This article was originally published on BikeRadar
There are superbikes, and then there are superbikes. The difference here is the former are mass produced, albeit in small quantities, in a stock size run. The latter, the true superbikes, are completely custom, one-off, purpose-built machines with no detail too small to be considered or too expensive to be left out. Argonaut's latest Disc Road bike claims to be "the best possible bike that could be built."
Ben Farver is the man behind Argonaut. It wasn't always about carbon, and he started building steel frames in Portland, Oregon, in 2007. In 2011, Farver jumped into custom carbon fibre frames made by hand in the USA.
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Argonaut Disc Road bike specs
- Molded carbon dropouts with Mavic Speed Release rear thru-axle
- Direct mount rear derailleur hanger
- T47 bottom bracket and Chris King T47 24x or 30i threaded bottom bracket
- Clearance for 32mm wide tire
- ENVE Road Disc Fork, flat mount disc caliper and Mavic Speed Release front axle
- Dura-Ace Di2 drivetrain and discs
- Full internal brake hose and Di2 wiring with internal handlebar Di2 junction box
- ENVE 3.4 disc wheels with Schwalbe Pro One 25c tubeless tires
- ENVE stem and seatpost
- PRO Carbon handlebar with Di2 wiring integration
- Claimed bike weight: 15.7lbs with pedals and bottle cages (size 54)
- Price: £11,667 / $15,300 / AU$ TBD
Why's it unique?
First off, each Argonaut road frame is completely unique. Every frame is built by hand in Bend, Oregon, from US-sourced carbon that's laid up specifically to address the individual rider's needs and wants.
Even the aluminium moulds in which the carbon is laid are built by Argonaut.
Both the front and rear thru-axles use Mavic's Speed Release set-up to enable quick wheel changes. The system is composed of a standard threaded dropout on one side but an open dropout on the opposite side. This means that the thru-axle itself does not need to be removed entirely from the wheel and bike frame, rather once it's unscrewed, the wheel (with the axle still slipped through the hub) can slide out of the frame or fork.
Want to try one first?
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
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