BMC have put their flagship TeamMachine SLR01 on a diet ahead of the Tour de France, where Cadel Evans will eyeing up a podium spot, and shaved the weight down to 790g for a size 56cm. That’s a reduction from about 950g of the previous frame. Despite the weight it has lost, BMC reckon they’ve improved the stiffness by a whopping 25%. It’s not as if the previous frame was that flexy. Prices will start from £2,750 for the frame and £4,000 for a Shimano Ultegra model
Frameset weight, including the fork, headset, seatpost, derailleur hanger, cable guides and seat clamp is 1,380g. That makes a build that easily dips under the UCI’s 6.8kg weight limit entirely possible with a Dura-Ace build. The days of needing exotic one-off machined parts to get such a light bike are firmly behind us; it’s now entirely possible with off-the-shelf components.
It’s also getting harder for designers to trim weight off already very light frames, so BMC developed their own Accelerated Composites Evolution (ACE) Technology, computer modelling software that allowed them to very rapidly prototype the design of the frame.
The software is concerned with optimising the shape of every tube and junction and the layup of the carbon fibre. It allows the designers to model prototypes through the development phase and speed up the process, and should ensure they uncover every stone in the design process. BMC reckon they went through 34,000 possible designs before settling on this final one.
The new SLR01 retains the same proven geometry as the previous frame, and visually it has a very close resemblance. They’ve retained the Tuned Compliance Concept (TCC), found in the stays and seatpost, to deliver a reasonable level of comfort, as they recognise the importance of racers arriving as fresh as possible to the finish line. With this ACE software they’ve been able to hone TCC and make it, they claim, even more comfortable.
A noticeable change is the internal cable routing. BMC have designed the frame to work with mechanical and electronic groupsets, with small panels to conceal the cable or wire entry points. The top tube is wider than before, and the down tube is more oversized.
There’s a BB86 Shimano Press-Fit bottom bracket at the bottom of the down tube and the head tube is tapered, 1-1/8in to 1-1/4in, with a 340g fork slotting into it. Their own seatpost, a full carbon design, weighs 180g and is available in 15 or 30mm setback options. There are six sizes on offer from 48 to 61cm.
At launch they’ll be offering a Shimano Dura-Ace Di2, Dura-Ace, SRAM Red 22 and Ultegra builds. We’re awaiting confirmation of the UK prices.
UK prices have been announced, expected availability is July at the earliest for the Dura-Ace models, and later in the year for the Di2 bikes.
SLR01 Shimano Dura Ace Di2 £8,500
SLR01 Shimano Dura Ace £6,000
SLR01 Sram Red £5,000
SLR01 Shimano Ultegra £4,000
SLR01 Frameset £2,750
More info at www.bmc-racing.com
-1024x680.jpg "“Clear anti-cyclist bias”: Lawsuit filed against Toronto police after cop doored cyclist… before ticketing rider over incident")
11 thoughts on “BMC TeamMachine SLR01 goes on a diet”
Still needs a Kristin
Still needs a Kristin Armstrong Chain Catcher and to minimize the “MADE IN TAIWAN” sticker. Wouldn’t like having a proprietary seatpost either.
What’s wrong with Made in
What’s wrong with Made in Taiwan?
Yeah, there was me thinking
Yeah, there was me thinking the Taiwanese were the world leaders in bicycle frame manufacturing, didn’t realise that it was a problem.
Shimano make their stuff in Malaysia, should we talk about that too?
Taiwan is technically far in
Taiwan is technically far in advance of the UK and has a higher standard of living so ridein needs to keep his vaguely racist comments to himself.
So mentioning a sticker
So mentioning a sticker really means a lot in the forum world. That sure escalated quickly.
A UK supplier would be even
A UK supplier would be even nicer, Evans doesn’t have any available of their bikes for sale online.
Still none the wiser about
Still none the wiser about the point you were trying to make about the MIT sticker though.
How does wanting a smaller
How does wanting a smaller sticker denigrate Taiwan, its people or bicycles?
ridein wrote:How does wanting
This is the internet! 😀
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On price update – waaaaaaaaaaaaaaa???? :O
That is a lot of moneys! Would not mind one though!
The insurance would be around £300 which is pretty much what it costs for entire cars! Crazy stuff :))
Bloody vague racists
Where
Bloody vague racists 😕
Where was my Bianchi made? Surely not Italy.
£1,700 more than the better
£1,700 more than the better specced Canyon you tested earlier this week, i’m struggling to imagine why anyone would choose the BMC over the Canyon.