# Ride quality of C40?



## sailorboy (May 3, 2004)

Hi all,
I am waiting for a 2002 C40 I just bought to arrive and was wondering if I could get a heads-up on what to expect from the ride/performance etc. It is a B-stay, non HP model and I have raced for two seasons on a 2003 Litespeed vortex which has been great. Briefly rode a trek OCLV this year but didn't care for the harsh, dead feel of the ride even though it climbed and sprinted well. Sold it after two months. I have years on steel frames behind me, and a brief foray on aluminum bikes a couple seasons ago. So I am looking for any thoughts on what to expect from the C40 given that history. Thanks


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## b6d6 (Mar 16, 2004)

*C 40 vs. Vortex*



sailorboy said:


> Hi all,
> I am waiting for a 2002 C40 I just bought to arrive and was wondering if I could get a heads-up on what to expect from the ride/performance etc. It is a B-stay, non HP model and I have raced for two seasons on a 2003 Litespeed vortex which has been great. Briefly rode a trek OCLV this year but didn't care for the harsh, dead feel of the ride even though it climbed and sprinted well. Sold it after two months. I have years on steel frames behind me, and a brief foray on aluminum bikes a couple seasons ago. So I am looking for any thoughts on what to expect from the C40 given that history. Thanks


You should be happy with the feel of the C40 in comparison to the Vortex. It will be more compliant with a more relaxed feel. However, you likely won't find it to be as stiff as the Vortex. Not sure what year your Vortex was but they have designed some stiffness into them recently, particularly in the down tube. The C40 is certainly not a stiff bike, particularly without the HP stay. You will likely notice some additional flex in the front triangle....only a 1" steerer tube as well. C40 is nice and compliant, can ride it forever. Just not stiff....I guess it depends on what you're looking for. Good luck with your purchase.


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## sailorboy (May 3, 2004)

Thanks,
I had heard similar comments in the past. As you mentioned, the vortex is pretty stiff, it is a 2003 which is the year they first brought in that massive downtube. I guess I will keep it as a crit/sprinting bike and see how the C40 is for the longer stuff. I'm guessing it will still climb well as long as I'm not really torquing it. At 155 lbs. I usually don't flex frames too badly either.


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## boneman (Nov 26, 2001)

*A different view*

I own both. A 1999 Vortex which differs from yours in that it has a 1" steerer, smaller downtube, differently shaped seat tube and non-aero seat stays. I also have a 2003 C40, made on request w/o the HP stays.

C40 ride quality is much better than the Vortex, by far. It is much better at absorbing road buzz than the Vortex. Choice of fork also makes a big difference in the Vortex. I originally rode mine with a Look HCS-2. Very comfortable but too horizontally compliant when cornering or sprinting. I eventually replaced it with an Alpha Q Sub 3 which is much stiffer horizontally. As for the steerer bit, the Alpha Q requires a user-installed alloy sleeve which you bond into the steerer after its been cut and then you use a star-fangled nut. It works well and definitely stiffer than the Look. I assume you're getting the C40 with the Star carbon fork. It's a great fork and IMHO the best carbon fork made. It also uses a ITM-made, metal compression plug. You insert it into the fork, then tighten it by using a 6mm allen wrench which pulls in the expander so that the plug then is solidly attached into the steerer. The top cap uses a standard 5mm that threads into the plug. It markedly helps the solidity of the steerer/stem/headset connection.

While handling is a matter of taste, I prefer the C40 again. The front triangle is longer than the Vortex and the total geometry is confidence inspiring when cornering and descending. I've never been wild about the Vortex's descending or cornering, a function of the geometry.

Stiffness, and I don't mean in reference to ride quality but as it relates to torsion from pedaling. After a lot of miles on both, the C40 is stiffer than the Vortex in the bb area when sprinting and climbing out of the saddle.

If I had to have only one of the two for racing, it would be the C40, easily.

The Vortex has served me well and I've put over 20k miles on the bike but I don't use either as my daily rider (currently a Colnago Tecnos) and in truth, have hardly ridden it the past two years.

Hope this helps.



sailorboy said:


> Thanks,
> I had heard similar comments in the past. As you mentioned, the vortex is pretty stiff, it is a 2003 which is the year they first brought in that massive downtube. I guess I will keep it as a crit/sprinting bike and see how the C40 is for the longer stuff. I'm guessing it will still climb well as long as I'm not really torquing it. At 155 lbs. I usually don't flex frames too badly either.


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## stealthman_1 (May 2, 2004)

sailorboy said:


> Hi all,
> I am waiting for a 2002 C40 I just bought to arrive and was wondering if I could get a heads-up on what to expect from the ride/performance etc. It is a B-stay, non HP model and I have raced for two seasons on a 2003 Litespeed vortex which has been great. Briefly rode a trek OCLV this year but didn't care for the harsh, dead feel of the ride even though it climbed and sprinted well. Sold it after two months. I have years on steel frames behind me, and a brief foray on aluminum bikes a couple seasons ago. So I am looking for any thoughts on what to expect from the C40 given that history. Thanks


I'm no Colnogo expert for sure as I rode my first C40 today, looking to replace a wrecked Pinarello Prince SL. All I can say is that is one plush, plush ride. I had it out for about 15 minutes and was able to climb, descend, ride rough blacktop, and bunny hop speed bumps. I'm 175 lbs and I felt no flex hammering it on the climb, but it was as soft as a baby's butt on the roughstuff and landed like a feather jump 'n bumps. I rode it deliberately through a 2 inch deep pot hole about a foot in diameter, the kind that you hit at night that about breaks your teeth, wow, it was just a dip in the road. The only question I didn't get answered for me was how in handled in the tight stuff, an area where the Prince was a rocket on rails.


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