bpdc

Hey all,

Looking for opinions about Santa Cruz's Stigmata. It appears to be well-built, light, race ready, and made in the USA. Good stuff. Any opinions about handling, geometry, durability, etc. are welcome. It’s been quietly on the market for a few years, but I haven’t come across too many reviews.

Also, I noticed that it appears to have a slightly smaller top tube, which is a plus for me as I’ve got a relatively short torso and long legs.

Thanks for the opinions.

flargle

I'm pretty sure it's a good bike, just wondering if it might be a bit pricey compared to what else is in the market. And are Santa Cruz bikes actually built in the U.S.? I'm not saying the Stigmata would be the wrong bike for you. Check out bikeman.com for some alternatives.

JeffS

If you're wanting an aluminum, made-in-America frame, then it might be worth looking at. Personally, I'd just go with a used CAAD9, but that's me.

I don't agree with the statement that the top tube is short. It's actually a little longer than any cross bike I've owned. I can only guess you're comparing it to Surly's screwed-up geometry.

svtmike

You'd go with a used CAAD9 if you were building a cross bike?

JeffS

Don't act like I don't know what I'm talking about. Cannondale referred to it as the CAAD9, and currently CAADX. Mine looks something like this:




And if you can't read what's on the seat tube, here's another view:




I referred to it in this way to distinguish from the now-imported stuff - which I won't buy, but that's another rant.

Didn't Cannondale used to maintain a bike archive on their site, similar to Specialized? Must be another thing Dorel screwed up.

svtmike

I was acting like I didn't know what you were talking about. I wasn't familiar enough with Cannondale to know that there was a cross version of the CAAD that wasn't designated CAADX.

eippo1

I came pretty close to getting one of these before I went with a better deal. I talked to the Cruz rep about this for a while. It's an awesome bike with weight and stiffness emphasized. It's designed to be as fast as possible and have good handling so as not to throw you all over the place as well. I think it will ride very similarly to the CAAD, but is probably going to be a bit lighter and less comfortable.

bpdc

Thanks for the feedback and opinions thus far. Sounds like there is still mixed opinion about the Stigmata. What I don't get, however, is the discussion of geometry.

From the specs I've pulled, the Stig's (56) ST is 56.1 cm and TT is 55.6 cm. Cannondale lists its 56 as having a 55.0 CM ST and a 56.0 TT, which is more in line with the standard, as I understand it.

There are a couple of other cross bikes with shorter top tubes, but the majority seem to favor a slightly longer TT, some to a great extent (like the Surly... which is built more for utility use than straight cross.)

Thanks again...

bpdc

... oh, and one other thing... the Santa Cruz Stigmata is built in the U.S. in Portland, Oregon.

JeffS

Cannondale isn't a good example for comparison. They expect you to buy a size smaller than you would in their road bike.

Anyway, I think the better point is that there's no such thing as "cyclocross geometry". Manufacturers are all over the map, though I stand by my statement that most bikes have shorter top tubes (than a road bike).

borg

I got a Santa Cruz Stigmata about month ago, and so far I love it. I haven't raced it yet, but it feels real stable over rough terrain. It has a low bottom bracket which interested me, but my pedal has hit the ground in some tight turns. I think this is something I can easily adjust to. I have ridden it mostly on the road with road tires. I will certainly have a more detailed review with a few races under my belt in the upcoming months.

As far as geometry, I have the 54 stigmata, but would be a 51 or 52 in Cannondale's lineup. Geometry is a huge thing for me, and a major reason I went with the Stigmata was because I though the geometry was right for me.