An almost flawless bike in the £1000 price range.
I said I would do an update once I’d got some miles in and could make a justified judgement. Over 200 miles later, and now I feel I can really pass judgment on my Wilier.
This bike is spectacular. I literally do not have a serious fault for it. Its strong, stable, exciting, good looking and a pleasure to ride. I have had no mechanical problems, and no punctures thus far (I do feel this may be down to the upgraded Gatorskin tyres though. Well worth the upgrade it in my opinion).
Down to some of the specifics:
Gear changes are fast and flawless thanks to the brilliant Shimano 105’s. There is a really tight, solid feel to the gearing and the speed between flicking the shifter and the gear changing is lightening fast. The brakes are good, again tight, solid, and responsive. The wheels (Shimano WR501) are still true and running nicely despite the state of some of the roads I have ridden on (I HATE POTHOLES). Proving to be very strong. The seat is comfortable, although as its white, it gets grubby quite quickly, but very minor in the grand scheme of things. Not really sure what needs to be said about the frame and forks apart from they haven’t snapped, cracked, buckled, split or what ever they may do. So again proving to be well built and strong, plus nothing rattles which is good if you are out on it for long periods of time. And finally, my medium size is still comfortable for me (5″10, 150lbs). I dont feel like I am over-stretching or too cramped, just right. One thing I may suggest is to double up the bar tape. The factory bar tape is a little thin and doesn’t offer much padding so if you find your hand aching, then maybe wrap another layer of bar tape on, and plus that way you can personalise it a little too!
If you are thinking of spending your money on one of these, you will not regret it. When I was looking for reviews, there wasn’t too many on this bike, but I took the gamble and it has certainly paid off.
One very small thing I should also mention is the Matt paint job. Although it looks very cool, it does make cleaning a tiny bit harder. I was gifted a Muc-Off cleaning set for Christmas, so I tried it out, and I can confirm, it does not work well on Matt paint. I found it left weird streaks and mark all over it, which I had to then wash off. I have found that warm water with a bit of washing-up liquid worked best. I do my best to clean all the mud and grime off the paintwork and components after most rides, especially in the wet conditions we have had recently just to keep it looking fresh and running smoothly.
Don’t forget to read my original review below.
1st February
2012 was my inaugural year for cycling, so everything I bought was cheap, budget stuff (just incase I hated the sport). Whereas after loving the 2012 season, I decided to get serious in 2013.
The first thing that needed an upgrade was my Carrera Virtuosa. This is one of the most basic, low end bikes around, and mine was second hand. With all it’s spec let down, ‘she’ did me well. Nice ride, pretty reliable, cheap to run and covered the miles well.
So my upgrade was to this beautiful Wilier La Triestina 105 2013. I’m a bit of a ‘researcher’ when it comes to buying stuff, and this wasn’t an exception. I spent hours and hours (much to my girlfriends displeasure) looking online and going to various bike shops to find my new ride.
I actually saw this bike in my local shop, but priced new at £1200 it was a bit out of my price range. But a great spot on eBay I found this model, 3 months old at a cut price. (Dont worry I checked it wasn’t stolen, I wouldn’t buy [or advocate buying] a stolen bike). So I went for a test ride, and then it was mine. It’s stunning. Looks incredible. Rides heavenly. I don’t know if it’s because I’m going from a Rover to a Porsche but this bike is incredible.
When I went into my local shop and first saw the bike, I asked about the aluminium/carbon frame trade off for this sort of money. And he basically said, you’d either get a top end aluminium bike or a bottom end carbon. This certainly did give me something to consider. But I thought for the sake of a kilogram, I’d rather a better group set, brakes and overall set up.
In terms of the geometry, I’d describe the frame as in-the-middle. My old Carrera was really long, and you were stretching all of the time. Whereas my brother’s Trek 1.5 is very compact and he complains his toes get clipped by the front wheel when he turns. I got a medium frame. I am 5’10” (1.77m), so not overly tall. This frame suits me well. Nice and compact, but not too cramped. In the shop I sat on a Large, and to be honest there was too much difference. But medium is good for a 5’10″er.
Ive only been out this beauty a handful of times, so dont think its fair to do a full review on it yet, but as the year (and the miles) progress I will do one.
