Bike choice once i reach my personal goal (Look or Wilier)

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slick1
Posts: 213
Joined: Wed Nov 30, 2005 1:35 am

by slick1

G'day all,

just a bit of background. I am a cyclist and I used to race until my niece passed away. After that, my and my wifes world started to go in a downhill direction fast. As a result, i put on about 15kg and didn't ride at all for a few years. Thankfully, we started getting over the tragedy and have started training again. I've lost 4 out of the 15kg and still need to lose about 9 or so kg's. I want to get down to 85kg or 86kg.

I currently have Wilier Alpe D'Huez and also a Merida Scultura 909. I enjoy riding the Wilier more but I have decided to get a new bike once I get down to the weight I want.

i have narrowed it down to 2, maybe 3 bikes to choose from. The LOOK 695, Wilier Zero 7 or Wilier Cento SR.

I haven't ridden any of them but i like the colour scheme of the LOOK. Plain black with the LOOK writing outlined in white. Simple but nice.

Does anybody have pro's or con's on any of these bikes? i'd prefer to get real peoples opinions as the opinion of the bike store will tell you whatever to sell you the frames they stock.

Thanks

by Weenie


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Romper
Posts: 12
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 11:41 pm

by Romper

I have logged about 12000 km on a 2013 Wilier Cento 1 SR since September 2013. Very solid through the bottom bracket combined with the ISP makes for a stiff and responsive ride. Build quality and paint is excellent and running Dura Ace 9070 Di2 with internal battery so the bikes clean lines are maintained. Coincidentally, I am around 80kgs.

I would certainly consider buying another Wilier when it's time to replace.

Best bet would be to demo your selections and go with what fits you best, all are quality frame sets.

Nutellaurent
Posts: 91
Joined: Sun Aug 25, 2013 6:43 pm
Location: Senigallia

by Nutellaurent

i got a zero7 some months ago, and i'm very happy with it. such a good ride. so in my opinion, get the zero7 :)

Wcl4
Posts: 193
Joined: Thu Apr 12, 2012 4:33 am

by Wcl4

I've owned all three bikes. They each have their pros and cons to me and a lot will depend on what you'd be looking for. This is all my opinion based on my riding these frames. There are no articles backing my opinions below. I don't live in a particularly hilly area, so I can't speak to climbing or prolonged high speed descents.

The Zero 7 for me was part of a lightweight experiment that didn't quite go as planned. I had expected a 750g frame that ended up 800g, which was one of the reasons I sold it. But that said, it is a very sharp handling bike. What I remember most about the frame is that it requires a lot of attention in its handling. It's not forgiving to the inputs, and in return it rewards the rider with very sharp handling. I don't know what the wheelbase is but I suspect it's a touch shorter than the SR. The laminated film does a nice job of muting out vibrations while retaining a feel for the road surface.

The Cento SR is sort of a hybrid evolution of the previous generation Centos. I've owned both the Cento 101 and the Cento 101 Superleggera. The Cento 101 was a supremely supple ride deserving of the "magic carpet ride" moniker. It's weakness though was the steering didn't feel as solid or stable as the new generation tapered steer tubes - it's a great long distance rider with perhaps some light racing (don't know since I don't race, but that would be my guess). But I liked it so much that I sold it and bought the 101 Superleggera.

The 101 S was a bit too harsh for my tastes and a very different feeling ride than the 101. Although the geometry is the same, it seemed to have lost a bit of the magic that made the 101 so endearing. Now the Cento1 SR feels somewhere in between the two bikes. It's not as harsh as the 101 S, but firmer than the 101. The new tapered steer tube has really tightened up the steering. It can be ridden leisurely or hammered. Although the film on the Zero 7 made that ride a bit more supple, I personally prefer the SR for the smoother, more predictable handling. I also prefer the look of the bike with internal cables and integrated fork. Wilier did a nice job of keeping the flavor of the 101 while improving on the weaknesses.

The Look 695 (non SR) ride quality is tremendously affected by the different stiffness elastomers. I really didn't like the ride quality with the red as the frame felt a little dead to me. It really soaks up the road vibration in a way that almost makes the bike feel like its floating. I changed it to grey (soft) and the bike felt closer to the Wilier 101. It is supple, has a bit more communication with the road than with the red, but still feels a bit lighter than the Wilier. Not sure if you've ever ridden in a BMW vs Lexus, but that's the best analogy I can make. That said, the most stunning part about the Look to me is the crankset. The lightness/stiffness or whatever it is gives the illusion that it's easier to pedal with this bike. The handling on the Look is predictable and not twitchy. The downside to the Look is the clearcoat - it seems to be too easily affected by pebbles, chain slap, or whatever hits it - not that it chips off - the clearcoat just separates from the carbon at that point and creates a "white" spot.

You can't really go wrong with any of these bikes as they're all top notch. As people always say, go for the one that fits best, but if you can't test ride these bikes, for me personally, I like the road feel and looks of the Cento1 SR. A close second choice would be the Look. The Zero unfortunately was tainted by my lightweight experiment and its steering was just too twitchy.

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jmilliron
Posts: 2012
Joined: Thu Jun 17, 2010 5:03 pm
Location: Denver, CO

by jmilliron

Got 15,000 km on my Cento1SR. Love it. Super stiff, rails the turns and fits me great.

However, it's not a very light bike. After owning a few weight weenie builds, I decided it's simply not what I enjoy riding.
2013 Wilier Cento1 SR || 2009 Ridley Crossbow || 2011 Yeti AS-R 5 Carbon

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mrowkoob
Posts: 1472
Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2004 7:35 pm
Location: Middle of nowhere, EU

by mrowkoob

If you go from older style Cento , Cento1 or even SL to the latest SR be sure to take in consideration that the SR has a far more agressive geometry than previous Centos.
The unbearable wallet lightness of being a weightweenie

wingguy
Posts: 4318
Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2012 11:43 pm

by wingguy

Wcl4 wrote:The Zero 7 for me was part of a lightweight experiment that didn't quite go as planned. I had expected a 750g frame that ended up 800g, which was one of the reasons I sold it. But that said, it is a very sharp handling bike. What I remember most about the frame is that it requires a lot of attention in its handling. It's not forgiving to the inputs, and in return it rewards the rider with very sharp handling. I don't know what the wheelbase is but I suspect it's a touch shorter than the SR. The laminated film does a nice job of muting out vibrations while retaining a feel for the road surface.


Funny how different people ride, the handling is probably my favourite thing about my Zero.7. It's definitely very light on turn in but the frames so good at soaking up the road that it stays planted through any corner. Heck, I tried an R5CA (on Enve 3.4s even) and I prefer the Zero.7 (on Shamals day to day) just for that reason - it's simply fun.

For sprinting the CentoSR is a shade stiffer, but the Zero.7 already has fantastic power transfer and is a heck of a lot lighter, on average somewhere around half a kilo I'd say.

The Look is a very well engineered bike, but personally I don't like having to go down certain equipment routes with the way they've integrated things. I'd never buy an 695Aerolight because the Aerostem you're locked into using is made of tissue paper - the C-stem on the 695Light is a lot stronger, but still, I prefer customisation over integration. YMMV.

wyc8lme
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Jul 29, 2016 12:07 pm

by wyc8lme

I'm still a bit confused about all of this. Reaching a personal goal is a great result, in general. My congratulations! If you're curious, you might be interested in reading this post - click here http://bigpaperwriter.com/blog/personal-goals--what-to-consider-personal-goals and see the full version of the article. Have a pleasant reading!

by Weenie


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Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

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Jman
Posts: 84
Joined: Wed Jan 20, 2010 3:17 pm

by Jman

wyc8lme wrote:I'm still a bit confused about all of this. Reaching a personal goal is a great result, in general. My congratulations! If you're curious, you might be interested in reading this post - click here http://bigpaperwriter.com/blog/personal-goals--what-to-consider-personal-goals and see the full version of the article. Have a pleasant reading!


You do realize this is over 2,5 yo thread?

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