My Colnago Master Extra Light has been with me for the past 11 years. It is incredibly fast and stable on down hill runs where the road surface is rough and uneven. This is a bike you can climb, sprint and race with confidence. My favourite ride is cruising along quiet country roads where I live, enjoying the smooth effortless and comfortable ride of this true classic.

Haven't discovered any weaknesses with this bike, only the rider could be a little fitter.

I purchased this bike complete with Campagnolo Daytona running gear and brakes. The wheels are Campagnolo Electron on soft Mitchelin tyres. I love the look of the blue, yellow and chrome frame and the way this bike makes you feel when you are out on a ride. Fast, fluid and absolutely a joy to ride anywhere, any time. I have been considering purchasing a new Colnago carbon frame for racing, but I would never sell my trusty steel Master Extra Lite.

fast on straights

Going up hills

Very active go on bicycle 3 times a week

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none first bicycle ever

handling
value
construction quality
stiff and quick enough
sublime
fit in 1cm intervals
longevity
looks

none in my book, OK I have not ridden carbon C50, C59 and other brands etc for comparison and maybe when i'm faster and lighter that might be tempting

Purchased frame and components from Mike Perry (great and straight to deal with). Built up myself including record/nemesis wheel set - bomb proof for 6'1" and my then ~210 lbs. ~17.4 lbs, ~16.6 lbs with lighter wheelset. Read great reviews and chat with LBS convinced the master XL was for me. First ride 2 years ago I was expecting fantastic a thrill and big improvement on my previous ride (1996 Super record 8s). But those first few rides I felt nothing, something on the entirely neutral experience. But thats the pure magic of this frameset, two years and circa 12,000km the ride feel is still often neutral, that is it it feels like i'm riding on air, nothing vibrating through the frame, no bumps or shakes, nothing sore or numb just a graceful gliding speed. The bike handles fantastic including at speed on technical descents it just goes where i point. On all club rides whether with the fast boys or slow heavies this bike downhill outpaces all (and now i'm sub 180 lbs). In acceleration the bike is quick enough, offering ready speed on demand and more again when pushed - not so much of a bullet start like the race carbons, but more of an arrow from a bow - the bike just feels like it wants to be ridden faster and faster. This bike is ridden for training, club rides, gran fondos, old school TT's and a few club races. it does it all.

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colnago 1996 super
carlton pro-am 12

Rides better than any bike I have owned.

None.

Just got a 2007 Master LX 10 with precisa fork and put about 100 miles on it. It's exactly what I had hoped. Rides beautifully, stiff, responsive, and comfortable. I feel like it wants to jump forward and it's me that slows the bike down. I don't notice the weight at all. I have a 15lb carbon road bike and a heavy surly cross bike so I have reference points. It is truly a joy to ride.

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Isaac Impulse, Kestrel 4000, Bontrager Race Lite. Kona Kapu

Material, workmanship, quality, speed, handling, power transfer.

Logo is too big - makes weenies want to chase you.

Granted, I don't have much to compare with, because prior to this purchase I've ridden the same road bike for 30 years. Granted, I've only ridden it about 100 miles so far. Granted, I had no other choice but to buy this frame, because I'm 6'5" and I wanted steel, and I simply could find no other quality steel framebuilder who still makes a stock 65cm frame. Given all that, this frame is a dream. It handles all kinds of road conditions like there's nothing under you - chip&seal, washboarded curves, dirt, blobby asphalt - just keeps the line and absorbs it like it's air. It moves before you think about it, which I'm still getting used to. I came down my favorite canyon the first time, 3000' descent, faster than I've ever done it in 20 years. Sure, it's brand new, but there was no queezy harmonic like I had with my other bike; at 40+ mph it was as stable as it was climbing at 10 mph. In fast curves it doesn't dig in or pull up, it just sticks. The craftsmanship is astounding, it's beautiful to look at, it's a timeless frame in an industry that makes questionable choices. As for price, my other options were custom builders, and I could have saved $100-300 for some tig-welded thing that weighed more, from various "sensitive artist" types whose ideas for tall frames sounded just plain bizarre. As for material, I wonder how many of these aluminum or carbon frames will be around 30 years from now, being hailed as "classic". This one will be. This is the bike for the rest of my life.

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1980 Raleigh Competition Reynolds 531 frame and stock Campy Gran Sport, multiple mountain bikes

Resilient ride, great geometry, classic good looks.

Price?

To sum......dialed. The geometry is stable at speed, efficient for climbing, and the steel tubing allows that lively feel that only steel can offer. There's no question that this is one of those classic rides that will never go out of style. Built with reliable, but not silly light Campy wheels and Record group, the total weight comes to 17.5lbs in a 55cm frame.

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Specialized Allez
Trek 2300
Klein Quantum Race
Pinarello Opera
Colnago CLX

Colnago geometry - identical to the Master Carbon, very stable & predictable
Better paint quality than the Master Carbon & no seat bolt issues
Gorgeous looks with the chrome lugs & stays, without being overly fussy in finish

Doesn't have the rear-end stiffness & lightness of carbon

I purchased & reviewed the Colnago Master Carbon earlier this year, but I REALLY wanted an all-steel Master in solid red with the chrome rear triangle. I had an earlier version from 02 with the Lampre paint, but the fade paintjob was over the top. Through my dealer, I inquired about getting the same PRO-7 paint that I had on my Carbon. Next thing I know, it was being offered as a stock color for Colnago's 08 line, and was able to get one early this year (around June). I wanted one with the old school Precisa steel fork, but I still ended up with a carbon fork when it arrived.
This is my third Colnago, so there were no surprises in handling - predictable, stable at speed.
After having ridden the Master Carbon, I have to say that while the Master X-Light is better looking and the traditionalist's choice, the Master Carbon responds better during sprints & out of saddle climbing. The difference is pretty small, but noticeable when I ride one right after the other.
I put nearly the same parts on both frames (the wheels I simply switched over), so any difference in ride is solely due to the frame. One minor change I made - I realized the FSA Compact Shallow bars are narrow where the hoods clamp than their bar end measurement (my 42cm on the Carbon are really 40cm) so I switched to the 44cm for the X-Light.
Other than that, the paint quality has improved over the Master Carbon (paint doesn't chip as easily) and because it uses a pinch seat lug, there's no broken clamp issues.
For the traditionalist, the Master X-Light is gorgeous - I never tire in admiring its chromed surfaces, the diamond shaped tubing and the metallic red paintjob. While I love riding this frame, I have to admit that if you're really concerned about performance, going with other materials might be the better way to go. Since I don't race anymore, traditional lug frames are fine for me.

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Colnago Master Carbon
Cervelo SuperProdigy
Colnago Master 2002 (?)
and other steel dating back to the '80's

Smoothness, confidence building and beautiful paint job,

None so far

Very smooth ride - effortless and as though it is on rails ...fast and secure down hill, predictable on the flat and hills

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Merlin Extralight
Merlin Cielo
Casati Geo - Steel
Cougar - Steel
Ron Cooper - Steel

Handling, ride, joyous personality, tracking; feeling of absolute unfailing strength --- and history.

Even the paint on mine is excellent. None.

This is about the sixth high end bike I've owned and in terms of overall ride charisma, second only to another Colnago -- a Dream Plus -- which was stolen.
One other bike, a late 70's full Campy Reynolds 531 Motebecane with silk sewups, had the same kind of complex soul but was crude, heavy,and a total anochronism by comparison. The Master X-lite is a frame with which it impossible to find fault of any kind. As for weight -- forget it. My Masterlight built up to 17.3 with '06 Record and few carbon FSA bits. That's not heavy by anybody's standard, unless you're Levi Leipheimer, and if you had a bottomless budget, you could drop another half a pound easily. Sew-ups and extreme wheels, you'd be down to 16.
What I like best is the generosity of the frame -- that is, it sort of feeds back to the rider and seems to have infinite strength and springiness. You can cruise, just barely touching the pedals, and totally relax. The bike disappears like a nice little pal. But you can also get on the pedals and hammer absolutely as hard as you can, and it sort of quietly snaps ahead of the bike next to you by a wheel or two. And, believe me, it isn't my superior conditioning. I really believe this is a very fast frame for strong riders, and seems to come into its own particularly on fast downhills and under hard sprinting. Steering is relaxed in that Italian way but the bike corners in a way that inspires near-craziness. Zero oversteer, understeer, uncertainty, vagueness -- it can weave, duck, slice. Whatever. At any speed. I find myself doing stuff I've never ever thought of doing on other road bikes -- even dirt roads are sporty, you can bunny hop it, you can wheely (short back end), and you can even screw up, go off the road, bang along in the grass with bushes whipping your glasses off, and get back up over a 4" asphalt edge without a single frame hiccup. Now that's composure.
It's unfortunate that weight has become possibly THE biggest buying point for a lot of people. A pound penalty in the frame is virtually nothing. However, it's great they're back making them. Huzzah.

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Bianchi Freccia Celeste, fully Record, Campy Euros wheels. Unbearable after 30 miles. Crash prone with me on it. Very light, stiff, fast, unpleasant.
Colnago Dream Plus, campy Chorus 9 spd. Absolutely flawless. Smoother than any aluminum frame has a right to be. Silken.
Bianchi Veloce. hard ride, heavy, stiff, indestructable, uninspired handling. Could be ridden fast.
Assorted French steel bikes from long ago. Campy, sew ups.

Handling, ride, joyous personality, tracking; feeling of absolute unfailing strength --- and history.

Even the paint on mine is excellent. None.

This is about the sixth high end bike I've owned and in terms of overall ride charisma, second only to another Colnago -- a Dream Plus -- which was stolen.
One other bike, a late 70's full Campy Reynolds 531 Motebecane with silk sewups, had the same kind of complex soul but was crude, heavy,and a total anochronism by comparison. The Master X-lite is a frame with which it impossible to find fault of any kind. As for weight -- forget it. My Masterlight built up to 17.3 with '06 Record and few carbon FSA bits. That's not heavy by anybody's standard, unless you're Levi Leipheimer, and if you had a bottomless budget, you could drop another half a pound easily. Sew-ups and extreme wheels, you'd be down to 16.
What I like best is the generosity of the frame -- that is, it sort of feeds back to the rider and seems to have infinite strength and springiness. You can cruise, just barely touching the pedals, and totally relax. The bike disappears like a nice little pal. But you can also get on the pedals and hammer absolutely as hard as you can, and it sort of quietly snaps ahead of the bike next to you by a wheel or two. And, believe me, it isn't my superior conditioning. I really believe this is a very fast frame for strong riders, and seems to come into its own particularly on fast downhills and under hard sprinting. Steering is relaxed in that Italian way but the bike corners in a way that inspires near-craziness. Zero oversteer, understeer, uncertainty, vagueness -- it can weave, duck, slice. Whatever. At any speed. I find myself doing stuff I've never ever thought of doing on other road bikes -- even dirt roads are sporty, you can bunny hop it, you can wheely (short back end), and you can even screw up, go off the road, bang along in the grass with bushes whipping your glasses off, and get back up over a 4" asphalt edge without a single frame hiccup. Now that's composure.
It's unfortunate that weight has become possibly THE biggest buying point for a lot of people. A pound penalty in the frame is virtually nothing. However, it's great they're back making them. Huzzah.

Similar Products Used:

Bianchi Freccia Celeste, fully Record, Campy Euros wheels. Unbearable after 30 miles. Crash prone with me on it. Very light, stiff, fast, unpleasant.
Colnago Dream Plus, campy Chorus 9 spd. Absolutely flawless. Smoother than any aluminum frame has a right to be. Silken.
Bianchi Veloce. hard ride, heavy, stiff, indestructable, uninspired handling. Could be ridden fast.
Assorted French steel bikes from long ago. Campy, sew ups.