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For a certain customer, a no-holds-barred, make it as light and stiff as possible bike is exactly what they want. And now, Alchemy Bicycles is delivering with their new ultralight lineup, and, surprisingly, they’re not all carbon fiber.
The new AU (Alchemy Ultralight) line includes the carbon Lycos gravel bike and Atlas road bike, and titanium Argos hardtail mountain bike. The carbon fiber frames are designed with very specific and minimal layups to save weight, and using a higher percentage of high-modulus fibers to make them stiffer, too. They’re finished off with lightweight paint that shows the layup and finish.
Then they layer on premium builds with lightweight component selections you don’t often see on complete bikes, plus high-end Enduro XD15, Direct Line, and MaxHit bearings across the bike…and components! The goal? Create complete bikes that are 15-20% lighter than their standard counterparts.
Alchemy Atlas Ultralight Road Bike
The Alchemy Atlas is their flagship road bike, and the Ultralight model takes it to the next level. Each frame takes 10-14 hours to layup, with about 500 individual pieces of carbon fiber.
The visible layering of the carbon plies hearkens back to Alchemy’s early days where the carbon itself was highly visible and part of the design. They still use a blend of carbons to give it the desired ride quality, but the AU models have a higher percentage of high-modulus fibers to increase stiffness with less material.
The Alchemy Atlas AU comes in ~840g frame weight, with the complete bike shown here weighing in at 15lb 10oz (7.09kg), thanks in part to a Cerakote finish that adds just 5g.
The bike will come in four builds specs. The base “All Road” build are $10,999, or upgrade to the pure “Road” build with lighter cockpit and XD15 ceramic bearings for $11,499 and other Enduro bearings:
- MaxHit headset
- Torqtite bottom bracket
- Directline derailleur pulleys
For a deep dive on Enduro’s bearing technology and a hyper-detailed discussion of bearings in general, listen to our podcast interview with them.
Despite the lighter weight, all frames come with a lifetime warranty.
It’s not just the headset and bottom bracket that get better bearings, even the drivetrains are upgraded. Choose from SRAM Red AXS or Shimano Dura-Ace Di2, both with Zipp Service Course Speed SL stem and post with XPLR handlebar. Or, go “Premium” (aka “Road” build) for $500 more to upgrade the Enduro XD15 BB and headset, plus a Tune bar, stem, and seatpost, and Alpitude Composites Gemera saddle.
All builds get Alchemy’s carbon road wheels, with the Premium build getting XD15 bearings there, too.
Alchemy Lycos Ultralight Gravel Bike
The Lycos AU gravel bike gets the same upgraded build but comes in around 800g for the frame, including the same 5g Cerakote finish.
Pricing is the same, but specs are a little more interesting. Choose from SRAM Red XPLR or a Red/XX1 mix, both 1x only. The Premium build upgrades to a Tune cockpit, including saddle, and a mixed 1x drivetrain with e*Thirteen components.
The e*Thirteen XCX Race carbon cranks with 1x chainring are paired to their…
…Helix R 12-speed cassette, using a 9-45 tooth grouping to provide the same 500% range as SRAM’s Eagle cassettes, but in a smaller, lighter form factor.
Premium builds on all bike models also get titanium hardware and other small weight-savings parts and bits throughout. The Lycos will fit 700×50 tires and can be ordered with rack and fender mounts to add versatility.
Alchemy Argos Ultralight Mountain Bike
The Argos AU is the refined version of their standard version, using US-made Grade 9, 3/2.5 titanium.
The bike gets their custom tapered, integrated headtube…
…and S-bend seatstays that change shape in multiple planes to both add compliance and improve ride quality, and also create space for the brake caliper to sit inside the rear triangle.
Frame weight’s not mentioned, but the complete bike as shown here is 24lbs.
Two stock builds are offered, with Shimano XTR ($8,499) or SRAM XX1 AXS ($8,999), but they’re mixing both up with the e*Thirteen XCX Race Mountain crankset. This one’s shown with a matching e*Thirteen cassette, too, but you’ll get the regular SRAM or Shimano cassette as stock. e*Thirteen XCX Race wheels and Optimus 2.4 tires with Trail Casing.
There’s no “Premium” option listed, but both stock builds get the Enduro headset and BB with XD15 bearings. Cockpit highlights include a Tag Metals T1 Carbon 35mm bar with Intend Grace FR stem and ESI Racer’s Edge foam grips.
Alchemy x Enduro Bearings collab
This is the first official “Enduro Bearing Inside” partnership, but the component brand says it won’t be the last. They’ll be growing the program, where complete bikes can be sold with the XD15 hybrid ceramic bearing setup in the BB, headset, and Directline derailleur pulleys.
Alchemy will also be offering the Enduro upgrade kit on their other bikes as an option during checkout.
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