I need a new frame and thinking about the VWD but $2,100 is a big difference in cost for 170 grams?

I am a club rider and suck on the hills which is why it might be worth the cost?

Eat one less donut a week and spend the saved time climbing one more hill

Imho it's not worth it. There are better placed to spend 2 grand

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"Stay cool and try to survive" A. Klier to the other members of the Garmin classics squad the night before P-R.

With kind of money you can easily loose more than 170 grams on components other than the frame, so no not worth it. Get yourself a nice pair of wheels, cranks or one of those lovely AX-lightness stem/handlebar combo's.

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My Renovo R1 wooden bike project

Check it out: the most amazing vintage Colnago, Merckx and Pinarello collection

That's 170 grams you'll never be able to get back, so go for it!

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Its a joke! (the Avatar)

Team. I prefer the paint scheme.

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2013 Wilier Cento1 SR || 2009 Ridley Crossbow || 2011 Yeti AS-R 5 Carbon

+1 team is a much better looking colorway......and the VWD is waaaay of the $/gram scale!

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2012 Fuji Altamira SE - 6.42kg

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Break it down...

S5 - $3,000 - 1150g
S5 Team - $3,800 - 1050g
S5 VWD - $5,900 - 900g

You're paying an extra $800.00 to save 100g with the S5 to S5 Team. You're paying an extra $2,100.00 to save 150g over the Team, or paying an extra $2,900.00 for the VWD over the normal S5 to save 250g.

You could buy TWO S5's for the price of saving 250g. Just think of what else you could spend nearly $3,000 on that would be SO much more rewarding than having a bike that's hardly even noticeably lighter.

Even that extra $800 bucks for the Team edition seems it could be put to better use, than saving 100g.

+1

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Berk Composites

I understand that for 2013 they will make just two models the S5 and the S5 VWD. Not sure what the weight of the base model will be. The paint scheme for 2013 looks much better and I think both models will look almost the same.

Do you have any more info on '13 Cervelo stuff?

I understand that the VWD frame is sub 1000g. My S5 Team 58cm is 1389g (inc fittings). So you could save up to a pound ?

How much do you weigh?

Next time you start a ride, have the water bottle only 3/4 full. See if that improves your hill climbing. The reality is if that doesn't make a noticeable difference then you need to look elsewhere for your climbing improvement.

Gram cutting is fun - but there's more to being fast. Please see the attempt to help in my reply - cheers.

What I'm about to say may get me disbarred from WW but... .

Before you pull any triggers, ask yourself how you would feel if you spent the extra $2,100 (that's two months rent for me) and _still_ sucked on the hills. If you would still have the joy of owning a balls-expensive frame, and can afford it, sure, support the industry. If you think you might feel any regret, go for the (relatively) parsimonious option, ride more, and enjoy the experience.

Save the $2,900, get the entry-level set and get yourself better everything with that cash. Those upgrades will probably save you way more than 300 grams, and will do a lot more for the bike overall.

I like the base-level colour scheme the most. If you want a really kickass looking frame, you could spend $800 or so and have it custom painted by Hot Tubes or Velocolour in the R5CA matte black scheme and still keep the warranty. I suspect the white paint on the base model is what accounts for the difference in weight with the Team frame, so I think such a custom frame could come in lighter. However, the forks are different between the two models, the base has the FK26 SL fork while the Team/VWD have FK26 UL forks. Apparently the latter is lighter.

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2012 Cannondale CAAD10

If you have a limited budget then i agree with the others, spend the money elsewhere. If however, you are trying to weight weenie the hell out of this bike and are going to slowly upgrade every component to the lightest available until the only place to drop weight is on the frame then buying a heavier frame now is actually a false economy. The logic of $/gram, and skip a meal to save weight off your own body has limited relevance here, this is weight weenies. Half these guys have no padding on their saddle, nylon bolts and ride 'everyday' tubulars to save weight. Logic left here a long time ago.

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Evo 5.63kg SL3 7.045kg viewtopic.php?f=10&t=110579" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;