This Pinarello Dogma F12 was is brand new and in perfect working order, with the exception of a small skratch on the rear seatstay, some small scuffing by the headtube on the matte finish and slight bubbling on the non-driveside Pinarello logo on the toptube and a scuff with scratches on the drivetrain chainstay. All or most of this was caused from transporting the bike to demo events. The frame is in perfect working order and includes full manufacturer's warranty.

The bike, or the rider? We all know the simple answer to that question. The success of Team Sky, now Ineos, in the grand tours, now with four different riders, forces us to assess that question, but not really challenging it. Suffice to to say that Dave Brailsford's cyclists have dominated while riding multiple generations of Pinarello Dogma framesets, all while the team has been in close collaboration with Pinarello and other partners to inform, field test, and improve the Dogma for nearly a decade. A bike doesn't make a cyclist, but forms part of a symbiotic relationship that inspires trust, delivers optimal performance, and becomes a natural extension of the rider. Power transfer, handling, stability, ride quality, aerodynamics, and pure feel all combine with the cyclist to maximize the potential in the relationship. That is why in 2019, with the Tour de France GC standings feeling wide open going into the last week, the team and two Ineos riders made all the right decisions and physical efforts to finish with the top two podium placements. Not only does everything have to go right, nothing can go wrong, so never discount reliability and consistent bike performance, and while we celebrate Egan Bernal, Geraint Thomas and the rest of the Ineos team operation, let's not forget that the just released Dogma F12 maintained the Dogma series winning legacy in the process.

A bare Dogma F12 Disc frame weighs in at 840 grams, so we can all see the future where rim brake bikes are rare in the pro peloton. Add in the braking advantage in all conditions and how the frame and wheels become more aerodynamic while saving weight, and the formula is proven. To look at the basic details of the Dogma F12, one could assume that it's new shapes and features are just a dress-up of the F10. Some reviews have pointed out that the same Torayca T1100 1K Dream Carbon with Nanoalloy Technology is used, so how much better can it be? Well, as a rare and quite expensive carbon material, the T1100 is still the premier fiber blend used in the bike industry, with great lay-up flexibility and inherent properties. It is well known that lay-up and engineering are the two keys to using any carbon fiber material, and Pinarello has been evolving the carbon Dogma Series bikes for a decade. They know the process, they know the CFD testing results, they know the real world testing experience, they know what cyclists look for and they execute brilliantly. We don't need to go deep into dropout-to-dropout Asymmetric engineering at this point. Call it proven, often copied, and never duplicated. Instead let's look at what the F12 delivers compared to the F10, then you can decide the relative value of that experience.

The driving focus behind the F12 Disk frameset development was the desire to improve aerodynamics. How about achieving a drag savings of 8 Watts at 40km/h? This means for every 1km of riding, it equals a 1 second gain. Let that sink in a little. You can see the incredible shaping of the headtube and how it carries back into the top and down tubes. The subtleties that appear as sculpted, not laid up and compressed to exacting standards. Cable routing through a fully integrated bar/stem and the steerer/headtube make the front end incredibly clean and slippery fast. You see zero housing with the F12 Disc and MOst Talon Ultra Bar/Stem. The Bolide-inspired fork design was also completely re-engineered with incredible shaping that not only improves airflow and makes a great contribution to that reduction drag, but is also an incredible 40% torsionally stiffer than the F10 Disk fork without sacrificing compliance. This means incredible brake force management and unbelievable wheel control at any speed or angle.

Increasing bottom bracket stiffness of the F12 Disk was the second priority, although the F10 was no noodle. The new frame design and carbon lay-up result in a serious 10% increase in lateral stiffness through the bottom bracket. When you add that to the fork and headtube junction advancements, the F12 sets the stiffness / power transfer efficiency bar exceptionally high. More impressively, as more stiffness at this level usually means a weight gain, the Dogma F12 increased lateral stiffness by 10% while leaving the overall weight of the frame unchanged. Still hung up on the "same old material"? The F12 Disk lay-up also allowed the engineers to create proper space in the rear triangle for 28mm tires on modern rims. The fork has ample clearance as well. With the 12mm thru-axle dropouts front and rear and Flat Mount Disc caliper interfaces, the F12 Disk has all of the benefits in lighter weight, overall interface stiffness and efficiency of a true world class leading disc brake road race bike.

Just because Pinarello carries over some enhanced features, such as the aero ForkFlap design, Dogma Aero seatpost, downtube ELink electronic integration port, and that T1100 carbon fiber don''t discount that each and every facet of the F12 frameset was subjected to fresh thinking and engineering. Even the braze-on tab got a cleaner frame integration, while the ForkFlap, while similar, has been improved. Every detail, every feature was examined. We love that Pinarello attention to detail, which carries on through the handmasked and painted finishes. We love that some subtle things didn't change, including the ultra reliable MOst Croxover Italian threaded bottom bracket shell. Suffice to say that while any bike will be subject to aesthetic judgments and speculation about value, the very real improvements in aerodynamics and stiffness of the Dogma F12 drive the true nature of this pure race bike and exceed that of it's proven F10 and F8 predecessors. If ultimate performance is your goal, the Dogma F12 Disk is the ideal frameset to draw the best out of you.