Any long term owners? What do you think? I’m tempted by the expert model, or a frame set build. Can’t afford an sworks.

Racing or just riding?

Great for the former*, overkill for the latter**.

* Assuming flatish route where you can get some aero advantage.
** Unless you need the bragging rights in the golf club sportive car park.

Much preferred the Tarmac; I rode tarmacs and venges many times.

Better handling, less body abuse through the seat tube, lighter, stick a set of deep section wheels on a Tarmac and you won’t be limited by the bike.

Don’t bother with the production bikes, get the SW frame if you have heart set on specialized, it’s night and day different.

Primarily my fast weekend warrior bike, used for the odd tt and mostly ridden around the new forest (flat and windy)

I might do proper road racing, but if I race I prefer off-road. I’ve got a genesis equilibrium for commuting / winter duties.

Part of the appeal is the look….not fussed about bragging. I’d be looking at a cervelo or something like that it If I wanted to show off

The look? It’s hella ugly imo! A Propel on the other hand…..

Cheapish S-Works frames at Bikescene if you do want to build one up http://www.bikescene.co.uk/Specialized-SWorks-Venge-Frameset-8380-97-0.html

used for the odd tt and mostly ridden around the new forest

You should get yourself up to a certain shop I know in Salisbury to have a look at Propels, Focus and Tarmacs…..Oh, and plenty Cervelo!

That sworks isn’t really in budget….which shop cfh?

There are quite a few decent ones around my way

Prefer the Tarmac.

What’s the budget?

Tarmac is a better all round bike imo and the one used by most of the people I know who road race,
But if you prefer the look of the venge then buy that but either way get some test rides

Well bikescene have the venge frame set at £800 which is what is tempting me. Mantel have some good prices on giant frame sets.

Full bike around £3k tops. I already have decent wheels.

£3k gets you a lot of Giant.

£2599. Well under budget.

But then….same shop…

£2999. Add your own wheels and away you go.

I had a S-Works Venge Cavendish, was a very nice bike. The S-Works SL-4 I had got used more though as it was more versatile.

A mate had a 1st gen venge and found it too hard, yet great for sprinting out of the saddle.. He sold it and bought a Cervelo S5 which by his reckoning is only slightly less hard.

Both bikes designed for the thing they do best,mare you intending to do similar riding?

If not, plenty of top end Tarmacs, Propels, R5’s, Mad’ones etc… which may suit you more, dunno don’t know what riding you do most of.

Get a propel. Proper aero for what you want. Comfortable too. I’m off for a lot of climbing tomorrow. 100 miles is fast and comfortable.

I wouldn’t ride a Cervelo to show off. Nice bikes, better paint schemes than Giant. But not a statement. Look are what the discerning golfer would really want for bragging. In Mondrian colours. A C60 may also come close. Dogmas are too common.

Obv caviat – I have two Propels. Great bikes. Very common now on the race scene. Not the best looking, but fine performance.

Reckon if you just want a versatile do-everything race / train / weekend warrioring tool of a bike then a top end TCR or Tarmac is about as good as you can get. Unless you want a fancy badge.

FWIW, the Tarmac SL3 is more comfy than the SL4.

You also avoid the rattly internal brake cable routing 🙂

GtiJ and my cycling buddy both have Tarmac SL4s with 11 speed Ultegra. Neither has had a problem with internal cable rattling. Jumping from my son’s on to my buddy’s bike, which have identical frames, groupsets and the same Veloflex Corsa tyres, there’s quite a big difference in the way they ride and handle; my buddy’s has Ksyrium SLS wheels whereas my son’s has bog-standard budget Ksyriums. It’s quite an education in the value of a good stiff wheelset as my buddy’s bike feels much sharper.

Personally I find the Tarmacs a little bit “dull” in feel although they are faster and more rewarding, but that may be because my own regular bike is a Roubaix SL4, which is more springy in feel though slightly less rewarding. Horses for courses.

My son and I both test-rode a Venge at a track day recently but we couldn’t detect any difference from the Tarmac; you’d have to ride it on your own home roads against your regular buddies to know if it was really any faster. What we did notice though was that the Venge felt strangely familiar, almost as if there’s a Specialized house “feel”.

I have a real soft spot for these, Looks 795 Light.

Ohh, sexy 😳

Propel Advanced Pro and SL very impressive. Great balance and handling. Surprisingly comfortable for an aero race bike. 2016 mini v brake much improved with 25c tire clearance and a proper cable clamp plus better routing for the brake.

Adding a set of deep section wheels to my TCR SL has changed my opinion on the flat ground speed of GC race bikes – but admittedly the c24’s spend more time installed for commuting and hills/windy weather.

Aero bike, or GC race bike with additional deep section wheels both options worth exploring

“Neither has had a problem with internal cable rattling.“

If you put some rubber doughnuts on the brake inner it quietens it down to just a quiet thudding instead of a rattle. Whoever built their bikes must have done that.

All SL4s suffer from this, trust me. Your mates just haven’t noticed 🙂

Problem with the propels, is they just don’t seem to do it for me, just a bit meh. Like my old anthem, was a brilliant bike, but just didn’t excite me to ride, so eventually I got rid. I want bike that looks awesome and rides the same.

Possibly I could look at tarmacs but again not something that I really think I’d want to ride I really like the fast look of aero bikes.

Canyon Aeroroad for instant looks awesome.

£800 on a venge frame, I could spend £1k on a groupset and £500 on finishing kit and still have change.

How much difference is there between the different carbon layups?

I have a real soft spot for these, Looks 795 Light.
Ohh, sexy

That front end makes Baby Jesus cry

Adding a set of deep section wheels to my TCR SL has changed my opinion on the flat ground speed of GC race bikes

Why would you think they wouldn’t be quick over flat ground?

Think a lot of the aero vs non-aero bike tests out there (e.g. this one from a quick google) are misleading given that they usually test the non aero bike with light shallow wheels and the aero bike with deep sections. If you’ve ridden 50+mm wheels then you’ll know what a difference they make and I suspect that’s a huge proportion of the gain. FFS, in that test it’s a pair of HED Jet 6 vs some Kysrium’s, I’m surprised the gap is as little as 2kph!

Looking at some data for the HED Jet 6 and making a few guesstimates… swap the wheels over than that result would be pretty much reversed 🙂

I ride a Tarmac Pro frame which is the same as an S Works but normal bearings and slightly heavier carbon which means bugger all difference 🙂

They have them on sale at the moment at quite a few places.

https://www.cyclestore.co.uk/specialized_tarmac_pro_2015_frameset-ID_66865?gclid=Cj0KEQjwyum6BRDQ-9jU4PSVxf8BEiQAu1AHqsWSxtB9TMjpPTiKxVocPQINooGHqVtoPEtQf9u75nQaAsOq8P8HAQ&gclsrc=aw.ds

Best road bike I have ever had and I’ve had a few 8)

an S Works but normal bearings and slightly heavier carbon which means bugger all difference

So not the same

Same but different innit

I ride a Tarmac Pro frame which is the same as an S Works but normal bearings and slightly heavier carbon

clearly almost identical then

That Look is an abomination.

Venges seem overpriced, and look like a dog straining for a sh1t.

my Tarmac Elite Sl4 frame in 54cm was a surprisingly porky 1280gm

I’ve weighed SW Tarmac frames in the same size just over 950gm

big difference in weight, ride quality and performance under power

Lots of info about Tarmac Pro on weight weenies as it is a bit of a sleeper hit.
Only about 50g to 70g heavier than the equivalent S Works. I am sure the S Works is a bit better but not £1000 better.

Pedal Heaven team rode Tarmac Pros last year repainted in team colours.

Here is my bike 🙂

From Weightweenies, 1153g for a 54cm 2015 Tarmac Pro:

Nice bikes, but not 50g heavier than an S-Works…

Honestly, until today I had no idea how much lighter the S Works was and I haven’t even weighed my own bike 🙂

S Works is 1077 grams on this pic

http://weightweenies.starbike.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=128782

Including bottom bracket. Looks like there may be one in that Pro too mind.

Makes me all the more glad I didn’t get one, and why Spesh don’t advertise weights! That’s shit for a £2500 non-aero frame.