Cervelo Soloist Team vs. BMC SL 01

Looking to upgrade the ride in the next couple of months and was curious to know if anyone out there had any advice in regards to the two models mentioned in the title. I mostly ride crits, but am a huge fan of the hills so I was curious to know which would be the most beneficial in the long run.

 

Are you only considering these two frames because of their current 'fashion'? There are a lot of nice frames out there, especially in this type of price range. Do you have any preferences material wise?

Is ultra-light weight an issue for you? How rigid do you want your ride to be? Are you big & heavy? You may want to give us a bit more information...

 

I'm coming in at about 5'11 and 140 lbs. I prefer a stiff ride (currently on 7003 aluminum frame) and had been checking out various frames lately, but kept going back to the Cervelo and BMC. I looked at the Pinarello Prince and a couple Wilier, but I running Shimano, so... I also looked into the Merckx Race frame which definitely was impressive, but again I kept going back to the Cervelo and BMC after reading so many positive reviews.

 

what components do you get for each bike. what price are they?

 

$1100 for the BMC and $1200 for the Cervelo. The BMC comes with a Easton EC 70 fork and seatpost and the Cervelo comes with a their Wolf Classic Carbon Fiber and aero seat post. Both have integrated headsets.

Has anyone ridden either of these frames in crits or a long on any sizable climbs in distance and grade?

 

Look also into the Cannondale Six13 lineup.

 

Get a C'dale CAAD8 before a Six13. Six13 is kinda a waste if you want my opinion. CAAD8 is cheaper, stiffer, and lighter. You could probably pick up a CAAD8 for $700.

 

+1, the carbon on the six13 is for bling.

Look at the scott cr1 pro aswell.

I would recommend the soloist out of all those bikes. Components also mean gears and wheels. Are you just buying the frameset?

 

I have the Soloist and it is fantastic. Awesome power transfer, stiff, and fairly light at 2.8lbs. Mine with Record carbon 10, carbon cages and Mavic Cosmos wheels with training tires = 17.5lbs. I've done a 27 miles climb with a grade of about 5.6% and it was excellent. It decends quite well too. Sorry, I know nothing of the BMC.

 

Thanks for the "test ride" update on the soloist.

I am looing the score just the frame set. Running Ultegra 9 now with Ksyrium SLs. How does the Cervelo fork and seat post measure up overall?

 

The fork seems fine. I've had no issues with it. I believe earlier cervelos had a fork recal!? The seat post is also fine other than a pain in the butt process to get the saddle on. There is a set screw that is hard to get it up under the seat, but otherwise no worries. I picked up a Carbon seat post and another saddle for 'road bike' use and use the aluminum one for TT's. That way I don't have to mess with changing out the seat, just slide in the post with saddle already attached.