Can I get opinions from Soma owners as to the tubing, weld, and ride quality of their bikes? I am very close to pulling the trigger on a Soma Double Cross frame & fork to build up a new cross / commuter bike and would love the feedback.

Soma offers 2 forks - the steel and the carbon fiber. I am leaning towards the steel right now. Thoughts on that as well please.

I have a Smoothie that I got used from eBay, I've only put a few hundred miles on it so far but I like the ride. Paint is perfect, welds are all fine. The seat tube binder is a little clunky looking , and I'm not crazy about the rack mounts but that's just because I'll never use them.

I have a carbon fork, can't give any info on the steel forks.

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/showthread.php?t=76028

Thanks

First, you are thinking of the Cross frame, as in cyclocross race, as in trail riding, as in touring, so if you are actually concerned with ride quality, why not an ES?

The lugged fork sounds nice, but they don't seem to specialize in forks--other frames they make use an IRD fork. I am not saying the lugged job isn't nice, but I would want to know more about it.

The Somas I have seen/ridden/demorode are nice, seemingly above-average for the rather large field of chiwanese welded frames flooding our market. I would not hesitate to go Soma if I were inclined to a frame of that type.



Can I get opinions from Soma owners as to the tubing, weld, and ride quality of their bikes? I am very close to pulling the trigger on a Soma Double Cross frame & fork to build up a new cross / commuter bike and would love the feedback.

Soma offers 2 forks - the steel and the carbon fiber. I am leaning towards the steel right now. Thoughts on that as well please.

Last year I bought a Soma Smoothie ES frame and had the components from my Trek 1200 moved over, and for me it has been a good choice.

So far, I have about 1k on the bike and my only complaint is that I went from a 54cm Trek to a 56cm Soma, which is a bit large....but that is my fault.

As for welds and paint; the welds look as good as any I have seen on any bike at the lbs, and the paint is smooth. No complaints. Keep in mind that this is just my second road bike in twenty years, so I may not be the most experienced source of information.

If you buy a Smoothie or Smoothie ES you will need to buy 'Long Reach' brakes. This is imperative. I tried to get by with the brakes from the Trek and blew a tire. As in exploded. Sounded like a 12 gage at close range. Buy the right brakes.

If I had it to do over I would buy another Soma, just the right size this time.

BTW, I am 55 and have a lot of issues with knees and hips and this is much more comfortable than the Trek.

Lastly, you can contact 'BigBill', who rides a Soma quite a bit.

I have a Soma Groove (built of 631) that my LBS built up to use as a commuter/trail/touring bike. I've had it about a year. The welds are perfect, and the paint is very nice. The LBS (it was the first one they had seen) commented on how nicely it was constructed. It really is a very nice looking and riding bike.

I have also seen quiet a few Soma's when I was down in San Francisco. I stopped into San Francisco Cycles (the Soma dealer) and they had a number on the floor. I rode the double cross while I was there, and I also liked it a lot.

In my opinion, Soma's make a great frame at a great price. I don't think you could go wrong here.

First, you are thinking of the Cross frame, as in cyclocross race, as in trail riding, as in touring, so if you are actually concerned with ride quality, why not an ES?

I was leaning towards the double cross due to the additional options for tire size (up to 38 with fenders instead of 32). And something just doesn't seem right to have to order a size 64 frame instead of a 60 to get the same sized top tube. Not to mention the increased stand over height. But I do like the lugged look and the price of the ES.

I have the Rush, and it's a great bike. Only complaint is the paint is thin and easily scratched. Otherwise, the Tange Prestige really soaks up the road noise and makes cruising around a dream.

I have a Smoothie ES frame. It looks good but I haven't built it up yet. There are no lugs on it. The paint jobs are not as nice as Gunnar but it costs about half as much.

I have a Smoothie ES frame. It looks good but I haven't built it up yet. There are no lugs on it. The paint jobs are not as nice as Gunnar but it costs about half as much.

Thanks for the catch! I was looking at the speedster when I made that statement.

About their max tire size rating... how accurate has it been for everyone? I really don't plan on putting fenders on, but I did want to be able to get at least 700x35 or 38. I know some tires run large and some run small and I bet Soma has a bit of wiggle room built into their numbers...

I looked at the Soma but went with the Surly Cross-Check for my commuter cause it was cheaper, fit me better (shorter top tube) and has more tire clearance. Quality should be the same (I think they're built in the same place). I think the Surly is about .5 pounds heavier.

Perhaps this is a really stupid idea, but: Has anyone built up a Soma (or Surly) road frame with primo top-of-the-line components...like, say, Campy Record all around? Or would that be a foolish waste of money on such a cheap frame?

Perhaps this is a really stupid idea, but: Has anyone built up a Soma (or Surly) road frame with primo top-of-the-line components...like, say, Campy Record all around? Or would that be a foolish waste of money on such a cheap frame?


sorta... when they first came out several years back I built a CC with Campy... just because I had most of the parts lying around. Had older 9-spd, old Campy cantis, a Record ti post that somebody gave me... the only non-gruppo part was an older Richey 110bcd crank (same as Chinsaki) and BB... my new one will get all those plus a new King HS. Foolish? perhaps, but what the heII

"built up a Soma (or Surly) road frame with primo top-of-the-line components?"

Mine isn't built with primo components, but reasonably good components. I have a Soma Smoothie ES, it is ultegra 10, chris king headset, FSA SLK crank, Ksyrium SSL's, Look keo carbon pedals.

The components probably cost 3x the frame cost, but it is a nice mix of comfortable, reliable, strong, and light without costing tooo much. Not really perfect, but nothing is.

My wife hinted at getting me an '07 Orbea Orca for a birthday gift but I think I talked her out of it. I dont really think I need "more" bike than I already have. I'm really happy with the Soma.

NOW - having said all that - There was a thread about a cracked frame Soma - I think it was the same model as mine, and same color - so I'm hoping mine doesn't separate the same way. I was really paranoid about it for awhile but I figure if it does break like that, I've got fairly good components to put on the next frame - so I keep on riding it. Here's a link to the cracked frame thread: http://forums.roadbikereview.com/showthread.php?t=69240&highlight=smoothie

Perhaps this is a really stupid idea, but: Has anyone built up a Soma (or Surly) road frame with primo top-of-the-line components...like, say, Campy Record all around? Or would that be a foolish waste of money on such a cheap frame?

Mine has Ritchey cranks, Ulegra/MA3 wheels, DA front der, XT short cage rear der, XT cantis, Thomson post, etc. I shopped around a bit, but figure I spent about $100-200 more than I would have for a mediocre build.

I looked at the Soma but went with the Surly Cross-Check for my commuter cause it was cheaper, fit me better (shorter top tube) and has more tire clearance. Quality should be the same (I think they're built in the same place). I think the Surly is about .5 pounds heavier.

I have looked at the CC as well - but the geometry of the DoubleCross is better for me. Isn't it great that we can pick based on that? Oh, and I have seen the DC sell for less than the CC... hmmm, must have changed recently. I did like the 700x45 instead of the 700x38 max tire size of the CC vs. DC though.

And for the record, I am planning on building it up with SRAM Rival components.

we can always pull everything from our soma/surlys if we find a 'better' frame we like...

One word about the Double Cross. I got one a year ago. The very slack seat tube puts the seat very far back compared to any other bike I have (Pista Track, Hans Scheinder Road Bike).

I've struggled to get a good position on the bike - got a seat post with no setback, have a Brooks saddle (where you sit a little more forward anyway). Still not sure I'm comfortable on it.

The build quality of the bike was ok.

Good luck.

Can I get opinions from Soma owners as to the tubing, weld, and ride quality of their bikes? I am very close to pulling the trigger on a Soma Double Cross frame & fork to build up a new cross / commuter bike and would love the feedback.

I owned a Double Cross that I used as a commuter for about six months. Weld integrity I'm sure was more than sufficient, but the quality was poor. BB welds had little had quite a lot of weld splatter like nodules that were just painted over. As others have mentioned, paint was very soft. The ride was like a pogo stick. Darn right scary hitting a big dip at speed. The rebound from the bottom of the compression flex was like getting launched.

Everyone seems to really like the Somas so maybe I'm out to lunch. Personally though, I didn't care for the frame a whole lot. YMMV.

Thanks for resurrecting this thread. I actually found a great deal on a SRAM Rival group so I jumped on it and that came in today. The frame should be something to get in the very near future.