cannondale frame question.

[J Hartman]

Does the

F29 2 - F-Series 29er - Hardtail 29er - Mountain - Bikes - 2013

have the same frame as the

TRAIL SL 29ER 1 - Trail SL 29er - Hardtail 29er - Mountain - Bikes - 2013


The geometry looks almost identical, the F29 claims to have speed save, in the catalog the Trail also says it has a save frame, just wondering if that equals out to the same frame? I'm looking for a bike that is up gradable in the future.

[CB2]

They are not the same frame according to Cannondale.

[SkiNBike]

If I'm not mistaken, the head tube's are different. The Trail has a 1.5" head tube and the Flash (or F-Series) has the head tube for the Lefty's and the Lefty headset.

[J Hartman]

I thought the 1.5" head tube was the lefty head tube.?

[dubdryver]

They may carry a similar geometry, but they the frames are pretty different. The Trail SL uses a 6001 alloy, and the F29 uses a "Smartform" (hydroformed) tubing. If I had to guess, I would say that the F29 uses the same tubing as the CAAD10.

They both have a 1.5 headtube, but the F29 has the "SI" for the Lefty which may be a different headset bearing setup for the Lefty.

Also, the F29 geo is based off of a 90mm lefty, and the Trail SL is based on an 80mm RS Recon, but they may still have the same Axle to Crown length regardless..not sure.

[J Hartman]

Ok, I'm just trying to figure put if the f29 is worth the additional moneys.

[J Hartman]

I'm sure it is. But I mean with it to me personally.

[J Hartman]

Worth

[dubdryver]

Conceptually F29 comes with some better components. The fork is going to be better and lighter, it comes with a XT rear derailleur, and the WTB Frequency i19 wheels. The Magura MT2 brakes may or may not be better than the Shimano M505s, but the Maguras are lighter.

Either way, all of that does probably add up to the price difference, and chances are if you got F29, you'd keep the Lefty fork it came with for as long as you owned the bike. That might not be the case with the Recon, but who knows!

[Bird]

You want the best frame cannondale offers? Hi-mod carbon