Colnago C64 frameset

The new Colnago C64 is every bit as sublime as its predecessor but with a raft of refinements that bring enhanced stiffness, comfort and clearance for wider tyres. It isn't so much a revolution as an evolution, and it's the best C series yet, and one of a tiny handful of bikes still made in Italy.

• Pros: Responsive, comfortable, light, superb handling
• Cons: Big price tag

You can read more detail about all the changes to the new C64 in my first look article and accompanying video, from a very windy Lanzarote, where the new bike was launched in early 2018.

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Since Colnago's UK distributor Windwave only sells framesets, this review is concerned with the performance of the frame and won't focus on the components as a typical bike review would. Right, let's dive in...

Ride and handling

One question I get asked all the time in this line of work is which is the best road bike I've ever tested. It's a really hard question to answer, of course, because there are so many good bikes available right now, but there's one that always springs to mind: the Colnago C60. Well, now it's the new C64.

Smooth, fast, light, surefooted, fun... the C64 is one of the nicest bikes I've had the pleasure to review. There's no disputing its bank account-emptying price tag but should you be fortunate to be able to afford it, you won't regret it.

The C64 is a bike that better than most offers the right balance of stiffness, handling and comfort. There's really no area where it feels at all compromised. It's a really well-engineered bike with outstanding handling and ride characteristics.

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There's nothing groundbreaking or radical about the redesign of the C64, the result of two years of development, but taking the same incremental approach favoured by the likes of Volkswagen and Apple, Colnago has retained all the good qualities of the previous models while improving a number of areas. These changes combine to create a bike that is more responsive, alert and direct than the outgoing C60. An already very good bike just got a tiny bit better.

There's more immediacy in the way it translates your inputs into movements on the road. The increased stiffness manifests itself when jumping on the pedals to cover an attack, sprinting for the finish line or surging up a steep gradient. It's sharper and more focused, and feels faster as a result.

The handling is as delightful as ever, if a touch less nimble than a Specialized Tarmac or Trek Emonda because of the slighter longer wheelbase and more relaxed head angle. Instead, it has a calm and measured feel that makes it easy to ride fast, arguably more so than the aforementioned race bikes. It never feels skittish or nervous no matter how fast you're travelling or how rough the road surface.

Comfort was always a strength of the C60. It has an uncanny ability to balance its low weight and high stiffness with unswerving composure on rough roads. It feels like it floats over badly surfaced roads and dispenses with cracks and holes as if it was an endurance bike on fat tyres. The ability to fit 28mm tyres – up from 25 for the previous model – is a huge bonus if you want the ride as smooth as possible.

I haven't raced the C64, but based on my experience in the local chain gang (which is as close to a race as you get without pinning on a number) it is no slouch. It perhaps doesn't have the outright power transfer stiffness and it definitely doesn't have the aerodynamics of some other bikes, but it never felt compromised and it certainly didn't hold me back. Quite the opposite: it felt fast and responsive but with the smoothness to deal with rubbish roads.

Frame improvements

Quality and attention to detail mark out the new C64. It's handmade carbon at its best, and while some commenters might bemoan the traditional appearance of the tube and lug construction, personally I'm a fan – it's a nod to old race bikes and it's a manufacturing process Colnago has been refining and perfecting over the last 30 years.

When it's done as well as this, the construction technique produces a wonderful ride that is a match for any other top-end carbon bikes on the market right now that are more simply popped out of moulds (okay, I know it's not quite as simple as that).

The biggest change to the previous C60 is the new seat tube, which has the lugs for the top tube and seatstays moulded into it, creating a stiffer frame and saving a chunk of weight (Colnago claims 800-850g for a frame; the weight given at the top is for the full build). 

This new seat tube also accepts the same aero shaped post as found on the V2-r, which offers improved aerodynamics and increased vibration damping because it is able to flex a bit more.

The head tube lug has been revamped too, with extra width and an angular cutout to increase the front end stiffness to benefit the handling. It also incorporates a road buzz-killing polymer top spacer from the Concept aero bike that acts as a sort of suspension headset. We're not talking a big range of movement, just a small amount to damp vibrations.

The fork also receives a stiffness-enhancing cutout, which mirrors the appearance of the head tube lug nicely, and the steerer tube has a full-length internal rib which boosts stiffness and eliminates an expander plug as the top cap screws directly into this rib.

There's the same ThreadFit 82.5 bottom bracket as first debuted on the C60, but the lug it's fitted around has been redesigned to save weight. The cable guide is now also moulded as part of the lug, which not only saves weight but creates a smooth curve for the gear cable.

Behind the bottom bracket are a pair of asymmetric chainstays, the non-drive side being a much larger profile to create as stiff a frame as possible (as shown in the pic below, from the launch).

The dropouts, front and rear, are now made from carbon fibre which sheds a little more weight.

As previously mentioned, there's now clearance for 28mm wide tyres, a welcome move with the trend for wider tyres now well established. Brakes switch to the newer direct mount type as well.

Conclusion

It might not have the aerodynamics, the low weight, the massive stiffness, the buzzwords or the integration of bigger rivals, but I like that Colnago has stayed true to its roots and avoided the temptation to outsource the manufacturing of this classic and iconic frame.

It's undeniably expensive, but you are paying for a frame that is handmade in Italy, from a company with a deep and prestigious history in the sport, and for many people that counts for a lot. Yes, a Specialized Tarmac SL6 frameset is 'only' £3250 but that's made in Taiwan...

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The tube and lugged frame construction probably has as many detractors as it does fans. Personally, I love the way Colnago has refined the design of a bike that traces its DNA back to the 1990s and the original C40, and every C series bike I've ever ridden has offered a deeply impressive ride performance.

In summary, it's clear the new C64 retains the same great handling and stability of the original, with the same tried-and-tested geometry that I think works very well in all situations, yet it feels just a little more nimble and direct in the way it reacts to inputs. It's a little more lively when you want to push the bike through fun corners or chase faster wheels.

Verdict

Superb handling with improved stiffness and comfort, the new C64 continues the legacy in fine form