# My Time ZXRS Review



## zappafile123 (Oct 28, 2007)

If you’re in the market for Time's current flagship frame the ZXRS, no doubt you'll be frustrated by the lack of information about it on the net. Hopefully this review will help you make the right decision! 









*The Build:*

Time ZXRS Nature Small 
Dura-Ace 9000
Hed Jet 6 FR with Powertap G3
Praxis Works BB30 converter for Shimano Cranks
Enve 40cm Compact Road Bars
Enve 90mm Stem (not pictured) 
Specialized Romin Evo Pro 143mm Saddle
Continental GP4000s 23mm Clincher Tires
Tioga 80mm valve Butyl Inner Tubes 
Price Paid: ~$7500 (~rrp$11,000-13,000)

*The Rider:* 

Age: 25
Weight: 61kg
Height:173.5cm (~5'8" and a bit)
Racing: C grade (cat 3, but I'm middle CAT2 with my 5 (5.4w/kg) and 20min (4.52w/kg) power) 
*Biases: *Having recently come of a 1st gen Ridley Noah (which I loved) I'm biased towards very stiff, responsive racing bikes. I love the feeling of an extremely stiff pedalling platform that imparts the sensation of constantly driving forward. I have high expectations about how a bike rides and have ridden lots high-end bikes. As such, when you read what I have to say, you need to compare and contrast your own experiences and expectations as you may love what I don’t.

*Set-up quirks:* Everything you've heard about the ridiculously high quality of Time frames is true (but you know the Ravens Paradox right?). The frame was pristine out of the box, but perhaps the most impressive feature of the finish was how perfectly the mini-seatpost fit into the frame as well as the quickset head-set (which is an excellent design).

There are three little quirks to the set-up of the ZXRS worth considering. Firstly, despite the strength of the trend to wider tyres, Time have remained old school and designed the frame without sufficient clearance for 25c tyres. In other words, you are stuck with 23mm tyres. Secondly, the mini seatpost provided does not facilitate a zero-offset saddle position (I have been able to achieve about 3.8cm of offset with the saddle slammed as far forward as it will go). Finally, the frame comes in two versions – mechanical and electronic – so if you decide to go for one or the other, you’re stuck with it. 

*Fit:* The geometry of the ZXRS is spot on. It allows you to get into a nice low position whilst maintaining a feeling of naturalness (which for me is pivoted at the hips, slight curve in the back and nice bent arms to allow your triceps to support your upper body). Part of this comfort may be associated with the reasonably tall head tube of 149mm compared to other thoroughbred racers. I've set myself up with exactly the same measurements on a Ridley Noah, a Cervelo SLC, a Look 585 Ultra, and a TCR Advanced SL and this has been the most comfortable for me. With the stem slammed and a 71.6cm saddle height (from the centre of the BB) the drop to the bars is roughly 7.6cm i.e. low, but not ‘pro’ low. 

*Handling:* One of the standout features that immediately struck me was how stable I felt; riding along you feel very planted. This is great if you train on deep section wheels as I do. I rode in Melbourne in the middle of July when the winds were up around 45km/h and I felt safe/in control. With all this stability comes a slightly slower cornering speed which can lead to a little bit of understeer on occasion. However, cornering at speed you remain in control so if you’re taking a corner too wide you can nudge it back in line. Unlike previous Time's which were apparently flexy through the steerer tube, I'd say it’s sufficiently stiff. In any case, the ZXRS is definitely not your cliché twitchy crit bike.

*Feeling in the hands:* It’s a little harsh through the hands. The front fork is rather rigid so if you’re going over a rough surface or a bump over 40km/h it feels like what’s underneath you is translated directly into your hands. Note that this isn’t an unpleasant thing most of the time, it’s just you notice it more than on the other bikes I listed above. When going slower, or over normal (Canberra) road surfaces, you don’t notice it too much. Let me emphasize that this bike feels very different when travelling at different speeds. A good word to describe the sensation is "brittle" or sharp - you do get a whack in the hands if you hit a sizable bump (this might be exacerbated if you choose to ride with alloy bars).

*Feeling at the feet:* The BB isn’t hugely stiff compared to other bikes like the Noah or the TCR SL, but it’s not a noodle either. Acceleration follows more of an exponential curve. That is, you turn the pedals a few times, you’re a bit slow to start then really quickly your up to speed. The direct opposite of this is with the TCR SL - there you mash on the pedals and you’re up to speed instantly. However, unlike the TCR SL, once you’re up to speed the Time holds its speed really well (the TCR makes you feel like you need to keep working). There are two features that explain why the Time gives the impression of holding its speed so well. The first feature is somewhat unusual: as you pedal there is a sensation of having a slight tailwind. It just feels a little easier to pedal through the upstroke than on other bikes. The second feature is that I perceived there to be a sweet spot cadence where I felt maximally efficient or in sync with the bike. The final comment about sensations through the feet is that over smooth surfaces it feels a little like you lose your legs from under you. I imagine this is associated with the slight flexiness of the BB such that you’re not pressing down onto something super hard. The result is possibly a slight loss proprioceptive feedback from your feet leading to a sensation of spinning your quads in the air. 

*Feeling at the saddle:* The initial impression is that it’s a very smooth ride. If you come straight off a bike that’s harsh, you'll really notice how much feedback from the road is dulled out. The best way to describe the experience on the saddle is that the frame feels like it concurrently embodies two mutually exclusive properties. There is an inner core of alloy that makes the frame feel a bit stiff and harsh at times. Then wrapped around the outside of this alloy core is a vibration dampening material. The net result of the combination of these two properties is that it feels as though everything beneath you is clearly communicated to you, but the sharp edge has been dulled off. Importantly, this sensation changes drastically depending upon your speed and the quality of the road surface. Above 40km/h, the alloy core of the bike comes to the fore and it starts to feel reasonably harsh. But, if you ride over pristine tarmac, the combination of the slightly flexy BB and the smooth sensation in the saddle make the bike feel as though it starts to disappear from underneath you.

*Overall:* As a complete package, all of the properties described above combine together to create a very distinctive ride quality. As soon as you turn the pedals, you know you’re on a top notch bike. A word the captures the ride quality is 'refined'. It is genuinely unlike anything else I've ridden (most of which were monocoque frames aside from the Look 585 ultra - which was a rather wooden frame). No doubt, you will have noticed the contrast between the directness of the feedback from the hands and the plushness of the feedback from the saddle. However, when you ride the bike, the contrast doesn’t make it feel as though you’re riding a bike that’s in two halves. 
The combination of the plushness at the saddle and the slightly flexy BB create a unique, if somewhat muted driving sensation. You feel fast, but it’s not ‘in your face’ like it is on the Noah. Once you get into a rhythm, you forget about the bike beneath you; you lose your feet, feel a slight hum in the saddle and over very smooth tarmac your awareness of the bike phases in and out. It’s almost as if the feedback you get from the road is only a little above your detection threshold - you know it’s there, you feel it, but less so compared to other bikes. Don’t get me wrong the bike does literally disappear from under you, it just phases out slightly. The other stand out feature of the bike is how different it feels at high vs. low speeds. Obviously all bikes feel a bit different at varying speeds but it’s more noticeable on the Time. Essentially, at normal everyday speeds (i.e. <32km/h) it’s smooth and comfortable. Then when you’re going over 40km/h e.g. in a fast bunch or a race, that inner alloy core of the frame comes to the fore and you get a lot of sharp, harsh feedback from the road. 

An important point is the effect the wheelset has on the ride quality. The Hed's, for lack of a better word, are very comfortable. Combined with 25c tyres, they turned the Ridley from a fairly harsh beast into a moderately comfortable ride. As such, this wheelset probably exacerbates the feelings of smoothness and comfort the Time offers. If you were to put on some Ksyriums, for example, the harsher voice of the bike would sing out a bit more than the dampening one. In fact, a carbon wheelset like some Enve's or even Lightweights may translate the ride into something a bit more aggressive, which would be pleasing to the racers among us. 

*Final thoughts:* Considering my biases, I've decided I’m not completely enamored by the way the Time rides as a pure racing bike. I’d like something that isn’t so subtle, something that is a bit more aggressive and in your face with its responsiveness and stiffness. When you are hammering it, you get that muted driving sensation, but at the same time, the bike starts to feel harsh. Ideally, you'd want the bike to start to feel smoother, but as though the frame wont budge under the increased power. 

As for recommendations, I'd say that if you were a bigger more powerful rider (remember I'm only 61kg and dont put out a lot of power) the overall BB stiffness may be insufficient for real sprinting (>[email protected]) or climbing steep inclines. If you’re a racer with similar experiences and biases to me, I'd consider racing it before you buy it. It only struck me that it wasn’t exactly what I was looking for when I raced it for the first time. Nonetheless, I still really enjoy training on it. If you’re not racing, but you still like going fast, the ZXRS may well be that perfect middle ground between a fondo bike and an outright racing thoroughbred. This is not to say, however, that the Time isn’t suitable for racing, it gets the job done with gusto. Finally, you should consider the riding you do and whether the properties of the bike I've described sound appealing.


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## nirVELOvana (Mar 6, 2014)

I think Time has some of the nicest looking bikes out there. Too bad you didn't include any pictures of yours. 

Lapierres are usually nice-looking bikes too. FDJ.fr's tricolor-themed bikes for this year's TdF were the nicest looking bikes on the tour in my opinion. The French bike companies have a knack for awesome paint jobs.

But thanks for the review. I've always wondered how Times rode.


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## nirVELOvana (Mar 6, 2014)

Schweet!

I wonder who came up with that triangular tube shape first. Time or _Guru_? 






In any case, your ZXRS wears it well :thumbsup:


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## Jay Strongbow (May 8, 2010)

zappafile123 said:


> There are three little quirks to the set-up of the ZXRS worth considering. Firstly, despite the strength of the trend to wider tires, Time have remained old school and designed the frame without sufficient clearance for 25c tires - you are stuck with 23mm tires. Secondly, the mini seatpost provided does not facilitate a zero-offset saddle position (I have been able to achieve about 3.8cm of offset with the saddle slammed as far forward as it will go).
> View attachment 299289


I was actually interested in this frame as potentially being my next and was looking forward to reading your review but once I got to that there was no need to continue reading.

Those aren't little quirks. They are deal breakers for many, including me.


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## aclinjury (Sep 12, 2011)

nirVELOvana said:


> I think Time has some of the nicest looking bikes out there. Too bad you didn't include any pictures of yours.
> 
> Lapierres are usually nice-looking bikes too. FDJ.fr's tricolor-themed bikes for this year's TdF were the nicest looking bikes on the tour in my opinion. The French bike companies have a knack for awesome paint jobs.
> 
> But thanks for the review. I've always wondered how Times rode.


FDJ and Europecar always seem to be the best looking bikes in the TdF. I always root for one of those guys to be in breakaway so we can view their bikes!


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## ghettocop (Apr 19, 2014)

Great review.


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## Got Time (Jan 23, 2009)

Which of those?
The "no 25mm tyres"?
Or the seatpost? AFAICT you can actually use a different seatpost.


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## aclinjury (Sep 12, 2011)

nice review. A guy in our club has this bike. I too would classify Time bikes as "old school". They intentionally don't make the stiffest bikes, and that's because they know that their customers are not ones who buy bikes of this class to go racing in crits. It's most likely the older folks (but not gramps) who were long time cyclists themselves who have appreciation for finer things in life. It's like guys who buy Nissan GTR, Mustang, Muscle cars versus guys who buy Porsche and Ferrraris. Both classes are very fast and capable cars... but they impart different outlooks of their owners.


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## Jay Strongbow (May 8, 2010)

Got Time said:


> Which of those?
> The "no 25mm tyres"?
> Or the seatpost? AFAICT you can actually use a different seatpost.


Potenitally both. 

Not having room for 25mm is definitely a deal breaker for me. Even for those who only use 23mm I'd think this would be something to consider a negative because it would leave so little room for a wheel to go out of true and still be able to ride.

As far as "does not facilitate a zero-offset saddle position" goes I'd need to know the seat post angle to see if that would be a problem.


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## nirVELOvana (Mar 6, 2014)

aclinjury said:


> ....I always root for one of those guys to be in breakaway so we can view their bikes!


You too? Bouhanni *killed* on a few sprint stages! All due respect to our Brit cousins. But I wish Cavendish hadn't crashed out. I wanted to see Bouhanni («_or more probable, Kittel_») dust him on some sprints


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## zappafile123 (Oct 28, 2007)

aclinjury said:


> It's most likely the older folks (but not gramps) who were long time cyclists themselves who have appreciation for finer things in life.


Thats exactly the demographic I had in mind if I were to pigeonhole 'who this bike is for'! On the money buddy!


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## zappafile123 (Oct 28, 2007)

struggling to upload a photo here!


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## zappafile123 (Oct 28, 2007)

Jay Strongbow said:


> Potenitally both.
> 
> Not having room for 25mm is definitely a deal breaker for me. Even for those who only use 23mm I'd think this would be something to consider a negative because it would leave so little room for a wheel to go out of true and still be able to ride.
> 
> As far as "does not facilitate a zero-offset saddle position" goes I'd need to know the seat post angle to see if that would be a problem.


Hi Jay, 

I was running 25c tires before I got this frame as well, but I wouldnt say its a sufficient reason not to buy the frame. The ride quality mitigates the need for them. If anything it just means you need to be a little more careful whith your wheelset choice i.e. go for a wide rim to beef out the volume of the 23c tire (which my Hed's do). By doing that you can get most of the way to the comfort and handling of a 25c tire. 

As for the zero offset, on previous bikes I was either using a zero offset seat post or adjusting the seat post clamp to allow it. I've been able to achieve the same position on the Time by ramming the seat forward (the clamping mechanism has a wide stance so its very secure). Though I dont know how many mill the mini-seatpost offset by, its not much. If you go to any saddle with longish rails you should be able to solve the problem.


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## Notvintage (May 19, 2013)

Jay Strongbow said:


> Potenitally both.
> 
> Not having room for 25mm is definitely a deal breaker for me.


I just bought a 2014 Time NXS from Contender Bikes in Utah and it takes 25mm tires. It was a change for the 2014 model year. The NXS is better than any bike I've owned including a Colnago C59.


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## Jay Strongbow (May 8, 2010)

zappafile123 said:


> Hi Jay,
> 
> I was running 25c tires before I got this frame as well, but I wouldnt say its a sufficient reason not to buy the frame. The ride quality mitigates the need for them. If anything it just means you need to be a little more careful whith your wheelset choice i.e. go for a wide rim to beef out the volume of the 23c tire (which my Hed's do). By doing that you can get most of the way to the comfort and handling of a 25c tire.


Thanks for the input. With so many other great frames out there I probably wouldn't be willing to make the compromise though. I'm only about 145 pounds so don't really need 25's for comfort per se and actually use 23s during the summer when the roads are generally clean but feel that Vittoria Paves are the best tire out there for me in the spring and fall given my want for both performance and flat protection and I don't want to give up using them (they aren't made in 23). 
And also I like to have a little more room for play to increase my chances of riding home in the event a wheel goes out of true.

I'm not trying to put down the frame or anything. Just that I'd want a little more versitility than it provides.


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## Jay Strongbow (May 8, 2010)

Notvintage said:


> I just bought a 2014 Time NXS from Contender Bikes in Utah and it takes 25mm tires. It was a change for the 2014 model year. The NXS is better than any bike I've owned including a Colnago C59.


Thanks, I'll look into that. I'm not looking to buy now but am the type that likes to be prepared when the time comes.


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## zappafile123 (Oct 28, 2007)

Notvintage said:


> I just bought a 2014 Time NXS from Contender Bikes in Utah and it takes 25mm tires. It was a change for the 2014 model year. The NXS is better than any bike I've owned including a Colnago C59.


It would be really interesting to ride the NXS - its a monocoque frame right? I wonder if its stiffer in the BB/seat tube than the ZXRS as a result? In fact, I imagine the Skylon, being monocoque will probably address some of the weaknesses of the ZXRS cited above. I'd love to ride it... but I doubt that will happen.


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## Notvintage (May 19, 2013)

zappafile123 said:


> It would be really interesting to ride the NXS - its a monocoque frame right?


Not entirely, as there are lugs at the chainstays (upper/lower). Brilliant bike.


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## spdntrxi (Jul 25, 2013)

almost got one of these when they first come out... but was a LOOK homer so I got a 695.. Time makes a nice bike indeed always like the brand.. since I'm getting old I got a Parlee Z5i now


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## Cinelli 82220 (Dec 2, 2010)

I am sure they will be 25C friendly soon. 
That was the deal breaker for me, I love my 25s.


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## Notvintage (May 19, 2013)

spdntrxi said:


> almost got one of these when they first come out... but was a LOOK homer so I got a 695.. Time makes a nice bike indeed always like the brand.. since I'm getting old I got a Parlee Z5i now


Isn't that aChinese made Parlee?


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## Trek_5200 (Apr 21, 2013)

Nice review , more useful than many of the professional reviews.


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## zappafile123 (Oct 28, 2007)

Trek_5200 said:


> Nice review , more useful than many of the professional reviews.


Thanks man! 

Hoping it might get me a gig in the near future...


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## Trek_5200 (Apr 21, 2013)

Notvintage said:


> Interesting, as I get older I don't want to by Chinese bikes like the Z5i.


I'm with you on that. My thinking right now is that the next bike would be a Firefly, Erikson or Bedford Ti bike.


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## Notvintage (May 19, 2013)

spdntrxi said:


> Time makes a nice bike indeed always like the brand.. since I'm getting old I got a Parlee Z5i now


Interesting, as I get older I don't want to by Chinese bikes like the Z5i.


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## Ventruck (Mar 9, 2009)

Awesome review. I feel like we don't get enough of these, let alone of the same depth, at RBR.

Time always has made good-looking bikes. I have been curious to how they are in reality, and this review really shed some light. The seatpost issue does seem like something that Time should've been aware of, otherwise it seems like a straight up design flaw or lacking accommodation. Nice bike though. The brand is up there in my dream bike list.


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## spdntrxi (Jul 25, 2013)

Notvintage said:


> Interesting, as I get older I don't want to by Chinese bikes like the Z5i.


yeah but it's still Parlee's molding technique....not like people in Parlee USA don't inspect them.

I used to think that way too.. until I rode one :thumbsup:


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