giant tcr aero

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by miater
looks like a good deal for a tri/tt bike. any opinions?

i notice the 04's have the drop bars and sti and my LBS has the 03's leftover , the tcr aero1 for 1500... and the 03 has the bullhorns and bar end shifters.

why would giant switch to the sti's?

if you can't shift in the aero position, what kind of tt bike is that?

tcr is a no nonsense speed machine but, like u said, what good is it if you can't shift frm the bullhorns. What were they thinking. I've seen a fuji aloha w/ the x-fusion frame material thats pretty nice, the only drawback being that its not a tcr aero.The aloha is in the approximate price range of the aero also-

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by miater
looks like a good deal for a tri/tt bike. any opinions?

i notice the 04's have the drop bars and sti and my LBS has the 03's leftover , the tcr aero1 for 1500... and the 03 has the bullhorns and bar end shifters.

why would giant switch to the sti's?

if you can't shift in the aero position, what kind of tt bike is that?

In most triathlons bar end shifters are not permitted.

Plus, in triathlons they try and make the bike section as flat as possible (espcially in Ironman) so that you won't have to change gears every minute.

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by ItalianStallion
In most triathlons bar end shifters are not permitted.

Plus, in triathlons they try and make the bike section as flat as possible (espcially in Ironman) so that you won't have to change gears every minute.

you mean in road races bar end shifters are not permitted?

real tri bikes have bar end shifters.

one other thing i noticed is the 74 degree seat tube angle.

the giant is not a tri bike.

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by miater
you mean in road races bar end shifters are not permitted?

In some triathlons, bar end shifters are not permitted. As is drafting.

I'm not sure of the exact reasons.

The Giant TCR Aero has the same geometry as the Giant TCR, so, yes, it is not a TT frame.

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by ItalianStallion
The Giant TCR Aero has the same geometry as the Giant TCR, so, yes, it is not a TT frame.

That's not true, Stallion. The TCR Aero has a 75 degree seat angle, a 72.5 degree head angle, and a 1024mm wheelbase (size L).

The standard TCR has an average 73 degree seat angle (depending the frame size; XL=72, L=73, M=73.3, S=74, and XS=75) and a 71 degree head angle, with a 1071.8mm wheelbase (size L).

The Aero, in other words, doesn't sport the most agressive TT angles, but it's clearly not a road bike -- and the standard TCR is pretty standard by comparison. All numbers taken from Giant's website.

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by lokstah
That's not true, Stallion. The TCR Aero has a 75 degree seat angle, a 72.5 degree head angle, and a 1024mm wheelbase (size L).

The standard TCR has an average 73 degree seat angle (depending the frame size; XL=72, L=73, M=73.3, S=74, and XS=75) and a 71 degree head angle, with a 1071.8mm wheelbase (size L).

The Aero, in other words, doesn't sport the most agressive TT angles, but it's clearly not a road bike -- and the standard TCR is pretty standard by comparison. All numbers taken from Giant's website.

good info thanks

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by lokstah
That's not true, Stallion. The TCR Aero has a 75 degree seat angle, a 72.5 degree head angle, and a 1024mm wheelbase (size L).

Here is the info from the UK Giant webiste:

Giant TCR Geometry:

frame
size top
tube
in mm seat
tube
in mm seat
angle
in º head
angle
in º drop-
out in
mm chain
stays
in mm rake
in
mm trail
in
mm wheel
base
in mm
XL 610 585 73 73.5 70 400 45 52.9 1024.7
S 535 440 74 72 70 400 45 62.2 969.5
M 555 500 73.5 73 70 400 45 56 979
L 585 555 73 73.5 70 400 45 52.9 1000

Giant TCR Aero Geometry
A B C D E F G H I
frame
size top
tube
in mm seat
tube
in mm seat
angle
in º head
angle
in º drop-
out in
mm chain
stays
in mm rake
in
mm trail
in
mm wheel
base
in mm
XL 610 585 73 73.5 70 400 45 52.9 1024.7
S 535 440 74 72 70 400 45 62.2 969.5
M 555 500 73.5 73 70 400 45 56 979
L 585 555 73 73.5 70 400 45 52.9 1000

This is true for the 2003 models. As for the 2004, the TCR frameset page reads:

Aerodynamic AluxX SL 6013 Compact Road™ frame with FluidForm™ top tube.
Gussets for extra reinforcement, rigidity and improved aerodynamics.
Same materials and tubing as used for the famous time trial bikes of the ONCE-Eroski professional team.
TCR geometry and sizing.

They might make different models for the States, but this is what happens in the Uk.

In fact, I have just checked. We're both right! :-)

In the USA, they do make different bikes, with different geometries. Or the info on the Giant UK website is wrong! ;-)

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by ItalianStallion
In fact, I have just checked. We're both right! :-)

In the USA, they do make different bikes, with different geometries. Or the info on the Giant UK website is wrong! ;-)

Hey, good catch! Interesting; I wonder which is the case. Both possibilities are a little strange.

The stranger one, though, is probably that Giant specifically manufactures a TT frame with road geometry for the UK, while marketing traditional TT geometry elsehwere. Maybe someone should contact them and find out...

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by lokstah
Hey, good catch! Interesting; I wonder which is the case. Both possibilities are a little strange.

The stranger one, though, is probably that Giant specifically manufactures a TT frame with road geometry for the UK, while marketing traditional TT geometry elsehwere. Maybe someone should contact them and find out...

My girlfriend has a 2003 TCR Aero 2 frame, while a friend of mine has a TCR 2T. I have never taken a really close look, but the TCR 2 has an aero fork (not sure of the name - it has wide dropouts) much like the Aero version, and both have an aero seatpost.

The aero version, however, has little aerodynamic bits around the frame corners, I guess to make it a bit more aero.

Here is a picture of the TCR 2T

And here is the Aero vesrion.

Notice the extra material between the backstay and the seat tube.

Interesting, uh?

Now that I look at them, I realize they simply cannot be the same frame......

I'm about to email Giant

Let me know what you find.

I'm positive Giant has a true TT frame somewhere in their stable; they've boasted about selling the same frame ONCE took to x number of TT stage wins yadda yadda. Ok, marketing schlock, sure, but consistent with the numbers on the US website geomtery page.

One of my rigs right now is a 2003 TCR frame, by the way, and it's pretty standard (aside from being dramatically sloping, of course) -- that is, the head angle, seat angle, fork-rake and wheelbase are pretty average.

Anyways, be sure to update us. Thanks!

The TCR 2 picture you posted above, by the way, looks like a smaller-size frame -- the seat angle will be steeper. I've got a large, and the seat angle is 73-ish.

Giant has a new TT frame made for Ullrich. Is hasn't a sloping geometry and is made from monocoque carbon. It has a hidden front brake, hidden BEHIND the front fork.

This frame is not for sale.

check the t-mobile site and watch the Tour of Germany video.

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by marlon1
Giant has a new TT frame made for Ullrich. Is hasn't a sloping geometry and is made from monocoque carbon. It has a hidden front brake, hidden BEHIND the front fork.

Yeah I saw a piece about that bike as a prototype sometime late last year -- pretty stunning. Giant's TCR composites are also monocoque, by the way, but as far as I know, they haven't offered a carbon TT frame in several years (am I wrong?) -- the new TT frame is fairly radical.

It's not for sale yet. Give it a year. Wait until Ullrich and others get the cycling public drooling over it, and they'll put it up for $7,000 USD or something.

🙂

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by ItalianStallion
And here is the Aero vesrion.

Notice the extra material between the backstay and the seat tube.

Interesting, uh?

Also note the real wheel is more tucked into the aero seat tube (slightly formed around the wheel). You can also see the profile of the down tube looks taller (hopefully also narrower).

One other thing I note between the two pictures is the shape of the seat stays. TCR has a less sloping, upward curving stay. The Aero has a steeper straighter stay. Again all items I have noted lean toward the TT geometries.

this is all good info, and maybe for someone like me the sti would be a good idea.

I just got into cycling last year, with a lemond tourmalet - 73 degrees seat tube in a 55cm bike, and it's hard to get very aero in it

great road /touring bike, but my friends and i have started doing triathlons.

I don't know if i can afford two bikes, but if i decide to , i 'd go with something specifially tri oriented, with a 76 degree post at the least.

if i decide to just have one bike, maybe this giant would be a good compromise.

I still am surprised giant doesnt have a tri bike for sale in 04 with bar end shifters.