Orro 2024 Gold STC Force D2 Etap AXS Tailormade

The latest Orro Gold STC still focuses on comfort, but with some wind-cheating updates over its predecessor it has now joined the ranks as one of the best all-round do-it-all, aero-cum-endurance bike you can buy. With a stunning ride quality and easy-to-live-with geometry this is a very fast and comfortable road bike at an impressive price.

Check out our best road bikes buyer's guide for our top choices, and our best road bikes under £2,000 for more budget-minded purchases.

Ride

The first thing that hits you as you start riding the Gold STC is its stunning ride quality. It just feels sublime, something that is impressive considering how light and stiff the bike is overall.

It has a very solid feel. That planted, confidence-inspiring feedback you often get from heavier bikes that you might use for touring or winter training. There is no rattly, hollow-sounding ride, plus buzz and vibration are well dampened, which makes the Orro a lovely bike to ride even on poor road surfaces.

That's the underlying sensation at least, the baseline feeling if you like. What you have layered over the top of that is a lightweight (7.7kg) road bike with well-balanced handling and hugely responsive handling.

The seat angle puts you in quite a forward aggressive ride style, while the front end is backed off a touch, giving steering that is quick enough for all the roads I encountered while staying well away from the twitchy handling arena that you can find on full-on race bikes.

On my downhill testing route with its off-camber chicane, and a mixture of fast flowing and tight, yet high-speed corners it proved itself to be very sure-footed,  paired to feedback levels that give you excellent communication about what the tyres are up to with pinpoint accuracy.

On this medium model the wheelbase is well short of a metre, which gives the Gold a nimble feeling and it changes direction with the slightest of inputs from you, which certainly adds to the fun factor when you want to ride it hard, when you're sprinting or attacking climbs.

The stiffness comes into play here too. This is a very tight bike with the oversized press-fit bottom bracket area coping with huge pedalling efforts, and those chunky chainstays make sure that the power gets through to the rear wheel.

With its 'aero-ish' frameset, cockpit and deep-section wheels it's an efficient-feeling bike too.

For when things are a little less frantic, though, the Gold's comfort and refinement shine through. The ride is smooth, thanks to things like the very slender seatstays and wide tyre clearance on offer, but also the way that the geometry works.

It's an easy bike to get a very comfortable position on, with a decent drop achievable between the saddle and handlebar without being overly extreme.

Overall, from a ride point of view I really can't find anything negative. The Gold STC strikes an awesome balance of stiffness, comfort and smoothness, while the geometry is a near perfect balance of performance and being easy to live with.

Frame & Fork

Orro launched with the Gold model around 10 years ago (we last reviewed one back in 2016) and just as with that original version this Gold is created from the company's own moulds that are designed completely in house.

Like that early model this version also uses 'spread tow carbon', hence the STC in its name. It's made by the Runcorn-based company Sigmatex.

'The sigmaST range of spread tow fabrics are very thin, are ultra-lightweight, have near zero crimp and fewer interlacing points,' says Sigmatex. 'As well as being aesthetically pleasing, this technology has improved mechanical performance at a reduced thickness and cost when compared to standard 2D fabrics using 1K fibres.'

The carbon fibre is arranged in flat and wide tapes that are woven together, a method used to reduce weight and increase stiffness. This equates to a frame weight of just 830g including all alloy parts, which is impressive.

Alongside the STC, the Gold is also constructed from Toray T1000, T800 and T700 carbon fibre grades.

The Gold has always been designed as a bike to get big miles in on, comfortably and quickly, and it's that latter point that has probably seen the biggest changes with this new version. Compared to the previous design this one takes many styling cues from the Venturi, Orro's wind-cheating aero bike.

The Gold now has smoothed junctions between its tubes like where the top, down and head tube all run into one, dropped seatstays and a completely smooth seat cluster with an internal clamping mechanism for the post.

It's a much more purposeful-looking machine, made to look even better thanks to the full internal cable and hose routing that disappears into the handlebar and isn't seen again until the cable and hoses pop out where they are required. Orro is keen to point out that the Gold is compatible with both mechanical and electronic groupsets, when a lot of new bikes at this price are being created for electronic only.

Orro has also increased the clearance, with the Gold now capable of accepting tyres up to 32mm wide.

The overall build quality is excellent. The Gold STC not only feels solid to ride, but it feels solid when you pick it up, or tap the frame tubes. Okay – not exactly what you'd call a genuine scientific test, but nothing sounds or feels plasticky, and a quick scan inside the seat tube with a light shows a smoothly finished frame. Orro says this is down to using a full EPS and latex mould during the construction process.

The Gold is available in five sizes with the XS getting a top tube length of 500mm, with the XL's top tube measuring 588mm.

We have the medium, which has a 541mm top tube and a 162mm head tube, equating to stack and reach figures of 570mm and 377mm respectively.

The wheelbase is relatively short at 992mm, which gives the Orro its nimbleness, and as for angles you're looking at 74° for the seat tube and 72.2° for the head tube.

Finishing Kit

SRAM recently updated its second-tier Force AXS groupset and it's this version that the Gold is wearing, with its cool black/Unicorn-grey finish laser foil detailing.

SRAM's electronic AXS groupsets work with a single button hidden behind the paddle on each shifter, with the right-hand button moving the chain down the cassette, and the left pulling it back up. Push both together and you switch from the chainring you're using to the other. It's intuitive to use, simple and I really like it.

SRAM also specs its gear ratios slightly differently than Shimano, going with much smaller 45/38T chainrings than the 50/34 that is the smallest pairing on Shimano's  road chainsets. SRAM pairs this with a 10-33T 12-speed cassette.

The 10-tooth cog still gives you a high gear for descending or hard efforts when paired with the largest chainring, and a 38/33T lowest gear is great for climbing.

The trade-off is that you have slightly bigger jumps on the cassette, which can affect you if you have a narrow cadence range style, but as it is mostly the larger sprockets used for climbing it's not really an issue most of the time.

Other than that, it's a great groupset and one that really suits the Gold's performance intentions.

The braking is also top notch and with the 160mm (F) and 140mm (R) setup there is more than enough power on offer.

Unlike a lot of other bikes at this price the Gold STC doesn't use an integrated cockpit, Orro opting instead for a separate handlebar and stem, which brings a bit more versatility and adjustability.

The carbon Vision Metron handlebar has a great shape, rising either side of the stem to give a bit more height even if you want to slam the stem, and the wing-profile tops are comfortable.

It also starts off the internal cable routing for the clean-looking front end.

The Vision SMR Alloy stem accepts those cables – or hydraulic hoses in this case – from the bar and directs them into the head tube.

The carbon seatpost is designed specifically to work with the Gold's frame and is topped with a Selle San Marco Shortfit saddle, one that we have reviewed in many guises.

Its shorty shape works well with the Orro's riding position, which allows you to get into a crouched position comfortable should the need arise, while its ample padding lets you sit more upright when you are tapping out the miles.

Vision also supplies the wheels in the form of the SC 40s that scored very highly when we reviewed them back in 2020.

At 40mm deep the version fitted here brings a balance of speed and handling and works very well with the Gold. Their low weight means they accelerate well and don't hinder the bike on the climbs.

From a durability point of view, I have nothing to complain about over what is quite a short test period, but they have rolled over pot-holed, broken surfaced road surfaces without issue.

If you want to exploit the performance available from your road bike then fitting a set of Continental's GP 5000 tyres is one of the best things you can do, and they're fitted as standard though our test bike came with Vredestein Fortezza rubber.

But I know from riding Conti's 5000s that they are excellent performers with loads of grip, low rolling resistance and a great feel. For such a performance-orientated tyre they are also pretty robust against punctures and are generally fairly durable.

Pricing & Competition

We have reviewed many of Orro's bikes of the years, and one thing they have all had in common is excellent value for money. This is true from the entry-level aluminium Terra X gravel bike to the top-flight Venturi STC – of which there is a new model we'll be reviewing very soon.

The Gold STC line-up starts with the Shimano 105 Di2 build that comes with Deda finishing kit, Fulcrum R800 DB wheels and Conti's Grand Sport Race tyres, all for a very impressive £3,199.99, and tops out with this £5499.99 Force D2 AXS Tailormade model. Two Ultegra Di2 models are available starting at £3,899.99, with the Tailormade version costing £4,899.99.

If your budget doesn't quite stretch that far then the Gold is also available in an Evo version, which uses the previous geometry and design for its non-STC frame and fork. A 105/FSA build with mechanical shifting, cable disc brakes and Fulcrum R800 wheels is available for £1,799.99 while the model with 12-speed 105 mechanical shifters and hydraulic brakes costs £2,199.99.

We have seen a lot of endurance bikes released lately that focus on aerodynamics and comfort to create all-round road race bikes, and when it comes to pricing the Gold is looking to be very competitive indeed.

The Ridley Falcn RS may have slightly larger tyre clearance on offer, albeit by a mere 2mm, but weight, finishing kit and performance are very similar indeed – and I thought it was a cracking performer. But fitted with SRAM Force AXS and deep- section carbon wheels the Ridley is vastly more expesive at £8,199 and just 200g lighter than the Gold.

The Pinarello X3 that I recently reviewed was £4,500 equipped with 105 Di2, and Fulcrum R800 wheels – the Gold in pretty much the same build costs just £3,199.99.

Merida also scores highly when it comes to performance versus cost on the bikes we have reviewed, but Orro even has Merida beaten here too. The Scultura Endurance range tops out with the 9000 that comes with Ultegra Di2 and deep-section Reynolds wheels for £5,200.

The Merida goes a little bit further than the Gold in terms of its 'endurance' nature, with bigger tyre clearance and the ability to take mudguards. It's still a performance road bike, though, as I found out when reviewing the 4000 model 4000 model.

Conclusion

When it comes to the value the Gold STC is very impressive, but Orro hasn't cut any corners to bring a cheap bike to market. Orro has backed it up with a high-quality frameset, both in terms of the finish and the ride quality. The Gold STC is the complete package for all kinds of road riding.

Verdict

A wonderful blend of comfort and performance, at an awesome price for a build of this quality