Principia Ellipse SX c.2005

dangardner27
dangardner27 Posts: 118
edited September 2019 in Your road bikes
Completed building last week (minus bottle cage / now fitted). Ridden yesterday for the first time. Principia Ellipse SX 59cm frame, Ksyrium SL's, Ultegra SL drivetrain, 3T Funda Pro forks, Ritchey WCS Carbon One bolt seatpost, Arione CX braided saddle. Weighs approx 7.5kg.

Searched high and low for an original Principia / Isaac fork but to no avail. Thought it would be a bit harsh but was actually surprisingly forgiving.

IMG_3039%202_zpswdtwqdjo.jpg

IMG_3046_zpsfpxcqcjb.jpg

Comments

  • Matthewfalle
    Matthewfalle Posts: 17,380
    Lovely. Understand class and comple antithesis to so many ugly over branded bikes flying around.

    Really, really nice that there be.
    Postby team47b » Sun Jun 28, 2015 11:53 am

    De Sisti wrote:
    This is one of the silliest threads I've come across. :lol:

    Recognition at last Matthew, well done!, a justified honour :D
    smithy21 wrote:

    He's right you know.
  • Thanks very much :D - I'm really pleased with it.

    I did a bit of research on the original Principia aluminium frames and there seems to be quite a lot of love for them.
  • Matthewfalle
    Matthewfalle Posts: 17,380
    Agree - they are lovely.

    I was eying up the white one that CRC have on a massive discount (especially as it's a 57) but as I'm barely touching any of the other 6 bikes in the garage I can't (even to myself) justify the expenditure.

    Yours is very, very sweet though - so much prettier and classier than the average carbon off the shelf job as well.
    Postby team47b » Sun Jun 28, 2015 11:53 am

    De Sisti wrote:
    This is one of the silliest threads I've come across. :lol:

    Recognition at last Matthew, well done!, a justified honour :D
    smithy21 wrote:

    He's right you know.
  • If that white one was 59cm it'd be on its way to me!

    You should pull the trigger, this will undoubtedly be my go to bike...
  • Matthewfalle
    Matthewfalle Posts: 17,380
    If that white one was 59cm it'd be on its way to me!

    You should pull the trigger, this will undoubtedly be my go to bike...


    So want to just don't have the spare spends at the mo' - tempted to sell n2 bike (Planet X superlight, full Ritchey WCS stem, seat post, bars, EC90 SLX forks, Dura Ace gruppo) to fund frame plus a bit more but head says to hold fire as I also have a race motorbike that needs funding .............

    Hmm - if some one wanders up and offers suitable cash then yup - the white one will be mine!

    How's yours riding? As sweet as it looks?
    Postby team47b » Sun Jun 28, 2015 11:53 am

    De Sisti wrote:
    This is one of the silliest threads I've come across. :lol:

    Recognition at last Matthew, well done!, a justified honour :D
    smithy21 wrote:

    He's right you know.
  • bianchimoon
    bianchimoon Posts: 3,942
    very nice build, well done!
    All lies and jest..still a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest....
  • Matthewfalle
    Matthewfalle Posts: 17,380
    very nice build, well done!


    Thank you - it was just a little something I cobbled together one weekend.

    The Principia up top is dead nice as well though.
    Postby team47b » Sun Jun 28, 2015 11:53 am

    De Sisti wrote:
    This is one of the silliest threads I've come across. :lol:

    Recognition at last Matthew, well done!, a justified honour :D
    smithy21 wrote:

    He's right you know.
  • If that white one was 59cm it'd be on its way to me!

    You should pull the trigger, this will undoubtedly be my go to bike...


    So want to just don't have the spare spends at the mo' - tempted to sell n2 bike (Planet X superlight, full Ritchey WCS stem, seat post, bars, EC90 SLX forks, Dura Ace gruppo) to fund frame plus a bit more but head says to hold fire as I also have a race motorbike that needs funding .............

    Hmm - if some one wanders up and offers suitable cash then yup - the white one will be mine!

    How's yours riding? As sweet as it looks?

    Amazingly smooth all things considered, given that it's set up with Ksyriums on 23mm rubber currently. I think the fork may have something to do with the front end smoothness. I'll change the Ksyriums in due course for some Archetypes as there's plenty of clearance for up to 28mm.
  • If that white one was 59cm it'd be on its way to me!

    You should pull the trigger, this will undoubtedly be my go to bike...


    So want to just don't have the spare spends at the mo' - tempted to sell n2 bike (Planet X superlight, full Ritchey WCS stem, seat post, bars, EC90 SLX forks, Dura Ace gruppo) to fund frame plus a bit more but head says to hold fire as I also have a race motorbike that needs funding .............

    Hmm - if some one wanders up and offers suitable cash then yup - the white one will be mine!

    How's yours riding? As sweet as it looks?

    Amazingly smooth all things considered, given that it's set up with Ksyriums on 23mm rubber currently. I think the fork may have something to do with the front end smoothness. I'll change the Ksyriums in due course for some Archetypes as there's plenty of clearance for up to 28mm.

    So I realize I'm replying to a 2-year old post but I recently came upon a 59 cm Principia. It is a bit to big for me so I'm looking to sell it and figured that if anyone on this thread was still active and looking I would offer it to them first.
  • dangardner27
    dangardner27 Posts: 118
    Just stunning frames - I am absolutely in love with mine.
  • racerex
    racerex Posts: 69
    I should take offers on the CAAD 4 in my garage....
  • ledeev
    ledeev Posts: 208
    That's a really fantastic build. Nice touch with the Ultegra SL.

    I always lusted after one of these back when I couldn't afford one.
  • Matthewfalle
    Matthewfalle Posts: 17,380
    racerex wrote:
    I should take offers on the CAAD 4 in my garage....

    50 quid.
    Postby team47b » Sun Jun 28, 2015 11:53 am

    De Sisti wrote:
    This is one of the silliest threads I've come across. :lol:

    Recognition at last Matthew, well done!, a justified honour :D
    smithy21 wrote:

    He's right you know.
  • Hi, long shot but do you still have the 59cm Principia frame for sale ? Are you in the UK ? I’m in Scotland if you still have it could you call me in 07908-892803 Regards, Martin

    So I realize I'm replying to a 2-year old post but I recently came upon a 59 cm Principia. It is a bit to big for me so I'm looking to sell it and figured that if anyone on this thread was still active and looking I would offer it to them first.[/quote]
  • OP's bike is still stunning - utterly lovely.
    Postby team47b » Sun Jun 28, 2015 11:53 am

    De Sisti wrote:
    This is one of the silliest threads I've come across. :lol:

    Recognition at last Matthew, well done!, a justified honour :D
    smithy21 wrote:

    He's right you know.
  • term1te
    term1te Posts: 1,462
    I've always liked Principia bikes, there was a matt blue one I saw a lot in the early noughties that I was very jealous of. They seemed to get the proportions of the aluminium tubes right, aesthetically. A lot of bikes then were playing with different shaped and sized tubes, that might have given some performance advantage, but looked wrong, especially with the awful colour schemes popular then. I was tempted by one on eBay a few years back, but there was no more room in the garage.
  • Whoever has that off you Weegie77 will be VERY happy. If it's not found a home I'd consider it as a spare!!

    3.5 years and many thousands of miles later, I am still just as much, if not more in love with it....

    Proves to me that the manufacturers just talk bollox with all their claims of increased stiffness, improved handling etc etc etc.
  • Used to have a green Principia RSL from 1997 IIRC, fond cycling memories.
    ================
    2020 Voodoo Marasa
    2017 Cube Attain GTC Pro Disc 2016
    2016 Voodoo Wazoo
  • mercia_man
    mercia_man Posts: 1,431
    I used to have a Principia RS6 Pro (the ultra light frame in anodised black) in the early and mid 2000s. It was built up for me with Campag Chorus groupset, Nucleon wheels and Deda finishing kit by Climb On Bikes of Ludlow. They said at 16lb (7.2 kg) in medium size, it was one of the lightest bikes they had ever sold. The frame was really stiff and brilliant for climbing. Its downhill handling, as I found out on the Maratona dles Dolomites in 2007, was so good I really enjoyed overtaking people by braking late into the hairpins. The ride was a bit harsh compared with my subsequent carbon bikes (I used 22mm Veloflex clinchers) and the downtube alloy was so thin you could see it deflect when you pressed it with your thumb.

    Present day riders might be swayed by marketing claims of how good the latest 2020 model bikes are with their must have aero frames, electronic gears and disc brakes, but when it comes to real life riding, that Principia was just as good or better than most modern bikes.
  • So finally upgraded the worn out Ultegra SL for DuraAce 7900.
  • DeVlaeminck
    DeVlaeminck Posts: 9,107
    Nice - I've got the AS audax specific as a winter bike - they were very good quality bikes.
    [Castle Donington Ladies FC - going up in '22]
  • MattFalle
    MattFalle Posts: 11,644
    Still utterly lovely after all this time.

    So nice in fact that I've gone browsing....

    Principia, Campag Record, some phat 90s.... has potential.
    .
    The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
  • First.Aspect
    First.Aspect Posts: 17,293
    Yeah, round tubes just look nice.
  • MattFalle
    MattFalle Posts: 11,644
    espesh oversized ones - Principia, CAAD.

    Just proper.
    .
    The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.