Felt released the rest of their 2015 road bikes at the beginning of August, but they saved one for Eurobike. With the burgeoning gravel racing market, the F1 PR looked pretty good, except it doesn’t have the other current road buzz word: Disc brakes. Ender the new Z-series Disc. It’s a new version of their popular Z-series road bikes that adds disc brakes and a bit more tire clearance.
The top model, shown here, gets Shimano hydraulic disc brakes, Ultegra Di2, the new Mavic Ksyrium Disc (which we’ll have more info on this week!) wheels and FSA SL-K crankset.
Below that is the Z4 with SRAM hydros with 160mm rotors and Rival group, Mavic Aksium wheels and Zipp cockpit. Finally, there’s the Z75 alloy model with a Shimano non-series/105 mix with TRP Spyre mechanical disc brake calipers running 160/140 rotors.
Check some frame detail photos below, then chill with the Dude…
Tire clearance isn’t huge, but these are meant to be performance road bikes, not adventure bikes. The front brake hose runs neatly into the fork crown then out the leg just above the caliper.
Front are post mount for 140mm rotors. Go larger with adapters.
Rear is IS mount, so run any size you like with the appropriate adapter.
They’ve developed a new, wide tubeless ready disc-specific rim. So, presumably anything without the Mavic wheels will be spec’d with 25c tires, but they said the rims push them out to about 27mm wide. All three run standard quick release with 135mm rear spacing. Frames are mechanical/electronic ready with simple plug swaps.
Like some of the other road bikes, the Z-Series Disc will use the 3T seatpost with elastomer ring separating the rail mounts from the post to absorb vibration.
Not shown, there are also standard rim brake Z-series bikes, including a new Z3 model with Ultegra mechanical. At the lowest price point while maintaining carbon, there’s a new Z7 with their UHC Performance carbon with a Shimano Sora group. It’s the same frame as their Z3, but comes in at a lower price point.
The ZW women’s models get two smaller frame sizes with different layups than the standard Z-series, something they’ve done since the get go. Felt’s road PM says some brands are making a big deal about new “size specific tube shapes and layups”, but Felt’s done that on all of their non-aero bikes from day one, even using up to five different size steerer tubes depending on frame size. The women’s models do get different geometries and layups to accommodate the differences in rider sizes and weights. They also get further touches like different rims, lighter gauge spokes, narrower handlebars, shorter stems and alternate saddles. Oh, and different colors.
FELT DUDE FAT BIKE
Curious about the LEBOWSKe model name for their electric fat bike released earlier this month? Meet the Dude, it’s non-motorized brother.
A 197mm thru axle rear end allows for as big a tire as you want to stick in there. To keep the chainline useable, they went with a Race Face crankset since it was the only one available with a wide enough spindle.
The front end gets their new fork from the e-bike model, too. Its hollow formed blades with a massive crown provide more clearance than you’ll need.
The thru axle dropouts use the same design as the Bluto fork and, since the fork and frame use suspension corrected geometry, it’s ready to go if you want to put a little bounce in your massively footprinted steps. And those footprints both use single-walled alloy rims, with the upper model getting machined cutouts to save weight.
A rear rack built for 135mm spaced rear ends will fit on the fork, and more mounts are on the back for carrying additional gear. Felt put their money into the frame, fork and tires, so spec is decent enough without blowing minds.
Dude 30 is the top model and gets a Shimano 2×10 XT group with Race Face cranks, Felt’s rims and the new Schwalbe Jumbo Jim tires.
In case your wondering, the 197mm thru axle standard has the same hub width as the 190mm QR standard.
The Dude 70 comes in at just $1,399 with a 3×9 drivetrain.
Both are shipping in November.
