De Bernardi Zonal Carbon

Price Paid:  $1600.00 at dedham

Favorite Ride:
whatever I'm on

Bike Setup:
Campy Veloce shifters, cranks, derailers,
Campy Mirage hubs, Fir Rims
Campy Daytona brakes.

Summary:
This is one of the few Carbon and Cro-mo frames availible. There's probably a reason for that, as it's never going to be as light as Al, Ti, or carbon framesets.

Carbon fork, and rear stay are a nice touch, although it's questionable how much weight it saves. If you're looking for a light rig, this is not the way to go.

Frame quality seems good, Rode a century in it and had no problems.

Strengths:
It's steel, and has that feel that it seems like a steel bike can give you.
Compared to an Al Cannondale, definatley not as stiff.

Weaknesses:
Fir Rims, not the lightest things,
Mirage rear hub is loud, but pretty reliable.
Was surprised that derailleur hanger bent on a small crash, and broke while being fixed. Frame replaced.

Similar Products Used:
Cannondale R400 w/ Shimano

Price Paid:  $490.00 at ebay

Summary:
I just got this in the mail and I must say that I was disappointed with the workmanship. The welds on the headtube are not very good at all - this is supposed to be Italian craftsmanship? - well, I've seen much better welds from China and Korea... The Columbus ZONAL sticker is crooked and wrinkled ... I'll probably build it up and give it a try. But I would not recommend buying a De Bernardi without seeing it in person. I was wondering if it could be a fake?

Strengths:
It is light. It was inexpensive (though perhaps for a reason...)

Weaknesses:
Poor craftsmanship in the welds, the paint (supposedly a limited edition paint job) looks like someone used some Krylon in a can when you get close up.

Similar Products Used:
LeMond