Giro Tech: Sky riding prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
- By Caley Fretz
- Published May. 10, 2012
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
Shimano is keeping hush on this prototype 11-speed road group, but it appears to be quite close to a final version. A complete redesign is evident, from a brand new, four-arm crank to updated lever ergonomics to an ultra tall front derailleur parallelogram. And, of course, it has 11 cogs, which will necessitate some redesign of Shimano's current freehub design. The team Sky bikes we spotted this group on were the team's regular Pinarellos, though, so spacing is certainly still 130mm, or close to it. Photo: Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
The lever shape is slightly updated from the current Dura-Ace 10-speed design, as are the hoods. Photo: Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
The front brake appears to have three pivots, instead of two. Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
There's a lot going on in there, and to be honest we don't really know what. But we can see that the brake pads are moved out a bit as a result. Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
New 11-speed rings on a Dura-Ace 7800 SRM unit, with what appears to be an updated spider. Perhaps SRM will launch an 11-speed version just as Shimano does. Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
The front derailleur clamp is raised up quite a bit. This should provide more leverage and result in a lighter lever feel. Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
The re-worked 11-speed rear derailleur. Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
Go ahead and count 'em; there are 11 cogs there. Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
The tall front derailleur. Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
11-speed. Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
The group looks quite refined at this point. Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
Prototype 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace
A few Shimano-sponsored teams are using these new wheels, which have a fat, blunt-tailed, ~50mm rim and these new hubs. Caley Fretz | VeloNews.com
FILED UNDER: Bikes and Tech / Gallery TAGS: Dura-Ace / giro-ditalia-menu / Shimano
Caley Fretz
Tech Editor Caley Fretz came on board with VN in September 2010, and now splits his year between Boulder, Colorado and Annecy, France. Beyond his journalistic pursuits, he is a category 1 road, 'cross and track racer. He also holds a pro XC mountain bike license, though unlicensed racing is now more his style.
