Arrowtalon

I just purchased a Mercier Corvus Steel from "Sprtymama" on ebay. This is a Bikesdiect/Cycle Spectrum brand road bike. Price: $750 shipped.

https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/...ier_corvus.htm

Note this review is only discussing initial quality and value.

The Corvus is made from Reynolds 520 Steel and sports a carbon fork. It's outfitted with a Tiagra/105 groupset. It has a very classy, all-black with silver components look to it.

The ride quality of this bike is amazing. It's smoother and as "lively" as any other road bike I test rode, and was certainly better than most brand-name bikes in the $1000-1200 range. Replacing the tires might improve the ride even further, but it cruises so well as it is it's hard to mention doing that.

The frame quality seems just as good as the other 520 frames I looked at, most notably the Jamis Satellite. The welds look great, and much to my surprise, the paint was of better quality than previous Merciers I'd seen. It also has rear rack mounts for light touring.

The components are standard Shimano/Truvativ/generic. Nothing seems particularly deficient, but the brakes are a bit squishy, either due to the pads or the calipers. I don't really mind this, as it gives me a little more touch before locking up the wheels, but many like firmer brakes. All the other components are of fine quality. The saddle was remarkably comfortable. I thought it would go straight in the dumpster, but it actually isn't bad.

I'm not critical of weight as long as it's reasonable, and this bike is a very reasonable weight. Fully outfitted with spd pedals, saddle, and ready to ride, mine came in just over 20 lbs.

Overall, this is the best value on a steel frame road bike I could find. After accounting for the cost of an LBS to assemble it and/or tune it up after a month, a customer saves about $200-300 versus similarly equipped steel frame bikes, which are becoming harder to find.

PROS: Ride Quality. Steel Frame. This is a great sport-level racer or sport touring road bike. Should be great for centuries. Bang for the buck.

CONS: The brakes, if anything. Edit: The tires are pretty bad. They felt quite imprecise on my last ride.

Arrowtalon

Here's a pic.

Gomez308

Looks good. Have fun riding it.

jordy808

How do you think it'd function as a commuter?

Arrowtalon

It would work well as a commuter. It has the rear rack mounts and the potential for fenders. It comes out of the box with fairly aggressive geometry, but a different stem would fix that.

However, I'm a pretty big cheapskate, and I think it might be a bit overkill for my taste in commuters when $250 could buy a nice old steelie with friction shifters.

Briareos

I wonder how much the frame weighs? Been looking for a classy lookin' racer and that'd fit the bill! I'd replace just about every part on there thought...BikeIsland sells these frames right?

Reynolds 520 kinda sucks don't it?

ravenmore

Heh - needs more black.

Just kidding - looks like a great bike.

pbhugger

This thread needs more pictures. Here's my Corvus Aluminum (same name, but actually quite different).

Arrowtalon

Pretty slick. How does the spattered silver paint job look in person?

Briareos

Ooooh!

That fork is secks! Seriously maybe I'll get that frame from BikeIsland.com.

Camilo

What handlebars are those? How do you like them?

late

Nice bike,
when you get the chance, pick up some shimano brakes off Ebay.
Sometime in the next few weeks the wheels may need truing up, and
the wire on the shifters will stretch a bit, and need tightening. No biggy,
but if the wheels go out of true, get a shop to tune them.

Kurt Erlenbach

PB - You should spend today painting your garage door.

pbhugger

The splattered silver paint actually looks not so ugly in real life, I was actually quite pleased when I first saw it.

The handlebars are Ritchey Biomax. And I actually like the ergo shape quite a bit, and the bars themselves seem great.

chas0039

I also have had a Corvus 520 for about a year now and it has turned into my favorite ride. I changed the stem and the tires and added a 105 front dérailleur (found one for $22 so I couldn't resist). I agree on the quality of fit and finish. One of the most enjoyable parts of the ride is the feeling that the bike is jumping forward when I really pump the pedals. I had read of this trait before but this bike was the first time I experienced it.

I was all set to get the Serpens 853 model with the Ultegra group but, unfortunately, they are out of stock until well past the season.

I agree, for a steel bike, this is a good buy. I don't see the frame at Bike Island; it seems like steel fames production is getting the short end of the stick.

ravenmore

Oh - on the brakes the Tektros are usually fine but sometimes the stock brake pads suck.

Paul L.

I have a Corvus that is going on 7 years old. It has over 20000 miles on it and would have more if it wasn't for the 2 years I road a recumbent. It is my do everything bike. Commuting, weekend rides, brevets, centuries you name it. My only regret is I think I should have gone with the 58 and not the 60 size frame. Cycle Spectrum set it up wrong but I would have messed with it anyway so that wasn't a big deal. Good solid bike.

pbhugger

Do you really think a coat of paint is going to solve the problems with that garage door? The door has more character than those white plastic-ey vinyl doors will ever have. Actually, I really like the juxtaposition of the rusty faded door and the new shiny bike. It really makes the bike kind of "pop".

Arrowtalon

I actually said to myself "makes the pic more artsy". All a garage id for anyway s protecting stuff, like bikes.

jordy808

I'm actually going to order my Corvus tonight! I was wondering what size of the Corvus would be better suited towards someone 5'10, a 54 or 56 cm?

Arrowtalon

The Corvus compares well to other brands in geometry.

I am 5'10-5'11 test rode several bikes around 54-56 cm. When I do the inseam calculation, I come out right in between sizes. I opted for the 56 cm, as this lengthens the headtube just a bit. It also lengthens the reach slightly. The Corvus Steel has reasonably aggressive geometry, which I wasn't sure if I'd like, but after a 30 mile ride yesterday, I had no neck/back/shoulder pain. So, I can say at 5' 10.5", I fit a 56 cm nicely.

Try this link to see if it steers you one way or the other.

https://www.coloradocyclist.com/bikefit

Arrowtalon

I tried all different kinds of steel. The conclusion I reached is that Steel is Steel when comparing similar quality bikes with different grades of steel frames. Any differences are structural and imperceptible to me at least. I think the different grades of steel are mostly marketing ploys.

Arrowtalon

I'm not sure of the frame weight alone. I can tell you that it's comparable to other 520 steel frames and perhaps a shade lighter. As I said, the entire bike is a very reasonable weight as shipped, and the saddle and seatpost could be swapped for lighter ones.

One thing my bro and I noticed immediately was that this frame actually flexes less laterally near the BB than AL bikes we've tried/ridden. This flies in the face of marketing info explaining that, in general, Al is stiffer and more efficient. Whether that applies to all Al frames, I don't know.

Paul L.

Until someone dings it then the difference between super high end and just high end becomes quite clear I would surmise..

bsyptak

I'm finding this really hard to believe, unless "just over" means something like 22 or 23. Did you measure on your bathroom scale, or a real digital scale? The Jamis Quest is 19.75 pounds without pedals and it has well chosen, name brand components to get there. The Mercier has too many lower spec generic components to be just a little over 1/4 lb heavier--with pedals.