Originally Posted by
jkonst
Joined this forum just to learn more! I've been really interested in the Empire SL (considering the Team Edition, currently), but as you said, there isn't much information out there other than a few previews. I have some questions, if you're up for answering them...
- What was the buying process like? And did you choose "comfortable" or "racelike" geometry? I haven't been able to quite tell what that changes.
- How involved was assembly?
- What's the weight of your bike?
- Do you have any drivetrain or disc brake noise? I've seen some comments about loud SRAM 12-speed drivetrains, but it seems like it's pretty installation-dependent.
- How does it ride, comfort/handling-wise?
Thanks! Hope your new bike is treating you well so far.
My pleasure!
-Buying process: you order online (or call and talk to an actual person). Once they receive your order, they will have a human being call you and go over your measurements and ask if there is anything else that you wanted (such as if you wanted a different set of wheels, gears etc). 2 weeks after that, they send the bike to you. I chose “race like” and what I think that means is how many spacers they put into the headset as well as (maybe) the stem length. They pretty much nailed the geometry, at least for me.
-Assembly: you will need to install the front wheel as well as the handlebar to the stem. All in all, 4 small bolts and a thru axel. They provide the Allen keys and instructions needed for installation if you don’t have it. It’s a 5 minute job not including taking off all the packaging materials.
I took extra time putting it together because I swapped the saddle, swapped the bar tape and set up the AXS components with the app.
-I haven’t put it on a scale but just by picking it up I can tell it’s not quite as light as my rim brake Edmonda SL with carbon everything but no where even near as heavy as my gravel specific Giant Revolt Advanced.
-Noise: No brake rub at all. My chain was kind of noisy. Not squeaky but just drivetrain noise. I only have 1 short 20 miler on it and that was with the stock lube. I washed it all off when I got home and am currently letting the Dumonde Tech chain lube soak in good for tomorrow’s ride. That probably will quiet things up a lot. The drivetrain is flawless otherwise. Everything was tuned perfectly and shifts like a dream.
-It rides awesome. My Emonda that I had was harsh. This thing feels way less effected by bad roads. It’s not a plush bike by any means though. It doesn’t feel like a magic carpet over rough tarmac like my Revolt does, but that bike also has 42c tires ran at 40 psi. I am very happy with the ride of the bike. It’s still very stiff and very connected to the road but it doesn’t beat you up.
I only have 1 ride in but I will be riding it daily next week and dialing everything in and maybe doing some gearing changes so I can be ready for a week long vacation the following week where I will be doing some serious mileage. I’ll post updates as I get them.
If you have other questions, feel free to ask!