tNuvolari

I just took the plunge and bought a new frame, well, new for me, off eBay. It's a 2005 Wilier Izoard which is one of the early all carbon frames. There is virtually no information about this frame online and most searches bring up the much later Izoard XP model. Anyway, I would love to hear any info, good or bad, about this bike as I wait for delivery and build up. It's the model with the "Look Through" decal on the rear seat stay and the hole through the frame over the rear brake mount. Not a fan of the decal but other than that, it's a beautiful frame in the pics! Hopefully, it's light, strong, and handles like a dream. (Colnago reference there....)

Many thanks and pictures to come once I get it.

Pics from eBay listing:

Spaghetti Legs 

My sense is that your model is newer than 2005. I have a 2004 Alpe D'Huez which is aluminum with carbon fork and rear triangle. My recall from that era is the Izoard was next level up and was very similar construction to the Alpe D'Huez but somewhere around '05 though it went to full carbon. All that shaped framework looks atypical for most any carbon frame from that era. I remember the oohs and ahhh with the Pinarello s bend fork around that time and the raised eyebrows from the C-50 HP chain stays but nothing unusual from Wilier. At any rate I suspect you'll be pleased with the ride of that frame.

tNuvolari

Yeah, I'm not sure of the exact year but from what I've read, it's right around 2005. I think 2004 was still the scandium/carbon frame and then by 2006, I think the "look through" hole was no longer part of the design. That's what worries me slightly is that the "hole" didn't last very long and Wilier usually keeps a design longer. Of course, that hole was probably more expensive to manufacture so maybe it was purely economical.
I love my updated Torpado now but it is very twitchy. I think the frame might be bent as the rear hub adjusters are uneven and if set evenly, the wheel is crooked. Not sure if this a common issue and part of normal bike set up or if the adjusters should always be even. They aren't off by much, maybe 2mm or so....

Will I still want to ride the Torpado once I get the new bike up and running? I'll be pulling parts from the Torpado for the new bike so I'll have to buy more derailleurs etc. to have 2 bikes running. Thinking of maybe a city bike or something for the Torpado as MTB handlebars will probably mask some of the twitchiness.

Correction: I think my frame is a 2006. The Izoard used a different design in 2008 without the "Look through" hole, so mine is either 2006 or 07. 2005 was still a scandium/aluminum frame which is a cool looking frame and supposedly not as harsh as pure aluminum.

tNuvolari

Question about the carbon fiber fork and compression fitting: Does the compression fitting have to be lined up with where the stem clamps? Or is the compression fitting just to provide an attachment for the cap? My fork is all carbon and I'm afraid of damaging it. Also, I can't find any torque specs for my frame. I've written Wilier but otherwise, there is absolutely nothing online about this frame. I need to know torque specs for stem, FD, rear dropouts, seatpost, compression bolt, and brake mounts.

tNuvolari

Eh, torque specs, smorque specs! Carbon isn't that difficult, you just can't tighten things too much. So I built up my new frame and loving it even if carbon is not the answer to every problem. I mean I guess it is but not as much as everyone makes you think! It's better and smoother but not so much that you're amazed. Maybe just enough that you're almost happy! Or maybe I'm just a malcontent.
Don't get me wrong; I'm loving the bike, mostly for the lightweight and extra speed it brings but I expected more from the handling. Or maybe my old bike was better than I thought.
Still, I expected it to corner like a Ferrari but it's a bit twitchy like the old bike. Or maybe it's just me.
But just like the old bike, I would never take my hands off the bars and ride no handed as that would end in tears and injury and carbon fiber splinters. Every time I ride I see these guys riding no handed for long stretches and I'm amazed that they can do that. I would never even attempt it. Even when exhausted, I always leave one hand on the bars while trying to stretch and ease the pain. Is this unusual or are road bikes set up this way?

T-Mar

The Izoard was full carbon in 2004 according to my price list, while the Alpe D'Huez was Easton Race 7000 with carbon fibre monostay and carbon fibre fork.

SJX426 

@tNuvolari - Clearly this is not a C&V bike but for carbon it might end up being one! For some strange reason I really like the look. The only strange feature is the humpback around the appealing water bottle cage on the down tube.

I think I would ride that!

chainwhip

tNuvolari -

"Still, I expected it to corner like a Ferrari but it's a bit twitchy like the old bike. Or maybe it's just me.
But just like the old bike, I would never take my hands off the bars and ride no handed as that would end in tears and injury and carbon fiber splinters. Every time I ride I see these guys riding no handed for long stretches and I'm amazed that they can do that. I would never even attempt it. Even when exhausted, I always leave one hand on the bars while trying to stretch and ease the pain. Is this unusual or are road bikes set up this way?"


Short chain stays, short wheel base(100cm, or less), steep head tube angles, and certain rake and trail geometries in the fork itself, make for bikes that ride "twitchy".

Some cyclists call that "responsive", and ,imo, it's a good thing.

It does take some adaptation and an acquired skill set to handle and enjoy.

The people you see riding hands free, it's likely they have a very smooth pedal stroke and a quiet upper body, if they are able to ride smoothly and safely on a short wheelbased bike with "steep" geometry.

Keep in mind, without steering input from your hands...where does it come from?
Your "seat".

You can do it.
A bit like handling a chainsaw: ya gotta respect it.

SJX426 

@tNuvolari - @Chinwhip is quite right, you really steer by shifting weight. Below about 10 MPH it is steering, above, it is weight movement. Those that train on rollers are likely to be able to ride hands free. Mostly because they have to improve there technique to ensure they don't fall off the rollers from steering input from the handle bars, often induced by peddling technique!

The bikes I ride the most are Italian racing bikes and I can ride hands free on all of them. The key, from the bike perspective, is that it must be aligned in every aspect to the center line of the frame. I once discovered that the wheel set I was using, second or so ride after purchase, had a rear wheel with the wrong dish. It wasn't very far off, just a couple of turns on the nipples to move the rim to the RD side. The discovery was made when I was riding hands free and I had to lean my body slightly to the left to go straight!

After lots of practice, it is a releaf to be able to let go and lean back or stretch your arms to the back while riding. Going around corners is also fun as long as they are not too sharp!

Riding smoothly is also more efficient. Less energy from moving unnecessarily both in your legs and your body.

hugopotamus

So great to finally find someone-else who has one of these! I bought my frame (no fork) from eBay in May 2017 for £270 and initially built it up using the (rather crappy) components from my £300 Jamis Ventura Sport.

Like you, I Googled like mad but could find nothing online - to the point where I wondered if it was a 'real' Wilier at all or just a cheap Chinese frame with Wilier stickers!

Thing is, I didn't actually care - it was sooo gorgeous! Over time I upgraded pretty much everything to Shimano 105 plus added some deep-section Orbis rims on the basis I was using it for triathlons so wanted a bit on an aero boost...

Recently I had a bike fit done and have switched out the aero rims for the lighter (less aero) ones that came with my Cannondale Slice tri bike, fitted a carbon seatpost plus fitted some clip ons for when the road flattens out...

The bike weighs the same as much (much more aero) 2016 Slice, but it just feels lighter... I think it's the fact it's so agile, responding immediately to any power input to the pedals with a kick of acceleration. I love riding it, I just have a grin all the time.

I could spend hours just gazing into the depths of the glossy carbon weave too!

tNuvolari

Ha, good to hear I'm not the only one with this frame! Post some pics when you can. Also, I have some info that Wilier in Italy sent me that I'll post here. I wrote to them when I first bought the bike to make sure it wasn't a Chinese rip off or other counterfeit. From the brochure they sent me, you can be sure our bikes are actual Wiliers.

Loving this bike still but it hasn't gotten any more stable or easy to ride but it is comfortable and reasonably light. Since the pics above I've changed stem and bars to a shorter ITM stem and Cinelli Mash bars with Cinelli Cork Gel tape. I like the tape quite a bit as it keeps the nice cork feel of the normal Cinelli cork tape but adds an extra bit of cushion with the gel. And also found some skeleton brakes with dual pivot front and rear. At first the dual pivot on the rear caused me to lock up in any emergency situation but I've gotten used to it and now it feels good. Actually, the rear feels so strong that the front almost feels a little weak.
Also, I rebuilt my shifters and replaced all the springs and that has made shifting much, much better. It wasn't bad before but now after rebuilding, it is definitely more precise with one click yielding one shift every time.

Ok, here's the Wilier brochure:

sturmeyaw

Hey this is great news! I'd seen this thread when I bought mine in June last year, but never saw the newest few posts.
Mine has FSA cranks with Wilier branding, and FSA brake calipers, though the shifters and derailleurs are 10 speed 105 (5700 I think?) so the previous owner did make some changes. Selle Italia saddle, carbon seatpost. I like the white cable housings but that might have been part of the previous owner's refit. The wheels also have Wilier stickers but obviously aren't made by them.
Also, funny thing, not all of the frame is CF. Judging by the ding it makes when struck, at least the top tube is different (probably AL?). But I'm not a materials scientist and my last road bike was all AL (yes, fork too), so this Wilier frame is like a night and day difference in comfort and ride quality.
I'll upload a picture if I remember, it's a beautiful bike, maybe probe Wilier Triestina about my own frame's serial number. Cheers!

JSL

I would be surprised if the bike itself was unstable. I've had an Izoard and a handful of other Wiliers - each had very traditional geometry and could hold a straight line quite well.

dpd3672

I had one and it was a fantastic riding bike. I think mine was probably a year or two later, and the only reason I sold it was because I happened upon a pair of Wilier frames (A GTR and a Cento 1) that were a great deal and a little higher on the hierarchy, so the Izoard was a bit redundant. Sold it to a guy on Craigslist that I actually stayed in touch with, good guy, we get together and ride occasionally.

This was mine: