2002 Seven Odonata
Seven Odonata
Seven Cycles emerged in the late ‘90’s from the remnants of Merlin Metalworks when Merlin moved to Tennessee from Massachusetts and some of their employees did not.
The new bike brand quickly made a reputation for themselves with flawless construction techniques (check out those titanium welds!), innovative designs and as a place where custom elements would be welcome requests and not irritations to be discouraged.
This Odonata has an interesting take on the mixed carbon/titanium frameset idea. Instead of the typical titanium front triangle mated to carbon seat and chain stays the Odonata employs a carbon fiber seat tube and seat stays. A mix designed for riding comfort above all other considerations? Different for the sake of being different? A bike company playing around with new materials to see how things work? Yes.
This Odonata is a “stock” model with typical geometry for a 60cm bike. It rides great. Seven’s custom stuff is another story.
Most of Seven’s custom Odonatas and their other custom bikes do not ride well, even for their intended owners. Their custom bikes, in my opinion, are almost universally terrible. I suspect a company philosophy that says the customer is always right or a tendency to see custom as the ultimate solution are the problems. As a mechanic I have been asked to fix handling issues on custom Sevens that no amount of adjustment would ever fix and I know of a dozen truly atrocious Sevens hanging in garages around Bainbridge Island even today.
Seven badge
Titanium front end
FSA crankset
Ultegra drivetrain, Torelli wheels
A mix of carbon fiber & ti
Carbon seat stays but a ti brake bridge
For example, my friend Chuck ended up with a custom 62cm Seven (he’s 6’3” tall) with a 53cm top tube and fitted with a 14cm stem to compensate for that short top tube for some reason. The bike just wanted to wheelie all the time. The pedal overlap with the front wheel was a real hazard. Too embarrassed to admit that he’d paid $5000 for a bike that could barely be ridden, Chuck eventually moved the parts onto a stock Colnago frame and scrapped that Seven. Another Seven that I have worked on over the years features a 54cm seat tube, a 49cm top tube and a head tube that would be appropriate for an extra large bike. The gal who rides it (who has pretty normal flexibility and proportions for her 5’7” height) is terrified of wet roads and will only ride her Seven on dry days…
I’m sure nobody wanted to create these custom abominations, but without the will to tell a customer “No” or advise against elements that would result in horrible handling characteristics, their reputation in the bike world is less than polished.
This particular stock Odonata, like I said, rides great. The mixed carbon & metal theme is carried over into the Torelli Aspect wheels (carbon fiber rims with an aluminum brake surface), the Wound-Up carbon & aluminum seatpost and the two-tone Fizik Pave saddle. The Ultegra brakes and shifting elements worked reliably while the FSA Gossamer crank delivered the lowered gear range that riders in the early ‘00’s demanded.