Mercier Corvus Al, 2011, received on Aug 2, 2010
This is my second bike from BD this summer, first (about a month ago) being a Motobecane 700HT. The 700HT did not blow me away, really seems like a $450 bike for $450. But I'm happy with it, the disc brakes (my first) are great, deraileurs set up nice, wheels true. Complaints: chain rings a little wavy, rear axle needs to be set down a bit (not bottomed out) in the dropouts to keep the brake disc from bottoming out in the caliber. I'll shim the caliber a bit, chain rings can probably straighten some. And value? You could pay $500-$700 for a similar bike, imo.
The Corvus DOES kinda blow me away as a nice roadie and great value. Glance at some retail prices: Shifters about $400, derailers near $150, wheels/hubs $150-$200, tires/tubes $50, crankset and BB maybe $150-$200, you've already hit the bike's price.
Assembly was easy, maybe 30-45 minutes. Derailers, perfectly adjusted. Wheels true. Oh, the paint job is fine, a deeper metallic red than I expected, pretty classy. I could do with less Mercier decal, but even that is growing on me. Pedals, I'm using some Shimano 520s, got them from Jenson for about $35 and also from Jenson some $80 Shimano shoes on clearance for $40. (size 46 / Mens 11.2 fit my wide size 11s perfectly, got lucky.) And I digress, but ask me about Jenson re SUPERB customer service.
Anyhow, the Corvus Al. I initially felt a little cramped in the cockpit. I'd read about others flipping the handlebar stem to raise the bar a bit, that helped greatly. I've been tweaking seat position (front-back, height) and I'm happy riding the bike now. I haven't ridden roadies much in 20 years so partly I'm just getting used to it. I'm 5' 11", bought the 56 cm (now out of stock?) I wish I could try a 58 cm, but worse case I might want to try a stem change down the road. I wish the seat clamp would allow angle change, but most expect to change the seat anyway so we'll address that eventually.
Any issues? I'm getting a little clicking on hard pedaling, might be the BB but doesn't quite sound like that. I guess it's a sealed cartridge unit, I'll keep an ear on it for now. Would a bike buyer be better off with a higher end frame and lesser components (Shimano 105s)? Maybe, sort of a matter of personal choice. I like high end gears and I think this works for me. I also like the GT my daughter bought back in May, a Series 4 roadie with Sora (for $500 and received $100 of Performance store credits). Sweet deal and her Sora shifts fine, but my Ultegra does better, AND I've got a triple / 10 speed. Her frame might be as good or better, hard to tell. We both like our rides.
The Cane Creek brakes seem OK, I've read others feel the pads are too hard so I may try the Dura-Ace which are said to fit.
Bottom line, I'm happy with the Corvus, but I've only ridden 30 or so miles. I'm a mechanic/engineer/bike mechanic Vintage 1972, assembly was a snap. I'll be glad to answer questions and update as I get more experience with this bike.
