# Why is Sempre worth the extra $$?



## arkitect (Apr 25, 2011)

Hi everyone,
First time poster on the forum but I have been reading previous postings from everyone here and have found them to be very useful.

I am in the process of buying a new bike, after riding my custom Serrota steel frame bike for the past 15 years. I have already test ridden some of the latest carbon fiber bikes and WOW, what a difference riding these new bikes makes!!  

So, in my shopping I have narrowed my choices down to a few different bikes but I cannot figure out cost differences between the Sempre and the Infinito. The Infinito is a "less racey" geometry, etc. but the frameset $200 more than the Sempre which, to me, appears to be the "race ready" bike. What is it about the Infnito that makes it more expensive? The Sempre has the BB 30 system, the Infinito does not.

Then, looking at the components in the Ultegra equipped bikes, it appears that the Sempre has a less desirable mix of components; For example, the crank and brakes are not Ultegra; it comes with Fulcrum 7's vs 5's on the Infinito; etc. 

Bottom line: which is a better deal and technology? I am test riding both this weekend to help narrow down my decision and I may walk away with a clear winner or I may not.

I am an ex racer who loves good componentry and good quality. However, I am 46 and do not intend to race again. I live in the Rocky Mountains and do a lot of climbing and high speed descending with fairly long mileage each week, so i will definitely be putting the bike to work!!

Thanks for any and all feedback that you have.


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## imitsus (Aug 16, 2010)

Hello,

Check their geometries. Coast to coast line , and born for performance line. 

Materials / technology used sure form prices

I own an infinito, it is very stable on descends, has loger wheelbase.

Infinito has longer headtube (1~2 cm, depends on size ) which is a good thing if you would place spacers....

Check these tests by same site

http://www.ciclonline.com/eng/bicycles/99-bianchi/528-on-test-bianchi-infinito-athena.html

http://www.ciclonline.com/eng/bicycles/99-bianchi/1085-on-test-bianchi-sempre-2011-.html


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## jpdigital (Dec 1, 2006)

The Infinito frame comes with a full carbon fork. The Sempre, sold as a complete bike comes with a carbon fork w/ aluminium steerer; but the Sempre sold as a frameset alone come w/ full carbon fork.

I haven't ridden a Sempre yet, but have been the proud owner of an Infinito for the past year. The Infinito is certainly a bike that's comfortable putting the miles in, but also can handle being ridden in a agressive manner quite well. The handling may not be as "snappy" as other frames I've ridden with shorter wheelbases, but still reacts in a very predictable manner. I have no experience riding this bike on long mountain decents (there's no mountains to speak of in Brooklyn NY; hills yes, but no mountains), but I can say I've had to do quite a bit of maneuvering this frame in Manhattan traffic, and I've never felt as if the handling wasn't responsive enough for those situations, FWIW.

Looking at the specs sheet, Bianchi seems to have cut corners with Sempre to hit a price-point (specifically with the brakes; crankset; wheels). My Bianchi came equipped with a _complete_ Ultregra group. But in my case the Ultegra Group is a moot point as withing 48 hours of my purchase I put on my own Campy components. (the Ultegra currentlys sits on an unused bike with less that 25 miles of use on it)


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## mness (Feb 9, 2005)

Infinito has the K-Vid kevlar antivibration inserts on the frame & fork, and internal cable routing, both of which probably make the frame more expensive to produce than the Sempre.


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## Cruisinscoot (Feb 21, 2010)

I am 12 years older than you and used my age and riding needs (similar to yours) to decide what bike would suit me best. I bought a 2010 Infnito with the Athena group and am very pleased with my choice.

It is addictive. The more I ride it, the more I want to ride it. It is a spirited yet comfortable ride that encourages me to press onward.


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## arkitect (Apr 25, 2011)

Thanks everyone for the responses, a lot to consider. The final test will be the most important one, my test ride on a real bike! The good thing is that I will probably be very happy with either choice!

I am considering test riding locally and then order a frame with a build kit online from adrenaline bikes.com, has anyone had experience with this company? Seems like they have some good options in their build kits.

Thanks again!!


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## kbwh (May 28, 2010)

I'm riding an Infinito. It's responsive enough for the riding I do (including screaming technical descents in Tuscany), and very comfortable. I ride virtually no mass starts, but mainly 20 rider 150 km + TTTs.
What I miss is serviceability. Concealed gear cables look great, but oh I hate pulling them through the down tube. If you do your own servicing the Sempre will be better, and probably also helping a bit in tight spots due to it's snappier (but far from nervous) handling.

The 20 mm extra head tube of the Infinito should be of no concern. Long legged and armed me use a 5mm spacer below the stem:


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## imitsus (Aug 16, 2010)

jpdigital said:


> The Infinito frame comes with a full carbon fork. The Sempre, sold as a complete bike comes with a carbon fork w/ aluminium steerer; but *the Sempre sold as a frameset alone come w/ full carbon fork.
> 
> *



I checked this on bianchi.com and according to them there is no difference, its all times alu/carbon

FORK "Bianchi FN11 Alu/Carbon B4P - 1.1/8" "

http://www.bianchi.com/Global/Bikes/Bikes_Detail.aspx?ProductIDMaster=48521


I would choose infinito. (i own one)

I believe it will be a classic!!!!

And servicing the cables is not such a problem as far as I remember, we had no issues when building the frame

Put campagnolo 11s on it!


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## kbwh (May 28, 2010)

I seem to remember seen written that BianchiUSA specifies a carbon steerer for the Sempre frameset. The rest of the world gets the Al steerer, as engineered.


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## jpdigital (Dec 1, 2006)

*U.S. Spec???*



imitsus said:


> I checked this on bianchi.com and according to them there is no difference, its all times alu/carbon
> 
> FORK "Bianchi FN11 Alu/Carbon B4P - 1.1/8" "
> 
> ...


Perhaps the U.S. Spec is different...
http://www.bianchiusa.com/bikes/born-for-performance/sempre/sempre-frameset/

Either way, I'd say go with the Infinito as well. It has a level of comfort that'll make you want to put in those few extra miles...


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## HolyBull (Nov 27, 2008)

The Infinito seems more versatile. You can put a riser bar on it and call it a Hybrid as you get older.


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## kbwh (May 28, 2010)

Or put a -17 stem and race the Giro on it as you get more pro...

Very interesting first post, btw.


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## tkmeister (Oct 26, 2010)

I am new here but I've been lurking for a long time. 

I got a Sampre frame late last year and have been riding for about 3month. Mine is AluCarbon fork and I can tell the difference between this and 928 Mono-Q FullCarbon fork(I got a Sampre frame for pretty much free, a long story). The FullCarbon fork is definitely smoother and that's the first thing and only thing I noticed. In terms of the geometry, I can't say much since this is pretty much my first real roadbike and have nothing to compare to. I do a lot of midrange distance ride(50-60miles range) and don't feel it's that aggressive of the geometry and feel pretty comfortable. 

I love my Sampre but if I were you, I would probably get a Infinito.


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## arkitect (Apr 25, 2011)

imitsus said:


> Put campagnolo 11s on it!


I know, I know! On my "antique" bike, I have Campy Record (circa '96) and love it. I have toyed with changing out the Ultegra to Chorus, or building up a frameset with Chorus but just can't stomache paying the extra money and ending up with an Ultegra grouppo that I can't sell. Not sure if my LBS would be willing to credit me part of the Ultegra cost towards a Chorus grouppo or not, but doesn't hurt to ask. By the way, I never had tried Ultegra before some test rides last weekend, but it is very nice stuff.

Love the idea of Italian bike with Italian components, but it may be something that I do in the future...

This bike buying/research thing is really a lot of fun!


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## imitsus (Aug 16, 2010)

arkitect said:


> I know, I know! On my "antique" bike, I have Campy Record (circa '96) and love it. I have toyed with changing out the Ultegra to Chorus, or building up a frameset with Chorus but just can't stomache paying the extra money and ending up with an Ultegra grouppo that I can't sell. Not sure if my LBS would be willing to credit me part of the Ultegra cost towards a Chorus grouppo or not, but doesn't hurt to ask. By the way, I never had tried Ultegra before some test rides last weekend, but it is very nice stuff.
> 
> Love the idea of Italian bike with Italian components, but it may be something that I do in the future...
> 
> This bike buying/research thing is really a lot of fun!


well this financial crisis , euro to dollar ratio, makes italian stuff expensive in the states... It s a pitty. 
. indicative prices here are below 1000euros for a complete chorus groupset, I ve found a 2010 for 850! and recently there was an offer at 1000euro for record.... 

On the other hand, I just did an ebay.com search and i see chorus could be bought there for 1300$... My opinion is to by a frameset and built it exactly as you wish...
(http://cgi.ebay.com/2011-Campagnolo...Cycling_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3f08e2e454)


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## KM1.8T (Aug 11, 2007)

I am in the process of building up my sempre with campy and will give my impressions once completed. I have been riding a carbon xl for a few years and look forward to see how it compares. I ordered a frame set from Texascyclesport and it came with full carbon steerer. Frame is at the shop getting the bb30 adapters installed and the headset race, I do not have the press to do the job myself. Will post some photos soon.


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## jpdigital (Dec 1, 2006)

*That's what I did.*



arkitect said:


> I have toyed with changing out the Ultegra to Chorus, or building up a frameset with Chorus but just can't stomache paying the extra money and ending up with an Ultegra grouppo that I can't sell. Not sure if my LBS would be willing to credit me part of the Ultegra cost towards a Chorus grouppo or not, but doesn't hurt to ask. By the way, I never had tried Ultegra before some test rides last weekend, but it is very nice stuff.
> 
> Love the idea of Italian bike with Italian components, but it may be something that I do in the future...
> 
> This bike buying/research thing is really a lot of fun!


I got a good deal on a complete Infinito w/ full Ultegra group. But the bike it was replacing had all my Campy stuff on it. After less than 25 miles of riding, I decided to put the Campy stuff on the Infinito and put all the Ultegra stuff of the other bike. (too bad I haven't been exactly "diligent" in trying to sell the other bike, it's sitting there with a pretty much unused full Ulegra group and unused wheels...)

I must say, the Ultegra 6700 is really nice stuff, but I'm more than content with the decision I made.


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## tkmeister (Oct 26, 2010)

I've been thinking about putting the 2010 Athena group on my Sempre. I have 9 speed 105/Ultegra now and figured I can use that build up my spare frame(mono-q) so I'll have 2 bikes. 

How is switching from shimano to campy? I had test rode Veloce and wasn't too crazy about the thumb shifter but maybe I will get used to it. 

Decisions, decisions...


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## jpdigital (Dec 1, 2006)

*campagnolo*



tkmeister said:


> I've been thinking about putting the 2010 Athena group on my Sempre. I have 9 speed 105/Ultegra now and figured I can use that build up my spare frame(mono-q) so I'll have 2 bikes.
> 
> How is switching from shimano to campy? I had test rode Veloce and wasn't too crazy about the thumb shifter but maybe I will get used to it.
> 
> Decisions, decisions...


You might be better to look for info in the Campagnolo section of the forum (although to be quite honest, the opinions can get quite biased there, obviously). That being said, I'll give my two-cents...

My first road bike had Shimano 105 triple, but I always knew I'd want to go w/ Campy one day when I had the funds. Switching from Shimano to Campy wasn't such a big deal for me as far as gear changing went. For me, the new shaped levers makes it easier for me to access the mouse-ear (thumb shifter) from the drops, but that's just me.


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## maximohill (Dec 29, 2011)

From what I have been told the cost for manufacturers to produce a bike with bb30 shells is less than the standard threaded bb.... And the fact that the infinito has internal cable routing also cost more for them to produce. Plus the infinito comes stock with carbon bars and stem on the complete bikes, sempre has alloy.


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## Eagleawd (Dec 29, 2011)

Hi, I'm contemplating on buying a 2012 Sempre ultegra. Can anyone tell me the exact weigth of the bike? The store owner says is around 14.5 lbs. I had it in my hand and it's really close to that.


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## spade2you (May 12, 2009)

Eagleawd said:


> Hi, I'm contemplating on buying a 2012 Sempre ultegra. Can anyone tell me the exact weigth of the bike? The store owner says is around 14.5 lbs. I had it in my hand and it's really close to that.


Exact weights vary by size and components, which is why you seldom find too many weights.


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## KM1.8T (Aug 11, 2007)

My Sempre weighs 16 lbs with Campy Centaur shifters/Ders, record11 crank, Mavic ES wheelset, carbon Aliante seat and Fizik carbon post, in a size 55. 14.5lbs may be ambitious.


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## spade2you (May 12, 2009)

KM1.8T said:


> My Sempre weighs 16 lbs with Campy Centaur shifters/Ders, record11 crank, Mavic ES wheelset, carbon Aliante seat and Fizik carbon post, in a size 55. 14.5lbs may be ambitious.


Perhaps.

My T-Cube is under 14lbs and took some serious effort/coin.


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## KM1.8T (Aug 11, 2007)

What size is your T-cube? I do think that frameset may be a little lighter than the Sempre frameset. I have Record 11 shifters and ders on order and already have super record brakes on the bike. We will do another weigh in once updated and see how it goes. Not much else to do to make it any lighter other than weigh it without pedals, bottle cages, and computer. I too have spent some serious coin but buliding the bike is half the fun!


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## kbwh (May 28, 2010)

Spade rides 50. *No! Fifty One!* See next post.
No problem to get a Sempre wee light _and_ roadworthy. Campag SR, Enve 45 tubulars built on Tune MIG/MAG hubs, 3T LTD stem, bars and post etc.


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## spade2you (May 12, 2009)

51cm. I use Record 11, Look Blades, Mavic CCUs (sometimes), 3T bars, stem, and seat post, Selle Italia Carbino Flow, Zipp cages, and a Polar computer. The Polar will be going in favor of a Garmin 500 and will be swapping out cranks with a Quarq, so it may be a little north of 14.5 or so when I'm done.


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## stickboybike (Feb 7, 2011)

Eagleawd said:


> Hi, I'm contemplating on buying a 2012 Sempre ultegra. Can anyone tell me the exact weigth of the bike? The store owner says is around 14.5 lbs. I had it in my hand and it's really close to that.


2011 and 2012 US bikes are identical with the exception for paint.

Weight of a 55cm Ult Sempre...
Bianchi Life: #bianchibicycles Sempre Ultegra weight.


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## jpdigital (Dec 1, 2006)

Keep in mind, if the reflectors & such are still on the bike, that would be included on this weigh-in. Granted, I highly doubt there's a full 2.5lbs worth of reflectors, but it's worth noting, I feel.


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## stickboybike (Feb 7, 2011)

My link to the photo is for the bike sans reflectors, accessories, etc. The only thing it has is the plastic pie plate behind the cassette.


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## BianchiTyler (Jun 28, 2011)

*Sempre stock around 18.5 lbs*

Sempre stock weighs around 18.5 lbs stock if you buy the complete bike. Like KM1.8T I have many upgrades that have decreased my bikes weight and still only have it to around 16lbs. I doubt the bike weighs 14.5 lbs. 

Just bought a near saddle too. I am going to try the fizik arione cx with carbon braided rails! It hasn't came in yet! Does anyone have experience with this saddle?


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## Eagleawd (Dec 29, 2011)

Thanks for all the replies.


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

Maybe it's just my eyes, but the Infinito appears to have stouter rear stays coming out of the seat tube/top tube junction then the Sempre, if someone can confirm that then the two frames are not the same, not to mention the Infinito has internal routed cables while the Sempre does not as another poster said.


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## kbwh (May 28, 2010)

The main triangle is also different. Head tube, down tube, top tube...


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## stickboybike (Feb 7, 2011)

Not the carbon version but have ridden the Arione for years as I move all over the saddle on rides and have good flexibility. Don't know anyone who's not liked their Arione...the sweet spot on that saddle is everywhere!


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## LePatron (Jan 5, 2011)

Just to clear the matter up the Sempre when bought with Ultegra or as a frameset has a full carbon fork-steer tube. I would suggest going with the Sempre especially if you prefer snappier handling of raceframe geometry.


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## stickboybike (Feb 7, 2011)

Correct. The alu/carbon fork is about 520gr in weight. About a 1/2lbs heavier than its full carbon counterpart.


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