Cinelli Nemo Tig Athena

Cinelli's Nemo Tig is a high quality steel framed road bike that puts in a strong performance. It's responsive and fun to ride, with great balance and poise on both the ups and the downs. The only real downside for using steel is the weight, but if you're after a great-looking and riding bike for general road riding, rather than something to race on, this Cinelli is well worth your consideration.

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The ride: steely

It's possible to build a sweet-handling bike out of anything, if you know what you're doing. But different materials bring different properties to the mix, and for steel what you're expecting from a good frame is a lively feel, a springiness that makes the bike feel fluid underneath you.

The Nemo Tig is crafted from Columbus Spirit tubing. Spirit tubesets are constructed from Columbus Niobium steel which contains manganese, chrome, nickel, molybdenum and niobium. It's heat treated after forming, to increase its tensile strength; in terms of material properties it's similar to Reynolds 725.

The tube shaping and frame construction have more of an impact on the feel of a frame than the grade of steel used, though. The Nemo Tig has an oversized head tube to add stiffness at the front and the down tube is flattened at the press fit bottom bracket to the same end. Other than that, and the flattened chainstays, the tube profiles are clasically round and the colour-matched carbon fork is sleek enough to blend in too.

From the off, the Cinelli is a fun bike to ride. I was piloting it around the hills of Emilia Romagna in Northern Italy, and the road surfaces there are interesting, to say the least. The Nemo felt composed over the rougher tarmac without feeling detached, and on the smoother surfaces it was happy to zing along quietly and without fuss.

> Read our guide to the best steel road bikes and frames

It's an engaging bike to ride, and it certainly gives you that lively feel you want from a steel bike without ever feeling vague. The front end is stiff and direct in the turn: this is a bike that's a lot of fun to point down a fast descent, even on a variable surface. On open bends with good visibility, when it was possible to point the bike at the apex and hold your speed, it never missed the mark. It's an assured descender.

The stiff alloy Cinelli Vai stem and bar helped there, without being so stiff as to render the bike uncomfortable. It's designed to be comfy over long distances; it doesn't have the surface-taming qualities of something like a Trek Domane or Specialized Roubaix, but it does a good job of holding the middle ground between super-stiff race bikes and comfort-orientated endurance bikes. I completed some long (150km+) rides without feeling like I'd reached my limit, comfort-wise.

On punchy climbs and sprints, when it's time to get out of the saddle and give it the gas, the Nemo is excellent fun. It's not as stiff at the back as a big-section carbon frame, but it's not so flexy as to cause any issues. Under full power it was possible to induce a bit of brake rub at the back but that's as likely to be from flex in the wheels as the frame; in reality a combination of both. The 35mm Miche Altur wheelset wasn't the highlight of the bike, but they're dependable alloy wheels and they feel stable at speed. The rear didn't survive being run into by a Bolognese moto rider, but that's not really a fair test, nor one I want to repeat.

Weighty matters

The weight in the wheels and the frame mean that overall weight comes in at just under 8.5kg. You could build the bike up with lighter choices and have a finished bike in the 7s, but it's not really designed to compete on weight with carbon. I never found the weight of the bike to be an issue, really. There's plenty of climbing to be done around Riccione and the Nemo made it up everything, including the Giro d'Italia stage finish to the ski station at Eremo, without fuss.

Would it have been quicker on a superlight carbon race machine? Yes, a bit. But it didn't curtail the enjoyment one bit. Having a slightly lower gear than 34x27 on some of the steeper climbs would have made some of the riding a bit more enjoyable, though.

Other than the lack of a rescue sprocket, I don't really have many complaints about the Campagnolo Athena groupset. Changes were crisp and reliable, and the new lower position of the downshift lever means it's a lot easier to reach from the drops than previous incarnations. Once or twice the bike shipped the chain when dropping to the smaller chainring, which a chain catcher would have avoided.

Aesthetically, the groupset certainly suits the bike, which was unanimously regarded as a very pretty thing. The metallic purple finish is exquisite and really shines in the Italian sun. Silver, red, black or yellow frames are also available if purple's not your thing. It's a classic-looking machine, with external cabling and simple profiles, but the ride is very much modern steel.

Threaded v press-fit

Any gripes? Well, I wish it had been given a threaded bottom bracket. Not that I had any issues with the press-fit one in a week of sunny riding, but on a bike like this, where aesthetics and ride quality are higher priorities than stiffness, it's incongruous. A press-fit BB gives you a wider shell to work with, so carbon bikes can increase the size of the down tube and chainstays for a rock-solid core. Even then, I'm not convinced that your average Joe (ie me) can really feel the benefit. I've ridden threaded-BB carbon bikes (like the excellent Raleigh Revenio 4 that I borrowed for a previous Italy week) that are plenty stiff enough to deal with anything I throw at them, and I'm a big lad.

The Nemo Tig doesn't even make use of the wider shell: everything that's welded on could have been welded to a 68mm threaded bottom bracket. So it's a shame the bike doesn't have one. They're easier to service and less prone to issues.

Other than that, there's very little about this bike that I'd change. If it was my money I'd probably go for some lighter, shallower wheels and a carbon seatpost, but as specced it was a very enjoyable bike to ride and a brilliant companion for a week in the Italian hills. It'd be just at home back here on the patchy UK tarmac.

Verdict

High quality steel Sunday bike with an involving ride and a classic look