Worth noting is that the suspension doesn’t fully lock – there’s still a few millimetres of squish, and the blowoff circuits mean both the fork and shock will compress if you hit something really hard. The new Scalpel has a much higher starting leverage rate (2.85:1 rather than 2.23:1), and it’s vastly more progressive too. Anyway, I digress again…. https://www.bikeradar.com/.../cannondale-scalpel-si-carbon-se-review bb30, 38/24. However, the back end is still built around Cannondale’s Asymmetric Integration (A.I) offset concept. Review: Cannondale Scalpel 29'er Carbon Awesome tool for slicing up cross-country trails By James Huang 15 August 2012. As polarising as the Lefty Ocho is in the looks department, there’s no denying how well it rides on the trail, and it’s a bit of a shame that this experience is currently limited to the Scalpel and F-Si hardtail. Cannondale Scalpel SE 1 Parts Check Our Scalpel SE 1 came with a full Shimano XT build, sans the cranks and chainring. The seatstays are also significantly bigger and boxier than the pencil-thin tubes you’ll find on the Lux or Spark, and that does seem to make a positive difference to torsional rigidity at the rear axle. The bike rides very smoothly and is like a rocket. UPDATE: We’ve since received the replacement lower shock pivot pin and hardware, which as you’ll see in the photos above, is clearly stamped with a “2” on the outside face of the pivot bolt. In fact, Cannondale says that wide strip of carbon is so much stiffer than a traditional pivot that it was able to strip out some carbon from the rest of the swingarm to prevent the back of the bike from being too stiff. Review: Cannondale Scalpel-Si Race Bike Today, there are hundreds of bike companies offering thousands of bikes. How Cannondale has squeezed a self-equalising air spring, volume spacers, and an adjustable damper into a single fork leg with a single crown, I’m not sure I’ll ever fully comprehend. Yet this sample was apparently 150g heavier. It does look freakishly delicate, but while the rest of the chainstays and seatstays are hollow, that flattened section is actually 100% solid compressed carbon fibre. At the back, Cannondale has also tried to make things easier with the ‘Speed Release’ dropouts. It really does track the ground remarkably well. I would definitely get this bike all over again. Chassis differences aside, the 32 SC did calm down the Scalpel’s sharp steering. Carbon-stayed Scalpel has a ride quality all of its own. I'm 5'11" and have medium Fran perfect for my build. ConsBottom bracket creeks a little. We’ve been informed that this is a non-issue on production bikes, which all have the correct sized pivot pin. Sitting one step to the left is the Cannondale Habit, similar in construction but far more relaxed and ready for fun trail rides. Awesome bike if your looking for a light xc race bike. Shimano's ability to shift up (down the cassette) multiple gears played to the Scalpel's strength of accelerating to warp speed. This tends to happen more on violent off-camber hits when you’re deeper into the travel, and it’s in this scenario where the stiffer Lefty Ocho is clearly a superior fork. https://www.bicycling.com/bikes-gear/a32612549/cannondale-scalpel-se-review At its core the Scalpel remains as a lightweight 100mm travel XC race bike. But while the long front centre reduces the sensation that you’ll be sent over the bars, the short trail figure and relatively sparse tyre tread mean that it doesn’t take much for the front wheel to be kicked off-line. Fastforward to 2018. Flex stays are of course nothing new. I was curious to see how the two forks would compare directly, and I was also interested to see how the Scalpel would handle with a shorter 44mm offset. That concept continues with the new Scalpel, but Cannondale has taken it one step further this time round. The cables continue on their internal journey through the chainstays, with both popping out just before the carbon flex-stay. 100mm, ballistec hi-mod carbon, zero pivot seatstay, bb30, 1.5 si head tube, fork new lefty carbon xlr 100 29. hybrid needle bearing technology. That’s no doubt helped by the lightweight carbon wheels (1,690g confirmed) and fast-rolling Schwalbe rubber. Check out our Cannondale collection here The Scalpel has long been one of the world’s fastest XC bikes, and the Scalpel SE rides exactly how you expect a quality XC bike to ride. Better feel and control. I’ll go into more detail about how that plays out on the trail shortly. shifters sram. Most XC bikes aim for over 100% anti-squat, so that the suspension actively stiffens up under pedalling. And I think it’s a testament to the quality of the Lefty Ocho that the front of this bike feels so confidence-inspiring in the first place despite the low trail figure. As the impacts get harder and faster though, the Lefty’s stout structure really starts to shine. Still, it’s a testament to the quality of the overall chassis, suspension and the confidence-inspiring Lefty Ocho in particular that I never came a cropper. This sees a hefty 10% weight drop over the old Scalpel frame, which is impressive. Aside from the proprietary hub it requires, and the fact that there’s no easy way of fitting a mudguard, the downside of the Lefty Ocho is that is heavier than the competition. The bicycle is among the very best in its class. ProsLight. ProsFast, stiff, xc racing machine. First thing’s first. Worth noting that Cannondale does make a carbon version of the Lefty Ocho that’s said to weigh just 1,446g, but that fork only comes on the most expensive Hi-MOD Scalpel. However, we’re told that during the Scalpel’s development, the engineering team purchased a bunch of those bikes to test them in-house while also validating frame weights. And pretty much any Boost wheel can be re-dished to fit. Highly recommend. Review: Cannondale Scalpel Si Carbon 3 ... Cannondale’s Scalpel Si Carbon 3 is a bike that is happiest going fast, and designed to maximize speed on the cross country course. Bear in mind that running higher pressures will make it harder to access full travel though, and it also reduces the suspension’s ability to keep you floating on technical chunder. The non-drive side dropout is actually open, and there’s a corresponding step in the thru-axle that allows you to drop the rear wheel out of the frame without having to remove the axle entirely. To see exactly how tough it is, Cannondale’s engineers developed a specific torture rig to test the flex stays. - Powerful and efficient riding position Singletracks Merch | Compare that to a Fox 32 Step-Cast (1,406g) or a RockShox SID SL Ultimate (1,326g), and that’s a hefty penalty for the gram counters. That first model, with its soft-tail suspension design that relied on carbon flex-stays and a tiny shock that sat vertically behind the seat tube, was an iconic bike for Cannondale and also incredibly innovative for its time. Still, I’d be interested to see if that option is offered in the future. This concentrates about 6-7° of flexion at a specific point just forward of the dropouts, emulating a Horst Link pivot. In some ways Cannondale is kind of coming full circle, as earlier 26in iterations of the Scalpel did use carbon chainstays that flexed throughout the range of travel. x0, 2x10. The fast kids aren’t the only ones joining the party. The brakes are perhaps a little bitey for a lightweight XC race bike, but they are solid and they’re also easy to setup and maintain. However, everything else remained the same, allowing me to get a good impression of the difference by riding the same test loop back-to-back. This differs from a normal fork, where the axle is independent of the lowers. The tyres are very light (661g front & 674g rear) thanks to their thin and flexible casings. Since the Scalpel now uses a tapered head tube, fitting a conventional fork is a lot easier. And that's … The suspension is EXCELLENT! This is a handy tuning approach for racing on smoother courses, allowing you to emulate the feel to a traditional race bike. Up top, the Scalpel does ditch the 1.5in head tube in favour of a more conventional tapered head tube, and that’s because the Lefty Ocho uses a standard tapered steerer. That prevented any punctures throughout testing, but really the Racing Ray/Ralph combo is much better suited to softer, loamy trails. ProsClimbs very nice as well as handles like it's name, like a "Scalpel" Love this bike for XC riding. Over the next few rides, I steadily lowered the pressure until I was down to 180psi, which put me right on the recommended 25% sag figure. I dug a little deeper, and it turns out that Cannondale’s sample frame didn’t have the carbon link – it had an alloy link instead, which does seem a little unusual. Instead of getting hung-up on square edges that disrupt your pedal stroke, the Scalpel carries terrific momentum, floating over choppy sections of trail. It's a great riding bike. While the head angle stays the same, the shorter offset actually increases the trail (from 90mm to 100mm), and this strengthens the front wheel’s ability to self-stabilise. Also noticeable was the improved front-end traction, which is a simple by-product of bringing the tyre contact patch 11mm closer to the rider. Go a little deeper though, and you’ll discover a new suspension layout with a quirky flex-stay, modernised geometry, and an entirely new carbon fibre layup that Cannondale states is 200g lighter than the old frame. Here’s what they came up with; So according to Cannondale, the Scalpel came out lightest. Indeed up until 2013, the Scalpel didn’t even have a main pivot – ALL of the flex occurred through the chainstays, which in hindsight, is a bit bonkers really. The 2021 Scalpel SE is just that — a 120/120mm trail slayer that’s light, fast and fun. It requires a little less concentration on the descents, something that can be of benefit to marathon racers and long distance trail riders. The classic zero pivot. This is a race bike after all, and if you’re already coming from a bike with a 51mm offset, the light steering is going to feel pretty familiar. It shares a familiar shape to its predecessor with a top tube mounted shock and dual water bottle capability, and it continues to be built around 29in wheels and the bizarre single-sided, single-crowned Lefty Ocho. Unfortunately it wasn’t quite a perfect test, since I had to use a different front wheel. ConsFactory tires seem to wear fast but had good traction I also run the higher pressure since I'm 250#s. - Slow engaging rear hub. This allows for a near direct path for the lockout cable that disappears into the top tube, and it also maintains sufficient clearance inside the mainframe for two water bottles. The fact that there is very little fore and aft flex means the Lefty holds its line well, while also better preserving its dynamic head angle compared to a flexier fork. Get the Scalpel onto rough, undulating singletrack, and you can see exactly why it’s been designed this way. Making the 200g weight drop even more impressive is the fact that the Scalpel’s frame is considerably longer than its predecessor. First launched in 2001, the Scalpel emerged as a very lightweight, very efficient, and very short-travel full suspension XC race bike designed to woo elite riders away from their hardtails. To ensure the Scalpel is part of the conversation, it comes with an impressive 1,910g claimed weight. Though everything was otherwise tight and quiet throughout testing, I did have two specific issues. This is partly due to the low anti-squat levels. Now I will admit that the change in handling is reasonably subtle – to the point where most riders would really need to try both back-to-back to fully appreciate the differences. A great climber with great descending handling bike. It does exactly what a XC full suspension bike should do. For the past 13 years, one bike has been synonymous with cross-country racing: Cannondale’s Scalpel. Instead, Cannondale’s engineers deliberately tuned the new Scalpel’s kinematics to produce around 90% anti-squat at the sag point, and it drops off further as you go through the travel. Read it's strength, weaknesses, find deals and pricing - mtbr.com And because there’s less suspension sag, the seat tube doesn’t slacken out a whole lot on the climbs in the first place. To help you monitor travel use, there’s a discreet sag indicator on the inside of the lower cable guard, and a marking to show you when you’ve waxed all the travel. That’s about 100g lighter than an XT crankset, and within spitting distance of XTR. It also creates a huge junction point between the downtube and the dramatically flared-out seat tube, which houses the main pivot inside its ‘chainstay garage’. At just over 1,900 grams complete with shock, Cannondale claims the new Scalpel frame is lighter than cross country bike offerings from the likes of Trek, Scott, and Specialized. Even under power, the suspension remains active with no discernible pedal feedback. Now we all know that weight isn’t everything, and even the most die-hard XC racers are coming to understand that too. I changed the handle bars to a 1 inch riser bar. Cannondale Scalpel 2002 Full Suspension user reviews : 4.5 out of 5 - 91 reviews. The Cannondale Scalpel has been a staple in Cross Country (XC) Cycling since 2015. You’ll still find an 83mm wide PF30 bottom bracket shell, which provides a suitable home for the crank’s 30mm alloy spindle. In comparison, the solid axle on the Lefty can’t rotate. As well as preventing twisting, the bearings ensure the Lefty slides smoothly even under bending loads. This plastic sheath holds a tiny Fabric multi-tool and a Dynaplug Racer tyre plug – both of which are included on all Scalpels bar the cheapest model. I changed the seat to an open center to help with the man junk. During setup, I found them to be a touch loose on the rim, which meant they required a burst of compressed air to get the beads to seat properly. As such, the Scalpel SE retains the slender flex stays that run seamlessly into the top tube, where an injection moulded carbon link unites both halves of the frame. Doing so in this fashion however, means that the Scalpel isn’t lumped with the usual weight penalty that comes with a typical four-bar suspension design. This is my backup, and second bike so I can choose when to ride it. If it’s raw speed you’re after though, then the Scalpel Carbon 2 has that in spades. The Scalpel is an amazing riding bike just read some of the reviews. The fact that there is very little fore and aft flex means the Lefty holds its line well, while also better preserving its dynamic head angle compared to a flexier fork. That’s for a Medium frame including the rear shock, thru-axle, hanger, protection and cable ports. The Fox fork had an immediate impact on the scale, dropping the complete bike weight down to 10.8kg. There’s less nose to get in the way on steep pinches, and it never once caused me any bother – even on longer multi-hour rides. Smooth I feel like it effortlessly rolls over everything. But Cannondale also admits that if you’re not hitting a particular figure, you’re not part of the conversation – irrespective of how good your bike may be. The snub-nose Prologo saddle is also superb. Combined with the responsive steering and low front end, the Scalpel will have you consistently seeking out the tricky singletrack climbing option over a boring fireroad. With the Lefty, you’ll need to remove the brake calliper entirely before you can unbolt the front hub from the axle. The handling is astounding. The shorter trail figure gives a lighter steering feel and a propensity to change direction easily, so the Scalpel feels eager to corner. Whereas other brands are moving to offsets around 42-44mm, and indeed the new RockShox SID is only available with a 44mm offset, Cannondale is sticking to its OutFront geometry concept (slack head angle, long fork offset). While the Fox 32 SC does have excellent small-bump sensitivity, it is noticeably twangier compared to the Lefty Ocho – both torsionally and fore & aft. ConsI bought this to replace my old Scalpel 2000 which was a XC bike. After all, this is an XC bike with just 100mm of travel. Cannondale Scalpel XC Full Suspension user reviews : 4.2 out of 5 - 144 reviews. Cannondale debuted the current iteration of its Scalpel cross-country racing bike in 2016. 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