Agreed! What’s the rest of the build details??
Curious to see what the S-Works weighs compared to the Pro.
Also, I’ve never understood RideWrap. To me, it just kind of kills the look of any bike. Spend all this money on a nice looking paint job and ruin it with plastic. Bikes are meant to be ridden. Just me.
Also, when did you order the frame? I had a chance to get S-Works as a preorder but went with the Pro because I didn’t want to wait. Just wondering how fast they’re fulfilling the preorders.
Good Q - I hadn’t fully decided yet, as I thought I had a few more weeks 
- Sram Red Levers - got them on sale recently
- Sram Red or Force XPLR rear derailleur
- Sram Force Cassette (don’t think I need to spend 2x on Red)
- Sram Red Cranks - either 165mm or 170mm
- Need to figure out which power meter option I want to go with…
- Either 46T or 48T chainring - ideally like to keep aero version but makes power meter options a bit more complicated
- Either Roval Rapide or Roval Terra Bar - likely 38cm
- Going to convert Crux 4 to all road and try to use this as a Gravel and Road race bike, so trying to swap b/t two wheelsets. Undecided, but likely will try out the new Roval Terra Aero to start
So far that is what I am thinking…feedback welcome!
With bolts and UDH mount a quick weigh in was ~850g. Size 58cm. Will do an official weigh later.
Yea I used to think the same regarding RideWrap but I used it on my last Crux and was happy. Can’t really tell its on there tbh and has kept my frame in mint condition. I rode it through Unbound mud and was happy to have it. Saved my paint I reckon. If anything, it helps with resale value. But I realize its a tool not a jewel as well. I don’t get upset if it does get beat up.
I reached out to a LBS and placed an order in very end of June and it showed up yesterday. I don’t think I technically even did a “preorder”. I have a Spesh shop down the road and they told me fall at earliest so I just put an order through LBS in the meantime as I wanted to give them business. I think I got lucky tbh
My Pro 58 came in around 1050g so that’s a decent weight savings.
I guess everybody is different. Funnily enough, and maybe you won’t mind, but to me on gloss it hides pretty well but it looks really weird on matte frames. Something with the matte paint and the plastic layer doesn’t do it for me. But I also really love matte paint jobs so it changes it enough that it’s not really matte anymore. Frame looks sweet. Kind of wish I waited for that frame.
What, do you not have plastic coverings on your new couch.
The official spec from Specialized is 789g for the s-works and 897g for the 10R frame, so about 100g. The fork and seat post are the same for both frames, so no difference there. That’s for a 56 frame and they don’t state what color, but color choice can make a bit of a difference. In general, black, dark greys, or natural carbon are the lightest and white (or other light colors are the heaviest. And anything that requires multiple coats (all the fades and weird patterns) add weight as well. I know when I was looking at paint options for my project 1 trek back in the day, it was a 50+ gram swing between some of the paint options.
For someone looking to prioritize weight without breaking the bank, the comp build in black is a good start. Swap out wheels, bars, crankset, and a Force cassette instead of Rival and you are easily going to be within a half pound of a $14k s-works build.
Yea I am happy with the weight.
Yea still tbd. I will likely order and apply, and, worst case, I hate it and take it off. I should mention, I didn’t do the full RideWrap. Just like light coverage one that you put on areas where tire rub/mud rub can wear through paint. It came with a little bit of chainstay and bottom bracket/frame protection already.
Yea, that’s why I was a little surprised by mine. It’s gloss black. The gloss can add a bit I know but black shouldn’t be too bad. Completely bare, no bolts, no hanger, no chainstay protector . Wasn’t expecting that much over the estimate. I had a Crux 4 before this so I knew I was going to be heavier than that. In the end it’s not that big of a deal. It’s a gravel bike and 200g is inconsequential.
I agree on the shiny wrap over matte colors and I’m debating what sections to do on my Crux. I will absolutely do the inner fork and chain stays where you get rubbing with mud/rocks build up.
I don’t use ride wrap, I just buy some of that 3m automotive film and cut to size. I did it for my lauf and was amazed how well it held up to significant mud/rock rubbing at unbound and another muddy race earlier in the year. And it’s not that noticeable in those sections. I’ll also likely do the forward edge of the fork where you get a lot of gravel/rocks being thrown by other bikes when in a pack. After a couple seasons of racing on my old checkpoint, the entire front of the bike looked like it had been sand blasted and also had quite a few decent chunks/chips through the paint down to carbon. The crux comes with wrap on the downtube that wraps up the side about 1/3 of the way up the specialized logo, so you have some the “shiny over matte” going on anyway. I will also put some film behind the crank around the BB area in case of chain drop/grind in that area.
I’m all about race bikes being “tools” to be used and don’t really care that much about the cosmetic stuff, but I had a hell of a time selling my Checkpoint that looked like it spent it’s life on the surface of Mars. A lot of people care about the paint condition as much (or more) than the mechanical stuff when buying a used bike. And it’s not just the $ hit when selling, it’s just a pain dealing with people who want a picture of every nick and scratch.
For what it’s worth, my complete bike (comp) was about a half pound heavier than what the specialized site showed. Mine was also a 58 (comparing to the spec based on 56), so some difference expected there, but not sure about a half pound. I figure that bigger frame size is going to add maybe ~100g, but can’t imagine it’s more than that.
On gloss bikes, ride wrap is nearly invisible when properly installed.
Because nobody wants that ugly Rube Goldberg device. And Spec has a known history of not providing their proprietary parts a year or two after discontinuation.
Stopped by the largest Speciaized dealer in my area to check in on an old friend. They had a few of the new Crux in stock….but I couldn’t take my eyes off the red SL9 sitting front and center at the door!!
The future shock fork is also a turn off for me, even though the Bicycle Station has one with an adapter to remove it.
It’s funny because I think the SL9 is just kind of meh. Was fully ready to go Specialized fanboy and buy the new Crux 5 and Tarmac SL9. But after seeing the Tarmac I canceled my preorder. Same geometry as the old models, only clears 32s, super wide stock handlebars. Just kind of feels dated with its features.
I’m on an SL6, and just switched my bars to some Zipp SL80 Aeros. It was nice to not have to do a whole integrated update.
Maybe I’ll try to find an SL8 along the way.
32s would feel better to me.
I’ve got a few hundred miles on the bike, mostly road (including a 100+ mile ride last weekend that included some spicy group antics). The Crux is definitely a better road bike than my Lauf. Running the same tires/wheels, it’s noticeably easier to hold speed at 25+. I’m going to do some chung aero testing over the fall/winter comparing the bikes and different bar setups, but based on last week’s ride, I’d guestimate the crux frame/fork alone is good for 10+ watts over my Lauf (with suspension fork) at high speeds.
A couple other things to note -
I just installed specialized MTB swat box that sits under the front bottle. This is basically the Specialized answer to downtube storage. It’s a decent size for a TPU tube and basic emergency stuff, but I don’t love how wide it is. It’s clearly designed for the larger MTB downtube and hangs out quite a bit. I’m going to do some aero testing with/without it at some point to see if it makes a measurable difference, but it’s not looking like a great solution on a bike I’m hoping to optimize for aero. It also pushes the front bottle position higher in the frame, so probably not great for aero there either. The box weighs in at ~100g, so not too bad there. When I do the aero testing, I plan to compare the box to putting a 3rd bottle (with tube/stuff in it) under the downtube/BB area and go with which ever approach is faster.
I also just installed the Apidura aero top tube bag. It’s a sleek design, but doesn’t hold much. If I could do it again, I might get the longer version.
Finally, I installed the Pro Discover aero gravel bars. They are one of the few carbon aero bar options for gravel that allow clip on aero extension. This is the first time I’ve run bars with such short reach and shallow drop and I really like them. A nice bonus is that the hoses route under the bars in recessed channels so the bars can be swapped without disconnecting brake hoses.
Bike comes in right at 21 lbs with the aero extensions and a bit under 20lbs without them. That’s with top tube bag, storage box, XTR MTB pedals, cages, computer mount, radar mount, rear light mount.
You can see here how much wider the box is compared to the frame or a standard sized water bottle.
Thanks for the write-up as this is a great build. Is it a 58cm? If so - how tall are you?
Thanks, it’s a 58 and I’m right at 6’. I can generally ride a 56 or 58 in most frames and run the exact same fit, but prefer the feel of a bigger bike for off road.