Kestrel Legend Shimano 105 Bicycle

I absolutely love this bike... I have had it for about a week so far... and wanted to ride it a few times before giving a review... I will try and update as well in a couple of months after I have had some more time in the saddle to see its nuances... but here is all of the initial thoughts...1) If you are looking to get an amazing road bike, look no further... this bike is AMAZING!!! It doesn't have the best accessories on it, but the frame itself, in my opinion, is one of the best choices you can get... it is SUPER light... It is better to spend your money and get an amazing frame with modest components and upgrade those through time, than get a mediocre frame with great components, because in the end, you will have to get another bike.. just a lesson I have learned through the years of riding...2)The bike came pretty much assembled and very well packaged.... all that had to be done to get it together was screw in the handlebars, put the tires on and put in the seat post.... It was pretty much assembled out of the box and took less than 30 mins to have it put together... Even after that, I took it to a local bike shop just to have them give it a once over and make sure everything was aligned properly... It was not completely necessary, but with a bike this expensive I see it as worth the extra cost...3) The bike rides comfortably and is super light... no unusual sounds or squeaks, I have looked over it very closely and saw no paint or craftsmanship defects in the bike.4) The tires and rims are good quality, no complaints there...5) The 105 group set is okay... It was a way to keep the price of the bike low... but I will be upgrading to the Ultegra Di2 Electronic group set next year.. I am not saying anything negative about the 105 group set, but there is a reason why there are different tiers, and my old bike has Ultegra and I can definitely tell the difference...6) The seat is okay, it is not working for me personally, but everyone is different and it doesn't fit me right... I already have ordered a Brooks saddle and it should be here shortly... I personally am a fan of Selle Anatomica or Brooks saddles, and swear by them, but what saddle you choose to ride on is up to you...7) I would suggest you get an extra rear derailleur hanger from a local bike shop for the bike... These aren't extremely expensive and can save a lot of down time just in case it breaks... not so much a con, but it would have been nice if the bike had come with an extra...8) In the end, the bike is WELL worth every penny... I have a great base frame and can add and upgrade from here to make it whatever I want... knowing that I already have the frame for it...If you are on the edge about it, take my advice, this bike is worth EVERY PENNY!

Kestrel offers some of the best values in carbon frame bikes. In case you weren't aware, Kestrel, Fuji, Breezer, Nashbar, and other bike and bike part brands are owned by ASI. This means you've got expertise across multiple makes. In some cases frames may be identical from one brand to another.I bought this bike to upgrade from a nearly 20 old Schwinn Circuit (Back in the higher quality Schwinn days.) with a "CroMoly" frame and Shimano 105 components, and I'm going 2 to 3 MPH faster with about the same amount of effort. It really is a big difference weight wise and power transfer wise.The cons are the Oval Concepts crankset instead of Shimano 105, along with the Tektro brakes. I found an excellent deal on a set of Ultegra caliper brakes, so the Tektros are gone already on mine. The Oval crank unfortunately copies the silly SRAM bottom bracket style, where the drive side is 24mm and the non drive side is 22mm. This means a crankset swap to Shimano will require a bottom bracket swap as well as Shimano uses 24mm on both sides for all of its high end cranks.Note that this 2016 version bike is not really worth around fifteen hundred bucks, as you can buy the 2017 version with a full Shimano 105 groupset for that price. I managed to get the size I needed for under eleven hundred, so I went for it.

Unbeatable for the price. Came in at 17.3 pounds as advertised on Kestrel's website. The frame is noted as being manufacturered in Taiwan so made by one of the top tier manufacturers. Not the cheaper China junk you will find here on Amazon (Beiou). Buyer beware, the China direct stuff cuts corners and will crack and fail with any slight hit. I've learned my lesson already. Enough said about that though. This bike is fast and hits the spec mark to be a competent racer. It especially excels in climbing, with excellent handeling on high speed decents. Excelleration is stiff and fast...you will blow away aluminum or heavier steel frames...and it will compete with the highend snobbers who are still renting because they ride $8k to $10k bikes!

I’m a novice, so take this with a grain of salt. Two years ago I feel in love with the look and design of this bike. I looked it up on YouTube and watched the videos countless times. Other bikes I looked at online were the Motobacane, the La Pierre and the Ridley. All fabulous bikes in their own right. Finding any of these bikes to ride is next to impossible and at 6"4' I'd be lucky to find a bike my size to test ride. So, if you’re like me, timing and cost means everything. I got a great price and jumped on it. I bought a 59cm frame, which is not recommended. But, it feels good and I’ve adjusted things to fit . However, This model is the 2016 Kestrel and is not the the Super light, but coming from a steal frame bike, this is a super light. I just did my first Duathlon and the bike performed well. I was able to hang with those aero bar riders and even some triathlon bikes for a bit. A friend of mine who rides the Giant TCR took a look at the Legend and said, “I like this bike.” The moral of the story, you will not be disappointed. It is smooth, light and fast. But, you’d better hurry because there are not many left online to purchase

Excellent ride! Great climber and also good on the sprints. Bike was flawless out of the box and went together easily. The 105 groupo is bullet proof and if you're not racing professionally is all you'll ever need. I will upgrade the brakes and crankset to 105 in the future, but just for personal preference. The ones that come on it are okay. Worth every penny......

One of the best road bike for biginner. So light and good gear.

So far I have been really happy with it. I highly recommend getting a professional to do the build and fitting if you are not very familiar with it.