# Steel to Carbon R3



## roy harley (Oct 22, 2006)

I test road a Cervelo R3 today. My current frame is a steel frame. The Cervelo was very nice and smooth. There was one issue and I am not sure if it is me or the bike. When I was pedaling on flat or slight grade hills I noticed a dead/dragging feeling on the bike. While I was pedaling it was occurring at around 15-25 mph. It was almost like some one was applying the breaks but there was no break rub occurring. It was just a strange pulsating feeling which made me think it had something to do with the pedaling. All the components on the bike worked fine.

Could this be that I am use to a frame that flexes on my pedal stroke and this carbon frame was not flexing and was actually applying the force to the wheel?  

Thanks for you inputs. :thumbsup:


----------



## CerveloDude (Jul 14, 2007)

roy harley said:


> I test road a Cervelo R3 today. My current frame is a steel frame. The Cervelo was very nice and smooth. There was one issue and I am not sure if it is me or the bike. When I was pedaling on flat or slight grade hills I noticed a dead/dragging feeling on the bike. While I was pedaling it was occurring at around 15-25 mph. It was almost like some one was applying the breaks but there was no break rub occurring. It was just a strange pulsating feeling which made me think it had something to do with the pedaling. All the components on the bike worked fine.
> 
> Could this be that I am use to a frame that flexes on my pedal stroke and this carbon frame was not flexing and was actually applying the force to the wheel?
> 
> Thanks for you inputs. :thumbsup:


Had that sensation on my Cervelo P3c. I finally realized that the tire was rubbing in the rear seat tube. On the P3c the wheel recesses into a slot within the seat tube. I eased out the adjustment screws in the drops and all was well.

Wonder if it coyld have been the brakes?


----------



## ilan (Nov 27, 2006)

roy harley said:


> I test road a Cervelo R3 today. My current frame is a steel frame. The Cervelo was very nice and smooth. There was one issue and I am not sure if it is me or the bike. When I was pedaling on flat or slight grade hills I noticed a dead/dragging feeling on the bike. While I was pedaling it was occurring at around 15-25 mph. It was almost like some one was applying the breaks but there was no break rub occurring. It was just a strange pulsating feeling which made me think it had something to do with the pedaling. All the components on the bike worked fine.
> 
> Could this be that I am use to a frame that flexes on my pedal stroke and this carbon frame was not flexing and was actually applying the force to the wheel?
> 
> Thanks for you inputs. :thumbsup:


I just went from a rather soft and flexy steel frame to a Cervelo R3. When I got the bike from the shop, one of the brake pads was touching the rear rim, but I could only feel it when starting from a standstill. I loosened up the rear brake of course. The reason it touched might be that I zip tied the rear brake cable to the frame because it was touching my thigh. Otherwise, I didn't have the feeling you describe. Since most people do 90% of their riding at 15-25mph, I see how it could be a problem. 

-ilan


----------



## roy harley (Oct 22, 2006)

ilan said:


> Since most people do 90% of their riding at 15-25mph, I see how it could be a problem.
> 
> -ilan


Yeah, it was a strange feeling. Today I am thinking it had to be either break rub or the tire rubbing the frame (which would seem a bit strange). Could a quick release be strong enough to hold a wheel at a slight angle that causes the wheel to rub? I don't think that a quick release could be strong enough to hold a wheel like this adn not fall into place during a ride.

thanks for you input.

:thumbsup:


----------



## Summit_Rider (Aug 29, 2006)

*Opposite experience with my R3...*

I bought an R3 several months ago and my first impressions were how well it climbed - stiff and light especially on steep out of the saddle climbs. Now over the past several months I have been equally impressed with the performance on the flats and slight uphills. In places where I used to need to shift down on my Merlin, I can pull up on the pedals and not need to shift down... I'm not sure what you felt on your test ride, but I can tell you from my experience the R3 is very efficient at putting all your pedaling effort to the ground, regardless of the speed or steepness of the road.


----------



## roy harley (Oct 22, 2006)

After riding my road bike this weekend there has to be some type of mechanical issue with the R3 I test rode. I will see if the shop can switch out some wheels and I am going to try a BMC and a Soloist for comparison. If I still get that sensation again on the rides I will see if they will let me bring my wheels in to try on the bike.


----------

