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Just in: Cannondale CAADX 105

Good looking CX machine that'll be at home on the trails or the streets

It's cyclocross season everybody - time to get dirty. And when it's over it's often the case that a CX bike will get a runout as a workhorse in the off season: the geometry and spec normally suits a bit of dual use. And that's definitely the case with our latest test rig, the Cannondale CAADX 105.

Depending on what spec you choose you'll get one of three finishes but we're definitely sold on the brushed Alminium that you get with the mid-range 105 spec. It's the best for showing off those classy welds and the understated branding will look the part around town too.

The geometry of the CAADX is a bit more upright than Cannondale's SuperX race bike but still plenty sporty enough for a Sunday morning outing, and you get a full 105 drivetrain with 12-25 cassette and an FSA Gossamer 36/46 chainset - all good reliable stuff, and you get Tektro's excellent CR720 cantis to do the stopping. The wheels are Maddux DRX6000 rims laced to Formula hubs, and to take the sting out of the trails there's a Cannondale Ultra-X Carbon fork up front and hourglass stays to the rear.

If you do want to hit the dirt the CAADX 105 is pretty much ready for action straight out of the box, except for the tyres: the Conti Cyclocross Speed rubber will be fine so long as it doesn't rain. But it will. It always does. Always. The semi-slicks are an acknowledgment that the CAADX won't always be racing, as are the mudguard and rack mounts; should you wish it'll make a very capable commuter and at £999 it sneaks under the cycle-to-work limit too.

We'll be thrashing the CAADX round some races and also doing some longer rides and town jaunts to see what it's best at or whether it's a true all rounder. And when we know, so will you...

Dave is a founding father of road.cc, having previously worked on Cycling Plus and What Mountain Bike magazines back in the day. He also writes about e-bikes for our sister publication ebiketips. He's won three mountain bike bog snorkelling World Championships, and races at the back of the third cats.

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8 comments

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Jonathan Reeves | 13 years ago
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I hope to pick one of these up at the end of the month, anyone know if CX frames correspond to road frame sizes, my road bike is 56cm, i'm 5'11, any help appreciated  39

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cat1commuter | 13 years ago
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Yeah, I wouldn't worry about the FSA BB30 chainest - I would prefer it to a Shimano one.

I've always wanted a Cannondale, but there's invariably stuff I don't like on their pre-built bikes. I wish they did frames.

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TheOldCog | 13 years ago
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FSA is better chainset anyways and looks the biz too

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mike the bike | 13 years ago
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Surely another way of saying "...you get a full 105 drivetrain .... and an FSA chainset" would be, "You don't get a full 105 drivetrain." ?

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dave atkinson replied to mike the bike | 13 years ago
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mike the bike wrote:

Surely another way of saying "...you get a full 105 drivetrain .... and an FSA chainset" would be, "You don't get a full 105 drivetrain." ?

heh. fair comment  1

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tittkorv | 13 years ago
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I've got one of these in 48cm with clips pedals. Weight is 9,76 kg. And here they are sold with ugly knobby tyres.

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Skardy | 13 years ago
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Hengrove - Sunday?

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iamalex | 13 years ago
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Hi!
Looks like a great bike - have you got a weight of the test bike?
Been looking at this and the Verenti Kilmeston as a speedy replacement to my OnOne. Need something for the commute but also ready for getting out of town at the weekend with a tent for an explore.

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