Specialized Tricross Sport Review - BikeRadar

I have had my 09 on order for months, but finally Australia has got a shipment in...

I was riding my 10 year old Giant Boulder (mountain bike) before my Tricross arrived, and although I do go off-road, I do not go the full Mountain bike experience. Now I don't think I will ever ride it again.

I was concerned about the write up's I had read about the shudder in the front forks under braking, and after a few weeks my new tricross had developed the same symptoms, however, by a simple task of adjusting the Toe-in of the front brake pads has eliminated this problem.

My only other gripe is the softness of the original tyres that came with the bike. (for instace, I managed to get 5 punchers in 2 days the other week ).

Other than that, I have now increased my cycling to include commuting to work each day, a round trip of 30km, plus another 100km or so each weekend.

My tricross is booked in for it's first service next week, but I see little wrong with it after it's first 1000km of use.

When I told my wife I was going to spend $2500 on a bike she thought I was mad, but I hardly have to fill my gas tank on the car an more, so its starting to pay for its self already.

For me, the tricross has been the perfect choice of bike, It seems to do it all...

Ps. I am 172cm and 76kg. I have short legs for my height, and ride a 54cm frame,

I've just got my Tricross Sport (09) through the UK Bike to Work scheme. My previous commuting bike was a 17 year old Dawes Street Lite, so anything was an improvement. However, my road bike is a Trek 1.9 triple, so I had both ends of the spectrum.

I'm big (ex-rugby player) at 195cm (6ft 5") and 116kg (18.5st) with a long body and short(ish) legs. I got the 61cm, my Trek's a 60cm. They are about the same size.

I'm using mine primarily for the 9km each way commute to and from work. Downhill on the way there (150m descent) and reverse on the way back. With mudguards and a blackburn rack on the back, it feels heavy to move, but light to ride. Considerably slower than the Trek at about 2 to 5 minutes on my commute depending on direction.

The gears aren't as smooth as the Ultegra on the Trek, but okay. The gear range is good even for a hilly area. I've size 47 (12) feet and the heel occasionally catches on my panniers, and the toes catch on the front wheel when I turn sharply. The sissy brakes are good for slowing down, but the full brakes are a nightmare. The wobble is scary even as slower speeds. I usually get to 35mph going down hill on the Trek, and have done on the Tricross before I discovered the shudder. I will be returning to the shop to get it sorted, or even changed. The ultegra on the Trek are great, these are dangerous!

I'm yet to take it off road, but would be wary to go down steep hills at speed until the brakes are sorted. Overall, a good bike except for the brakes.

Brake judder with carbon forks is a well catalogued problem - particularly with the Specialized's - I'm amazed that they're still selling bikes with this potentially lethal issue. I thought they'd overcome it with mini V's but they come with their own problems. I had the same problem with my Van Nicholas Amazon, and resolved it myself after VN were unhelpful. It scared the living bejesus out of me the first time I braked at speed - I came within a whisker of coming off. I've fitted Tektro CR720 canti's with a KF Kona Design Front Hanger (as reviewed in the CTC mag by Cass Gilbert as essential - available from dotbike). No judder at all. Try just the hanger first, that may solve it, and add an in-line adjuster while you're at it.

Good (light) tourer, just about keeps up with the roadies (on slicks!), points and laughs at MTBs on the easier trails, and a good "fast but bombproof" commuter (my main use). Not a fan of the flattened top tube - digs into my (left) shoulder (but looks kinda different, so hey...), and the tyres could be better. At the Bike to Work scheme price (like, about £400) it's very hard to complain. Would get 5 stars....

....if the front brake wasn't absolutely terrifying.

The shudder is down to a design flaw, IMHO. I think it's caused by the combo of canti brake and carbon fork, though why it's worse on this than other 'crossers, I don't know. The fork flexes under braking (definitely backwards, possibly torsionally too?), to a point where the pads lose grip and the fork pings back into shape again - setting up a HORRIBLE, bike-crumbling, wrist-breaking shudder at about 20-30Hz, which is most apparent in wet weather. Toeing in the pads helps - for about 100 miles, after which the pads are parallel with the rims again...

Fitting a MINI V-brake (i.e one that's compatible with road levers) will fix it, possibly 'cos the cable routing is independent of the frame. I suspect Specialized know all about this issue, but basically deny it. (they advised pad toe-in, and if that fails, change the pads.)

The '08 model had V-brakes, but they went back to cantis on the '09 for some reason. My mate's '08 model has never had this problem. If you shout at them loud enough they might eventually do something, but I couldn't be bothered with the hassle and will fit a mini V-brake when the pads finally die (delayed by the fact that I shy away from the front brake!).

Posting this in the faint hope that Spesh may one day man up to the standard we've come to expect of them. This a a great bike, with a single serious flaw.

Looking at it positively - this bike will make damn sure you think ahead! :D :D :D

I have an older model Sport. The tricross has always suffered from front brake chatter but a pair of mini-Vs sorted it out on mine without compromising braking performance. I heard about another workaround which extends the outer down towards the crown of the forks but I never really researched it. The Brough tyres were the second thing to go on mine - heavy work and seemingly very susceptible to punctures. A pair of Schwalbe Marathon Plus at 25/28 mm really dropped the rolling resistance and seem to handle a bit of loose surface without too many complaints.

It is a great all round bike. I can't say I particularly like the colour scheme on this model though. Much prefer the matt black on the older model.

Totally with Horizon - on my second tricross - brake judder totally fixed with a hanger that goes up from the fork crown rather than down from above the head tube. I've got the tektro one - cost £3.50. The problem was explained in another blog somewhere that as you brake the fork legs flex backwards effectively tightening further on the brake cable creating the judder. The problem is worse on the bigger framed bikes.

I have no idea why specialized haven't sorted it out yet

Another niggle is the lack of adjustablity of the brake cables. You can do it by shortening the reach of the chicken bars with the little grub screws but why they don't just supply the chickenbars with in line adjustment is beyond me.

For all that with these two little things sorted the bike is awesome for commuting and just getting around.

kapowski: for adjustment, buy an inline brake adjuster by MPart or Jagwire - you just need to cut the outer cable, thread the inner through and reassemble - works great. The grub screws usually aren't really up to regular adjusting.

I got the 2008 model. Apart from a problem I had with the front brakes - fixed with mini-v brakes - it's the best £700 I spent in my life! Rides like a dream!

Nearly bought an 08 model, but hated the V-brakes. I found them very snatchy - and with virtually zero pad-to-rim clearance, I wouldn't take them touring because the slightest damage to the front rim would make the bike unrideable.

Nearly bought an 09 model, but the shudder on the front cantilever brake is downright dangerous. It's all very well saying 'adjust the toe-in' - many folks (including, apparently, some professional bike mechanics in a big-brand store) either don't understand or are too lazy. That was the most terrifying test ride of my life. Specialized should not be selling that brake.

+1 for the Kona Design Front Hanger; this cured a similar problem I had on another carbon-forked cyclo-cross bike, for about a fiver if I recall correctly. It seems that most of the problem is caused by the brake cable tension compressing the headset, a problem which the Front Hanger neatly avoids. Why Specialized can't fit this basic part as standard is a mystery to me. Fail.

mateotu: "Nearly bought an 08 model, but hated the V-brakes. I found them very snatchy - and with virtually zero pad-to-rim clearance" - that’s what I meant when I referred to problems with mini-V's, they're a horrible compromise, satisfying no one. For me, adjusting the toe-in made no difference. For an American company, no doubt steeped in a fear of being sued, it is indeed a mystery as to why they continue with this, as indeed do others, as indeed do dealers, who are well aware of the problem if my LBS is anything to go by.

Thanks all for the heads up on fork mount hangers - going to try one of those instead of mini-Vs. Kapowski: where did you get the Tektro one?

I bought my Tricross Sport a few weeks ago, and got the brake judder fixed before I paid the money. If it judders on the test ride (mine did) just ask the bike shop to fit a fork mounted cable hanger. They cost a few quid from Fisher Outdoor, product code BP1272F (http://www.fisheroutdoor.co.uk/public/index.php/product/BP1272F.html).

Lots more helpful detail on CycleChat (http://www.cyclechat.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?p=824804)

This is a far better solution than mini-V's, since you don't end up with brakes running a hair's breadth from the rims. And with this niggle fixed, the Tricross is a simply wonderful bike for commuting and light touring.

Specialized should fit the cable hanger as standard on the bigger frames (58cm+), and offer much better advice on their website, mind. Still, the bike itself is worth 5*, once the deadly judder is sorted...

I see on Specialized website that they have finally fitted fork crown hanger to 2010 tricross models. So judder problem should be gone for 2010 models.

I fitted a crown hanger (google for 'Kona KF hanger' to purchase) to my tricross, and yes it has got rid of the judder. Didn't even have to replace brake cable, old cable fitted fine.

Decent bike. Great value with the shimano tiagra! Specialized makes veryu nice bike for the average rider. This would be best for touring and not as much racing cyclo cross. You need to change the tires on it for more aggressive off road.

Confession first - if you had told me a year ago that I would review a bike online I would have thought you were mad. But I got roped into a big charity bike ride with 700km to cover through the hills of Tuscany and Northern Italy in five days last month and quickly got lycra-ed up.

I bought the Tricross entry-level bike in November last year to do the Italian ride on and was immediately impressed by the weight and handling. Stepping up from several years of hybrids to my first serious bike, it was the perfect introduction.

The cyclo-cross tyres handled the snow and ice in January brilliantly but the bike really excelled when I switched to slicks. There were 50 of us in Italy, most riding much more expensive/lighter bikes than mine and I had no problem at all keeping up with the bunch either going up all the hills or on the flat. And when we hit 10k of unpaved track the Tricross was in its element.

We cycled in terrible February conditions - snow, sleet, plenty of rain and mud and the bike coped with everything. Most impressively, the final day was 120k in heavy rain, after which the bike was hosed down and chucked in a truck for two weeks (with no lube or proper cleaning) while I flew home. When I picked it up back in London it just needed a dose of lube and was fine - smooth as silk in fact.

I can't sing its praises highly enough - such a good quality bike, capable of going just about anywhere, and coped with terrible conditions without any problems. People riding bikes that cost three times mine had all sorts of problems with their spokes, gears, frames... and the Tricross kept going.

Only two slight issues - the handlebar brakes are not quite powerful enough (and the regular brakes difficult to reach) and also the gear change can be a little sticky coming back onto the big cog at the front. Both issues could probably be sorted out by a decent service but were not expected straight away with a new bike.

Got a 2011 Tricross Sport on C2W for commutes to work but also for use as a long distance hauler. Did the Coast 2 Coast on this in July and the bike was flawless and in its element on the cinder tracks and gravel paths, and still brilliant on the road sections and hills. Gearing was spot on for me even on the steepest climbs, slick and smooth. The riding position and flexibility of swapping to the top bar from the hoods and still having braking control was also great for doing all day on the bike. Surprisingly comfy too as the frame geometry is definitely more Roubiax than CRUX!

This bike SHOULD be 5*!!!! but for the brakes. No judders or anything like that, just not even remotely powerful enough. I have no clue who decided that cyclo-cross bikes had to have canti's but I regard this as bogus. I ate through the front pads in 2 days (1500m of climbs and descents). The rears are almost gone and using the STI levers are basically useless. [I am 100Kg on a 58cm frame]

No bike is ever perfect, but I expected OK, not rubbish! I have replaced pads, tuned, adjusted, got certified Specialised mechanics to adjust, still rubbish! Anyway £22 x 2 & p&p has a pair of Avid SL7s V brakes on the way to replace the rubbish cantis. The bike was £150 cheaper than list to buy so I am still ££ up! I will then own a 5* bike.

In short - Don't hesitate!!! - this is a proper 1 bike to do anything, the frame, handlebar, Shimano gear set and controls are all first rate for the price. Use the current saving for a brake upgrade and be super happy! I use it for 50+ mile club rides to triathlon training in the rain to all day touring to deep forest path and cross country trekking! My old road hybrid and MTB are already on e-bay as no longer required!

I got my 2010 Tri through my work's Cycle-to-work scheme and I love it. The decision was on the recommendation of my local shop on the basis of both it's versatility and also to try to take the pressure off a neck injury that was being aggrevated by the riding position on my old Pinarello.

I now use it for commutting (9miles each way,) training rides at weekends and also long charity rides etc. I was so impressed that when my girlfriend said that she wanted to get into cycling I had no hesitation in getting another in a smaller frame size for her as well.

I've moved the 23mm armadillo tyres over from the old bike (they do fit the rims, just!) and performance is impressive on the road. Doesn't have quite the punch of an out-and-out racer but perfectly adequate for my needs.

would recommend it to anyone wanting a practical, affordable and enjoyable road bike.