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Titanium is not the primary body materials that involves thoughts when excited about trendy highway efficiency. Carbon frames eat up the majority of the high-performance highway class, however that does not imply there is not a spot for a high-quality titanium bike. Simply as carbon has advanced through the years, so has titanium. Whereas there are lots of high-end titanium manufacturers on the market, Litespeed is among the originals and hasn’t stopped evolving its methods, development or geometry.
Litespeed has taken its T1sl platform and additional pushed the boundaries of titanium to its new Spice, the brand new pinnacle of the efficiency highway at Litespeed. It presents a titanium body with race-inspired geometry at a aggressive weight. The bike’s handcrafted development and tube shaping place it on a efficiency scale not usually occupied by metallic frames.
First look
At first look, the brand new Spezia is placing, with the spotlight being the prolonged formed prime tube. Litespeed tells us it is a sheet of 6AL/4V titanium that’s precision formed and manipulated to ship superior stiffness and exact real-world dealing with. The remainder of the body is 3AL/2.5V titanium, however the shaping and tube manipulations seem like current on each tube. Even the little issues have been pared down to supply low weight whereas sustaining operate and integrity, like the underside bracket shell.
Litespeed has up to date the geometry barely from the T1sl, making the bike suitable with a wider vary of element and tire selections. Whereas most of us will select a 28-30mm tire for the Spezia, the body is designed to accommodate as much as a 35mm tire. That mentioned, there will not be a lot room for filth and particles if you happen to max out the rubber and experience filth roads. One small element we seen is that the rear thru-axle dropout is strictly that, a dropout on the non-drive aspect. Because of this whenever you loosen the axle, it could keep within the hub whenever you take away the rear wheel.
Litespeed is a part of the ABG (American Bicycle Group) and presents nearly all of their customized bikes. From development to complete or colour, the convenience and choice is excellent. Our take a look at bike is a little bit of a dream construct for many of us with 12-speed Shimano Dura-Ace. It is also paired with Zipp 303 Firecrest wheels and a Zipp stem. As an added bonus, we opted for the total Ti expertise with an identical seatpost. Whereas this bike is on the increased finish of the construct scale, it topped our weight scale at simply 16.56 kilos.
First Spherical
Whereas we’ve not had the bike lengthy sufficient to offer a full take a look at report, first impressions are good. Kicking issues off is the truth that the bike arrived at our door prepared for the pedals and first experience. Assembled, tuned and pressed into the tires, that is the sort of service all of us love.
Throughout the first few laps, it is exhausting to identify alternatives because the bike is a blast. It is responsive and full of life irrespective of if we’re racing up or down the mountain. Cornering is secure and the bike feels very balanced in any respect speeds. We even gave just a few kinds of runners a experience they usually walked away smiling. Everybody talked about how the titanium experience high quality was very totally different from the carbon bikes they usually experience, however they had been impressed with its efficiency. Everybody was left questioning if carbon was the best choice for the kind of using they do.
All in all, the brand new Spezia is a contemporary efficiency highway bike. It makes use of new methods in titanium development to ship a excessive efficiency expertise. Tube shaping optimizes stiffness, aerodynamics and compliance with out compromising sturdiness. There’s an consideration to element that additional elevates the entire bundle.
With BWR San Diego simply weeks away, this may very well be the right bike for the problem. With almost 100 miles of quick paved roads and 30-40 miles of quick gravel sections damaged up alongside the complete route, La Spezia seems to be as much as the problem. The actual query is, can we need to take an nearly $13,000 bike on a experience like that? Keep tuned for the response and a full take a look at of the Litespeed Spice within the coming weeks.
Litespeed Titanium at the moment introduces the brand new normal in pure titanium highway bike efficiency: the Litespeed Spezia. Marrying all of the premium-grade engineering advantages in our arsenal, from the top-notch supplies held to our rigorous wall thickness and exact weight requirements, to proprietary tubeset manipulation to reinforce the experience, the Spezia was crafted not solely in the most effective performing highway race bike in our historical past, but additionally the lightest manufacturing titanium disc brake bike obtainable at the moment.
Impressed by the numerous terrain that the Italian area of La Spezia presents, La Spezia was conceived as an executor. From lowered drag and all-day consolation on the flats to stiffness and unbelievable weight financial savings on climbs, to surgically exact dealing with on descents, the Spezia was engineered to dominate all over the place.
The Spezia’s hallmark is in its proprietary 6AL/4V wishbone titanium higher tube. Crafted from a single sheet of titanium, the sheet is rigorously manipulated to create a faceted set of tubes. Using premium 6AL/4V titanium sheet, the Spezia saves weight over its 3AL/2.5V prime tube counterpart, however extra importantly, as a consequence of its inherent tensile power, the Spezia beneficial properties better torsional stiffness and stiffens the general really feel of the bike. bike over all the things. It is that benefit that sees the Spezia as a wildly superior climber, in addition to providing a protected and exact driving expertise on descents.
The triaxially ovalized Spezia down tube can also be a marvel of design; as an alternative of the easy spherical tube presentation, the Spezia downtube profile adjustments form to maneuver within the wind with better ease than a easy spherical tube set, with these form adjustments delivering targeted efficiency. Widened on the backside bracket for a wider stance and elevated stiffness, and ovalized close to the top tube for a good better efficiency edge, Spezias formed tubes obtain in ways in which spherical tubes cannot.
From the trendy geometry to the as much as 35mm tire clearance, to the choice for a T47 threaded backside bracket, the Spezia leads the best way in each respect. Like each Litespeed, it contains a full vary of titanium small elements. From our dropouts and beefed-up backside bracket to the intricacy of our shelled two-piece disc brake mount, all La Spezia parts are designed and handcrafted in-house on our CNC machines, guaranteeing all parts meet or exceed our weight and power requirements.
La Spezia will characteristic various graphic remedy choices and upgrades, from our vary of eight complimentary vinyl graphic choices and etched end, to our TiDize colour anodize, providing La Spezia riders a really custom-made look and magnificence for his or her experience .
Lo Spezia can be obtainable in sizes from additional small to additional giant. One measurement medium body weight 1,120 grams.
Some traits of the spice embrace:
- 6AL/4V prime tube and 3AL/2.5V titanium body, drawn, formed, tuned and welded to exacting requirements to make sure constant efficiency and weight financial savings.
- Wishbone Prime Tube: A tube shaped from high-strength 6AL/4V sheet metallic, providing unmatched stiffness and an unmatched dealing with benefit.
- Bolstered head tube and backside bracket to save lots of weight.
- All small titanium elements, together with the underside bracket shell, head tube and dropouts, are CNC machined in-house to Litespeed requirements to satisfy efficiency and weight requirements.
- Up to date geometry for precision dealing with.
- Optimized for tires from 25mm to 35mm.
- T47 threaded backside bracket improve possibility obtainable.
- A variety of buyer chosen construct choices, together with drivetrain choices, wheelset, seatpost, tire and saddle selections, and end choices, with particular element orders upon request.
Outfitted with Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 12-speed, Zipp 303 Firecrest wheelset and our premium TiDize anodizing choices, the Spezia can be priced at $12,489. The Spezia begins at $7,999 geared up with Shimano Ultegra Di2 elements.
La Spezia is hand made at American Bicycle Teams 48,000 sq. foot facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee. All Spice construct choices will be configured and ordered immediately on-line at Litespeed.com or ordered via Litespeed’s world community of specialty resellers.
Like all Litespeed fashions, the Spezia is rider-friendly in relation to delivery, meeting, and mechanical service. Litespeed presents its premium Dwelling.Supply.Proper supply possibility, bringing your absolutely constructed Litespeed to your door, absolutely assembled and able to experience. When shipped in Litespeeds Probox, a motorbike arrives at clients 90% assembled and takes solely minutes to assemble. All a bicycle owner wants is a fundamental understanding of bicycle mechanics and two sizes of allen keys. On the backside of the Litespeed dwelling web page, there are dwelling bike constructing movies to assist with the method.
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