.........................................................................................................................................................................................................

colnago master x-light carbon

the master x-light is the modern face of colnago's most enduring frame. in an interview with mr colnago in 2008, i asked him if it was a frame that would endure for several years to come. he replied "the master x- light is a legend. i first created its ancestor more than 30 years ago and in 2009 we will build more than 1000 master frames - it is a colnago essential." comforting news for all colnago aficionados, and something to look forward to for those yet to appreciate its traditional joys.

the currently available model is crafted entirely in steel, from tubing custom drawn for colnago by columbus and fluted in a way that gives a cross-section approximating the assos di fiori, colnago's ace of clubs logo. it's a moot point that the fluting of the steel imparts a controlled degree of stiffness to the main tubes of the frame, but since it's unlikely anyone has ridden a conventionally tubed master, we must take it on trust.

in 2007, in a demonstration of dubious timing, colnago unveiled a carbon rear ended version, at just the point where steel was experiencing a second coming, and the last thing anyone wanted was one of the legends of steel messing with the mix. by 2008, the carbon was all but gone, and the cognoscenti were satisfied with a return to wall to wall steel. and it has remained thus to this day.

well, all except for the example that arrived at washingmachinepost cottage last year, ensconced in the bike shed while serious dithering went on inside the cottage for nigh on a year. this particular model featured a carbon b-stay.

the three main tubes are lugged and brazed in the traditional manner, those enclosing much of the head tube featuring italian chrome with cutouts and the colnago name inscribed in the casting. the lug atop the seat tube has to grab hold of that carbon b-stay and thus breaks with tradition. i have no intention of checking whether i am correct by conducting a metallurgical test, but the weld on this enlarged lug may indicate it is of aluminium build. my evidence for this was the need to acquire a colnago seat-clamp in order to keep the seatpost in place, rather than via the more conventional campagnolo style seatbolt lug.

the carbon b-stay melds smoothly with its steel forerunners both at seat tube and bottom bracket lug. i cannot avoid telling you that i do seriously admire the leaf chain stays that have featured on many a recent colnago, including the eps. the review model is beautifully decorated in a retro molteni colour scheme of orange and blue, accompanied by old-style colnago decals, a name stated far less often than the most recent offerings from italy or taiwan.

despite wishing to avoid the chrome on the rear stays of the steel version of the master, predominantly due to the salt laden islay atmosphere's propensity to eat chrome for breakfast, the master came with a fully chromed precisa fork, still one of the finest on the planet, and surprisingly without those nasty little tabs on the fork turning the quick release into anything but.

this is the first time i have had the luxury of choosing the componentry that would adorn a frame under review, and i apologise in advance for dragging my heels over the choices. first bit to find a home was a 1" chris king no-threadset; the master has little truck with the dubious advantages of increasing to a 1.125" head tube, though the threading on the steerer has now gone forever. the headset was actually collected at the chris king premises in portland last year, and thus has sentimental value. in an attempt to colour co-ordinate, i chose the mango version.

strangely in a strange world, while there are those still producing 1" headsets, it seems almost no-one still makes a stem to fit a steerer of that diameter. though the stem and handlebars are aluminium versions from fsa, i employed a shim from oval concepts (thank you paddy), to allow the 130mm stem to fit. covering the handlebars is some beautiful honey coloured brooks leather tape with brooks labelled corks plugging the ends.

while seatposts are somewhat perfunctory in nature, i was loathe to fit something crafted from carbon. though the rear end is carbon, i rather fancied one of those steel posts that campagnolo used to make, and with the assistance of martin at dromarti, the brooks colt saddle sits on top of just such an item, with the campagnolo flying wheel etched on the rear. the brooks saddle is a mustard coloured colt, reviewed elsewhere on the post.

impressed with the king stainless steel cage fitted to the cielo, i fitted one to the master. they don't rust, and miraculously, they don't mark the bottles. i would have loved to have fitted a chris king bottom bracket, but sadly, they don't make any that fit an italian bottom bracket shell. fortunately, fsa do, compatibly accompanying the fsa sl-k carbon compact chainset, ending in a pair of mavic sprint pedals. as is the case with many a carbon chainset these days, the cranks must be sheltered from the invasiveness of a pedal spindle by washers placed between one and t'other.

my original plan for a pair of wheels had been to build a pair of sprint hoops using mavic sprint rims mated to a pair of mango coloured chris king r45 hubs. unfortunately, acquiring said hubs has proved to be harder than i expected, but serendipitously, mavic delivered a pair of their k10 system tyres and wheel setups which were fitted to the master via a pair of shiny and fabulously minimal titanium skewers from van nicholas in holland. wheels and skewers are the subject of a separate reviews on the post.

it seemed almost sacreligious to put anything other than campagnolo on colnago's oldest surviving frame, but with my need to remain at ten speed, the choice was somewhat forced; campagnolo centaur. the rear gear and front mech are both of the 2010 variety and completely fashioned in metal. however, in a fit of modernity, i opted for the 2011 centaur carbon ergopower levers up front. these too have been reviewed elsewhere. in order to beat the system, the shimano pattern splines had a campag compatible cassette fitted to complete the transmission.

it would be not too much of a stretch to expect a pair of centaur calipers to provide the stopping power, if only to keep it all in the family. however, despite being probably one of the most conservative cyclists with an inbuilt resistance to change, i persuaded myself to break with tradition (pardon the pun) and fit a pair of ciamillo zero g brakes. these weigh next to nothing and provide incredible, modulated braking, likely encouraged by the cam system employed on each caliper.

setting these up is a bit of a nightmare though, particularly the front caliper which has a rather contrary method of clamping the cable which is not only unintuitive, but isn't featured in the instruction manual that arrived with the brakes. the zero gs are supposedly self-centring which pretty much applies to the rear, but the front all but defied every attempt to have this work.

the centre bolt bears some 13mm spanner flats that allow for centring should it be required; either this or the allen key adjustment at the front of the caliper. however, turning this bolt places additional tension either one way or the other, almost always leading to one pad or t'other sitting on the rim and preventing wheel rotation. while the rear responded fairly well to this sort of adjustment and still allowed an appropriate degree of spring tension to pull the lever back into place after braking, the front would only achieve centring with almost no tension at all.

while this makes it sound like a highly expensive ornament, because of the cam system designed by ciamillo, the brake worked incredibly well, though i'd have been happier with just a shade more spring tension.

the ride

if you have ever been fortunate enough to have assembled your very own bicycle from a collection of disparate parts, you will have shared the joy of taking the finished product out for sea trials, just to check that everything works as it should; that the seatpost is at the correct height, the gears shift up and down with a few clicks, and the chain can shift to the outer ring and back down again.

a brief 10km out and back ride came first, and i feel no shame in admitting that when standing up to ride a shallow incline, i was not prepared for the kick, which is pretty much the only description i can apply to the forward surge that standing on the pedals produced. remember that this particular master frame has a carbon b-stay at the back, which i was holding specifically responsible for this experience. however, just to double check, i contacted a friend who owns the all-steel version of the master. apparently the same joy is in store for owners of the current retail version. a pleasant surprise.

over the years, i have heard many testimonies as to the ride of the colnago master, but i have yet to hear one that described the excitement of riding one. it is particularly hard to come to terms with the fact that this is a frame made predominantly of steel. as a complete bicycle, it is far from being the lightest i've experienced, yet its abilities on the road would belie this perceived weight penalty. in the manner of the recently tested c59, you can chuck this thing all over the place and it seems to bother it not at all.

recent product information has all but convinced us of the benevolent properties of the black stuff, and not without reason, though it is just as easily possible to create a rigid and unforgiving carbon frame, as it is to produce one with a quality ride. but in the years that have gradually weaned us off metal and onto plastic, the properties of steel seem to have become almost a well-kept secret. carbon forks were one of the first introductions in an attempt to reduce road buzz at the handlebars, yet the straight, chromed steel precisa forks fitted to the master under review seemed quite favourable by comparison. as inferred in previous reviews, i have roads kept for special occasions, none of which managed to induce a serious level of discomfort at anytime. while i'm sure that carbon rear triangle gave valuable assistance in this direction, the level of comfort was generally quite impressive.

the comfort factor, you will be pleased to note, was not at the expense of so-called stiffness, though i'm not sure that this is the ideal term to describe this aspect; taughtness, i would venture as a suitable alternative. there is little doubt that this is the c59's little brother, for it displays many of the younger model's finer attributes. not the best of descenders, i am generally loathe to entrust my fate to any particular bicycle; wimp, wouldn't be too harsh a description. however, in the case of the master x-light, an unexpected degree of faith was imparted through such well-defined handling; the thrill of rounding a bend faster than i thought i could does a lot for the smile factor.

it may be a distortion of the old humour regarding honda motorcyclists, but you can easily tell a happy colnago owner by the flies on his/her teeth.

if, however, it is necessary to exercise a small portion of my critical faculties, it could be reasonably directed at the bottom bracket shell. the fsa sl-k carbon compact chainset is a delight, with nary a hint of flex in either crank arm. however, if i must be unscientific about this, i may as well continue where i left off; i popped the chain on the big ring and adjusted the chain at the rear in order that it was only a shade away from rubbing on the inner plate of the rear mech, then gave it some welly. there was noticeable chain rub, though i have not the power (and i suggest the same is the case for many of us), to dislodge the chain to the smaller ring. from my point of view, this is not something i find particularly disturbing, but for all the stiffness fanatics out there, i thought it worth mentioning.

the mavic k10 wheels and tyres have been reviewed elsewhere on the post recently, but despite my misgivings over minimal straight spoke counts and radial lacing, these proved to be a lot more nimble and sympathetic to the colnago than i would have initially expected. when you consider how many years hence since the master was originally designed, and just how new these wheels are, it is most gratifying that the combination proved so fruitful. ernesto colnago has not gained his considerable reputation for nowt.

i am very much in favour of the retro colour scheme with which this frame arrived, and i cannot conceal a degree of pride and joy just looking at those sculpted main tubes. i have not ridden the all-steel version of this frame, which is the only one currently available for purchase, so i cannot truthfully state that you will find the same joy. but having enquired of those who do own all-steel, i think there are more than enough similarities to be confident in my above assertions; this is a fabulous bike that repays the rider tenfold. eddy merckx i most certainly am not, but if i've experienced only a small percentage of what led eddy to so many victories, then the case for acquiring a colnago master has been well-made.

the frame retails at not a lot of pounds less than £1600. the price of the entire bicycle as tested was close on £3,000, which is a small price to pay for a cycle that approaches the ride qualities of colnagos that cost more than that for the frame.

very highly recommended, especially to those who thought steel was yesterday's thing.

posted monday 13 september 2010

top of page.