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Custom Carbon Velajo Tri Bike Build

JeremyBehlerJeremyBehler
in General Training Discussions

These stories of Withrow and Dino hacking their Ultegra DI2 on their P5 got me curious.  I've always been a tinkerer, but also been cheap and rarely will pay full price for anything.  As such, a P5 was out of the picture.  I've had a host of bikes over the years, from basic aluminum QR tri bike to a Shiv I raced in 2011.  I've been on a QR CD0.1 for the last 12-18 months (I have bike ADD).  

The allure of electronic shifting has been quite strong for a while.  With Ultegra UI2 coming out, prices have become more reasonable so I decided to bite the bullet.  

I wanted a clean, DI2 specific build, and there frankly aren't that many used options out there.  So after much research and talking to people who had bought them before, I went the China direct route.  I bought the TT06 DI2 Triathlon Frame and Aerobar setup from Carbonzone on eBay for $1100. http://www.ebay.com/itm/2013-Di2-fu...232af7e5c8

I found a used Dura Ace DI2 group on eBay for $1,400.  Note that the DA version uses different servos which extend battery life, but more importantly come with the shift buttons on the bullhorns so no hack is needed a-la Withrow and others.  

While I was at it, I picked up some of the China 50mm carbon clincher rims from Carbonzone as well.

I was cautious, but I must say I've been impressed.  The shipping time from China was measured in days, not weeks.  The build quality is very good.  The only issue I had was the crappy headset they provided, so I had to pony up for a $40 Ritchey headset.  The wheels came true out of the box...I've ridden them for a few hundred miles including rough roads, a few potholes, and up to 50MPH descents.  Still true, never a wobble, and am as confident on them as the Zipps Ive owned in the past.  

I went for a stealth all black look, black matte to be specific.  I wanted to add some personalization so I got some gloss black decals made for my new "Velajo".  It's a combination of Speed (velocidad) and Work (trabajo) in Spanish.  The gloss blends in with the matte in normal light, but you'll see it's reflective in the second picture with a flash.  The bike is awesome, and I can't say enough about DI2.  In fact I'm moving to DI2 on my road bike soon.  

Net...I have the latest technology, a unique frame that is light, stiff, and aero, for the well below the price of the alternatives. 

Comments

  • robin sarnerrobin sarner
    Cool.    keep us up to date on how things hold up in the future.
  • jimmy augustinejimmy augustine
    woah. very pretty. keep us posted on longevity. I would love to find out that the wheels are legit! Sure looks fast.
  • JeremyBehlerJeremyBehler
    Will do Jimmy. On the wheels...one of the reasons I went with them as I saw a pair that were ridden over 1500 miles by someone I know. They looked as good as new. The bearings were still smooth and there were no problems with going out of true.
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