specialized sirrus vs. cannondale Road Warrior 3

[eightone]

I am helping my boyfriend get a new bike. We have narrowed it down to these two and price would say that the road warrior is better but I was wondering why it has mainly MTB components... does this matter? Is the road warrior worth the extra money? Which one is overall better?

Specialized Sirrus (500$)
http://www.bikepedia.com/QuickBike/BikeSpecs.aspx?Year=2008&Brand=Specialized&Model=Sirrus&Type=bike

Cannondale Road Warrior 3 ($650)
http://www.bikepedia.com/QuickBike/BikeSpecs.aspx?Year=2008&Brand=Cannondale&Model=Road+Warrior+3&Type=bike

If you have any other suggestions to check out, I am more than open, thanks for any help!

[Fredwina]

The Cannondale does have have bit wider gear on the back (11-28 vs 12-25) This may be why it MTB Dérailleurs(to handle the range), I
The Cannondale's frame is made in Bedford, PA, so that would count for some of the extra $(vs far east for the Sirrus)
I have a Sirrus from 2002 it's great bike, consider how much I paid for it
Also, The 'dale does bar ends
wheels, I'd rather have the plain ol wheels on the Sirrus than the fancy one on the dale
Probably didn't help out much :o
which one does he like better?

[OakLeaf]

You know, part of the reason I got a Cannondale last year is because people told me the frame was made in the USA. But afterward, I have not been able to verify that. Their website doesn't claim it and the frames don't bear a Made in USA sticker the way they used to. (Thankfully that wasn't the only reason I chose that bike!) Fredwina, do you know for a fact that that is true?

[Fredwina]

In this particular, yes. If you look at the link the OP provided. you can make the "handmade in the USA" sticker on the seat stays.
As a rule, no. I think the full carbon 'dale (synapse and the sixes) are far east. if it has AL in frame, my understanding is it's from Bedford. Part of the reason I went with specialized - it has a sticker saying it came from the "other" china (I work across the street from the "Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles" aka Taiwanese Consulate)

[tulip]

Eightone, which bike does your boyfriend like best? Which is more comfy? He might want to consider test riding lots of models and going for the one that feels best.

[missjulied]

I don't know which one is better, but I got a Specialized Sirrus a couple of years ago for commuting, and I really like it. It handles well and is pretty tough for not being too heavy.

[eightone]

Thank you for all the help so far! He really liked the cannondale best from all the bikes we found. However, the Sirrus was much too small for him.

All of the places we went to had bikes we wanted to try, but they didn't have the right size for him to test ride. For instance, he wanted to try the RW 4 but they didn't have one setup, so he tried the RW 3. He also wanted to try an FCR 3 or 2 but they only had the women's versions set up.

What do you do in that instance? As for the sirrus, that store said if he liked it then they'd order one for us, but how are you supposed to know if you like it when you ride one much too small for you? Anyone else run into this problem? What do you do about it?