# Finished w/Uprades - 2012 Advanced TCR SL3



## r1lee

*Finished w/Upgrades - 2012 Advanced TCR SL3*

So I've finally completed the upgrades on this bike. My next project will be the Propel when it is released, expecting it in March 2013.

Here she is
2012 TCR Advanced SL3 - Medium
Ultegra Di2
Giant Contact SLR Carbon 80mm stem
Zipp Vuka Sprint Bars
Ultegra Carbon Pedals
Lizard Skin bar tape
Zipp 303 Firecrest CC w/ GP4000S
Selle Italia 145 Superflow SLR
K-Edge Garmin Mount
KMC x10sl dlc black chain
Blackburn Matte Carbon Water bottle holders
16.07lbs 
w/Boyd 24mm Tubulars - 15.08lbs

Had to remove my Di2 Thumb shifter, did not fit on the new bars.


----------



## Sven_Nijs

Looks fantastic! :thumbsup:


----------



## wthensler

Yikes! Almost kinda evil looking (in a good way),


----------



## socfan12

Looks sharp! What's your favorite upgrade? Wheels? Di2?


----------



## icsloppl

Did you change to the Zipp brake pads?


----------



## r1lee

Thanks guys.

Favorite? Di2 for sure. But it would be very difficult to choose. I think if you told me that I could only have one. I'll take the 303's. When riding in a group of 3+, I barely have to pedal when drafting. I actually have to hit my brakes for fear of coasting into the individual in front of me. 

Yes the zipps came with the tangent pads. And those pads are good for the Boyd's as well.


----------



## icsloppl

The 303 Firecrests look like about the best clincher set going at this point. Spendy for sure but hey...


----------



## r1lee

yeah, with the purchase of the propel next year i'm sort of going to be in a dilemma. I could potentially use the 303's on the Propel, but I was thinking the new Shimano C50, or the new Reynolds Aero 58. 

I love the Zipp's, they are just a great set of wheels. I want a slightly deeper rim, and was thinking it would be pointless to have 303's and 404's.


----------



## grinder75

looks wickedly good!


----------



## r1lee

Thanks Grinder

here is the finished upgraded Rapid Composite. I use this bike to ride with the family and tow my kids.

2012 Rapid Composite ML 
White Aerospokes wheelset
Giant Contact SLR Carbon Stem 80mm
Giant SLR Carbon Flatbar
Ergon GS2 Carbon Grips 
Selle Italia MaxFlite (up for sale, PM me if interested)
K-Edge Garmin Mount
Lavod MP3 speaker system (not in picture)
Blackburn Gloss White Carbon Water bottle holders


----------



## Sun Rider

Very nice. I have the same carbon Egon grips on my MTB, but they are grey. Did Egon make those special for you?

Found them. Amazon.com: Ergon GX2 Carbon white: Sports & Outdoors


----------



## r1lee

Sun Rider said:


> Very nice. I have the same carbon Egon grips on my MTB, but they are grey. Did Egon make those special for you?
> 
> Found them. Amazon.com: Ergon GX2 Carbon white: Sports & Outdoors


good catch. No, i actually bought the GS2 in white, then i bought the black GS2 carbon. I switched the ends. My LBS was kind enough to keep just charge me for the GS2 carbon. The GX2's are discontinued as i would have done that instead.

They kept the GS2 with the black grips instead of the white.


----------



## wanton007

Slick looking TCR!!! Question for you with the SLR super flow, what's height from the rail to the top of the seat? The profile on websites looks lower, but on your bike it doesn't look the same.


----------



## r1lee

top of the rail to top of the seat 1.45inches.


----------



## wanton007

Thanks again!! Just to make sure, you're measuring this:


----------



## r1lee

lol, i'm sure that's exactly what i measured. But you show yours to be about 5cm's, where mine is ~3.7cm's.. will measure again and take a pic.


----------



## r1lee

confirmed 3.7cm or 1.45inches


----------



## wanton007

Awesome!! Thanks man.


----------



## darwinosx

Pretty stunning bike. Must be a blast to ride!


----------



## rafaelrms

Hey r1lee! Very nice bike! looks fantastic. 

How did you fit the k-edge to the vuka sprint bars? I was considering buying those bars with a zipp sl145 stem but i'm holding back as thought the k-edge would not fit well due to the bar shape. Is it well secure?

It looks like your Giant Contact SLR might be as big as the zipp sl145, so I assume they'll use the about the same clamp area

Thanks a lot.


----------



## r1lee

i've recently done a few more upgrades to the bike.
Speedplay Zero with Titanium spindle and removed the Superflow seat for a Teckno Flow.

The Zipp SL145 will not work on Giant's Overdrive2. But if its going on any other bike, it shouldn't be a problem. 

Personally I haven't had much time on the Vuka's yet since its winter, but the last time I was out on them, they did flex. Which was a big surprise, especially since Zipp had stated them to be very stiff and I really wasn't sprinting.
Initially I had the Giant SLR Carbon handlebars and they didn't have any issues of flexing at all. 

On my other bike, i decided to go with Pro Stealth Evo and they look amazing.


----------



## keihoop

rafaelrms said:


> Hey r1lee! Very nice bike! looks fantastic.
> 
> How did you fit the k-edge to the vuka sprint bars? I was considering buying those bars with a zipp sl145 stem but i'm holding back as thought the k-edge would not fit well due to the bar shape. Is it well secure?
> 
> It looks like your Giant Contact SLR might be as big as the zipp sl145, so I assume they'll use the about the same clamp area
> 
> Thanks a lot.


I have the same question. SL145 with Vuka Sprint. Did you get an answer? Would love to know. Thanks.


----------



## keihoop

hey R1...any follow up on how you got that Edge Mount to work with the Zipp Vukas and that fat Stem? I am having problems making it work witht the same bar and a very similar stem- the Zipp SL145. Thanks mate.


----------



## rafaelrms

I just got the vuka Sprint (still waiting for the SL145 to arrive, I'm with an older stem now) and the k-edge mount does not fit very well. 
I assume it will only fit well if your stem clamp width is very narrow, perhaps the SL Speed would allow you to - although I like the looks of the SL145 much better


----------



## r1lee

I took a picture last night, i will post it later with measurements for you guys to check out.


----------



## rafaelrms

I fit it as well, but it does not feel very secure. I'm afraid of tightening it too much in an area not designed to it. Anyway, wrapped some electrical tape on the area, as the k edge will certainly dent/ scratch the finish. 
In the trainer it was secure LOL. I need the snow to clear out and and check how secure it is on the road


----------



## r1lee

rafaelrms said:


> I fit it as well, but it does not feel very secure. I'm afraid of tightening it too much in an area not designed to it. Anyway, wrapped some electrical tape on the area, as the k edge will certainly dent/ scratch the finish.
> In the trainer it was secure LOL. I need the snow to clear out and and check how secure it is on the road



I grabbed a thin layer of rubber from some source (I don't remember). Cut it to fit and tightened the k-edge to the specified torque amount for the bar which I think is 5.5nm. Mine is very secure.


----------



## r1lee

hope these two images help.


----------



## keihoop

Hmm...very interesting. 

So yes, I did end up getting one to work - the Barfly (not my first choice at ALL) BUT I will say this, of the 3; K-edge, Barfly and Garmin (extended arm Garmin NOT the typical rubber band version) of those 3...the Barfly (at the portion which wraps around that tricky part of the Vuka Sprint Bar - the Barfly is flexible enough that it fits without any cushioning or padding or rubber gasket necessary. The others are all very rigid (of course straight up metal in the Kedge case) and therefore dont give at all. But the barfly does. I will try to get some pics of it. The only shortcoming is that it is just SLIGHTLY off center which may make some people crazy. 

Anyway - R1Lee...just curious, yours looks COMPLETELY flush, straight and in line. Can you recollect at all or perhaps get a pic of that "mystery" rubber gasket you made work...it seems PERFECT and if this Barfly's slight off center starts bugging me, I'd love to see what you used and be able to give it a go.

Thanks again very much.


----------



## r1lee

keihoop said:


> Hmm...very interesting.
> 
> So yes, I did end up getting one to work - the Barfly (not my first choice at ALL) BUT I will say this, of the 3; K-edge, Barfly and Garmin (extended arm Garmin NOT the typical rubber band version) of those 3...the Barfly (at the portion which wraps around that tricky part of the Vuka Sprint Bar - the Barfly is flexible enough that it fits without any cushioning or padding or rubber gasket necessary. The others are all very rigid (of course straight up metal in the Kedge case) and therefore dont give at all. But the barfly does. I will try to get some pics of it. The only shortcoming is that it is just SLIGHTLY off center which may make some people crazy.
> 
> Anyway - R1Lee...just curious, yours looks COMPLETELY flush, straight and in line. Can you recollect at all or perhaps get a pic of that "mystery" rubber gasket you made work...it seems PERFECT and if this Barfly's slight off center starts bugging me, I'd love to see what you used and be able to give it a go.
> 
> Thanks again very much.


The rubber gasket I used came directly from the k-edge package. I just cut it to fit, it gave some cushioning, made it none slip and a barrier between the bar. The centering was just luck, by pushing the kedge directly next to my stem, it centered.


----------



## keihoop

Wow- really? Awesome, I am on it. Didnt even realize there was one in the package. I will get one right away and give it a go. Thanks so much for all the help.


----------



## r1lee

keihoop said:


> Wow- really? Awesome, I am on it. Didnt even realize there was one in the package. I will get one right away and give it a go. Thanks so much for all the help.


i'm not sure if there is one in the package. But i probably used something in the package or the package itself that worked. So don't go buy one just for that little rubber gasket, it's probably why i had to cut it.

Electrical tape would do the job or anything you can find that you can cut.


----------



## keihoop

gotcha, will let you know. also, here's the machine in question.
View attachment 277585


----------



## rafaelrms

Hey keihoop - I ended up using a 3M electric rubber tape (3M 2242, $3 at the local home depot), that is way thicker than the usual electric tape, and it worked very well. It looks very stable now.


----------



## keihoop

Ah, very interesting. I went another route entirely. Someone told me that the Barfly would work. (while perhaps not as optimal as the KEdge I have been using or at least I thought it wouldnt be WAS TERRIFIC!...and worked great) I went with it because I was told the Plastic which wraps the around the tight corner on the Bar that meets the Stem...the fact that it is plastic gives a little stretch and actually "bends", to fill in perfectly! NOT the case with the other plastics out there; SRAM Mount, Garmin mount - only the Barfly 1.1, anywho I really did want to "add" tape, washers or "extras" to the build so finding this was AWESOME! I suppose the ONLY complaint would be that it is off center by 2 MM, but for my taste...I was delighted to not have to shim or rubber gasket the bar. Have a look. Did 55miles with 3900 feet of climbing this morning...and the mount was flawless. I am also thinking that since I dont use half of what the 800 offers, I am gonna downsize to the 500 or 510 and really streamline that visual. I can tell you I have used the maps on the 800 about oh....ZERO!! Have a gander.
View attachment 277720
View attachment 277721
View attachment 277722


----------



## keihoop

would love to see a close up pic if you have one. cheers.


----------



## vette

Hows the Ultegra,Ive been tempted to get a set off ebay,at 1199 a kit ,tempting.


----------



## wthensler

vette said:


> Hows the Ultegra,Ive been tempted to get a set off ebay,at 1199 a kit ,tempting.


If you mean the Di2, it is superb.


----------



## oisiaa

That TCR is absolutely sublime! I have the same frame in size M with mechanical Ultegra. I'm currently running Shimano Ultegra wheels but I'm strongly considering the Zipp 303s...especially after seeing how incredible it looks.

Edit: her she is with her new 303s

View attachment 280265


----------



## r1lee

Wow that bike looks familiar. Lol

I got to change it up. Here's the pic I was talking about with my Reynolds. 

I also got a set of forty six tubular I'm sure that would look even better then the aero's. The Reynolds have the darker carbon then the zipps, and the graphics matches the grey decals giant uses.


----------



## bogeyman92

Nice bike...


----------



## jus71n

Morning, just admiring your bike..... beautiful.

I've just fitted some zipp vuka to mine (with di2, but i think I may have the internal cabling the wrong way round, I currently have the brake cable through the long hole which exits at the side of the bar and the Di2 in the shorter one, this seems to be creating to much bend on brake cables causing them to stick. Which way round have you done it please? difficult to tell from your picture.


----------



## r1lee

jus71n said:


> Morning, just admiring your bike..... beautiful.
> 
> I've just fitted some zipp vuka to mine (with di2, but i think I may have the internal cabling the wrong way round, I currently have the brake cable through the long hole which exits at the side of the bar and the Di2 in the shorter one, this seems to be creating to much bend on brake cables causing them to stick. Which way round have you done it please? difficult to tell from your picture.


Sorry not able to help you here. My di2 was stripped and sold. I ended up turning this bike into a full fledge light weight climber. Red 22 with tubulars. It's a little light, actually might be too light.




13.9lbs


I added a trek domane with dura ace di2 as my other bike.


----------



## oisiaa

Insanely awesome. Next year's budget is going largely toward weight reduction for my TCR Advanced SL. 

A question: Have you had any issues with your drive-side rear dropout getting crushed/showing unusual wear? I've heard of several 2012 TCR A SL's with this problem...including mine.


----------



## r1lee

That's what I'm worried about. So how do you know? The inside of the dropout is wearing out? Is that from removing the wheels?

The thing is, I don't tighten my rear to the point of being over tight. It's tight enough where I know it's not going to fall off. Maybe that's why?


----------



## oisiaa

I may have been over tightening which could have lead to it. It is visible damage on the outside of the dropout. Check out the thread in this message board. I posted a picture of mine in there. I am careful when I secure wheels now and haven't noticed any additional wear, but it still concerns me.


----------



## r1lee

oisiaa said:


> I may have been over tightening which could have lead to it. It is visible damage on the outside of the dropout. Check out the thread in this message board. I posted a picture of mine in there. I am careful when I secure wheels now and haven't noticed any additional wear, but it still concerns me.



Got nothing to do now but to go and check... Brb.

so I have no issues with mine, i'm chalking it up to not over tightening.


----------



## mattbaker

Did you have to slide the bar off centre at the steerer clamp in order to fit the K-Edge mount?


----------



## dudigrinfeld

r1lee said:


> So I've finally completed the upgrades on this bike. My next project will be the Propel when it is released, expecting it in March 2013.
> 
> Here she is
> 2012 TCR Advanced SL3 - Medium
> Ultegra Di2
> Giant Contact SLR Carbon 80mm stem
> Zipp Vuka Sprint Bars
> Ultegra Carbon Pedals
> Lizard Skin bar tape
> Zipp 303 Firecrest CC w/ GP4000S
> Selle Italia 145 Superflow SLR
> K-Edge Garmin Mount
> KMC x10sl dlc black chain
> Blackburn Matte Carbon Water bottle holders
> 16.07lbs
> w/Boyd 24mm Tubulars - 15.08lbs
> 
> Had to remove my Di2 Thumb shifter, did not fit on the new bars.


I have as well this frame the TCR Advanced SL 2012 just got it and installed the Ultegra DI2 on it. The 2 front holes in the head tubes which usually fit with the mechanical cabling are remained opened as the DI2 wiring is going within the hole underneath the top tube next to the one with the rear brake cable hole. Anyone knows how to block these 2 holes in the front of the head tube so it won't remain open?


----------



## dudigrinfeld

Basically I'm looking for this part


----------



## r1lee

dudigrinfeld said:


> Basically I'm looking for this part
> 
> View attachment 293604


ask your local giant dealer to get those from Giant. They might be able to pull them off another bike that uses them, but giant will send them out.


----------



## dudigrinfeld

Yes got it easily went to GiNt shop and they sort me out very nicely. Thanks

By the way is your bar is compact shape?


----------



## MGear4817

Your bike looks great. 

Love that Vuka Sprint, still have to cut down my stack but making sure the fit is good on me first. 



















<object type="cosymantecnisbfw" cotype="cs" id="SILOBFWOBJECTID" style="width: 0px; height: 0px; display: block;"></object>


----------

