Our sample was a large, though in a perfect world I'd have been on a medium (but when you're offered the company owner's own bike it's hard to be picky) and had a 57.5cm seat tubes (measured centre to top) , 56.3cm effective top tube, 73.3 degree seat tube, and 73.5 degree head tube. It's obvious that a lot of work and thought has gone into the design of the Luxter frame. The chainstay and bottom bracket areas in particular are highly shaped, with lots of material around the bottom bracket shell itself, and complex, 'flattened s-bend' chainstays wending their way through an area of the frame where there isn't much space between the tyre and chainrings.
Record's other big bonus is the amount of weight-saving carbon scattered through the components. Maybe I'm easy to please, but the carbon brake levers and rear derailleur cage never ceased to impress me - not just the fact that they saved weight, but because they look good every time. However, Francesco has gone for the heavier aluminium version of the Record chainset - still a lovely piece of kit though, and I didn't lose any sleep thinking about the extra few grams I was carrying!
I had no problems with the Selcof silver carbon seat post - more weight savings - but I did find the Fizik Arione saddle didn't fit my butt properly. Francesco Fondriest - and many other satisfied cyclists, it seems - obviously have a different physiology to mine, and this area of any bike is always about individual fit. No complaints about flexing here either, which is definitely a good thing. The Gipiemme Parade wheels were shod with Vredestein Fortezzas - not lightweight, but they did the job well, and were colour co-ordinated to the rest of the bike.
The Ride
My usual ride is also Italian, but it's aluminium, and the improvement in comfort that comes from a lighter, carbon fiber frame was the first aspect of the Luxter I noticed on the road. A lot of the riding for this test happened on country roads around my family's home in Bathurst, New South Wales. Riding on country roads can be a hazardous exercise for your posterior as most of the surfaces are made from larger-aggregate bitumen, and road buzz is a big factor. I didn't notice much buzz at all, and when I punished the bike a little on some rough patches the local council still hadn't mended, the ride was pretty unaffected, except for some for the inevitable jolting through the bars.
That was the recurring thought: 'how am I going to return to an aluminium bike where the only bit of carbon on it is the forks?'
The country roads I rode were also littered with great hills, and it's here that I had the most fun on the Luxter. It helped me cheerfully dispose of two kilometre climbs, even with my varying level of fitness over the course of the test. I like climbing standing on the pedals, and the fact that the saddle wasn't quite right for that particular part of my body (it's always a personal thing) meant that I was attempting my version of the Lance Armstrong high-cadence dance whenever the roads pointed upwards. In these cases I found the Luxter to be a more than willing dance companion. The hills in the upper northern reaches of Sydney provided me with another good test of the Luxter's climbing ability, and again I was impressed with the fact that you could easily spend a lot of time going upwards, which sounds masochistic, but it was quite enjoyable on this bike. This was due to the relatively low weight and comfortable position - although the frame was a little big I was nevertheless able to get a relaxed position and get the power out on climbs.
The responsiveness of the frame was something I really enjoyed when riding - putting it into corners on a criterium or on a descent felt nimble but sure, even when I hadn't ridden the corner before. The Mt Panorama track is an excellent mixture of riding pain and pleasure - the only part of the Luxter's performance on it I was a little disappointed with was a slight dull feel on the flat parts of the circuit; but I suspect this may be a result of wheel choice on the test machine. The Gipiemme Parade wheels, although attractive due to their paired spoking and flared rim outlets for these spokes didn't match the quality of the frame. They didn't provide the stiffness I was looking for, and this may have affected my enjoyment on the bike. I would opt for a stiffer wheelset on this frame, and chances are you may get closer to full potential of the bike. This may be the area where the lack of stiffness I complained of was originating from, not the frame itself.
Conclusion
The Luxter is a bike that offers a really comfortable ride without making too many sacrifices in terms of weight. Stiffness was an issue at times, but with a rigid set of wheels that issue should be well and truly minimised. If you plan on doing big hours in the saddle, this bike would probably suit you very well. It's not cheap, and keeping the costs down by using a group without the same price tag as Record should help there. A solid performer with plenty to offer, the Luxter is definitely an option if you've got the cash.
![[新品印象]FondriestLuxter银色战车](static/image/common/none.gif "[新品印象]FondriestLuxter银色战车")