Bianchi and Scope are celebrating Bianchi’s 140th year in the industry with limited-edition offerings of the Specialissima and Oltre. One is for all-out road speed while the other balances performance on and off the pavement.
The Founder Edition Bianchi Specialissima RC and Oltre RC see best-in-class components and are incredibly limited. Both have Scope’s Artech 6.A wheels, the brand’s top offering for road and gravel racing.
Bianchi: The Founder Edition
Bianchi was founded in 1885 by Edoardo Bianchi in Milan, Italy. Since then, the brand has established itself as a legacy in the cycling industry. One hundred forty years later, the brand celebrates its founder’s vision with limited releases of the Specialissima RC and Oltre RC.
Each Founder Edition bike will have a choice of two special paint offerings — Blue Italia and Celeste Spectrum. Blue Italia represents the royal house of Italy, while Celeste Spectrum is a stunning combination of blue, purple, and green with an iridescent finish.
These Specialissima RC and Oltre RCs also have special markings, indicating their Founder Edition status. Both are marked with “999,” signifying a bike series created for professional racers. The Letter “B” is also incorporated into the fork’s paint near the headtube. Found on special frames and parts, a Bianchi “B” represents the brand’s history and legacy.
Lastly, a limited edition stamp is on each bike, indicating its number out of 85. Only making 85 frames to symbolize the brand’s founding year, 1885, these Bianchi Founder Edition frames are very limited.
Bianchi is also not holding back on component spec, giving the Founder Edition bikes a top-of-the-line treatment. Scope partnered with Bianchi to celebrate the Italian brand’s imprint on the sport, providing a spectacular wheel offering.
Scope Artech 6.A
Fitted with the Artech 6.A all-road wheels, these carbon offerings are simply the best that Scope offers, with wheelset options starting at above $4,000.
The Artech 6.A wheels feature Scope’s Aeroscale rim pattern, a fish scale-like design where the scales diminish in size as they get closer to the inside of the rim. This design claims to create significantly less drag across the wheel while offering increased stability.
Scope saves weight by reinforcing the carbon layup around the spoke holes, but not the entirety of the spoke bed. They also use Carbonlite AeroSpokes to keep overall weight down while retaining stiffness and strength.
They also use their Artech hub, with 3D printed hub shells from Scalmalloy, a lightweight scandium alloy. The result is a high-performance hub with an incredible strength-to-weight ratio, paired with their F1-inspired Diamond Ratchet SL freehub body.
Scope Artech 6.A Details
- 65mm profile
- 25mm internal width
- 33.7mm external width
- 29-71mm tire width compatibility
- 30mm optimal tire width
- HG body
- 36T Diamon Ratchet SL
- 12 x 100 / 12 x 142 (F/R)
- Centerlock brake interface
- 18/24 (F/R) spoke count
- 1319g (per set)
Bianchi Specialissima RC & Oltre RC Founder Edition Builds
Along with the Scope Artech 6.A wheels, the Specialissima RC and Oltre RC Founder Editions see the limited Blue Italia or Celeste Spectrum colorway options. Both frames are completely internally routed, with no additional routing for non-electronic groupsets.
Geometry
Build
Bianchi spec’d the two frame options with the same top-of-the-line components:
- Shifters: Shimano Dura Ace Di2 hydraulic disc brake for road, ST-R9270, BR-R9270, for 160mm rotor
- Derailleur (rear): Shimano Dura Ace Di2 12sp, RD-R9250 CeramicSpeed cage, OSPW RS Alpha
- Derailleur (front): Shimano Dura Ace Di2 12sp, FD-R9250
- Crankset: THM-Carbones Clavicula SE Powermeter, BCD 110 mm, 5 bolts
- Chainrings: Carbon-Ti X-CarboRing 52x36T
- Cassette: Shimano Dura Ace 12sp, CS-R9200, 11-12-13-14-15-16-17-19-21-24-27-30T
- Chain: Shimano Dura Ace 12sp, CN-M9100
- Brakes: Shimano BR-R9270 Hydraulic disc
- Rotor: Carbon-Ti, X-Rotor SteelCarbon 3, Center Lock, 160/140mm (F/R)
- Tire: Pirelli P ZERO Race RS TLR, 30-622, SmartEvo compound, Speedcore TLR technology, 120 tpi
- Bar/stem: Bianchi Reparto Corse carbon integrated handlebar
- Seatpost: Bianchi Specialissima, full carbon, aero shape, 20 mm offset length
- Saddle: Fizik Vento Argo 00 Adaptive, full carbon shell, adaptive padding technology, carbon rails
The choice is yours on whether you want all-out road speed (Oltre RC) or are looking for the perfect all-rounder (Specialissima RC).
Not just a bike. A “Bespoke Experience”
To truly set these bikes over the top, Bianchi seems to be including a “bespoke experience” with each purchase. That includes an opportunity to collect your bike at the pre-season training camp of Bianchi’s WorldTour team in January with a meet & greet and ride with the team. You’ll also find owner’s cards to prove your membership to the exclusive ‘Founder’s Club’, a certificate of authenticity, a professional bike bag to travel home with your bike, and a WorldTour Bianchi cycling team kit.
And the price? It seems to be one of those, if you have to ask… But you can register on the Bianchi site to get more information when it becomes available. If they’re not already sold out.
