# Ordered: S-Works Venge Frame. Finalizing parts... I like pictures.



## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

Arrives tomorrow. Picked up the Carbon/Black model which I like better then the Project black as there are no logo's on the fork or seat post this run.










I'm having black S-Works graphics made for the frame, so that these look nice with it.










Enve 6.7 with Black King hubs.

Running Enve cockpit and will give the Toupé a shot.










Going to stick with Ultegra Di2. I like the look for this build and the parts I'd be using are less then 100g more then DuraAce.

Other then that, picked up a Prevail and a pair of S-Works road shoes for the bike, or for me, I forget. Shoes feel great! Verdicts still pending on the Prevail. Still debating tires as well, (any experience on the SW Turbo's?)

I'll be runing the new Zero Gravity Gravitas SL brakes and I have access to the soon to be released Zero Gravity Gravitas Carbon crank V2 but am not sure it will match this build...










We'll see. It's supposed to come with 3 carbon rods, matte finish with black alloy end caps and fit the OSBB but I'd have thought it better for my old girl...










I could always throw on these rings and see how it looks.










I may as well order a matching S-Works crank for the time being.

It's always exciting to put these things together.

I still have this beauty, a contrast to what I am working on currently...










They should look good side by side.

I'll post more pic's as it's completed.


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## dcorn (Sep 1, 2011)

Damn that's a lot of carbon. Looking forward to seeing what the completed build looks like. 

That is a crazy looking crank, but I like it. Form and function (hopefully).


Have you tried that S-works Toupe yet? That seat was supposed to come on my bike new, but apparently the shop swapped it out for a Romin, which I didn't like. Wondering if the toupe would have been more comfortable.


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

dcorn said:


> Have you tried that S-works Toupe yet? That seat was supposed to come on my bike new, but apparently the shop swapped it out for a Romin, which I didn't like. Wondering if the toupe would have been more comfortable.


I'd always been a Selle Italia kind of guy but have tried out all of the Specialized saddles. The Romin is similar to previous generation Selle Italia SLR models.

This years SLR Flow is very similar to the Toupe in that they are both flatter saddles which fit my sit bones better then the curved edges of the Romin so you may very well appreciate the support. My friend swears by his Romin, but he is a Tri guy and rides further up on the nose then I'd ride, on a road bike. I also find that the Toupe has a more narrow nose, which I prefer to alleviate irritation on my inner thighs.

I'm 6'3" but have narrow 130mm sit bones. Get your sit bones measured first and foremost before you choose any saddle.

gl


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## young-nyc (Oct 28, 2011)

Wow. Can't wait to see your build fully complete. Any ideas on where you plan to mount your di2 battery? Ever thought of getting Osymetric rings?


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

young-nyc said:


> Wow. Can't wait to see your build fully complete. Any ideas on where you plan to mount your di2 battery? Ever thought of getting Osymetric rings?


I was thinking of sending it out to Calfee to do the seat post modification but keep on hearing rumors of it coming to light by the big S, well see. For the time being, I guess my option is below the cage. I have plenty of room, it's a 58.

Osymetric rings have not really gotten my attention. I do like that the S-works rings are a 54/39 and assume that wont be an issue for the Di2 front derailleur. Again, we'll see...

Enve 6.7 wheels were just ordered and will be in by new years which gives me time to black out the graphics and order up everything else.

*Frame came in one day early, today, its perfect!*


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## young-nyc (Oct 28, 2011)

Awesome man. Blackened Graphics are going to look great!
Love the di2 shifting. My venge has the battery placed on the bottom bracket. But I keep hearing that this is not a good place as it will accumulate dirt quick! I was concerned that placing the battery below the cage might not leave enough room for a bottle. But with a bigger frame like yours, I guess it's not an issue.


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## izza (Jul 25, 2012)

I am looking to put SW Turbo's on my Venge but the local Concept Store now says they are not arriving until February.


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## roadworthy (Nov 11, 2011)

A question and a comment.
Can you explain what you mean about having graphics made for your frame? Do you mean having black stick on decals made to cover the white Sworks lettering to make the frame look more understated? We share the same aesthetic. I will be happy when the day comes when Specialized and other bike companies lose the Nascar paint jobs on their bikes.

Will give you another option...you could mask around the letters and have a local autoshop paint the lettering....or send the frame off to Calfee and have them do it...and at the same time have them set up your frame for battery inside.

Please share with us your thought relative to the above if you would.

Congrats on the remarkable build. You will have one of the nicest bikes on the planet.


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## RkFast (Dec 11, 2004)

Murdered Out.....how original. 

Just playing. 

Nice ride....enjoy it!


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## young-nyc (Oct 28, 2011)

izza said:


> I am looking to put SW Turbo's on my Venge but the local Concept Store now says they are not arriving until February.


it's ok...because your bike isn't coming till March right?  hehe j/k
i hope your bike arrives FAST!!! :thumbsup:


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## fourgasm (Jan 24, 2012)

Nice bike


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

roadworthy said:


> A question and a comment.
> Can you explain what you mean about having graphics made for your frame?
> 
> Congrats on the remarkable build. You will have one of the nicest bikes on the planet.


Thanks! Yes, vinyl decals. I have the vector file and Ive used a place in the past with great success. This will allow me to change back to white come sale of the frame.

I hear integrated seat tube batteries, stock are only a matter of time. For now I'll be happy when everything is in and its ride-able.

Enves show up first week of Jan!

Toupe saddle arrived today, quite possibly the nicest saddle Ive owned to date.

I'll post pics as the project moves forward.

Cheers.


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

RkFast said:


> Murdered Out.....how original.


2nd


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

Wanted to see how things looked so I put some Roval 60's on S-Work Turbo's on there. Geometry is looking spot on. Looking forward to seeing the Enve 6.7's on it now.










Chopped the ends off the Enve bars, sorry I couldn't stand the end caps.










Zero Gravity Gravitas Cranks will be designed with an optional aero cover. The back up will probably be a set of S-Works in matte with matte carbon spider running 54/39.

Ordered up all the Ultegra Di2 today and have Zero Gravity Gravitas SL Brakes and a DuraAce 11-25 Cassette and Chain. I'll run the battery under the BB for now.

Bike should be done by New Years!


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## NealH (May 2, 2004)

Great looking bike with all the right equipment.


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## Tom_UK (Jan 12, 2012)

Look forward to seeing this finished!
Just picked a set of those Rovals up yesterday, why not stick with those as they are lighter then 6.7 wheels? Thats assuming your using clinchers of course. Only asking out of interest  My set weighed 1480g


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

Tom_UK said:


> Look forward to seeing this finished!
> Just picked a set of those Rovals up yesterday, why not stick with those as they are lighter then 6.7 wheels? Thats assuming your using clinchers of course. Only asking out of interest  My set weighed 1480g


I really do like the Roval wheel but I've seen both in person and feel the Enve is a better product for my needs.

1 The Enve wheels have no rider weight limit and I am 200lbs at 6'3". I find them to be stiffer by design since the spoke eyelets are molded and not drilled.

2 The Roval 60's are fine depth wise, but the 6.7 is offered at a 70mm rear/60mm front with a wider rim thickness, similar to Zipp's FireCrest or HED's C2. I think with the Venge sloping geometry that the 70mm rear will balance the bike better.

3 The braking surface on the Roval's feels uneven to me and I suspect might cause pulsing in the braking. I am not certain but I am familiar with Enve's braking surface which I find is on par with Zipps.

4 I have Enve Bar and Stem and dont want everything to be S-Works/Specialized on the bike or I would have went with a stock complete.

5 Chris King hubs.

Again, I really do like the Roval wheel and for the price on the Enve's could have picked up both a set of Roval 60's and 45's but the build demands more 

Cheers.


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## squareslinky (Aug 13, 2009)

Any updates on this? I am curious to see how the S Works sticker works out. 

I really like the matte black with gloss black S Works logo.


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

squareslinky said:


> Any updates on this? I am curious to see how the S Works sticker works out.
> 
> I really like the matte black with gloss black S Works logo.


You know I tried it and, hated it.

It really dulled down the look of the bike where you couldn't even see the logo. Amazing how a graphic can change the look entirely. I may try a darker gray similar to the S-Works Roubaix SL4 but for now it's back to white.

Supposedly the Enves ship out tomorrow but with new years and all, no rush, it's winter. Everything is on and functional but I have not pinned the chain till the wheels get in. Gravitas Cranks are still being refined so I have an S-Works crank on for now and it looks great.

Pics soon, first ride hopefully sooner!

Happy New Year.


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## squareslinky (Aug 13, 2009)

I was thinking it may do the same. I was just looking at the grey on the 2013 venge w/ red S Works also. (I have a 2013 S Works Tarmac of the same paint scheme due this week). 

Re: the vector file and the sticker. Is it just the S Works, or do you have the S for the head tube as well?


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

squareslinky said:


> I was thinking it may do the same. I was just looking at the grey on the 2013 venge w/ red S Works also. (I have a 2013 S Works Tarmac of the same paint scheme due this week).
> 
> Re: the vector file and the sticker. Is it just the S Works, or do you have the S for the head tube as well?


I have both downloaded from the B2B web site but they are not to scale for frames. I used Adobe Illustrator to beef up the outline so it would overlay easier by adding a 3 point stroke to the outline and merging down the graphic so the machine reads it in properly before cutting. Of course any vinyl lettering outlet could manage the scaling for you based on your frames decal measurements but they usually charge for production and there's always the chance something didn't measure up. I did a few ink jet print outs first and cut them out by hand to make sure before I spent the $30 bucks to get four S-WORKS made.


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## aclinjury (Sep 12, 2011)

that's a nice build. Will you be racing it in crits? I'd be scared to if I don't have disposable funds on standby.


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

I will be racing it in crits! Not that I am anything other then a lowly CAT 4 Masters racer at this point, but I still place well (5th 3rd and 4th in my last 3 races) and tend to stay out of trouble in the rear.

I raced the Colnago in 2 crits last summer and believe me its a lot easier to replace an S-Works then a C59.

I'll be curious as to the final weight though. C59 is 14.9lbs. I hope to be sub 15.5 on the Venge.

Enve wheels are the last piece of the puzzle and word is they ship out this week!


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## RunningW (Jan 4, 2013)

I have that saddle on mine and love it. The shop thought is was going to be so uncomfortable but they were completely wrong!


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

*Its built!*

Bike is built. ENVEs arrived yesterday and it's supposed to be 50 degrees this weekend. The only downside is I have 11 stitches in my shin but the stitches come out Friday. I'll post pics and bike porn tonight.

Cheers.


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## Arnoud (Nov 3, 2008)

Yes! I was very happy when I read: I like pictures. Now we are all waiting for the pictures


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

https://carbonlord.com/VENGE_.jpg

Still have not made it to the studio....


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## Spark (Oct 15, 2012)

Amazing looking bike CL. Have you had a chance to ride it yet?

I'm interested to hear your thoughts on the 6.7's with R45's. I ordered a set just before Christmas (R45 for SR11) I'm told they should be here by the end of the month. I'm also 200lbs and previously had LW standards for stiffness, they were very nice to ride but didn't feel like they held speed well and sadly I broke a spoke on the front so, after a lot of research for replacements the 6.7's with R45 hubs seemed to offer the best alternative plus they are aero too.


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

Spark said:


> Amazing looking bike CL. Have you had a chance to ride it yet?


Sadly, no. Reason: When I finished building it, I had 11 stitches removed from my shin the same day. By the time I was flexible enough, the temperature dropped to 7°, now we have 8" of snow :mad2:



Spark said:


> I'm interested to hear your thoughts on the 6.7's with R45's. I ordered a set just before Christmas (R45 for SR11) I'm told they should be here by the end of the month. I'm also 200lbs and previously had LW standards for stiffness, they were very nice to ride but didn't feel like they held speed well and sadly I broke a spoke on the front so, after a lot of research for replacements the 6.7's with R45 hubs seemed to offer the best alternative plus they are aero too.


My wheel decision was based on many... I too am 195-210lbs and already own Zipp 404's _and_ 808's. My experience on the F/R 808 was high speed, if you can hold it, with crappy acceleration as you mentioned. I moved into a 404 and regained my appreciation for yo-yo'ing in the pack without much loss on the top end and managed to drop the weight of the bike to sub 15lbs (for a 60cm frame) granted it is a SR equipped C59.

I followed Enve for a stint and finally got to see everything up close and personal at Interbike which sealed the deal. Ive always ridden deeper section wheels, mainly 45-60mm HED builds so I didnt think the 60mm front would be an issue, and again, from the reviews and my experience with other brands wanted to give the staggered set-up a go.

I am pleased that the weight of the 6.7's is only a few grams heavier then the 404's. I'm expecting the molded hole, wider front wheel and dual cross laced rear wheel will allow for a stiff ride. The Chris King hubs are definitely the icing on the cake. Of course, the wife had me sell her 404's for a set of 3.4's so she can roll like me.

But sadly, due to injury and now weather I am a straight up poseur, the guy you love to hate, staring at my bike, occasionally putting it on the rollers but what is probably going to happen is, your good pal carbonLORD is going to book a weekend trip to CA, AZ or anywhere with a smooth road an 70° weather.

Here's looking forward to a maiden voyage and some real pictures.

Cheers.

cL


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## Spark (Oct 15, 2012)

Sorry to hear you were unable to give your new bike a go before the bad weather. I will be in the same predicament by the time my wheels arrive and the bike is built but I'll be happy just to use the rollers for a month or so until the salt is off the roads.

I have always liked the look of the Firecrest 404's but have been put off from reviews of flex and fiddly hub adjustment. What's your experience, would you buy again? The new 202's look good but like most wheelsets I wouldn't be able to try here. 

When you've had a chance to ride the 6.7's for a while a comparison would be great but in the mean time back to waiting! If it's not for parts it's for the weather to improve....


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## vboy19 (Mar 24, 2008)

carbonLORD said:


> Sadly, no. Reason: When I finished building it, I had 11 stitches removed from my shin the same day. By the time I was flexible enough, the temperature dropped to 7°, now we have 8" of snow :mad2:
> 
> cL


Carbon Lord, let me know when you get that crankset in, been reading about it! I live in your neighborhood, if you remember i have the dogma2 BOB w/ SR EPS.


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

Yes, I liked the 404's enough to get a set of 2013's for the Colnago. I will get a set of 202's next. I picked up Enve 3.4 for the wife, figure I can use them when needed 

View attachment 275381


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## Spark (Oct 15, 2012)

Great photo! Both machines look amazing (enve steam matches perfectly with the Venge). I would have a hard time choosing which one to ride


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## zone5 (Aug 21, 2012)

Something about the Colnagos that are timeless.


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## Fireform (Dec 15, 2005)

zone5 said:


> Something about the Colnagos that are timeless.


Yeah. The balance on your credit card.


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## samuel (Dec 5, 2002)

Sweet bike. I have been thinking about buying a venge and yours is about the nicest one I have seen. Good work.
Just curious is that an 58cm or 61cm frame?



carbonLORD said:


> Yes, I liked the 404's enough to get a set of 2013's for the Colnago. I will get a set of 202's next. I picked up Enve 3.4 for the wife, figure I can use them when needed
> 
> View attachment 275381


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## squareslinky (Aug 13, 2009)

New Zipp stickers, or new wheels? If stickers, how hard was it to replace them?


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

Heh, they are 2013 wheels. The Venge is a 58 the Colnago a 60 traditional. Thanks for the warm comments.

Cheers!


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

I have 3 and can accommodate Campy but I move to Amsterdam, on Wednesday. Lets try to touch base soon!


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

Im back in Chicago and finally got to get some time on the Venge.

*Stiff*.

That's the one word I would use to define the Venge if asked.

Do I like it? Yes, absolutely but I couldn't see this as my only bike, or a bike I would do longer rides with.

Rigid. In a good way. It tracks and handles like a track car. Precise, the Di2 system is spot on.

Let me pause and remind readers that my other bike is a Colnago C59 super Record with 404's which is superbly comfortable and stiff and is a half lbs lighter then the Venge so my comparison of "Rigid, Stiff" bikes will differ from others.

The C59 lacks in cornering compared to the Venge which I attribute to its longer wheelbase. Again, the Venge tracks extremely well, but it is twitchy, I can feel everything on the road and I ride 110psi on the Enve's.

About those ENVE's. they are stiffer then the 404's but the brake track cannot compare. Zipp really hit the nail on the head with the latest FireCrest braking surface. I will not be riding the Venge in the rain or down any hill, glad I live in Chicago and Amsterdam... Flat.

The S-Works Toupe saddle, it's fine. Stiff, and good enough for the crit racing I'll do on it. The S-Works crank and rings, no complaints yet. I have a Zero Gravity crank for it but will wait till I get bored and want to change the bikes look.

There's no real surprise here, the Venge is stiff, aero fast fun and I will use it for just that.


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