Cannondale Topstone 3 Gravel Bike 2022

Purchased as a gravel bike suitable for road and off-road hence choice of 2x gearing. Good frame and generally sound component specification. I have used the bike on gravel trails, for bikepacking and, with a wheelset change, several road rides including alpine climbs. The BSA BB and ability to swap wheelsets relatively easily (unlike previous assymetric Topstone generation) were important factors. My bike came with 38mm Terreno Dry tyres which work well for many of my rides that are a combination of road and off road including gnarlier segments. I find the stock wheelset to be sluggish on the road hence occasional swapping out for an alternative wheelset with 32mm wide tyres for touring on roads and light gravel. I was not impressed by the FSA AGX chainset and this ... MorePurchased as a gravel bike suitable for road and off-road hence choice of 2x gearing. Good frame and generally sound component specification. I have used the bike on gravel trails, for bikepacking and, with a wheelset change, several road rides including alpine climbs. The BSA BB and ability to swap wheelsets relatively easily (unlike previous assymetric Topstone generation) were important factors. My bike came with 38mm Terreno Dry tyres which work well for many of my rides that are a combination of road and off road including gnarlier segments. I find the stock wheelset to be sluggish on the road hence occasional swapping out for an alternative wheelset with 32mm wide tyres for touring on roads and light gravel. I was not impressed by the FSA AGX chainset and this has been changed out for a Shimano GRX 810 chainset. I have since read that many other Topstone owners have found the FSA chainset to be a weak component. Overall, it is a competitively priced gravel bike that will benefit from a few upgrades over time. Those looking for an essentially off road gravel bike may prefer the 1x and possibly Lefty models in the range.Service from Sigma from initial inquiry through to after sales has been excellent.

A solid bike for road touring. It has all the braze ons for low rider front panniers, rear rack, etc. It had enough room to have a Kryptonite cable lock on the seat tube without a 3rd water bottle cage. If I do a rail trail, I'd put back the original tires. Road tires in 30mm width are more appropriate for road touring. There's road and sugar sand around here, nothing between. Hammonton, N.J. 6 foot, this is a large frame, rideable due to the sloping top tube. A bit short in the legs 31" inseam at 6 foot, but long in the trunk and arms. I was impressed by how softly and smoothly this one rides, and I've got the more durable aluminum version. This one is great for riding in a straight line which is what you need for a touring bike. The chainstays are long which ... MoreA solid bike for road touring. It has all the braze ons for low rider front panniers, rear rack, etc. It had enough room to have a Kryptonite cable lock on the seat tube without a 3rd water bottle cage. If I do a rail trail, I'd put back the original tires. Road tires in 30mm width are more appropriate for road touring. There's road and sugar sand around here, nothing between. Hammonton, N.J. 6 foot, this is a large frame, rideable due to the sloping top tube. A bit short in the legs 31" inseam at 6 foot, but long in the trunk and arms. I was impressed by how softly and smoothly this one rides, and I've got the more durable aluminum version. This one is great for riding in a straight line which is what you need for a touring bike. The chainstays are long which provides good heel clearance for rear panniers, and like nobody seems to realize, straighter chainlines if crosschaining. No interferance problems with toes and front wheel due to that long front center on the large size! Cannondale is famous for proprietary components and quirky designs. They definitely stuck to widely available solid components on this one. No need to stockpile components since parts will be available 5 to 10 years from now. The gearing selection is well chosen in general, but with the 11-34 cassette and a heavy touring load, I'd be coasting before using that huge gear. I ordered a 12-36 which offers a lower ratio and a lower 2nd largest cog. The 36 is pushing it a bit on capacity, but this is known to work. This isn't a crit racer afterall! Assembly was near perfect. I checked all the bolt torques, took out the bottom bracket to check if the threads were greased as I've seen unprepped ones with out of square bottom bracket shells from the factory. ( Another brand) The preload on the front hub was a bit excessive. An easy fix, but most low end hubs have similar issues. The wheels are true and round, with even spoke tension. Still is true after 150 miles. Perhaps I'll build a 32 spoke rear wheel for it this winter. Until then I'll be carrying the Stein cassette tool , a correct spoke taped to the front rack, and a spoke key. In reality, with one broken spoke and that wheel/ frame clearance, it'd ride ok like that awhile. At least they chose to build the wheels cross 3 spoke pattern. Durability with what stresses disk brakes put on spokes, is a big priority. Cross 2 with radial spokes on the other side ,24 spokes would be a really dumb choice here. Again, this is no crit racer! If this one breaks down on tour, a good shop will have all you need. I'm very pleased to have been able to test ride 2 frame sizes before buying. Some shops have limited stock.

I first saw this bike when I was looking at my first bike but decided to get the Cannondale Quick CX 4 to see if I enjoyed cycling in the first place. 2 weeks later I returned that bike and placed an order on this instead.The first thing I noticed is the comparative agility and quickness coming from a plusher hybrid fitness bike in the Quick CX 4 to this “entry-level” gravel bike. The handful of pounds saved makes it much easier to carry and transport in my truck and it is a very enjoyable ride. The “Cannondale 4” drop bar handlebars are very enjoyable and comfortable for long rides. The 10-speed, 1x gearing is sufficient enough to enjoy cruising or bomb down empty roads while being very simple to operate, no comment on how it performs on gravel. My only two ... MoreI first saw this bike when I was looking at my first bike but decided to get the Cannondale Quick CX 4 to see if I enjoyed cycling in the first place. 2 weeks later I returned that bike and placed an order on this instead.The first thing I noticed is the comparative agility and quickness coming from a plusher hybrid fitness bike in the Quick CX 4 to this “entry-level” gravel bike. The handful of pounds saved makes it much easier to carry and transport in my truck and it is a very enjoyable ride. The “Cannondale 4” drop bar handlebars are very enjoyable and comfortable for long rides. The 10-speed, 1x gearing is sufficient enough to enjoy cruising or bomb down empty roads while being very simple to operate, no comment on how it performs on gravel. My only two complaints would be the saddle and brakes. The saddle being very tough on the bum but that was quickly remedied with cycling liners or shorts. The brakes came out the shop squeaking but I’ll check back in at my local REI or Bike Shop and see how that can be fixed, stopping power isn’t an issue though which is more important.I’m very inexperienced with cycling but I have no complaints at all about this bike after 105 miles. Currently I run a top tube bag from REI, a single bottle cage, and a front/rear Bontrager ION100R combo light set for visibility on all my daily rides. Super excited to add hundreds of more miles along with potential upgrades that are available for this platform.P.S.: For pedals since they aren’t included, I bought a set of Bontrager hybrid flat/SPD pedals from a local bike shop to hold me over while I consider stepping into the “clip less” cycling shoe game.