Colnago

C60 Disc Road Frameset-2015

While the pro peloton is just beginning to take tentative steps toward a possible inclusion of disc brakes for the 2017 season, Colnago — true to form — has already anticipated cycling's future by perfecting road disc technology in the C60 Disc Road Frameset. Ernesto Colnago's company was the first large-scale manufacturer to imagine the potential of carbon frames, and now his brand is also at the front of the disc brake revolution.

But ultimately, this is a Colnago, and a Colnago is meant primarily for going, not stopping. The C60 makes going as pleasurable and efficient as possible with nine different types of carbon fiber laid out at different parts of the frame to fulfill strategic requirements of stiffness, compliance, and load-bearing durability — every bit of which is sourced from Toray's Japanese factory. Toray also has operations in China and elsewhere, but the carbon produced in Japan is guaranteed perfect, every time, which is why it's also used exclusively by one of the world's largest passenger jet manufacturers.

While the materials are worth celebrating, Colnago's expertise, honed over the preceding decades and countless miles of racing, is what sets the C60 apart. Despite its plush ride, the C60 is a power machine at heart, with a shorter wheelbase and lower stack height than its co-captain, Colnago's V1-R. The frame demands that the rider give it precise direction, but it also gives the rider absolute control over where it's going. It dives headlong into tight corners and changes lines seamlessly even in the middle of sweeping turns.

Construction elements like the enormous down tube, which is ten millimeters bigger than the C59, contribute to an equally impressive ability to transmit power into the road. The increased diameter lets Colnago decrease the amount of material without sacrificing strength, so overall weight comes down while efficiency and durability actually increase. All told, the C60 disc saves a claimed 140 grams compared to its C59 predecessor.

As with all models of Colnago's C series, the C60's tubes meet at lugged joints, which net additional benefits in stiffness and plushness, increased frame size options, and more structural integrity. The head tube and bottom bracket are the most important junctures, so they're both built up to accommodate the large down tube and reinforce the frame for more stiffness under even the most demanding exertions. The lugs update the C59 lugs' flat walls with the same clover-shaped cross section used in the down tube and elsewhere, so the beneficial tube shape extends through the bike's joints.

The C60 is so impressive that Colnago itself may be the frame's only real threat. The Italian manufacturer has made breaking framesets into a science in the obsessive pursuit of safety that also precipitated the early adoption of disc brakes. While ISO standards stipulate one impact from a 50 pound weight dropped from a height of 212 millimeters, Colnago subjected the C60 to incremental hits up to 1,050 millimeters. These Draconian demands were originally inspired by Ernesto Colnago's own career-ending crash, and they mean the C60 Disc may be the safest pro-level frame in the industry.

Finally, the C60 has a new bottom bracket type, the ThreadFit 82.5. It's compatible with all PressFit 86 setups, but it improves on the ease and simplicity of press fit bottom brackets by eliminating the creaking typically associated with them. The frame itself has a steel sleeve built-in to the bottom bracket, which an aluminum shell screws into. Since machining makes these pieces more precise than even the most refined carbon construction methods can, this essentially eliminates the microscopic imperfections in the crank/frame interface that can cause creaking over time. The aluminum insert is also replaceable in this system, so it can be replaced as it begins to wear, keeping your bottom bracket pristine for years to come.