Caliwild

Hey gang,

My LBS is selling this bike for $3,600.00:

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/ae...=349966-216935



First off, is this a good deal? Looks like most places have this model selling for around $4K. Looking for some enablers

Second, I think this bike is a wheelset swap away from being a superbike. I've seen the older threads and read some older reviews about the Aethos. But does anyone have any long-term personal reviews? Do you still like the bike? Anything I should be aware of? Thinking of getting this as my super light climbing bike. Any suggested changes/upgrades are welcome.

Lastly, does anyone have experience with the wheelsets currently offered by Specialized? Looking for something superlight. Don't need aero, as I already have a BMC Roadmachine set up with aero wheels, bars, etc...

Thanks in advance!

Steve B.

Came close to buying, it’s a well equipped bike for the price. Specialized had it on their website for $3999 and I thought that was a good deal, it listed for $4200. It’s a grand for a good set of carbon wheels and that’s about all I would upgrade, so yes, $3600 is worth it, IME. I got lucky and found a Trek SL7 in my size locally for $5000, ended up with that.

Kai Winters

It seems a reasonable price.
I've been riding and racing my Aethos over two years and would not trade her for anything. She is light and fast. She has the same geometry as the Tarmac SL8. She is very stable on downhills...I've run her at just over 50mph and she tracked like on rails. She corners quickly and is very stable.
I built her from the frame up using Roval Alpinist wheels and my preferred Vittoria Corsa Pro tires in 25mm...I'm 5'4" and 140lbs so it is a good combination imo.
She sports a Shimano 105 Di2 12 speed drivetrain in full manual mode...if I want big/big I want big/big and don't start shifting all my gears when I'm hammering on a short steep climb.
I've ridden her in about 15 plus races and she has never let me down.
Would I prefer a different bike? Perhaps but for the money she is value. I'd love an SWorks, or Colnago V4RS or a Pinarello Dogma F but can't afford that level of frame.
I work in a bike shop and have built a Tarmac SWorks SL8 with full Dura Ace Di2 as well as another Aethos with full Ultegra Di2 and honestly in a blind test I couldn't tell the difference when shifting except perhaps a tiniest bit faster when shifting the Dura Ace.
I've put over 20k miles on the bike since I built it and I haven't had a problem at all with anything on it.
I use a Roval Rapide handlebars with ENVE aero carbon stem.
The only change I'd make to the bike your considering is changing the wheels to a deeper carbon set. Otherwise it's an awesome bike.

Jughed

Is that bike really #16.8?

If so, then hell yes that is a good price. In terms of weight vs many other bikes at that price point - double hell yes.


I hope your purchase wont lead to divorce or anything...

eduskator

She doesn't need to know!

Shadco 

It’s a good bike and quite a bit less expensive than the next one up the food chain with Ultegra.

Replace the seat post clamp (know to crack) and you are good to go.

I like the Ultegra C36 wheels I used on mine.

Iride01 

It's not a good deal if for some reason you need the features or prestige of owning this $13,500 S-Works Aethos. <grin>



https://www.specialized.com/us/en/s-...=432874-275617


Price of the bikes are largely determined by the components on them. Though sometimes the frames are a different and new version for the premium tier of that model. And this S-Works is a FACT 12r instead of the FACT 10r of what you posted. Don't know what's better about it, but if you wait a few years, it'll be on what ever the Aethos is that they are offering at the tier level you are in now with that bike.


To me the biggest thing about any bike is that if fits you and you like the color. And fitting you includes liking the position it gives you. Aethos and Tarmacs share a lot of the same geometry. They are made to put you in a aggressive position. Don't think that you can raise the bars easily to make it be a Roubaix or other bike with a less aggressive geometry that allows you to sit more upright.

At that price point it has a pretty good wheelset that's light enough if weight is your only consideration. Most bikes always come with wheels appropriate for the price tier you are in.

Those on the bike you show appear to be about the same as the rims on my 2020 Tarmac. Nothing bad about them other than there is always better.

terrymorse 

Jus in case anyone thinks that the Aethos isn't really a race bike, here's cycling legend Ned Overend on one, at the 2022 Iron Horse Bicyle Classic, in the pro race:



He only managed 9th place, but then he was 3 times as old as the winner, plus 3 more years.

Jrasero

I have an Aethos Fact 10r that I built up to an Expert or Pro level. I will say the base frame is amazing and at 700g or less it's just as light for lighter than most companies top of the line climbing bikes like a Emonda SLR. A couple things to remember about the bike: while many don't consider it a "race" bike it has the same exact geometry as the tarmac albeit a slightly lower SOH, thus don't expect "endurance" geometry comfort, however the frame accepts up to 32mm tires and the frame is very complaint. If you run a 30mm-32mm tubeless with a fairly wide internal rim the bike is super cush and could even do some light gravel. My biggest complaint is that the frame when putting down power is almost to noodle like, hower climbing due to the weight and the flex you get in the rear triangle you get this skating effect when climbing. I personally enjoy the round tubes, non proprietary parts, non integration, and non flashy logos.

To answer you question yeah this is a "good" deal IMO and yes a 1200g-1300g wheelset would greatly transform the bike, but just know this is such a niche bike. I love using my bike when I know I will be riding rolling hills or big climbs but for most rides now a days I use my 2022 Scott Foil RC since it's light enough at 17lbs albeit the Aethos is sub 15lbs for me

The 105 Di2 is 17.16lbs stock. Those DT R470 weigh 1800g, the tubes probably 230g, and the Turbo Pro 28mm 570g for the pair. If you can get a 1300g wheelset, use 36g (72g) TPU tubes, and maybe use some lighter GP5000 28mm at 235g each you will save 758g=2600g-1842 or 1.67lbs, thus the bike without pedals, cages, or mounts stock would be 15.5lbs. I would go a step further and change the saddle since the Body Geometry Power Sport steel rails weighs a whopping 242g. Saddles are really personal preference but this is an area were you can find sub 150g saddles which allow you to lose 90g-100g+.

Caliwild

Thanks for all the responses so far... I'm fortunate enough to have a few road bikes so I think this will be my pure climbing bike. Any opinions on the Roval CLX vs CL? Even the Terra wheels looks decent. Moving away from Roval, even the Shimano 105 disc wheels look pretty good (slightly heavier than the Ultregra ones posted above).

Jrasero

Neither. A $1100 pair of Elitewheels Drive D40 1290g w/ carbon spokes and ceramic bearings smoke those wheels at like 3X less
A pair of 9Velo LV35 V2 1209g wheels at $880 shipped are an even better value
A Pair of Winspace D33 1330g ceramic bearing and carbon spokes wheels for about $1200 are simply better

My point is, unless you need or like the LBS experience for warranty purposes, buying big brand carbon wheels are one of the biggest rip offs in modern cycling

jonathanf2

Wow that's a great deal. Just swap out the wheels, rotors and cassette for some lightweight carbon and ultegra rotors/cassette and you should easily hit the 7kg +/- mark. You could even swap out the crankset for carbon as well to become UCI illegal!

jonathanf2

They already exist!

Bigrock Sohtea Team Edition - 603-675g frameset / T47 BB / 30c tire clearance / $1668 USD:
https://www.pandapodium.cc/product/b...bike-frameset/

ICAN FL1 - 795g (54cm) / T47 BB / 32c tire clearance / $595 USD + shipping (shipping price was emailed to me):
https://www.icanbikes.com/t1000-carb...frame-fl1-795g

terrymorse 

I kind of have my eye on this 780g frame, just in case my Scott Addict bites the dust:

Winspace SLC2.0 $1480-$1580

I'm impressed with their wheel set, so maybe they also make great frames. Has a rim brake option to satisfy the weight weenie.

Caliwild

Yeah, I like to support my LBS and also like the warranty of a big brand. Well, the local enabler at my LBS made me a deal I couldn't refuse on an in-stock wheelset. I'm getting these:

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/ro...=330010-205468

They weigh only 1,375 grams, while the original wheelset is 1,810 grams. So, that basically knocks a pound off the bike (where it counts). Plus, they're hooked tubeless which is the best of both worlds (I can still run clinchers). Got some 700x29 tubeless Enve tires from them too, as they were having a buy-one-get-one-free on Enve tires (which I have on other bikes and love). The only other changes I'll probably make in the future are throwing on a lighter cassette and carbon bars. I'll post some pics when I pick her up next week...

Kai Winters

You might want to look at Elite, Winspace or Hunt wheels...all are highly regarded and have some excellent climbing wheels at more reasonable prices than Roval's

Jrasero

There sure is!
https://www.pandapodium.cc/brand/bigrock/
If I was building again today I would just get the Sohea tema Edition since it basically is a one for one copy of the Aethos SWORKS at $1700!

Jrasero

To play devil's advocate if you buy any kind of Specialized you are just buying from a cooperated store since most Specialized dealers are now directly owned by them. Also the Roval wheels whether made in Taiwan or China are of the same quality as the direct to consumer Chinese brands. Again I understand if the "warranty" is the thing your hung-up on but literally for the price of some of Roval wheels you could by 2 to even 3 of the alternative wheels

Jrasero

The team frame, handlebars/stem, and FEDEX shipping comes to $1968. I paid $3K for my Aethos Fact 10r frame alone and a SWORKS frame is $5K. Now $3600 you can't really build something that cheap but IMO the base Big Rock Sohtea frameset and stem/handlebars $1500 shipped, $1K wheelset, $1700 groupset. $250 tires, tubes, tape, BB. $120 seat, and $350 build and you are at $4920 which to more than $3600 but frankly just as much if not less than OP will spend to buy an Aethos Comp and upgrade the wheelset, but IMO he will get a lighter bike, get to choose his components and their sizes, get a better groupset like Force AXS D2, get potentially better wheels, get carbon cockpit (integrated), I highly doubt he does this because he seems like a LBS slave, but anyone not dedicated by paying big bike brand prices, this is a way to get a better bike for less

And while I never have built a Big Rock frame I have bought from Panda Podium and I have built up a Winspace T1500 and a Yoeleo R Series bike, so direct to consumer or frameset builds isn't new or crazy for me

shelbyfv

Nice!

Caliwild

Thanks for the tips! Not very interested in buying direct from China, but if that floats your boat, that's great. Different strokes for different folks...

Caliwild

And please, let's not turn this into another one of those OEM vs. buy-direct-from-China threads. We have enough of those!

NumbersGuy

I applaud you both for supporting your local shop with the purchase and for buying the brand that did the R&D work to develop the Aethos rather than a cheap Chinese copy.

It’s still very questionable whether the knocks-offs or “factory direct” options are close to the same quality. Some who are only focused on dollars and grams may very well think they have a “better” bike, but there are lots of examples all over YouTube of these brands not living up to the hype, weighing more than claimed, and even having dangerously bad quality control in some cases. I certainly wouldn’t endorse this option the way some people do, and would certainly have less long term confidence in the durability or of getting any support from the manufacturer in the future if there is a problem.

Steve B.

I did that 9 years ago. I put 8,500 miles on a Flyxii frame that cost $358 shipped. It rode very well, was not a light frame, over 1700 or so. When I opted to trade up to an Emonda, I found a bike that likely because of a better designed frame, plus carbon wheels, bar and seat post, was a remarkably more comfortable ride. I mean, I knew the Chinese frame rode a bit harsh, but it fit very well and was otherwise a good bike. Just not as good as what you get with a well designed Trek, Specialized or Cannondale. As well, beceause it was an old design, the Chinese had a tire size limit of 25mm, thus I was not putting a modern carbon wheel on it or wider tires. With newer designs you can do 30mm tubeless and really sweeten the ride.

PeteHski

How would you know that the carbon layup is the same? I know from experience that you can double torsional stiffness of a carbon structure just by changing the layup design. So how do they compare in torsional stiffness etc? Is there a rider weight limit on the Chinese copy? There are a lot of very subtle tube and junction transition profiles on the Aethos that were carefully worked out in FEA to maintain strength and stiffness at minimum weight. Does the Chinese copy reproduce all these details precisely?

These are the sort of questions I would need answering before I would be interested in a Chinese copy frame. I’m sure some of them are very good, but there’s a lot of crap out there to wade through. The big brands are a known quantity with a proven history and that’s what you are paying for. We know it can be done much cheaper by copying and cutting out Western business overheads, but it’s hard to know exactly what corners were cut and what differences there are below the paint job.

So If I wanted an Aethos then I would just buy an Aethos to be sure of the design and quality.