Storck Fenomalist

[Speedneedle]

Hi

I just got on the market for a new frame. I have had all sorts of Italian frames before, but I have gotten tired of their relatively lack of stiffness and high weight. But I still want something non-mainstream. So no Specialized, Giant, Scott ect.

This leads me to the Storck. I have heard of the brand before, but really payed attention to it, but the test on this site sounds quite like the treats I am looking for in a bike.

Does anybody have experience with the brand and have something to share before I take the plunge?

 

[Pietro]

Hi

I just got on the market for a new frame. I have had all sorts of Italian frames before, but I have gotten tired of their relatively lack of stiffness and high weight. But I still want something non-mainstream. So no Specialized, Giant, Scott ect.

This leads me to the Storck. I have heard of the brand before, but really payed attention to it, but the test on this site sounds quite like the treats I am looking for in a bike.

Does anybody have experience with the brand and have something to share before I take the plunge?

http://www.parleecycles.com/

 

[Speedneedle]

Thanks, but I was asking about Storck...

I have grown out of lugged bikes after having owned bot a Colnago C40 and a EP. (liked the C40 most, as it was a fabulous bike at that time) In addition, I find they lack some snap, compared to more modern frames. I don't think the right way to build carbon bikes is to make them the same way steel bikes were made 50 years ago. They're massively overpriced also.

 

[fergnago]

Good review of the Storck here on cyclingnews, but the word "femonalist" makes me thing female speciffic? am i wrong again?

 

[Pietro]

Thanks, but I was asking about Storck...

I have grown out of lugged bikes after having owned bot a Colnago C40 and a EP. (liked the C40 most, as it was a fabulous bike at that time) In addition, I find they lack some snap, compared to more modern frames. I don't think the right way to build carbon bikes is to make them the same way steel bikes were made 50 years ago. They're massively overpriced also.

Wall, most carbon bikes are still tubes either into or outside of 'lugs'. Few are monocoque because hard to impossible to make a custom(new mold) and limited sizes(molds are expensive). 'Snap' is subjective, I suggest you ride any frame/bike you want to spend the $ on. Plus $3800 for frame/fork/HS is not cheap. I would imagine that this frame would ride very similarly to the Parlee Z-4, Calfee Tetra.

 

[Speedneedle]

Yes, I know all about the difference in "semi-lug" monoqocues, real monocoques, tube to tube ect. but I have grown out of the lugged look. I think it's old fasion, and the Calfee is downright ugly.

In reference to the Parlee and Calfee, I have read the "tour" tests of both and the Calfee is scary flexible and a friend of mine had a Parlee Z4 which I tried. It was in the ballpark of my old C40 stiffness-wise, so not too bad, but not at all nearly as stiff as I want from my next bike.

Now, does anybody know something about the Storck bikes?

 

[James Huang]

I'm not sure where you're located but I do know that Storck USA has a pretty extensive demo tour going on. As always, the only way to know for sure is to ride one. Also be aware that the sizing is on the bigger end of the spectrum. Were I buying a Fenomalist myself (and it's 'Fenomalist', not 'Femonalist') I might even go with the 49cm size, which sounds awfully small but still comes with a 525mm top tube and a very steep seat tube, which would put the reach only a little shorter than the 51cm.

Aside from that, it may be worthwhile to contact Storck or Storck USA to see if there are any dealers in your area that may not be listed on the web site. Alternatively, you could post on some local bulletin boards to see if anyone in your area has one that you could look at in person.

 

[Pietro]

Yes, I know all about the difference in "semi-lug" monoqocues, real monocoques, tube to tube ect. but I have grown out of the lugged look. I think it's old fasion, and the Calfee is downright ugly.

In reference to the Parlee and Calfee, I have read the "tour" tests of both and the Calfee is scary flexible and a friend of mine had a Parlee Z4 which I tried. It was in the ballpark of my old C40 stiffness-wise, so not too bad, but not at all nearly as stiff as I want from my next bike.

Now, does anybody know something about the Storck bikes?

Fair enough but monocoque is one of the oldest technologies for making an al carbon frame. Kestrel in about 1984/5 started it.

Used to have a Calfee, 'scary' isn't how I would describe it.

 

[rossa2005]

All Storks it is not non-mainstream bikes, it is ordinary Taiwan bicycles, made by Carbotec.

Buy yourself Bressan or Passoni. This is really non-mainstream bicycles.

 

[justme]

Storck is a fantastic bike, I have a few of them.

The Fenom is a good bike but not what I'd consider the best choice from Storck.

Don't get me wrong, it really is a nice frameset, but go a step up or a step down in price and find two framesets which are both better.

If weight is your focus step up to the Fascenario .8 and get a good all around rider.

However in my opinion a step "down" to the Absolutist 0.9 is the best choice. Huge fork blades, 1.5" lower race, monster chainstays etc. A super fast and very stiff race bike, with a weight that is very race worthy.

The only thing about the Storck bikes is that Marcus does his sizing differently. Top tubes tend to be a little longer than "common"

Part of what I like about the bikes are outside the box approaches to things like balancing handling and toe overlap. Instead of choosing a stock 43mm rake fork they go with a length adjusted 40 rake. It's details like these that really make the bikes a treat to ride.

 

[papawheelie]

Yes, I know all about the difference in "semi-lug" monoqocues, real monocoques, tube to tube ect. but I have grown out of the lugged look. I think it's old fasion, and the Calfee is downright ugly.

In reference to the Parlee and Calfee, I have read the "tour" tests of both and the Calfee is scary flexible and a friend of mine had a Parlee Z4 which I tried. It was in the ballpark of my old C40 stiffness-wise, so not too bad, but not at all nearly as stiff as I want from my next bike.

Now, does anybody know something about the Storck bikes?

Storck uses real Monocoque design. All of their bikes require different moulds to produce and the proof is in the numbers. If you visit their US website, you can read review after review about how stiff the bikes are compared to anything else in the market. I have personally ridden the Fenomalist at one of the demo tour stops and the bike is better than any other bike on the market with the exception of another Storck. Yes, the bikes are a little expensive, but no doubt, you get what you pay for. I read one review where they have 4 out of the top 5 bikes in the world. Even thier entry level bikes rank higher than the top-of-the-line models from most companies.

 

[karlboss]

No personal experience, but tour magazin (german "technical" based") rated it second in some fairly solid company, in a recent shootout. Beating specialized, cervelo, giant, parlee amongst others. As to how the numbers actually speak for ride I can't say.

 

[tkindred]

All Storks it is not non-mainstream bikes, it is ordinary Taiwan bicycles, made by Carbotec.

Buy yourself Bressan or Passoni. This is really non-mainstream bicycles.

"Vellum have been working for quite a while getting the hang of transferring things from their brain to paper and into production. They have chosen Carbotec as their manufacturer (as have some of the very TOP names in cycling), and that’s created a very good working combination that allows some fresh thinking and experienced production to create the new brand."

Sounds like Carbotec is pretty good.

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/?pg=fullstory&id=4254

 

[Speedneedle]

I purchased a Storck Fenomalist 6 weeks ago. What a fantastic bike!
I think I did do my homework and test rode 9 different candidates, in all shapes. The thing the nailed it, was the stiffness in the headtube area, which was on an other level compared to most of the other bikes I tried. Especially the Cervelo S3 was downright scary flexible in that regard. I was very dissapointed after having ridden that, as I really like the looks.
The bike that came closest to the Storck was the new Specialized SL3. It felt almost as responsive as the Storck, but the fact that Specialized has new paint each year kept me off that. If I buy an expensive bike mid season, I don't want it to be last years model in 6 months time. That just doesn't make sense.

But to sum it up. Positive first.
-The Fenomalist was just the best bike I tried. The stiffness and handling is outstanding. It has to be tried.
-Comfort. I would say 6 out of 10. But much better than I tought for a bike this stiff
-The finish is very, very good and stealthy. I like the fact that there's not a gazillion decals and abbreviations that mean nothing in reality, except for the marketing department. (And it's pretty cool to ride a bike that is not a wannabe replica of a Pro-Tour bike).
-It build up perfectly. No facing on the BB was needed, and all threads and headset is perfect. Alignment is perfect.

Negative.
-The rear-facing dropouts can be a hassle to use. I am getting better, though.
-The fork could maybe shed some grams (386g), but the massive stiffness it has, could maybe be one of the reasons the handling is so good?
-Bottle cage on seattube could have been place a bit lower, for easier bottle handling.

I can only reccomend that it is taken very seriously as a contender, if you are looking for a bike in that price range. Go and try it.