Argon 18 Nitrogen
pedalbasher
Posts: 215
Anyone have any thoughts or experience with this bike?
Mostly for road racing, crits, hard training rides round Essex and a week or two abroad in the mountains each year.
I had my heart set on the aeroad but (as discussed in separate thread) the geometry isn't quite going to work for me. I've looked closely at the numbers and the Argon frameset will be a great fit with the adjustability to get as long and low as I need.
I've found a deal (a certain website that sounds like the name of a Wizard) for the frameset at £1100 (usually c. £2500). That's a compelling bargain on paper, as equivalent aero frames from the bigger names (S5, Madone etc) are about 3 times the price. I could use money saved to build it up with etap with a bit to spare, and would primarily use my Zipp 404s which should be a good, race-worthy build.
Here are my pros and cons, based on what I've read. Trouble is there isn't a great deal of info out there so I'm still a touch hesitant and would really appreciate any experience/thoughts.
Pros
- Price (discounted frame would enable me to build with etap)
- Aero and reasonably light
- Fit / geometry will work for me (i have a fussy/specific race setup)
- Race-proven (ridden by Bora in the TDF before the introduction of the Nitrogen Pro)
- Should come in around 6.8kg with etap and 404s.
- Looks (I love it, something a bit different, not every tom dick & harry has one of these)
Cons
- Brakes (tucked away v brakes are challenging to adjust)
- Tyre clearance (limited to 25mm but this isnt a problem for me)
- Potentially uncompromising ride on less than perfect road surfaces
- It's essentially a 2015 frame design... is a 2015 aero bike any quicker than a "normal" 2018 bike albeit a touch heavier and a perhaps slightly less comfortable?
- Has since been bettered by the Nitrogen Pro, which is 200g lighter (but as far as I can tell there's no material changes)
Thanks!
Mostly for road racing, crits, hard training rides round Essex and a week or two abroad in the mountains each year.
I had my heart set on the aeroad but (as discussed in separate thread) the geometry isn't quite going to work for me. I've looked closely at the numbers and the Argon frameset will be a great fit with the adjustability to get as long and low as I need.
I've found a deal (a certain website that sounds like the name of a Wizard) for the frameset at £1100 (usually c. £2500). That's a compelling bargain on paper, as equivalent aero frames from the bigger names (S5, Madone etc) are about 3 times the price. I could use money saved to build it up with etap with a bit to spare, and would primarily use my Zipp 404s which should be a good, race-worthy build.
Here are my pros and cons, based on what I've read. Trouble is there isn't a great deal of info out there so I'm still a touch hesitant and would really appreciate any experience/thoughts.
Pros
- Price (discounted frame would enable me to build with etap)
- Aero and reasonably light
- Fit / geometry will work for me (i have a fussy/specific race setup)
- Race-proven (ridden by Bora in the TDF before the introduction of the Nitrogen Pro)
- Should come in around 6.8kg with etap and 404s.
- Looks (I love it, something a bit different, not every tom dick & harry has one of these)
Cons
- Brakes (tucked away v brakes are challenging to adjust)
- Tyre clearance (limited to 25mm but this isnt a problem for me)
- Potentially uncompromising ride on less than perfect road surfaces
- It's essentially a 2015 frame design... is a 2015 aero bike any quicker than a "normal" 2018 bike albeit a touch heavier and a perhaps slightly less comfortable?
- Has since been bettered by the Nitrogen Pro, which is 200g lighter (but as far as I can tell there's no material changes)
Thanks!
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Comments
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I have one and I'm very happy with it. That said, I haven't ridden it that much, and don't have much to compare it with as I've only ever really ridden one other road bike before it.
Likely to be an indication that a newer model is on the way?pedalbasher wrote:- Price (discounted frame would enable me to build with etap)
This was a large part of my reason for buying it. I love the looks, and have yet see another one on the road. I pretty much decided that, for my budget, whichever brand I chose I was going to get a good bike, so was led largely by looks.- Looks (I love it, something a bit different, not every tom dick & harry has one of these)
All I've done so far is change pads, and release the arms to get wheels on and off, but no access issues so far.- Brakes (tucked away v brakes are challenging to adjust)
Same for similar bikes too?- Potentially uncompromising ride on less than perfect road surfaces
As mentioned above, does it mean that there's newer model due soon? Not that it would matter, and it wouldn't be as discounted...- It's essentially a 2015 frame design... is a 2015 aero bike any quicker than a "normal" 2018 bike albeit a touch heavier and a perhaps slightly less comfortable?
- Has since been bettered by the Nitrogen Pro, which is 200g lighter (but as far as I can tell there's no material changes)0
