Ryan's Disc Bike #4 (Litespeed T1sl)

[RyanH]

Another year has passed and me being a glutton for punishment felt the need to try disc again. My recollection of the first disc bike I had (Wilier) with Campy H11 EPS was the pinnacle of brake feel but marred by crappy tolerances on the brake mounts. I had Ekar on the 2022 Crux which was the first disc bike that I've had that didn't make any rubbing noises but the feel was slightly different, a little more Shimano like. It was very firm feel without much throw for modulation. On 9270 I dealt with a lot of temperamental disc brake rub...basically a remind of all of the reasons I dislike disc. Further, the feel of 9270 was more metallic, metal on metal feel. Lastly, the elongated hood design just looked off.

So, what's going on now? I'm trying 9170 paired with Magura MT4 calipers, Campy H11 organic pads and campy rotors. My hope is that this will give Campy like feel and modulation with Shimano weight, aesthetics and performance. I considered EPS 12 but my experience with the rim brake EPS 12 shifters and Ekar suggest that the poor transition from bar to stem is a deal breaker for me. Maybe EPS 12 hydraulic is better but that's a $4K gamble I don't want to make. So, Shimano it is. Plus, with 9170 I get to continue using SRAM XG 11-XX cassettes which I feel are the best compromise of weight and performance.

Frame should be here Monday so I'll post that once I get it. Also...I really need to purge some bikes soon, it's becoming a problem...

[zackus]

By my count you've got your T3, your rim brake T1SL, your newly built up Classic, your English, your Cannondale, and this as well. A lot of overlap there, but I'm curious as to what conclusions you draw from this new forray into disc.

I'm also curious into this setup as I agree Campy disc feels better than shimano disc, but not sure if it's the whole system or just the caliper/pad/rotor combo is most of it.

[RyanH]

You forgot the Indy Fab (trying to sell that) and the Calfee, .

The disc rabbit hole started the other week when I saw a thread about Shigura and how it's supposed to be a significant improvement in feel over 9170 and 9270. The piston is slightly larger on Magura so there's more modulation/lever throw. Pad retraction issues are supposed to be less with magura too.

Regarding the overlap in the stable, that's more or less intentional. Each one needs to bring something to the table that one of the others do not. I'm not going to ride dirt so I don't need a fat tire bike. I just want a slight variety in the bikes to match what I'm in the mood for the day. The Calfee for example, is the smoothest, most comfortable bike I've ever ridden so I have it set up with compact and 11-32 in the rear. It's set up for pure enjoyment of a ride. The T3, being a firmer, more direct handling bike, has standard gearing and has a set of Bontrager XXX 4 waiting for tires to be glued so it's my aggressive riding day bike. Evo is the weight weenie bike.

With that being said, all of the bikes need to have that something special for handling and ride feel to stay in the stable. The T3 is firmer than some of my other bikes but riding it yesterday I was just enamored with how it felt. I just wanted to push the entire ride.

[Nixster]

Surely the biggest overlap with a T1SL is... a T1SL?
Watching the sales ads with interest!

[RyanH]

Lol, yeah, the T1sl rim is on hold since I got this before I even started to build it up.

I most likely won't sell the T1sl rim since they are going to be NLA soon so it'll probably be wall art for the time being. Although, the thought crossed my head this morning of doing a T3/T1sl (rim)/T1sl disc shootout. I really need a pair of Bontrager XXX Tubular Disc wheels to make the comparison truly apples to apples though. If anyone sees a pair, let me know.

[robbosmans]

The only issue with magura’s is they are noisy, like racepads on a sportscar, at least on the mtb. They get quiter once they warm up

[brahl]

Please include a new Spezia in the shootout as well! Litespeed deserves the credit and notoriety that Moots seems to always get.

[brahl]

Please include a new Spezia in the shootout as well! Litespeed deserves the credit and notoriety that Moots seems to always get.

[RyanH]

The only issue with magura’s is they are noisy, like racepads on a sportscar, at least on the mtb. They get quiter once they warm up

I hope not. I do plan on running Campy DB-310 pads on Campy rotors so we'll see.

[RyanH]

Frame in hand, weight is not too shabby for a Ti disc frame at 1108g:



Thru-Axle is porky though, any recommendations for a lighter one?

Enve 1.25 Disc Road Fork cut to size (started off at 406g):



Close up of brake mount that is hollowed out:



They also did full internal tubes for the hoses which adds weight but should reduce rattling and make it easier to setup:

[nickf]

Robert axle project is probably just under 40g. Carbon Ti rear is closer to 30g?

[RyanH]

Enve 2.3 wheels came in today at 1258g:





I am still waiting for my custom Darimo IX2AL -9* so I had to order a Kalloy as a temp stem. I always forget how light these are:



Magura MT4 with 2200mm of hose and lever:



Minus 80g lever:



I need to cut the hose but I'm not ready yet. I'm expecting that the front and rear with hoses should be less than 240g.

For headset, I have a stealth White Industries on order that should be arriving at the end of the month so I put a spare AER headset on. It's a goofy design where it tapers in but it's not hugely noticeable on the bike. The stack is pretty high compared to the Extralite headset:






Anyone have a suggestion for a crown race adapter for the Extralite to work with a 1.25 fork?

[robbosmans]

Thru-Axle is porky though, any recommendations for a lighter one?

I like Hardlite axles 30g for 40$ is pretty good, Extralite is lighter at around 20g but double the price.

Magura MT4 with 2200mm of hose and lever:

Titaniumplanet has some titanium upgrades like banjo connectors.

[RyanH]

Veloflex Evo TLR took awhile to seal, particularly the front...



Campagnolo HB310 brake pads at 25g:



Which replaced the Magura pads at 20.5g. The material looks the same?



Rotors






Sun was setting and I needed to bed the brakes so I took a quick snap without bar tape:

[hartox]

Which replaced the Magura pads at 20.5g. The material looks the same?

As far as I know Campa brake parts are manufactured by Magura.