Orbea unveils updated Orca lightweight climbing bike that weighs just 6.7kg

Orbea has revealed an updated version of its Orca road bike, available in the top-of-the-range OMX model or the OMR, the latter of which is claimed to be around 300g heavier. The Orca is designed for climbers and is customisable through MyO, available in 13 different builds.  

The previous model of the Orca OMX was aimed at riders wanting one bike that does it all, while the new Orca is claimed to be the best bike for climbing and referred to as "the ultimate climbing machine" by the Spanish brand. 

Orbea says, "the Orca is around 3W faster than an aero bike, for an average rider, on a 5% slope, and around 6W faster on a 10% slope." 

The Orca OMX has claimed weight of 6.7kg for a full bike, and the frame is just 750g (size 53cm) and 360g for the fork, while the OMR frame and fork are claimed to be 330g heavier, weighing 1,030g and 410g respectively. 

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To keep the weight of the frame down, Orca says it has used 90 fewer carbon pieces for the OMX due to using larger pieces of carbon fibre, which results in fewer overlaps. 

Orbea frames are painted at its Basque Country HQ, which allows for more control of the process according to Orbea. The brand claims that the paint weighs around 15g and the frame hardware around 20g. 

Furthermore, Orbea says it has prevented excess epoxy from gathering on edges or corners, claiming to save grams further. 

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The Orca's geometry remains largely unchanged, but one modification is the shorter chainstays and consequently shorter wheelbase, which Orbea says is to increase the responsiveness and agility of the Orca that climbers demand. 

A key feature is the 'Powerspine' frame design, whereby the lower spine of the frame handles the majority of load. The headtube, downtube and chainstays resist twisting, transmitting power to the rear wheel, and Orbea claims that this design helps save weight elsewhere without compromising stiffness. 

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Not forgetting aero gains, Orbea states that whenever aerodynamics didn't compromise weight, they chose the most aero solution. For example, internal cable routing and the new seat clamp mechanism. 

The frame has wide clearance fitting tyres up to 32mm and despite the fork being designed to minimise weight, the shape is said to help reduce drag at the same time. 

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The new Orca is complete with Orbea's in-house OC components and OQUO wheels, allowing Orbea to design the complete bike and offering better integration. 

The bike features the RP10 stem, which is said to be one the lightest on the market, and HP11 handlebar with a claimed weight of 190g. Orbea says, "the new handlebars offer the most modern ergonomics, and Orbea will be one of the first brands with flared road bars across the full range." 

You don't have to use Orbea's handlebars though, and if you'd rather use handlebars from Vision or Deda, Orbea has an adaptor to fit these. 

> Orbea’s Oquo brand launches its first road and gravel wheel range using ‘mini hook’ system

Orbea’s Oquo brand recently unveiled its first road wheels, which are aimed at both high-performance and gravel/endurance riding, and the Orca uses these new Oquo wheels. 

They come in carbon or aluminium with three different levels: LTD, Team and Pro, and there are also three different rim depths: 35, 45 and 57mm. The RP35-LTD wheelset is said to weigh 1380g. 

Orbea suggests tyre widths from 25mm to 35mm for the 21mm internal width. 

The Orca is available in two frame options and seven different sizes: 47, 49, 51, 53, 55, 57, and 60cm.

The OMR frame comes in three different colours, while the OMX frame comes in two different colours. Orbea's MyO feature allows you to personalise the bikes further, with the option of choosing more aerodynamic wheels and handlebars. 

www.orbea.com