Cannondale F29 Carbon 3 (2013)

Pros

- Lefty fork
- Lightweight carbon frame
- Geometry

Cons

- Mixed drivetrain components
- Heavy wheels

Review

Like most Cannondale bikes the F29 Carbon 3 looks like one sweet ride! Cannondale have again created a great looking bike, with obvious attention to detail on the carbon frame and the unique Cannondale look with a Lefty fork.

The Lefty is certainly not new, and most people who ride it acknowledge the fantastic performance and stiffness of this setup, although it can take some riding to get used to (you may find yourself falling to the right a few more times than usual).

This is a light bike (thanks to the carbon frame) and probably most at home as an XC race bike or just as a tool to ride singletrack at high speed. This is where it shines. The kit would suit most weekend racers who don't want to spend a few $1000 more on the top line spec.

Geometry is racey, yet comfortable enough to allow the F29 to be ridden regularly without too much hassle.

The downside of this bike is firstly the slightly heavy wheels, which do slow down performance somewhat, but not something that would prevent me buying one of these bikes.

The main issue is with crossing over of drivetrain components. Shimano, SRAM and, oh no, a KMC chain. In the shop we had many issues with using these chains on otherwise great drivetrain components. If you have poor shifting performance or just general roughness, put on a Shimano chain. Problem solved.

A great bike, swap out the chain and race to glory!