Road.cc review - Alto CX9

road.cc review Claud Butler Alto CX9

road.cc Just in: Claud Butler Alto CX9

by David Arthur - 16 December 2014

£699 aluminium disc-equipped cyclo-cross bike gets the once-over The cyclo-cross season is in full swing and we’ve just received this Claud Butler Alto CX9 with the intention of having some fun in the woods and mixing it up through the winter. It costs £699 and comes with a Shimano Claris 2400 groupset and Avid BB5 mechanical disc brakes.

At the front we find a carbon fibre fork slotted into the nontapered head tube, and a generous stack of spacers beneath the stem provides a bit of height adjustment. Interestingly the fork features redundant cantilever brake mounts, our best guess is that it’s largely the same fork as is used on the non-disc cyclo-cross bike in Claud Butler’s range. A shame they couldn’t have removed those to clean up the lines on this disc-equipped model. There are regular quick release skewers at both wheels.

The Alto CX9 features an 6061 aluminium frame and it’s smartly detailed, with the rear derailleur cable routed along the top tube and the rest slung along the underside of the down tube, with a run of full outer casing to protect from dirt and mud. The top tube has a flattened underside, a typical feature of cyclo-cross frames, and is intended to prevent the top tube digging into your shoulder when the terrain, or obstacles, force you to dismount and sling the bike over your shoulder.

It’s a purposeful looking bike and has the versatility someone might seek in this sort of bike, for there are rack and mudguard mounts should you want to run it as a touring or daily commuting bike. The Kenda Kwick CX tyres are 30mm wide and the tread pattern should see them working well on a range of surfaces, but obviously with a large bias to churning through mud and soggy grass.

Wheels are 32-hole hole disc-specific hubs laced to double wall aluminium rims, with those Kenda tyres we mentioned earlier.

All the finishing kit, by which we mean the handlebars, stem, seatpost and saddle, are Exile branded, and while not flashy looks dependable for the money. On the scales the Alto CX9 weighs 10.9kg (24lb).

Disc brakes make perfect sense on a ‘cross bike, and the Alto CX9 is fitted with the very excellent Avid BB5 disc brakes. They’re mechanical and are operated by the Shimano 2400 Claris brake levers, which also operate the Claris front and rear mechs. There are also a second set of brake levers attached to the centre of the handlebars, which allow you to operate the brakes not just from the drops, but from the tops, which can be very useful on rough and bumpy terrain.

It does look like it’s ready to race, so perfect if you want to give cyclo-cross racing a go, or hit the trail if you’re seeking to have some fun, but equally it looks like a change of tyres and the addition of some mudguards would turn it into a really good winter training bike, or one for daily commuting. Keep those treaded tyres on and it’s ideal for exploring some local bridleways and paths to spice up your weekend road ride.

The Claris theme is continued with the chainset, in a cyclocrossfriendly 46/34t ratio - it’s a lower gearing than most road-specific chailnsets with the purpose of providing easier ratios when riding off-road in the mud and often up much steeper hills than you’ll find surfaced. It’s an 8-speed groupset with a 11-28t cassette.

We’re going to get the Alto out on the road and the trail in the coming weeks and we’ll report back soon.

The Alto CX9 is available in three sizes and costs £699. More at http://claudbutler.co.uk

road.cc review Claud Butler Alto CX9

by Stuart Kerton - 8 February 2015

Brilliant fun ‘do-it-all’ bike with a decent level of kit finish for the money With its quirky tube profiles and distinguishing paint job the Claud Butler Alto CX9 is as fun as it looks. Whether you’re after an entry level cyclo-cross bike or a do it all commuter you’re getting a decent package here for your £699. Bring on the mud!

Fun, fun, fun The biggest surprise for me was how useable the Alto is, on or off road, straight out of the box, semi knobbly tyres and all.

As a commuter I’ve got plenty of options, A roads, country lanes or canal paths and having the Alto in on test really made me think about searching for more as it didn’t matter what the surface or terrain was you could take it on without compromising elsewhere.

On road the compact frame is nippy to ride and handles just like a road bike: sharp enough to keep you entertained without being overly twitchy. Even at speeds of over 40mph the handling was very rewarding and never once felt out of control cutting through the corners. This is still with those Kenda Kwick 30mm tyres on too.

Swapping over to a set of 28mm slicks made the Alto ride even better with acceleration and speed that belies its 24lb weight. The gearing offered by the eight speed Claris groupset might only be low at 46/34t (front) and 11/28t (rear) but it’s well spaced giving you a decent setup for both climbing and head down efforts on the flat.

Take to the trails and the Alto flatters here too. I’m not an off road novice but to be honest I don’t spend much time away from the tarmac. Even in the deepest mud and slippery, tree-rooted bridleways I found I had no trouble keeping the CX9 moving with a bit of bodyweight shifting and power to the pedals. Admittedly the direction was mostly sideways as the tread of the Kendas did become a little overwhelmed when things got too muddy.

It was massively grin inspiring though, and highlighted the Claud Butler as a very useable bike for complete novices who fancy a go on the cyclo-cross scene.

Sensible and robust build kit The compact frameset is made from 6061 alloy and is easily stiff enough for the job; even on 25% climbs it didn’t show any flex around the bottom bracket area. Up front you get a carbon fibre fork which again performs well under steering load and heavy braking efforts from the BB5 mechanical discs.

Apart from the mounts for the discs you also get positions for a rack and full mudguards which all adds to its versatility as a light tourer or all weather commuter.

The welds aren’t the smoothest but neither would I expect them to be on a bike of this price or of this ilk. A little bit of agricultural engineering never looks out of place on a machine of this style.

While it’s capable as an all rounder you can see the main design intention is for it to be a ‘cross machine thanks to its cable routing and top tube profile. You tend to carry your bike a bit in a cyclocross race to get over obstacles and the CX9 uses a triangular top tube with a flattened bottom for comfort on your shoulder. The rear mech cable is moved to the top of the tube to stop it digging in too and to keep it out of the mud.

The rear brake and front mech cables run under the down tube with both being fully enclosed to make sure they run smoothly for the duration of a race or on those winter commutes when the roads are strewn in salt and grit.

You get a full Shimano Claris groupset and it’s a great bit of kit for the money too offering decent shifting even when it’s covered in mud and water. The shifters themselves feel just the same as Sora or even the latest ten speed Tiagra version.

The chainset on a separate bottom bracket with the Octalink spline that was a feature of Shimano’s top-end groupsets not very long ago. It’s a tight fit and offered plenty of stiffness here.

The rear mech takes on the look of Shimano’s more expensive components too. It’s easy to set up and stays there too. It’ll handle up to a 32-tooth sprocket so you can lower the gearing even further on the Alto if necessary.

The Avid BB5 brakes are a bit on or off for my liking. By that I mean there wasn’t much in the way of feel to them, you didn’t get much power or feedback from them unless you were hauling on them hard. I missed being able to feather the brakes in traffic like you can with the likes of TRP’s Spyre or Hy-Rd setups.

Claud Butler have specced 160mm rotors front and rear so there is certainly plenty of stopping power there should you need it.

You do get additional brake levers on the bars with the Alto to allow stopping and control from any position and they worked well. The power and feeling was the same as it was through the Claris levers so everything felt consistent.

The Exile finishing kit is basic alloy stuff but perfectly capable of everything you ask of it. The bars have a shallow drop and the upright position of the frame allows you to use them even when off road without affecting the handling.

Sturdy wheels and tyres The wheels are also Exile branded and use 32-hole, disc-specific hubs with sealed bearings. We had a lot of rain over the test period and the hubs were still running smooth and quiet when the bike was finished with so they should stand up to plenty of winter abuse.

The rims are double walled aluminium for strength and considering the abuse they took on and off road they stood up really well indeed. Smashing through potholes with the tyres pumped up hard did little to knock them out of true.

The Kenda tyres are, as I mentioned above decent performers both on and off road though you do have to compromise on pressure to get the best of both worlds. They ran sweetly at 60psi on the road only really giving away 1 mph average to some lighter slicks though on the rougher tracks this would give your wrists a bit of a hammering.

Conclusion The Alto CX9 is one of those bikes that is just a great laugh to ride whether you use it for CX, some light off road, commuting or just getting out with the family. I personally was always looking for different places to ride just to see if I could find any real weaknesses but there aren’t really any. Okay so it’s heavy and a dedicated road bike or CX bike in their intended terrain will have the edge but in terms of bang for your buck the Alto is laughing.

It has a very sensible level of kit on offer being well specced for its price point. The Claris groupset is very good indeed and looks good too. The spread of gears don’t hamper the bike on the road and the low 34/28 bottom gear makes everything rideable off road.

The geometry of the frame is suited to both terrains and makes for an engaging ride whether tapping along on the flat or taking in the climbs and descents of more hillier regions.

As a one bike does all the Alto is a great buy and coming in £300 below the bike to work scheme it leaves you plenty of spare cash to get some road tyres and even a spare set of wheels.

Verdict Brilliant fun ‘do-it-all’ bike with a decent level of kit finish for the money

road.cc test report

Make and model: Claud Butler Alto CX9 Size tested: 54 About the bike. State the frame and fork material and method of construction. List the components used to build up the bike.

Frame: 6061 Aluminium Alloy frame Fork: Carbon with alloy steerer Shifters: Shimano Claris 8spd Front mech: Shimano Claris Rear mech: Shimano Claris Chainset: 46/34T Shimano Claris Octalink Brakes: Avid BB5 Mechanical Discs, 160mm Rotors Handlebars: Exile alloy Stem: Exile Alloy Seatpost: Exile Alloy Wheelset: Exile 32 spoke, double walled alloy rims Cassette: 8spd 11/28t Tyres: Kenda Kwick 30c Saddle: Exile Tell us what the bike is for, and who it’s aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it?

How does that compare to your own feelings about the bike?

The Alto CX9 is an entry level cyclo cross bike with added versatility built in for mudguards and racks to make it an all rounder for the likes of commuting and light touring. It fills all of these roles well being as engaging to ride on road as it is off.

FRAME AND FORK Overall rating for frame and fork 7/10 Tell us about the build quality and finish of the frame and fork?

A real workhorse of a frame that’s built to take a knock or two. An impressive hardwearing paintjob too.

Tell us about the materials used in the frame and fork?

The frame uses 6061 alloy tubing while the fork has carbon fibre legs with an alloy steerer tube.

Rate the wheels and tyres for performance:

How did the bike transfer power? Did it feel efficient?

Rate the wheels and tyres for durability:

The heavy wheels and overall weight of the Alto do slow it somewhat but power transfer is pretty good. More responsive off road than on though.

Rate the wheels and tyres for weight:

Was there any toe-clip overlap with the front wheel? If so, was it a problem?

Rate the wheels and tyres for comfort:

Yes and could be a bit of an issue off road.

How would you describe the steering? Was it lively, neutral or unresponsive? Very neutral.

Tell us some more about the handling. How did the bike feel overall? Did it do particular things well or badly?

It’s very easy to ride making it perfect for beginners off road or cutting through traffic on the commute.

Which components had the most effect (good or bad) on the bike’s comfort? would you recommend any changes?

The tyres govern the comfort to be fair to a larger degree than on a true road bike so playing about with the pressures there keeps things comfort.

Which components had the most effect (good or bad) on the bike’s stiffness? would you recommend any changes?

7/10 Rate the wheels and tyres for value: 8/10 Tell us some more about the wheels and tyres.

Did they work well in the conditions you encountered? Would you change the wheels or tyres? If so, what for?

The Kenda Kwick tyres are great as they don’t feel anywhere near as sluggish on the road as I was expecting. They deal with quite large amounts of mud too.

The wheels seemed pretty bulletproof.

CONTROLS Rate the controls for performance: 7/10 Rate the controls for durability: 8/10

Rate the controls for comfort:

The heavy wheels and tyres sap acceleration.

Rate the bike for efficiency of power transfer: 7/10 Rate the bike for acceleration: 7/10 Rate the bike for sprinting: 7/10 Rate the bike for high speed stability:

7/10 8/10 Rate the controls for value: 8/10 Tell us some more about the controls. Any particularly good or bad components? How would the controls work for larger or smaller riders?

The Exile components are basic alloy but are all up to the job. I liked the compact shape of the bars.

9/10 Rate the bike for cruising speed stability: 9/10 Rate the bike for low speed stability: 9/10

Rate the bike for cornering on descents:

8/10 8/10 Rate the bike for climbing: 7/10

YOUR SUMMARY Did you enjoy riding the bike? Yes. Would you consider buying the bike? Yes. Would you recommend the bike to a friend?

Yes. Rate the bike overall for performance: 8/10 Rate the bike overall for value: 8/10 Anything further to say about the bike in conclusion?

THE DRIVETRAIN Rate the drivetrain for performance: 7/10 Rate the drivetrain for durability: 8/10

RIDING THE BIKE

Rate the drivetrain for weight:

Was the bike comfortable to ride? Tell us how you felt about the ride quality.

Rate the drivetrain for value:

Did the bike feel stiff in the right places?

Did any part of the bike feel too stiff or too flexible?

7/10

Which components had the most effect (good or bad) on the bike’s efficiency? would you recommend any changes?

Quite upright and short in the top tube which gives it controllable handling off road. There are only three sizes available and Claud Butler don’t publish a geometry chart so best to try before you buy.

The frame is stiff but not overly harsh so comfort is pretty good. With tyres of this volume though their pressure is going to have the most bearing on overall ride quality.

8/10

Rate the controls for weight:

Rate the bike for flat cornering:

A tall front end gives a more relaxed riding position and even though our test model had a 54cm top tube reach was quite short.

7/10

The Claris chainset didn’t feel as stiff as the newer thru axle versions but its very minimal.

Tell us about the geometry of the frame and fork?

How was the bike in terms of height and reach?

How did it compare to other bikes of the same stated size?

WHEELS AND TYRES

Stiffness is pretty good and I certainly didn’t feel it was found wanting in the conditions you are likely to ride it in.

7/10 8/10 Tell us some more about the drivetrain.

Anything you particularly did or didn’t like?

Any components which didn’t work well together?

Claris is a very good groupset for the money with shifting that matches the quality of Tiagra. The ratios can be gappy though considering it’s only eight-speed.

The Alto CX9’s ride really impressed me considering the overall weight and spec list. It performs with more excitement off road than it does on but being a CX bike that’s expected but it’s no slouch on the tarmac either.

On the whole if you ride on varying terrains in all sorts of weathers the Alto is a fun all rounder.

Overall rating: