# Any reviews of the new Allez?



## ninetyRPM (Nov 16, 2014)

The new model looks good, does it ride as good though?









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## taodemon (Mar 17, 2014)

I've seen some initial reviews online.

I'm curious where you found that picture, it isn't one of the color options that shows up on the specialized site for the US.


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## ninetyRPM (Nov 16, 2014)

Been digging around a bit about this bike and found it from a site in UK. It is supposed to be the Red Hook edition, I believe.


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## taodemon (Mar 17, 2014)

Hmm... might be one of those colors that are only available in certain places. I'll have to check the bike store to see if they have it on their dealer site. On the US consumer site it isn't available in that color though I was able to find it listed in the GB site. 

It is based on the red hook edition of the allez sprint though that was all colored and not just parts like this version.


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## Horze (Mar 12, 2013)

A couple of points. Doesn't it look hideous. They took a leaf out of Cannondale's book and made the frame scrawnier. Even the Allez from 2006 is better looking than this.


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

Horze said:


> A couple of points. Doesn't it look hideous. They took a leaf out of Cannondale's book and made the frame scrawnier. Even the Allez from 2006 is better looking than this.


No it looks elegant. Specialized dropped weight on the new Allez by almost a pound. Its a superior bike to the model it replaces. The Allez Sprint with its aero cues will still be offered. Racers and better riders preferring a more aggressive geometry will still opt for the Sprint which has more sculpting.

So it comes down to Twiggy or Katy Perry and personal preference. 


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=na_jZC3a6PE


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## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

I was intrigued with the new Allez. Caliper brakes with 28mm clearance. Fenders. Some give in the seatpost area. New geometry. Never been a big fan of Specialized mainly for their past aggressive tactics in protecting their brand.

I got the new bike fever and went out test rode a Trek Domane ALR Disc(they didn't have the caliper brakes in aluminum), Trek Domane SL and the Allez. Looked for Cannondale Synapse alloy but couldn't find one and really not interested in disc anyway. 

Domane ALR was ok ride. Little stiff. ISO didn't work on aluminum well. Domane SL was wonderful all around but way out of my price range at $3K.

Looked at Allez for frameset. I was going to strip the parts and swap my parts over. I had no expectations. I was surprised at how good it rode on chip/seal road and the handling was between CAAD10/12 and Domane. Good middle ground on handling. 

The quality of the frame was great. If you get chance, go to bike shop to see it. Good stuff. I'll post photos later that I took with cell phone while out test riding.


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## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

*Photo*

from phone


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## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

*Fork*

The two tone fork looks better in person


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## Wetworks (Aug 10, 2012)

acckids said:


> from phone


Very nice, congrats! You're a tall one, eh?


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## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

*Few More photos showing quality*

.... and I did not buy this bike. Going to stick with my current ride.


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## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

Horze said:


> A couple of points. Doesn't it look hideous. They took a leaf out of Cannondale's book and made the frame scrawnier. Even the Allez from 2006 is better looking than this.


The photos I took above kinda of support of your view but it does look a lot nicer in person (at least I thought). The dropped seatstay doesn't look good from the side in the picture but works when viewing the entire bike.


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## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

I thought it rode well. Geometry was middle of the road. Good toe clearance. Good on rough chip/seal/broken pavement. Felt good when you got out of the saddle to stomp on the pedals. 

I would run 28mm tires though. It came with 25mm.


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

acckids said:


> I thought it rode well. Geometry was middle of the road. Good toe clearance. Good on rough chip/seal/broken pavement. Felt good when you got out of the saddle to stomp on the pedals.
> 
> I would run 28mm tires though. It came with 25mm.


If you didn't buy it, what is your current ride and how does it compare?
The new Allez has identical stack and reach to the Roubaix for '18. The more racy Allez Sprint doesn't have the same monster head tube...and is shaped a bit more aero with more upright sta for crit racing.
As to aesthetics, I saw the sticker in the pic and its a 61cm. Generally bikes that large don't flatter a given frame model. May I ask how tall are you?..presuming you are in the 6'3" to 6'6" range.
Thanks for your review.


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## ninetyRPM (Nov 16, 2014)

Took the plunge and bought it! Swapped everything on it except the frame, fork, headset and seat clamp.

Frame with BB and seat clamp weighted 1.6kg.

Fork (cut) around 325g.

Whole bike at 6.83kg.


Lemme know if you want the breakdown of the components.









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## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

Looks great. I was thinking the same thing as you. Buy the bike and strip the parts and put my groupset on it. 

That looks racy but the geometry is real world.


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## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

11spd said:


> If you didn't buy it, what is your current ride and how does it compare?
> The new Allez has identical stack and reach to the Roubaix for '18. The more racy Allez Sprint doesn't have the same monster head tube...and is shaped a bit more aero with more upright sta for crit racing.
> As to aesthetics, I saw the sticker in the pic and its a 61cm. Generally bikes that large don't flatter a given frame model. May I ask how tall are you?..presuming you are in the 6'3" to 6'6" range.
> Thanks for your review.


I'm 6'3" but have long legs. I agree that larger sizes don't look as good as smaller ones because the black bike above looks great. 

I ride a Lynskey R150. Very similar handling to the Allez. The ride quality of Lynskey on chip/seal roads is typical titanium/steel-like feel. Plus Ti doesn't have paint to chip which I like even though I miss a painted bike


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

acckids said:


> I'm 6'3" but have long legs. I agree that larger sizes don't look as good as smaller ones because the black bike above looks great.
> 
> I ride a Lynskey R150. Very similar handling to the Allez. The ride quality of Lynskey on chip/seal roads is typical titanium/steel-like feel. Plus Ti doesn't have paint to chip which I like even though I miss a painted bike


Will just share my personal view. Ti bikes don't hold a candle to modern Al bikes in overall performance. Reason is pretty simple. Material is subordinate to shape. Al and Carbon can be shaped much more asymmetrically than Ti and Steel and what holds both back. I prefer the overall power transfer, ride and handling of pretty much all new Al bikes to any Ti or steel bike. Some even prefer Al to carbon..say a CAAD12 over the Evo. My opinion. 

Thanks again for sharing your impression. Basically what the new base level Allez is...not Allez Sprint with more crit oriented geometry with more upright sta and shorter aka more aggressive head tube length....is a pre 2017 Al Roubaix...pretty much the same bike in Al without Zertz. In the last 5 years, there has been a real convergence in Al and carbon...bikes very closely shaped...only difference being about 200g or so in weight....Al isn't as strong as carbon of course...lower yield strength, so more is required...also slight density difference.


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

A nice sporty build, but believe in your shoes because you have opted for...lets call it a medium race build with 3 inches of drop or so, I would have chosen the aero Allez Sprint which is available frameset only. I too could never ride the crappy base model Allez group or wheelset. You sized down whereas many will opt for more of a French fit with the Roubaix geometry new base level Allez as shown with the bigger bike above with handlebar closer to saddle height.

Very nice. No doubt you will love it.

PS: For those interested who may desire the racier version of the Allez...the Sprint, aptly named:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYV3uc5hKcA




ninetyRPM said:


> Took the plunge and bought it! Swapped everything on it except the frame, fork, headset and seat clamp.
> 
> Frame with BB and seat clamp weighted 1.6kg.
> 
> ...


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## Rashadabd (Sep 17, 2011)

ninetyRPM said:


> Took the plunge and bought it! Swapped everything on it except the frame, fork, headset and seat clamp.
> 
> Frame with BB and seat clamp weighted 1.6kg.
> 
> ...


That's actually a really nice build and all around bike. Nice job man.


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## Horze (Mar 12, 2013)

I've been a staunch user of alloy bike, much more so than your typical Joe. I was a late adopter of carbon. I was riding alloy frames mainstream only until just two to three years ago. Then when I did switch to carbon as a staple, I always found that for a two or three hour ride on an alloy frame (which was what my training normally consisted of) I would have to put considerably more training hours on a carbon bike in order to get the same level of workout. A comparative training ride on a carbon bike always left me feeling less tired than what my usual rides consisted of. I would feel that riding carbon defeated the purpose of training and still have some difficulty understanding the point of it all. That is until I rediscovered a new paradigm in cycling.


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## Horze (Mar 12, 2013)

Rashadabd said:


> That's actually a really nice build and all around bike. Nice job man.


This is the first bike in this model which I actually like. Clean looks and arguably better looking than the new Tarmac as well.
I would like to get one but my problem these days is that I'm too lazy to keep the drive train clean. Road bikes demand a massive effort in keeping the chain and cassette clean. If you don't do this mandatory exercise then this defeats the purpose of having a road bike. My other problem is that by the time I clean the drive train I am already too tired to go out on a ride.


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

Horze said:


> This is the first bike in this model which I actually like. Clean looks and arguably better looking than the new Tarmac as well.
> I would like to get one but my problem these days is that I'm too lazy to keep the drive train clean. Road bikes demand a massive effort in keeping the chain and cassette clean. If you don't do this mandatory exercise then this defeats the purpose of having a road bike. My other problem is that by the time I clean the drive train I am already too tired to go out on a ride.


A real issue. Because I am rich, I simply have my butler Jeeves clean the bike and chain, keep the derailleurs adjusted and tires at the pressure I like.
If you haven't done as well as I have in life, I believe you are out of luck. Maybe a push scooter?


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

Horze said:


> I've been a staunch user of alloy bike, much more so than your typical Joe. I was a late adopter of carbon. I was riding alloy frames mainstream only until just two to three years ago. Then when I did switch to carbon as a staple, I always found that for a two or three hour ride on an alloy frame (which was what my training normally consisted of) I would have to put considerably more training hours on a carbon bike in order to get the same level of workout. A comparative training ride on a carbon bike always left me feeling less tired than what my usual rides consisted of. I would feel that riding carbon defeated the purpose of training and still have some difficulty understanding the point of it all. That is until I rediscovered a new paradigm in cycling.


A brilliant revelation. I suggest you train with a power meter and ride to a given power target. Has nothing to do with what material a bicycle is made from. You may even know that and even that birds fly.


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## Horze (Mar 12, 2013)




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## WRM4865 (Mar 4, 2015)

Horze said:


> I'm too lazy to keep the drive train clean. Road bikes demand a massive effort in keeping the chain and cassette clean.


so sad... 

try a good quality chain lube FIRST something like "squirt lube" make sure the chain is absolutely spotless before you apply it and only on each roller cycle the chain for about 30 seconds as to get the lube inside the rollers and pins. wipe down with clean cloth.

I'll re-apply a second lubing after the first has dried as I prefer a totally silent drive train.

post ride bike wipe down with moist micro-fiber cloth to remove sweat and road grime off bike at that same time between bike washes/cleanings I'll spray some WD40 onto a clean shop towel and wipe down the chain as this gets off the sweat and road grime and crap that you chain has collected during your ride. 

there is no excuse to riding a coal black gunked up or dry noisy drivetrain or dirty bike when a few seconds of post ride bike wipe down will keep you bike operating properly between washes. 

FYI the biggest "Fred" alert is someone showing up to a ride with a filthy bike...


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## Horze (Mar 12, 2013)

Nothing sad about it. Talk about self opinionated. Have you actually seen my drivetrain person?


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

Horze said:


> Nothing sad about it. Talk about self opinionated. Have you actually seen my drivetrain person?


Hey...its not so bad. The fact that your teeth are rotten and falling out is much worse. Implants however have come a long way so there is hope. Just don't brush them with chain lube.


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## Horze (Mar 12, 2013)

11spd said:


> Hey...its not so bad. The fact that your teeth are rotten and falling out is much worse. Implants however have come a long way so there is hope. Just don't brush them with chain lube.



Speak for yourself. Your avatar says it all.


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## Kontact (Apr 1, 2011)

Horze said:


> Speak for yourself. Your avatar says it all.


Who is that?


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## Rashadabd (Sep 17, 2011)

Kontact said:


> Who is that?


https://everipedia.org/wiki/durianrider/

https://jezebel.com/a-year-of-bananas-vasectomies-and-rape-allegations-wi-1788340075

The Ugly Truth About Harley “Durianrider” Johnstone – Anthony Colpo

No Cookies | The Advertiser


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

Horze said:


> Speak for yourself. Your avatar says it all.


I'm a pretty boy.


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## Horze (Mar 12, 2013)

11spd said:


> I'm a pretty boy.



The internet is over-fkg-whelmed. OMG this guy is so far up his ratbag a he's expecting a salute from the internet? 
You are a friggin hobo.


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