My race season starts less than a month ahead, so I have to complete my race bike. Currently I'm riding a Merckx Team SC (scandium) bike - see topic "My Merckx Team SC". I will use this bike as well in some flat preparation races.

My goal: to build an UCI legal weight weenie bike, thus 6,8kg !

Everything starts with the Eddy Merckx I've got sponsored. All affordable suggestions to build a decent, light race bike are welcome. The goal of this bike is to be perform well, to use highly reliable components for hard race use... and still be light, within the damn UCI-restriction.


I will update the first post of this topic every now and then (new picture, change the build list).




Build list:


frame: Eddy Merckx MXM - Easton GX2 carbon monocoque frame
fork: "Merckx" Easton EC90
headset: Campagnolo Record (integrated)
wheels: CarbonSports Lightweight Obermayers 16/20 -> thx to my anonymous sponsor and LJ for the upgrade to the Obies
cassette: Campagnolo Record 11-23
tubulars: Veloflex carbon
skewers: Tune AC 16+17 Gold - shortened by TS-Bikes
cranks: FSA SRM K-Force 175mm
chainrings: carbon Fibre-Lyte 34/50 chainrings
bottom bracket: FSA Mega-Exo
pedals: Shimano Ultegra SPD-SL - will change for Dura-Ace off course
rear derailleur: Campa Record
front derailleur: Campa Record
brakes: Zero Gravity - thx to Sharkman - 161 gr
brake pads: Corima carbon - 3 gr
shifters: Campa Record Ultra
chain: KMC X10SL Gold, WW of the Year prize! - max. 239gr.
seatpost: "Eddy Merckx" Selcof carbon
seatpost clamp: Campagnolo
saddle: AX-Lightness Apollo - 69 gr
bars and stem: Deda Alanera Squadra Corse - 398 gr
bar tape: Deda silver carbon
cables: Nokon black (brake + derailleur cables)
bottle cages: Elite Patao carbon normal diameter -> thx to LJ !!

current weight: unknown

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Hi Casran
That's a beautiful looking frame. I can't wait to see it finished. Have you thought about changing the skewers to M2Racer and the same for the seatpost clamp? That should shave a few more grams off the total.

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You can never have too much carbon fibre....!

there arrn't many "improvements" you could make to that bike, I am sure it will be around 6.8kg now??

The only thing that I could see worth changing is the seatpin, but it is merckx and goes well with the frame

Casran,

Beautiful bike, very classic, like everything was meant to go together. Are you sure you will have to cut weight? What tires are you thinking of, I really liked my Tufos but one race where it rained the crap on the road left them with tons of slits (still finished the race but then they deflated.) I"m looking forward to getting some Veloflex this year if people think they're worth the money. Otherwise, I can get good deals on Vittoria and Ritchey (anyone know who makes ritchey tubulars??)

Gotta say, that frame, those LW's and your suggested build list looks like a winning combination already. Visually stunning and tough enough for hard race use.

First of all, a brief history of the bike.

It came in directly from Eddy Merckx bikes in Meise (B) like this:




I switched the Flite saddle for a Fi'zi:k Arione (broke it later on), and the Record Pro-Fit pedals for my usual SPD-SLs. I lowered the bar and changed it to a Squadra Corse version (round) after I broke this one in an accident (insurance of the responsable payed).




Oh yes, I can't ride without a computer. For the moment a Polar CS200; hope one day to have a FSA SRM on this bike, it would be just perfect.





And here is me racing the bike (picture taken during a stage race: Tour de Namur)... if only my team could have matching clothes instead of this eye-cathing outfit.

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Nice idea for your bike, and lucky you.. sponsored by one of the best bike builders!

On the stem/bar and seatpost could you loose some more weight. Also I don't know what cassette you will use but the Extralite conbination or some other light equipment could safe some more. But maybe this is not the best for daily race use, so go for a normal Ti Record.

Nice topic Casran, you've got really nices equipments!

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RAR wheels
Roues Artisanales

I will get Tune skewers through www.ts-bikes.be, but the M2Racer ones are a nice suggestions for a later update. I hesitating about a lighter seatpost clamp, because I want it to be race proof...

A small visual change I want to make is the left carbon rear mech for Campy by Fiber-Lyte.


Some picture of the frameset and components I took this morning:






I have this AX-Lightness Apollo saddle for more than 2 years now and used it many times in the past. I can say I really love the work Axel Schnura has done on this. Mine came in a 69gr!!






About a month ago I asked Lee about the nice Elite Patao carbon bottle cages (normal diameter) he had on his orange Pina Paris, and he got them shipped to me through Rullobike.com. The are so sweet !!! Thx LJ, as every body knows, you're a top guy and I will be reminded of that every 10 minutes on this bike! I mounted them this morning; they look great on it, don't you think?

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if you need it to be uci legal and its still to light to be it... maybe you could try to get a srm crank? if you need to add weight somewhere i think the best place to do so is the bb and crankset... then it lowers yhe gravity center (center of gravity... whatever i'm not really good in english) of your bike.

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Sprinters are born not made

The cages fit perfectly C a s r a n and you are more than welcome. I think I would trade your workshop for mine though! WOW!

Be careful with the use of the rear mech plate in conjuction with the LWs. The screw comes very close to the "ties" on the LW spokes near the hub (only maybe 1 or 2 mm) and can easily be yanked into the wheel if you push hard on the ergos.

@ premiumjack: I hate the heavy seatpost, though it looks okay, but the though it is so heavy... grrr. Unfortunately I can't find anything lighter in this strange diameter without using shimps.





Thx for feedback on the Tufo's. In summer I will use lighter tubulars: Veloflex, Dugast,... are options. For this time of the year I trust these Conti's. They have proven to be very puncture proof.

I'm not sure if I'll have to cut weight. Mind you last year's bike was about 7,3kg; now I'll have LWs, an AX-Lightness Apollo (saving >185gr to fi'iz:k), lighter chain, etc.

Surely I will use this magnificent KMC X10 SuperLite chain, thanks to Jason, Herbert, Lee and Cliff.




And these Lightweight Standars 20/20, to my anonymous sponsor!!!




I've put them in this frameset this morning for a photoshoot. Stunning! If some one would have predicted a few year ago that I would ride these wheels in 2006, I would have called that guy mad. A dream come true.

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I think the easiest ways to cut weight and still have an equally reliable bike is to install the Phil Wood BB you mentioned, use a Campy Ti cassette, a lighter stem/bar combo (Syntace F99 with some CF bar) and perhaps a Schmolke Ahead cap and barplugs.

I know I can loose wheight on several parts, especially the stem/bar combo, but since it won't be a hughe problem to get the 6,8-limit, I prefer using the original Alanera. I like it's shape, stiffness and looks.

I currently have a Ti Record 11-21 cassette on the LWs, but I want to go for a lighter one. After all I need an extra cassette, since I took this of my Bora's. I like the KCNC cassettes. If durability is only about 3000km, that's ok to me... if it's only for racing, 3k mean a lot!!










Good point!

I do have an SRM Professional on my Team SC training bike. I just started training with it, but it's a joy to have such a detailed training file, and step by step my trainer is showing me how to use this properly. I can I won't get used to nót having an SRM on a bike.

Why I won't put my SRM on this bike is because I fear it would totally ruin the looks of this one. Only the new FSA SRM would fit great on it... But since I don't have to money to buy me that one, I'll keep on dreaming and be so happy with what I have now... absolutely no reason to complain!


I would like some suggestions on a good bottom bracket for Italian thread and square Campy Record cranks though!

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Hi

First of all, I would like you to know that this is absolutely one of the nicest bikes I've ever seen! Everything seems to match perfectly.
You are very lucky to be sponsored with such a nice bike! I was really looking forward to get my new sponsor-bike, a Cannondale CAAD8 with DA and maybe some HED carbon wheels, but after seeing this marvellous bike, my C'dale just isn't that cool anymore...
Another thing, do you have any doubts using ZG brakes on your racebike? I was thinking I might buy a pair of those to get the weight down a bit on my Cannondale, but I have some doubts putting such a WW-part like this on the bike I'm going to use in races. Do you think the ZG-brakes will perform as good as std Dura-ace brakes under hard and extreme racing conditions?

Enjoy you beautiful racebike!