The Customer: Sutik S. came to us from Calgary and wanted an all-rounder that would see the bulk of his time on medium-length road rides. At a thin 6'3" with long legs, custom geometry and carbon layup were both deemed to be beneficial. Sutik was already in love with Argonaut, so the real challenge became nailing the design and crafting a build package he would drool over, still offering value in certain places, and of course all day performance with a stiff but sublime ride quality, and geometry that would sit somewhere between race and endurance. Plus, he really wanted an ISP ;)
The Builder: Argonaut, Bend, Oregon. Chosen due to Ben Farver's ability to craft a road chassis with customization and ride quality never before seen from carbon. Few builders can tune the very carbon tubes themselves to the rider's needs before assembly even begins. Ben's "secret" is that he takes the best ingredients possible, prepares them meticulously with the most advanced tools available, then lovingly assemble them with painstaking attention to detail. Pretty simple ;)
The Group: SRAM eTap Hydraulic Disc, the first for an Argonaut, with 160 front rotor and 140 rear, fast becoming the new standard. SRAM's Quarq Red Powermeter is a sharp looking and reliable unit, and with both CLD and 6-bolt rotor options, plus the 11-32 cassette and WiFli RD seen here, SRAM eTap is arguably a more versatile group compared to Di2 9170. One other note, we upgraded the Red chainrings to Praxis forged rings, for a slight improvement in front shifting.
The Wheels: Hunt Wheels 50Carbon Aero Disc clinchers offer killer value (at $1450 USD) and performance (with a wide 21mm internal width and tubeless compatibility). We are your U.S. and Canadian home for Hunt, with rim and disc versions in 30, 38 and 50 mm depths for carbon, plus a multitude of aluminum options. Rare-but-phenomenal 26mm Compass Cayuse Pass extralight tires rounding up a phenomenal build package. Yes, we are your home for all sorts of Compass tire options, made by Panaracer in Japan.
The Tech: New ENVE road disc fork with Mavic Speed Release, a first in Canada, allows for fast wheel removal without risk of failure. Check out one of our Instagram links from NAHBS for details on how the Mavic system works. Perhaps this is one of the nice things about the Mavic + ENVE merger? Wireless shifting from eTap also gives a clean look with no downtube bosses or holes, a bonus on a bike of this calibre. Oh, and we added a KMC X11SL Gold chain with matching KCNC chain-catcher, just for some bling.
The Details: 3T Ergonova Team Stealth bar (with matching ARX II stem) is one of our most popular cockpit options, while smaller touches like Supacaz tape and mint-blue bar-ends, superlight Fizik Antares 00 saddle, while Time Espresso 10 pedals (not shown here) offer some of the best performance in the business, with lateral float in addition to the more typical heel float found in Look and Shimano pedals. Chris King i8 headset in new matte jet colorway, with matching T47 BB to round out a killer fucking build.
The Photos: Shot as per usual by Lifeisabeatifuldetail.com in our hidden Blacksmith studio, check out Jeremy's site for his own take on our latest Blacksmith Dream Build.
