Admittedly, for the longest time the Fuji brand has been associated with my parents now more than 30 year old, matching, lugged steel Fuji road bikes. They were fairly high end back then, and like many bikes of that era, they have stood the test of time long enough for my parents to not want to get rid of them. Fast forward to the present, and wow, Fuji has come a long way. Since then, Fuji has been pumping out more, and better, bikes leading up to their lightest production road bike ever, the Altamira SL.
We got our hands on the SRAM Red equipped, super carbon road machine to give it a thorough test. We break down the Altamira SL after the jump.
Fuji says the Altamira is their lightest production model ever, and they mean it. Our S/M (47cm) test bike tipped the scales at 13.37 pounds complete – 13.87 with Dura Ace pedals! Even with a weight that low, Fuji really didn’t have to resort to extreme measures – though that may depend on your stance on tubulars. The Altamira SL frame is molded from Fuji’s c15 ultra high-modulus carbon that uses their new High Compaction molding system, which like most carbon processes manufacturers are touting these days is supposed to eliminate wrinkles and excess resin from the carbon.
Upfront, the FC-330 full carbon monocoque fork turns on a 1 1/2 to 1 1/8 tapered head tube.
Nearly every ancillary component on the bike from the wheels to the entire controls is sourced from Oval Components. Oval is owned by the same company that owns Fuji, so essentially Oval would be considered house brand parts like Bontrager from Trek. While maybe not the highest end componetry in the world, it is nice enough not to feel out of place on a $6k bike. Ovals R910SL carbon bar is held in place by the 713 alloy stem which is 3d-forged from 7050 aluminum.
The Oval parts continue through the seat and seat post with the 910 carbon seatpost in a 31.6 size supporting an R900 saddle with Carbon rails. The seat post is a horizontal two bolt affair that is easily adjusted since there aren’t “teeth” that have to mesh together – saddle tilt is easily dialed in, and holds firm with two 5mm allen screws.
Part of the lightness includes SRAM’s newest and lightest version of Red, with the exception of a KMC X10SL Ni-Ti plated chain. The drivetrain does not hide the intentions of the bike, coming stock with a standard 53/39 double crankset and 11-25T cassette. With a bike this light, you don’t need climbing gears right?
SRAM also has the brakes covered with Red units there as well. Rather than use SRAM’s typical Swissstop carbon pads, the brakes are fitted out of the box with Oval’s specially formulated carbon pads for their W932 full carbon tubular wheels the bike is also equipped with. The W932s have 32 mm high rims that are matched to the Oval 900 hubset which feature a 6 pawl double engagement freehub. The wheels are hand built with 20 f/ 24 r spokes held in place with internal nipples for a total weight of 1330g per set. 
I was a little concerned about receiving a bike with factory tubular wheels expecting a poor glue job, but the exact opposite is true. The tires are solidly glued to the rim with zero extra glue, and no humps or wobbles.
As this is the same frame they use for the highest end Altamiras, the frame is Di2 compatible as evidenced by the ports in the frame. Each port has a rubber plug installed that is difficult enough to remove that it’s not going anywhere (I tried). Also, the Altamira has completely normal, fully external cable routing. It’s still probably very light comparatively, and gets the job done. You should note that the cable guides are riveted to the frame, so if you’re thinking of switching to Di2, keep that in mind.
Finally, Fuji sticks with a BB86 press fit bottom bracket – meaning the BB shell is 86mm wide and uses a standard GXP crankset. The massive down tube still has to flare out a touch for the BB and then continues into the squared chainstays for what should be an efficient ride.
Stay tuned as we put some miles on the Altamira and report back with a long term review!
