Agreed! First time in this channel, which came with the search of Topstone Alloy 1. Very nice channel, keep up with the content.... Might have to buy this version instead! 😅
I’m a practical guy so I say no to anything proprietary, especially if there’s a non-proprietary way to solve the same issue. It doesn’t get more proprietary than this bike’s lefty and wacky rear wheel dish, so this topstone gets a hell no from me
You wouldn't want anything proprietary. I mean, what if something proprietary became a norm? Like GPS or digital cameras or MTB's with suspension (like those things will ever catch on)? Cannondale has always been an innovator.
I liked the lefty on my mtn bike, but the BIG problem was servicing. It typically took a month to have it done. Too much down time. I switched to the Pike.
It can be even longer in certain parts of the world. Cannondale pulled most of the tooling availability support for the lefty so the majority of shops can't even do it anymore. You have to send it back to Cannondale.
I own a lefty 2, still no service needed, but I am thinking about it, when the time comes, Cannondale's "after service" in Germany is really bad, not even the dealers selling new bikes from Cannondale know about who can service them, but these are things you find out after buying the bike.
Great video, funny clips. I own a Lefty 2, bought it last year (2023). First thing I did, got rid of the wheel set, I know a pro wheel builder, custom carbon (newmen rims, popular in Germany) with DT Swiss 240 hubs (yes, they still manufacture a 240 lefty hub), can't remember the spokes, but now the bike feels much better. I changed the cockpit, bike comes in a L size with a 44 cm handlebar and 9 cm stem, I now have a Ritchey WCS ergomax in 42 cm with a Ritchey WCS stem in 8cm. Next step, keep the 40 T chainring, and go for the new 12-speed Shimano GRX, with 11-51 cassette. All in all, a great frame, great suspension for rough gravel trails, lefty fork and king-pin is awesome, no pain in forearm, elbow, shoulder, back, I can recommend this bike 100% but it needs changes, and they cost! Cheers!
I own a lefty 2, I had custom carbon wheels (newmen, German brand) with DT Swiss 240 hubs made, cost me 1300 euros to make, but the bike now feels fantastic. The WTB KOM wheelset is crap, I still have it in my garage, no one will buy that.
Dustin is da man. Amazing guy. Intelligent, comical, sets his on trends ect ect ect. Go out of my way to see him. Dustin where do you get all your garn, hats, classes ect.... RAD. THE WORLD WOULD BE A BETTER PLACE WITH MORE PEPLE LIKE HIM. BELIEVE DA... DUSTIN APPEAL SHOPS 🙏 🎉😂
A friend got a lefty, He bragged about it until he had to service it, it was more costly than my fox suspension and had to wait for special parts from cannondale not in hold
Here’s my honest opinion. I think cannondale is a great quality brand, but… I’ll never feel safe with half a fork, even if my opinion isn’t logical… it’s just how I feel.
I’m still a fan of the cheap used MTB to drop bar conversion. I got a $200 Trek Gary Fischer and put a carbon fork and drops on it. Tons of clearance. $800 all in.
I ride the predecessor of the topstone lefty yes the Cannondale slate lefty 30mm travel too, and it sits on 650B’s. Way ahead of its time and in my opinion the topstone offers very little progression
Great bike , rides smooth ru-vid.comUgkxHL1v1R3NE5x4KiYfyt8dnQmyNYz7qi5L I added a bigger spring loaded seat to it . Takes a bit of adjusting cables to get brakes and shifting to perfect . I've owned quite a few bikes in the past that were absolutely uncomfortable to ride and they always ended up as garage wall decor . I'm not seeing that with this one. It's pretty light I've only ridden it a few miles but I like it . As for the pedals falling off in the other reviews , the pedal arms are aluminum along with the pedal studs look to be also . I would not overtighten them. I can see it would be very easy to overtighten them and strip the threads right off . All in all I think it's pretty good quality besides the aluminum pedal thing .
I had a lefty Hardtail a few years ago before they incorporated the drop out lever to remove the brake caliper. It was a huge pain in the tush to take the tire off because I had to unbolt the brake caliper every time and then realign it every time. Glad to see, they made an improvement there.
I own the original topstone carbon rx and absolutely love it but cringe at the thought of putting front sus on the bike. It flows down the gravel here in east central Kansas with precision. I can't see slacking the head tube angle and slapping on a lefty it seems at that point your in fast xc mtn. Territory. My large (58) with carbon FSA bars and Xtr pedals is setting in the 18 lb range and can handle all we have in unbound(dirty kanza)land.
I had the same annoying cable-knee problem on my Orbea MX and that was the reason I sold the bike after one summer. I wonder which dork designed this and has never tested it afterwards. 🤔
I thought that the tyre clearance is THE dealbreaker in this bike, but after some time on 50mm GravelKings, I am actually swapping between 38 and 35mm tyres depending on the event and season. That said, I feel like the 10mm travel at the back just saps the power from you for no measurable benefit and the lefty makes sense with lightweight MTBs as it's stiffer for a given weight, but with gravel, you are not supposed to go over super rought terrain where that extra stiffness i necessary. The knee-rubbing wires are something I wasn't aware but the relatively small weight and lack of mounts for bikepacking and the proprietary wheels were just too much to even consider this bike. Like I said I am swapping between two sets of tyres and at one point I also had my road bike wheels installed on my gravel when the gravel ones were in service so proprietary wheels is a hell no from me too.
Thanks Dustin for that awesome video! What is your opinion on suspension forks? Should it be on a gravel bike that rides mostly off-tarmac? And are 50 mm tyre width enough to replace a Mountainbike Hardtail that rides no technical trails?
A local dealer had the 1st gen lefty 3 back in 2020 and I grabbed it, which came with 650b's and does have the rear Ai dish thing. One thing I rarely see people mention with this lefty fork though is that it'll fit up to around a 27.5" x 2.4". I use a 2.25" maxxis ardent in front with a WTB sendero 47c rear for single track all the time, silly fun where it's rough...just silly when it's road to get there, though.
Thanks for fine video. Its a good bike, but I wonder if I should upgrade to two cogs in the front. Maybe 30-46? In stead of single 40 cog. Its a difficult descision because 40 front and 11-42 behind does cover a lot, and its nice to avoid the frontgearing. Any opinions? My bike is a commuting- and trainingbike usually going on asphalt and gravel. 40-11 is ca 35 km/h and 40-42 is ca 8,5 km/h which is comfortcruising at 5 degree climb. The 44 mm tyres feels fine both on gravel and asphalt.
I own a lefty 2, I will keep the 40 T front, but will go for a new cassette 11-51, I have to buy a new derailleur GRX 12 speed and the right grip as to be changed too to a new 12 speed GRX 800.
I would probably go for a Canyon Grizl the moment they include a passive rear suspension: - No propietary fork + hub technology (which means dynamo hub compatibility, existing wheel sets re usability, like 650b's...) - Better transmission group for a bit less money than the Topstone Carbon 2
You absolutely are the tippy top of the bike/ gear review folks on the interweb. How do you conceive these edits, scenes, voiceovers and your back and forth conversations with yourself? I'm so happy I stumbled onto this channel. Bravo sir!
I have the rondo ruut al 2 it’s around $3000 Canadian they say it’s a “entry” level bike but they be taken this thing everywhere. Including fat bike trails in my harsh Canadian winters. So that one 🤪🤘🏻🤘🏻
That bike is begging to be ridden in the chunk and in the nasty. Poor decision to limit tire size. Buyers a likely going to want to go aggressive with it.
The Lefty Oliver fork did solve a problem for me this monday. I hit an asphalt edge at high speed, and the suspension smoothened it. This fork is the prime reason to get such bike.
The champagne of beers? Are we talking Miller High Life? Man i drank too much of them in Reno when i did a 3 week US tour with my former band in 2008... 🤪🍻
Fun fact about the topstone lefty. Not only do you have to use a lefty front wheel but the rear wheel uses AI dishing so requires a custom dish as well. Basically the only possibility is building a new wheel set. Also, the 650 frame has a shorter chainstay and no one at Cannondale even knows if you can put 700c wheels on the 650 frame.
Cannondale was a forward looking company back in the Eighties and Nineties, with the M800, the 24" SM700, the aluminium touring frames and so on. I had nothing but Cannondale for about fifteen years. Now they have nothing innovative or interesting to offer imo. They no longer have the exciting identity that made them a great brand in the old days. It's a shame.
I want this bike. But the mudguard/fender is a issue for me since I live in a place that rains 90% of the time . What are the options? You said rear its possible, but for the front.? Anything can be done? (No GiJoe)
It was funny in the hyperbole department but, if the truth be told, I've Never been a fan of Strava, watt-meters, or go-pros on whilst riding. As per e-shifting, No(!); One More thing to charge... I don't think too many folks give a rat's ass about me, where I'm riding, or how for that matter and people following me while I ride is equal to seeking meaningless external validation. I only use my phone for my Gaia Pro app if I'm in need of some nav help or curious about the distance/elevation profile. (Or tunes with my Flip 5 if I'm solidly in a good cell-service area) As per Cannondale and their continuing desire to make weird proprietary stuff, just say no(!). Years later, after C-dale has moved on to the next weird thing, the Lefty will be one more unfixable, unsupported idea/fork like the Headshock became.
It’s a cool concept. I still think a nice hardtail with a good dropper or an XC MTB might be the best bike for this application for most people. If you are. If you are not a big gravel racer/rider and you truly want to ride trails and stuff at a fast pace, the XC MTB may be where it’s at.
I think, that in your current political situation something called "lefty" is hard to sell.🫣🥴😂Probably that is the reason its called the ocho...🤪 And there is actually an GRX Shifter for the seatpost 😊
I just can’t get over the lack of symmetry with the front lefty. It looks imbalanced aesthetically, even though from your review it looks like a good bike.
Cannondale hasn't had enough clearance on ANY of their gravel bikes since they started making them. THey've been behind the curve by like 2-3 years for sure. I remember Ted King rode the Super X in his Dirty Kanza wins choosing it over the Topstone due to clearance issues. And then if the gravel was light enough for narrower tires he'd ride the Synapse at places like SBT GRVL because you can put 32s on it and fly.
