reviewed: June 1, 2011
Strengths: The frame and the fork.
Weaknesses: The FSA 386 crankset that had a LOT of chainsuck, even in dry conditions, the X9 rear derailleur (the spring weakens quickly) and the stock wheelset which is as heavy as a pig.
Bottom Line:
Cannondale produce wonderful frames, and the flash 29er carbon is a wonderful bike.
Just a pity that they choose to save a handful of $$ and built a FSA Afterburner. I had so much chainsuck that Cannondale eventually changed the crankset and the frame because of all the carbon chunks taken out by the chain.
Don't hesitate to change the wheelset. I saved more than 2 pounds by swapping it, and it totally changed the bike's responsiveness.
