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The Fondriest TF2 blends swoopy looks with a stiff ride and response(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
From a distance the TF2 appears to feature an integrated seatpost, but it actually features a seperate aero seatpost with an identical profile to the seat tube(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The TF2 has a huge square section down tube that keeps the front triangle as stiff as possible(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The top tube also has a square section to maintain the stiffness and fit in with the down tube's styling(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The down tube, seat tube and chainstays meet in a huge joint to carry the front triangle's stiffness to the back end of the frame(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Oversized chainstays carry the stiffness of the front triangle out to the back wheel(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The lines of the top tube are continued in the single monostay that reinforces the rear end(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The oversized top and down tubes join the head tube in large reinforced joints(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The top tube wraps around the head tube to provide more reinforcement against flex(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The aero section seat tube has a cutaway to allow space for the rear wheel(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The TF2's full-carbon fork has a more organic shape than the square tube profiles of the frame(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The TF2 has its own seat clamp that hugs the lines of the top tube to give that integrated apperance(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The drivetrain on our test bike was made up entirely of Shimano Dura-Ace. (Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The 7800 Dura-Ace chainset is something of a design classic(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The 7800 rear derailleur works as crisply as it always has(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Our test bike was fitted with a versatile 12-25T cassette(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The lower part of the seat tube has a round profile to allow for a clamp-on front derailleur(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Shimano Dura-Ace brakes continue to provide a benchmark for the rest of the industry(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Like many frames with curved top tubes the TF2 routes its rear brake cable internally to keep it out of harm's way(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Dura-Ace 7800 levers will soon be a thing of the past as 7900 comes along(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Selle Italia's new Flite looks dramatically different from the original but feels surprisingly similar, though with a firmer shell(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
ITM's Volo stem wraps its 2014 aluminium core with carbon fibre(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The carbon face plate of the ITM Volo stem clamps a pair of matching Volo bars securely(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
ITM's carbon Volo bars have a gentle anatomic bend(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The external gear cables allow for an indicator that shows the current chain position, but we found it rattled quite annoyingly(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Interestingly, Fondriest has decided to put his (mostly illegible) signature on the massive down tube instead of the more usual graphics(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Mavic's Ksyrium SL Premium front hub is a combination of carbon and aluminium(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
The Ksyrium SL Premium rear hub is all aluminium on the outside but substitutes titanium for steel in key areas to lower the weight(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Vittoria Open Corsa Evo-CX tyres are the Italian company's top clinchers(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Our test bike was fitted with a pair of in-house 4US carbon bottle cages(Image credit: Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com)
Maurizio Fondriest has been producing bikes since the mid-nineties, even providing them to the team he rode for at the end of his career. The TF2 is the second-string frame, but it could easily fit in at the top.
With its oversized tubes, it succeeds in
The size and shape of those tubes will not appeal to all, but those
Ride & handling: Surefooted and incredibly stiff
In spite of the conventional 1 1/8in non-tapered steerer tube on the
While the frame managed to stay stiff in the desired lateral plan –
Many will consider this a minus point, but for others this rigidity and feedback from the road is a
The TF2’s styling may be radical and its ride
While it
Frame: Modular monocoque with monstrously oversized tubes
Fondriest places a clear emphasis on rigidity for its distinctively
The huge top and down tubes form such massive joints with the head tube that it’s difficult to see any way that the front end would flex. Those enormous tubes carry their square profiles for their entire lengths with the down tube narrowing only slightly as it flows around the bottom bracket shell to form a pair of oversized chainstays.
Likewise, the top tube flows cleanly into a large monostay, which again divides just in time to allow the rear wheel to pass through. Bisecting it all is a deep-section non-integrated carbon seatpost secured by a neatly integrated clamp.
Our test bike was built up with a complete Shimano Dura-Ace 7800 groupset, Mavic Ksyrium SL Premium aluminium clinchers shod with Vittoria Open Corsa Evo-CX tyres, and an assortment of Italy’s finest for the finishing kit that included a Selle Italia Flite saddle, ITM Volo carbon fibre bar and stem, and two carbon bottle cages supplied by Fondriest’s in-house 4US range. The complete package, with the provided Look KeO Carbon pedals, came in at a race-legal-but-not-by-all-that-much 7.28kg (16.05lb).
As we expected, the Dura-Ace componentry package performed outstandingly in all departments with smooth shifting both front and rear plus reliably predictable braking. In fact, it was flawless to the point of raising a lot of question marks over whether there’s any need for mere mortals to replace the outgoing 7800 series with the new 7900 groupset. Though the new set improves in a few areas – notably front shifting and braking – 7800 is still superbly capable and will undoubtedly offer excellent value as retailers make room for new stock.
The Ksyrium SL Premium wheels were a good match for the TF2’s personality, offering up a responsive ride that was even firmer – though 130g heavier – than our Mavic R-SYS reference wheelset. Seeing as how the Vittoria tyres are the clincher version of the rubber that half the peloton races on, it was no surprise that these saw us happily through any number of kilometres in all kinds of road conditions.
