# My new S-Works Tarmac SL4 Di2



## TimmyG (Jul 5, 2007)

Picked up my new SL4. I had the LBS swap the loud glossy white/black SL45 wheels for the flat black ones. They also installed the cranks from my 2011 SL3 with my SRM power meter. It weighed in at 15.02 lbs before I put on my DA pedals with the power meter & cages. I am now having a battery installed inside my seat post to get rid of a little more wiring and external battery.


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## bonkcity (Aug 24, 2010)

Nice ride! Looks fast.


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## bootsie_cat (Jan 7, 2005)

What size bike? What is your saddle height?



TimmyG said:


> Picked up my new SL4. I had the LBS swap the loud glossy white/black SL45 wheels for the flat black ones. They also installed the cranks from my 2011 SL3 with my SRM power meter. It weighed in at 15.02 lbs before I put on my DA pedals with the power meter & cages. I am now having a battery installed inside my seat post to get rid of a little more wiring and external battery.


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## TimmyG (Jul 5, 2007)

Frame is 56. Saddle height is 76.


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## willieboy (Nov 27, 2010)

Just sick! Congrats


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## JaPPster (Jun 3, 2011)

amazing lookin bike!! tell me plis how does it ride? is it harsh?


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## TimmyG (Jul 5, 2007)

JaPPster said:


> amazing lookin bike!! tell me plis how does it ride? is it harsh?


I haven't had a chance to ride it yet as I sent it out to have the internal seat post battery installed and battery indicator hidden up/under the bottom of the stem. I should get it back this weekend. I have heard that it is a much better ride than the SL3. Not as harsh. I can never figure out how a bike becomes stiffer each year, and at the same time has a more forgiving ride.


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## El Caballito (Oct 31, 2004)

TimmyG said:


> Frame is 56. Saddle height is 76.


Just my size! Nice ride:thumbsup:


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## will2007 (Jun 22, 2007)

Sick ride!! Can't wait to see it in person.


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## bdaviskc (Aug 6, 2005)

*Nice*



TimmyG said:


> I haven't had a chance to ride it yet as I sent it out to have the internal seat post battery installed and battery indicator hidden up/under the bottom of the stem. I should get it back this weekend. I have heard that it is a much better ride than the SL3. Not as harsh. I can never figure out how a bike becomes stiffer each year, and at the same time has a more forgiving ride.


Mine is sitting at the shop for a wheel swap as well--putting some Zipp Firecrest 303s on it! I started looking into the seatpost battery option--are you doing that with Calfee? Did you just send the post or how does that work? Thinking about doing the same--anxious to get out and try the bike out!

Still need to find a buyer for my SL3 though--anybody in the market? Willing to make a great deal on it!! Don't need an SL3 and SL4!!!


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## TimmyG (Jul 5, 2007)

Brad,
I got your private message, but could not respond. I guess that I don't have enough posts on the site.
I had the internal battery done by a local guy who does an incredible job. One of the local masters teams- Breaking Away From Cancer was getting their batteries done by Calfee and wasn't happy with the results. This local guy does an incredible job. He is not using either of the 2 cable entry points at the down tube. He connects the Di2 cable to the rear brake cable and drills a very small hole on the bottom side of the top tube right next to where the rear brake cable goes in. He then uses a battery with over twice the battery life of the stock Shimano battery. He also mounts the charge indicator up under the stem where you cannot see it. He charged me $225 for the whole job and I am able to sell my original Shimano battery and charger that came with the bike on eBay. I should be able to make up for about 1/2 the charge of his costs. I'm stoked with the job he did.


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## TimmyG (Jul 5, 2007)

Here's some photos of the internal cable routing job for my internal seat post battery. On the photo of the battery indicator mounted to the bottom of my stem, it looks like there are rubber bands holding it on. These are the rubber bands to hold on my Garmin mount to the top of the stem. Sorry for the sideways photos. I rotated them and saved them before they were uploaded.


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## JaPPster (Jun 3, 2011)

marvelous!! dont forget for ride report!


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## bdaviskc (Aug 6, 2005)

*Thanks*

Thanks for the info--sounds very nice. I am talking to Calfee and have asked for some references as I don't believe we have anyone local that can handle things (Kansas City)--may try and contact that Masters team you mentioned to see what their issues were on the Calfee conversion. I hate to drop the $ and have an issue with it--I had been factoring in the resale of battery/charger so agreed, nice that it offsets some of your costs.

Thanks for your comments.


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## bdaviskc (Aug 6, 2005)

*Thanks*

Thanks for the info--sounds very nice. I am talking to Calfee and have asked for some references as I don't believe we have anyone local that can handle things (Kansas City)--may try and contact that Masters team you mentioned to see what their issues were on the Calfee conversion. I hate to drop the $ and have an issue with it--I had been factoring in the resale of battery/charger so agreed, nice that it offsets some of your costs.

Thanks for your comments.


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## TimmyG (Jul 5, 2007)

bdaviskc said:


> Thanks for the info--sounds very nice. I am talking to Calfee and have asked for some references as I don't believe we have anyone local that can handle things (Kansas City)--may try and contact that Masters team you mentioned to see what their issues were on the Calfee conversion. I hate to drop the $ and have an issue with it--I had been factoring in the resale of battery/charger so agreed, nice that it offsets some of your costs.
> 
> Thanks for your comments.


When I was considering Calfee, there was about a month wait. I could not wait that long. Also their price was $500. This local guy was less than 1/2 of that. It's even a few bucks cheaper if you opt to use the existing down tube internal cable routing. I liked the extra-hidden "under the down tube" cable routing though. Many people just ship their bike to him (like you would have to with Calfee).


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## bdaviskc (Aug 6, 2005)

Interesting--from what I've been told given the Di2 cabling is internal on the new SL4, you just have to send the harness and your seatpost. They quoted me 2-3 days turnaround and $200. Still sort of hung up on pulling my seatpost out of the frame to charge the battery every time though. Do you have to do that?


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## rcjunkie3000 (Sep 5, 2009)

Thank you for sharing. Its an awesome looking bike. Please post some comparisons between the SL4 and your former 2011 SL3. Would love to get one and have been searching for a matte black and white s-works frame.


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## lukas45 (Jul 17, 2011)

hi guys, maybe stupid question - I have SL4 frame on order and now got a great chance to get Dura Ace Di2 groupset... are there any special requirements I need for build? e.g. original Shimano cranks not working etc.. I dont wanna end up with groupset that would not fit into the frame.. (I had same problem 2 yrs ago when my LBS said that Sram XX cranks would fit into SW Epic frame). thanks.


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## bernithebiker (Sep 26, 2011)

rcjunkie3000 said:


> Thank you for sharing. Its an awesome looking bike. Please post some comparisons between the SL4 and your former 2011 SL3. Would love to get one and have been searching for a matte black and white s-works frame.


Can't comment on SL3 / 4 difference, but now I have my SL4 position sorted, and swapped out the tubular front for my old Rolf Sestriere clincher front (cos the tub wasn't stuck down properly and was making noise, and braking was poor), I'm totally in love with the bike.

I think 'taut' is the word I would use. It feels poised, tight and ready to rip it up. But I've not once yet been uncomfortable on it. 

Someone on here recently was saying that rigidity doesn't get you any measurable speed gains. Well, hard to say, but it definitely 'feels' right to have that rigidity. The bike just snaps forward. 

My old bike was a Trek 5900 110 OLCV Superlight, 8 years old, so maybe the difference for me is quite stark, as I think that frame was a bit flexy.

Oh, and it's very light, and looks the dog's bollocks.


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## bdaviskc (Aug 6, 2005)

*Nice!*

Looks very clean and well done. I immediately recognized the Garmin mounting bands and like that under stem setup. Very nice. Can you charge the battery from the unit under the stem (ie where do you plug in the charger) or do you have to remove the seatpost? 

Honestly, that is my one hangup right now--do I really want to remove the seatpost every time I need to charge the battery? Now, I know thats not a weekly thing (at least not for me, wish I could ride that much!), but still.

Thanks for the photos!

Brad

PS--Anybody still looking for a 58cm S-Works SL3 (Saxo Bank color scheme), please drop me a line as mine still needs to find a new home! :thumbsup:


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## rcjunkie3000 (Sep 5, 2009)

Hey Timmy,

Do you have some pics of the top tube from above? Is there white paint stripes or is it black? Also, is there any white pin stripes on the rear chain stays? Thanks!


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## bdaviskc (Aug 6, 2005)

Just picked up the new SL4 with Di2--swapped out some parts (Zipp bar, stem and Firecrest 303 clinchers). Fully built with those changes, pedals, cages and Garmin mount/cadence sensor I am at 14.9 pounds. Really liking the new ride!


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## TimmyG (Jul 5, 2007)

bdaviskc said:


> Looks very clean and well done. I immediately recognized the Garmin mounting bands and like that under stem setup. Very nice. Can you charge the battery from the unit under the stem (ie where do you plug in the charger) or do you have to remove the seatpost?
> 
> Honestly, that is my one hangup right now--do I really want to remove the seatpost every time I need to charge the battery? Now, I know thats not a weekly thing (at least not for me, wish I could ride that much!), but still.
> 
> ...


Brad, 
I will have to pull the seat post each time to charge the battery, but the battery that was swapped for the one that came with the bike (to fit in the seat post) is over twice as powerful, so unless you ride 5+ days per week, it should only need to be charged once a year.


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## TimmyG (Jul 5, 2007)

bdaviskc said:


> Just picked up the new SL4 with Di2--swapped out some parts (Zipp bar, stem and Firecrest 303 clinchers). Fully built with those changes, pedals, cages and Garmin mount/cadence sensor I am at 14.9 pounds. Really liking the new ride!


Brad,
Which post are you running? That doesn't look like the stock post. I had to swap out the set-back post that came on the bike for a zero off-set (Easton) post because of my short torso. Is yours a zero off-set post? It looks great!


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## bdaviskc (Aug 6, 2005)

Edge/Enve Composites straight post (zero offset). Sounds like I have the same issue as you. I have short femurs, but also prefer a bit less reach so also move to a 100mm stem from the 110 stock.

Likely will order a Zipp post to match the rest of my Zipp gear (and do the internal battery mod) and sell the Enve post shortly. It is a nice setup.


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## RaGzMaN (Mar 3, 2011)

Great ride! Congrats


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## RC Rider (Nov 29, 2011)

Awesome bike guys.


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## RC Rider (Nov 29, 2011)

What is the diff between SL3 and SL4 (aside from the price)? Is it the carbon layout?


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

that bike is awesome


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## defy_adv_3 (Mar 3, 2011)

Wow. that's sic!!!!


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## di2diy (Dec 7, 2011)

*This is my work, I did this bike for Tim*



TimmyG said:


> Brad,
> I got your private message, but could not respond. I guess that I don't have enough posts on the site.
> I had the internal battery done by a local guy who does an incredible job. One of the local masters teams- Breaking Away From Cancer was getting their batteries done by Calfee and wasn't happy with the results. This local guy does an incredible job. He is not using either of the 2 cable entry points at the down tube. He connects the Di2 cable to the rear brake cable and drills a very small hole on the bottom side of the top tube right next to where the rear brake cable goes in. He then uses a battery with over twice the battery life of the stock Shimano battery. He also mounts the charge indicator up under the stem where you cannot see it. He charged me $225 for the whole job and I am able to sell my original Shimano battery and charger that came with the bike on eBay. I should be able to make up for about 1/2 the charge of his costs. I'm stoked with the job he did.


This is my work, I did this for Tim a few weeks ago, I have done several for guys here in So Cal and a few local bike shops, and 3 of my own. Prices depend on what you want done, I do Di2 specific, and non Di2 frames. message me if your interested, or just have a question, or need help on a project your doing. I also sell modified wiring kits on eBay. 
I started looking on the same forums, for the same information I see here, and after a year, and doing > 20 frames, both Di2 specific, and non Di2, I would say now it’s easy, but not in the beginning. I first looked at the Calfee retrofit, but after some research I decided to do it myself. Calfee does a great job, and if you want a bike that has had holes > ½ inch drilled, and cutouts the size of a fist drilled in the downtube, and a harness installed in the frame that cant be removed... and if you have an extra $700 plus shipping, than send that bike frame to them. They will get it back to you in 4-8 weeks. Yes they do a wonderful job of patching the big holes they make, and make it almost unnoticeable, if you don’t look too close. If you have a Di2 specific frame it’s realy easy to get rid of the ugly battery, and put it in the seat post, all you need is an internal harness and a battery that will fit in the post. I also just noticed that Glorycycles is selling a Calfee Enve Seatpost 27.2 with Di2 Battery, only $399!!. If anyone is interested in doing a frame that is a non Di2 frame or a Di2 frame, message me and I would be glad to help you drill that puppy and put the battery in the seat post. If you live in So Cal you could bring it to me and have it done in a < a week.


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## steverocks (Aug 19, 2005)

*14.9lbs!!!*

I have the same bike, same size with r-sys wheels and a rotor SRM, mine weighs 16 flat.
I'd love to drop another pound! 
did you change out your bolts for alum/ti?


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## RTPearson (Jan 17, 2012)

Picked my SL4 up just before Christmas… a few subtle changes…. Enjoy;


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## jnbrown (Dec 9, 2009)

Does the Di2 front shifting work well with the Specialized crankset?


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## TimmyG (Jul 5, 2007)

jnbrown said:


> Does the Di2 front shifting work well with the Specialized crankset?


Yes- Incredible!!!


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## Aerod79 (Sep 24, 2009)

Question, hows your 303 Firecrest doing with the frame? I saw that the clearance between chainstay and rim is really tight. Any issues with it?


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## Mdrnizd (Oct 21, 2009)

I have not had any issues with my SL4 frame and my 303 FC Clinchers.


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