What makes this new Gregario Vera AR aero road bike unique isn’t just somewhat unconventional shaping, but rather the patented manufacturing techniques used to create full custom geometry and fit on this monocoque carbon bike. Gregario employs a highly adjustable, modular mold system to create this aerodynamic road frame in a single piece from continuous carbon fibers, fully retaining the ability to adjust dimensions and frame angles to individually suit each cyclist.
It’s a project the team behind the bike has been working on for more than 8 years, just now ready for consumers. The first commercial orders were placed just last month, and the first customer bikes will be out of the mold this month, landing Gregario the prize for Best New Builder at the Bespoked handmade bike show in Dresden over the weekend.
Gregario Vera AR fully custom monocoque aero road bike
Gregario calls the Vera AR the “ultimate bespoke bike”. It’s an aero monocoque carbon road bike with aerodynamics optimized in CFD for modern wide road tires and disc brakes. But at the same time, it retains all the geometry and fit customization you would normally associate with a more conventional-looking bike.
How and why did custom geometry monocoque construction develop?
Founded in northern Italy by an ex-3T design engineer and a research engineer from Politecnico di Torino, Italy’s first engineering school, Gregario set out to rethink bicycle manufacturing with their patented “variable geometry mould technology”.
Custom geometry carbon bikes are typically made with tube-to-tube construction, much like conventional metal bikes. And many semi-custom or even some stock-size carbon bikes are made by separately molding various front triangles, and then bonding a rear end onto them after having been partially cured. Either method results in extra joints that require additional material to achieve the desired strength, or could even introduce a potential failure point if there is any problem with bonding. That’s why bike makers so employ it, tout their monocoque construction methods. But historically, that has meant one complete monocoque mold is required for each monocoque frame size.
Gregario’s core technology is basically a unique multi-part, mixed-material modular frame mold that allows Gregario to vary the lengths and angles between one tube junction and the next. By combining modular mold parts and then inserting extra segments into the mold, they can vary individual frame tube lengths by the millimeter, thus tweaking frame sizing and geometry to each rider. At the same time, maintaining key tube junction shaping and overall frame design. And in the end, a complete one-piece mold closes like a clamshell – just like a conventional single-size monocoque mold – to form and autoclave cure the entire frame as a single piece.
A closer look
The adjustable molds that make Gregario’s custom bike still produce the smooth shapes and integration we’ve come to expect from modern aerodynamic bikes – as opposed to more conventional round tube-to-tube construction.
In fact, that shaping capability is exactly why Gregario decided that their first production frame would be an aero road bike. The aero tube transitions and dramatic rear wheel cutout were perfect to highlight how their frame manufacturing could match the most advanced modern carbon bike shaping while retaining geometry customization.
One of the interesting things about the adjustable Gregario construction is that seams between individual segments of the molds remain faintly visible in the raw carbon frames.
In the photo above, you can see two faint lines above the seatstays and two in front of the seat cluster on the top tube. But at the same time, you can see that the 5HS weave of the T1100S 12K carbon fiber fabric is continuous across these parting lines in the mold.
Customization ideology
The entire Gregario custom process is centered around designing the bike to fit perfectly beneath the individual cyclist’s contact points. That means that a bike fit is key. But Gregario also developed an easy-to-use Digital Sizing online app to simplify and speed up that process.
That also means it’s not only about the bike. So they created a custom cockpit solution that gives you your perfect bar width, angle, and stem length, but retains adjustability. Their two-piece bar solution can even independently adjust stem and bar angles so you can always have the ideal and most comfortable fit on the bars, even if your flexibility changes.
Ultimately, Gregario wants to build you a bike that you’ll be happy to ride for many years to come. So, to maintain ‘adaptability over time’, they designed the Vera AR with a stem that adjusts from -3° to +10° and the integrated seatpost design that maintains ±30mm of height adjustability.
Tech details
- custom monocoque hi-mod carbon frame weight from 840g
- made-to-measure custom sizing
- fully integrated internal cable routing through the 1.5″ upper headset
- tapered 1.25-1.125″ fork from 360g
- wireless, electronic, and mechanical 1x & 2x drivetrain compatibility
- removable bolt-on front derailleur hanger
- 700x32mm max tire clearance
- threaded T47 bottom bracket
- flat mount disc brakes and 12mm thru-axles
- 100% made in Italy
Gregario Vera AR – Pricing, options & availability
The custom Gregario Vera AR aero road bike is available in several options to suit your needs. And of course, custom paint jobs are entirely up to the buyer, as well.
Start with a basic frameset from ~7320€ , including: frame, fork, and the proprietary seatpost. The complete frame kit adds in the custom-sized two-piece Vera handlebar & stem cockpit for a total of 8662€. Complete bike builds are also an option, like this “Italian Flagship” build with made-in-Italy Campagnolo Super Record 13 groupset and Bora WTO wheels for 15,000€.
(Note: All prices include 22% Italian VAT, which varies by country, and exclude other importing and delivery costs.)
Start your custom aero road bike project directly with Gregario.
