Category Archives: Bike

46T Gemini chainring arrived in the mail. Thing of beauty! 95g on my scales.

His and Hers.

Finally got around to chopping the chimney.

Back in black. Off with the Corsa PRO Speeds, on with Pirelli P Zero Race RS clinchers in 26C.

160mm cranks from my Allez Sprint (still waiting for my Gemini chainring to arrive).

Going down!

Still to fit: Custom order JUIN ETF-A. Weight Weenie brakes at 71g per caliper.

LOL.

Less on learned? Do not use quick links twice.

Crazy light (OEM axles weighed 52g a pair).

I’m always on the lookout for lighter parts for the SL8. Overfast carbon thru axles have always been tempting but I’ve never been confident about using carbon for such a crucial part.

I’ve had my eye on the EXS titanium thru axles on the Panda Podium online shop ever since building up my Allez Sprint, and more recently I went to check them out again and found that Joe is now selling RideNow Titanium Thru Axles for the SL8 which not only come in lighter, but slightly cheaper too so I ordered a set.

They came in a nice wooden box and weighed in at 25g. I got to installing them but found that they sunk in way past the fork and frame (the OEM thru axles sit very flush). I sent a message off to Joe at Panda Podium and after sending some photos he got back to me to let me know that RideNow had forgotten to include spacers in my package.

He very quickly sent me 2 spacers, they’re conical, but very thin, and whilst they have stopped the axles threading out on the other side, the head of the axles still sits further into the frame. Not the best looking IMHO, bit of a shame.

It’s advised that you do not grease these axles like you do the OEM ones, instead you use Anti-Seize Compound (lucky I had some from my Better Bolts Ti bolt kit). And the torque recommendation is 10nm instead of 15nm (as suggested by Specialized).

No issues so far. Bike weighs in at 6.46kg’s now.

I just received and installed the Silca 105 Titanium Derailleur Hanger for SRAM for my S-Works SL8. Lovely little thing. The product listing states 2-6g lighter than the stock hanger, but sadly it’s actually 2g heavier than the OEM S-Works SL8 hanger at 11g vs the standard hanger at 9g. Not a big deal as it does look a lot sturdier than the stock unit, but a little disappointed with false advertising so I reached out to Silca and they’ve apologised and offered a full refund. I’ve decided to keep it on though. I’ve yet to test it but I doubt it’ll make as much of a difference as the Framesandgear direct mount on the Dogma (which has Dura-Ace).

The knuckle to be replaced.

The hype is real. Always wanted one, but SRAM already is a direct mount so now that I finally have Shimano (on the Dogma) the first modification I ordered was a direct mount rear derailleur hanger from Framesandgear. Sadly, it never got to me so I reached out to them and it turns out the package was returned. Kristoffer at Framesandgear was a champ about it though and resent the parcel with FedEx and it got to me in 2 days.

Fitting was super easy and I can 100% confirm improved shifting (it’s lighter too!). Very happy, what a great little product.

For the Dogma, because wavy.

The Romin EVO Pro with Mirror, hands down the most comfy saddle I’ve ever owned.

Buying speed. I’ve been riding the Dogma F a fair bit lately. Last Wednesday I was at the park with Eugene and we ran into Max Mann and Jen Kay (both MAAP ambassadors). Happy to say that we kept up with them for 5 laps, but by the end of it my legs were ripped off, and I couldn’t help but wish I was on my SL8 instead.

So in an attempt to buy more speed I dropped in to CCACHE to pick up the #1 tyre on Bicycle Rolling Resistance; the Vittoria Corsa PRO Speed. I went with 26C because I truly don’t need the extra comfort (or weight) of 28C tyres, and the heavy Aero 111 is wasted on the super stable Roval CLX II front wheel.

Of-course I put the new tyres on the scales and whilst one of them came in at 236g the other way WAY heavier. I was thinking to myself that there’s no way in hell the discrepancy between 2 of the same tyres would be so much, it turns out one of them was a Corsa PRO Speed and the other was a Corsa PRO. Same exact graphics, same packaging. DOH!

I dropped in to CCACHE (LBS) again today to exchange the wrong tyre for the right one (thank F there was one in stock) and have now got the tyres on and I’m ready to roll!

UPDATED SPECS:

2025 S-Works Tarmac SL8
Gloss Dove Grey / Silver Dust Blurred Impasto / Black Pearl
Size 52

Brake Rotors: Galfer E1 160mm/140mm (97g/79g)
Brake Pads: Absolute Black Graphen (40g)
Brake Adapter: Chaser (7g)
Shift Levers: SRAM RED E1
Derailleurs: SRAM RED E1
Cassette: SRAM RED 10-33t (207g)
Chain: SRAM RED E1
Crankset: SRAM RED E1 with Power Meter 165mm
Chainrings: SRAM Red E1 48/35
Pedals: Xpedo Thrust SL Titanium (165g)
Bottom Bracket: SRAM DUB BSA 68
Front Wheel: Roval Rapide CLX II 51mm
Rear Wheel: Roval Rapide CLX II 60mm
Tyres: Vittoria Corsa PRO Speed TLR 26C (236g/236g)
Inner Tubes: Tubolito 60mm Front, 80mm Rear (23g/24g)
Lockrings: Absolute Black (10g)
Stem: Roval Rapide Cockpit 380mm/90mm (299g)
Top Cap: Hopp + bolt (4g)
Bar Ends: Lucendi UL (2g)
Bar Tape: Burgh CCACHE
Saddle: S-Works Romin EVO with Mirror 143mm (189g)
Seatpost: Darimo 0mm offset (104g)
Computer Mount: MagCAD (18g)
Bottle Cage: S-Works Carbon Rib Cage III (23g)
Bolts: Better Bolts Ti bolt kit

WEIGHT: 6.49kg

The standard seatpost was 198g.

Took a long time to arrive just like the other 2 Hylix seatposts I have (SL6 and Allez Sprint), but as expected, it’s a lot lighter than stock and also fits perfectly. Also like the other 2 Hylix seatposts I have, the head can be flipped from negative offset to positive, though due to this particular design the seatpost still looks like a setback seatpost.

It’s not as good looking as the official Pinarello 0 offset seatpost (failed to find one) but it is half the weight and it has done the job. I’ve moved the saddle forwards another 10mm (with a little more room to move forwards if I have to) and from sit point of the saddle to centre of the bars I’m now only 10mm longer on the Dogma F vs. the SL8 (SL8 has a 90mm stem, Dogma has a 120).

I rode some hard (for me) laps at the park yesterday with MAAP Ambassadors Max Mann and Jennifer Kay and feel like the fit is now dialled in. That said, the Dogma F feels really sluggish in comparisson to the SL8. I have no doubt that I’m working harder to maintain a 30km/hr average. Yes, it does feel planted, but to me that translates to heavier and less lively.

I am enjoying the Dura-Ace shifting though, and have it set up like SRAM now so I no longer have to use my brain to shift up and down the rear cassette from the right lever.

As much as I’d love to see what the bike would feel like if it was 1kg lighter I’m not sure I’m going to bother. I like the SMP saddle a lot, and it’s DAMN heavy, so reducing weight here or there to negate the extra saddle weight just seems unrewarding.

That said I have ordered a new front wheel (the Princeton wheel is packed and ready to go to the US for warranty), it’s a bit… different. More of an experiment. Will post updates as soon as it arrives.