Furbz

Yeah, it's honestly mostly the paint that cranks it up that high. With such high labour rates charged in the USA for custom paint. USD6000 for paint is a little crazy

GCN does a Parlee Video particularly love the Parlee painted to look like a "LOOK" bike https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGxDYieWpsE

Not the worlds best light - and i made the error of not being in Biggie Smalls! so will have to redo this photoshoot.

100% agree even if if turns out not to be great its good looking enough to be hung up and called art! i finished the build last night, bike needs a wipe down and some pictures taken - i'll post back here. It's UBER bling!

committed and paid for in 2022 - lets not forget i also get distributer pricing. so a far better option and price. Yeah, tape still working on. the rims are actually chrome in colour - very bling as for campy - yep agreed. when you build campy, its full campy or nothing. at that moment in time when i ordered the groupset for this build campy rims still were quite narrow making for a harsher ride. having ridden wide rims i will never go back to narrow inner width rims. the comfort gained its unreal. since the launch of the new C23 wheels it made the next battaglin builds an easy campy choice. Haha - thats any groupset you desire, and partington wheels. you can upgrade to lightweights, or downgrade and save AUD2500 with Princeton wheels. of course everything is ceramic speed. Believe it Gold leaf is an option. AUD3500. as for the diamonds... i could ask? 🤪

Thanks, the big tell will be how it rides. putting the cost aside it needs to make me want to ride it because it a good bike.

All in all AUD 38900 is retail for this build right now. thats ex shipping, ex duties (10%) and ex vat landed costs around R574k for the full bike as built. a lot-a-bit eye watering. Back in 2022 at 2022 exchange rates when the order was placed the frameset and bars retailed for AUD14000 or roughly R120k quite how in 2 years a groupset, wheels, saddle etc adds up to R454k worth makes exactly zero sense to me. There is a missing R250k or so i cannot make sense of.

How clean is that! Nothing but the best used - Ceramic Speed SLT bears come standard. the build on this is unreal, absolutely clean! Everything is precut to your specs - no need to do any setup at all - NICE! Getting close.... A quick sneak peak - not sure on the grey bar tape. brakes need setting, and gears setup. then its done! will have it completed today.

opening paragraph: "The Resolution was one of two bikes in Mason's original line-up and I was lucky enough to be one of the first people to actually ride one. It certainly left an impression, being one of the best bikes I have ever ridden, and the fact that Mason has merely tweaked it over the years rather than go for a major redesign is testament to what a classic bike the Resolution has become, straight from those original designs." and that is all you need to know - its just an incredible bike Will be interesting to see how the battaglin stacks up - its a tall ask, the Resolution is the gold standard!

There have been a couple hints to this thread in the Forums over the last few months. I'm proud to finally announce Lanoy Sports partnership with Battaglin in South Africa. Having had the unique privilege to ride many of the worlds best carbon bikes and knowing full well that if i ever had to choose a single bike to ride for the rest on my life i'd choose a Mason Revolution. Link here: Mason Resolution Yes, i said it, i'll say it again. Steel is better, better than titanium, better than carbon. yes its heavier, but it rides better. It simply makes for the most wonderful unmatched quality feel right from the first pedal stroke. Think Bentley and you'll have the right idea. Thus i set out to find the worlds best steel bike. Enter Officina Battaglin. A brand that has been around since 1981 by an owner who built his name racing steel bikes winning the Giro and Vuelta all in just 48 days. To go further the purchasing experience and care that Alex and his team put into designing and thinking out the bikes to make them fit best for their riders is really a thing to behold. We have 2x custom Portofino R road bikes and 1x Portofino G bike that are in transit right now. i'm hoping to have them sometime next week. Portofino R: https://officinabattaglin.com/products/custom-steel-bikes/portofino-r/ Portofino G: https://officinabattaglin.com/products/custom-steel-bikes/portofino-g/ Each frame in HAND BUILT - the entire process! Cut, Weld, Ultrasonic bath, POLISH the steel to a mirror shine, chrome plate everything, polish again, and finally hand apply the stunning Chromovelato finish and inlays. Its a time consuming job that demands plenty of care. The custom Portofino range is limited to just 99 frames each year - testament to the time consuming task of creating such stunning bikes. Finally please enjoy a few pictures of our bikes in production:

Oh yes. So have a portofino G and 2x Portofino R coming in. G will have Sram 13s on it. The portofino R both have SR wireless

A frame clearly ahead of its time! Let me introduce you to the brand new Battaglin Roma - have one landing in a month or so

So I had the same feelings at first. Then figured with all the polished titanium on the bike the sram groupset with its silver highlights and polished aluminum would better compliment the frame and overall finish

Thanks, they were specifically ordered for this build. I'm thinking Silca Ti cages

Its really difficult to truly show how incredible this carbon weave is in the sun.

The buildkit: Groupset is the latest Sram Red AXS 12s groupset Wheels i'll decided on what best suites the bike. I currently have a set of 2024 Princeton Carbonworks Peak 4550 wheels with chrome decals. or a set of Syncros Capital SL 40 wheels - but i feel these might better suited for a lightweight build

It's been a very busy week! Finally got round to taking a few happy snaps. this bike is painted in a clear royal candy blue colour to allow for the carbon weave to show through. its fully custom, full custom geo (mimicks colnago C68) as well as a few special additions to make it a truely South African frame

One is sold. sold in 2022 for 2022 rates. (comparatively 60% discount on rates right now). the other is my own personal bike for showroom use - but back then a bastion bike was comparative to a colnago build. now... its impossible to justify. again decisions made in 2022 vs now. pricing then i was certain i could sell in RSA. now... its a tall order to a very very select group. My personal bike is as always bought so that i can personally test a bike out - so that when i put my opinion behind it, its with full knowledge of what is worth is a a bicycle.

The price of these bikes post covid has absolutely skyrocketed. starting price is now AUD38000 ex vat, duties and vat. Pushing these bikes north of R540,000.00 as a starting price They are only offered as full builds going forward. so quite firmly very very very much in the unobtanium bracket of bikes.

Our first two bastion bikes have finally arrived! a whopping 840 days later... Bastion has committed to a 180 day turn around promise. new facilities, more machines, more people. but still 840 days is a very very long time to wait. think you guys can wait a few more days til i start the build?

And in my experience, harsh. Build to race cx circuits by pros.

recently watched a GCN video about this. 2kmph an hour slower on a gravel bike with gravel tires. that drops 0.5kmph slower when using road wheels and tires on a gravel bike vs a road bike

only if the seller can supply a EUR1 certificate

change the quicklink and you'll have a new chain

Might have dodged a bullet there. Reviews are full of punctures