We always advise bike buyers to make sure they get the best frame possible for their money and worry about upgrading components later. That’s definitely the approach Raleigh’s taken with its Criterium Elite – but sadly the complete bike suffers noticeably as a result.
- Highs: Responsive, fast handling and power-friendly frame and fork
- Lows: Nine-speed Sora gears, muffled brakes and wooden tyres
- Buy If: You want a lively handling upgradeable machine and can’t afford the Crit Comp straightaway
Starting on a positive note, a sculpted carbon fork leads into a similarly artful head tube, which includes internal gear cable insertion points on the front face to avoid paint damage. The gradually expanding down tube constantly changes cross section on its way down to the traditional threaded bottom bracket.
The large diameter seat tube pushes through the top tube, which curves down into the seemingly obligatory skinny seatstays for damping rear wheel shock. The saddle proved popular with testers, too, who found the shape comfortable for long miles without any grief even on rough backroads.
ADVERTISEMENT
The chassis – with its widening down tube – is the highlight of the setup
The rubberised bar tape is grippy enough in wet weather and if you get along with the feel of the more needy/twitchy shorter stem, the cockpit is both well shaped and balanced in terms of shock absorbtion without obvious flex.
You can read more at BikeRadar.com
via BikeRadar All the latest from BikeRadar.com http://ift.tt/1J2Mxko
No comments:
Post a Comment