Pinarello Dogma F12
Introducing Pinarello's Latest Road Bike
A Winning Pedigree
Released in 2017 to replace the already highly regarded Dogma F8, the F10 is unquestionably a fantastic bike. Winning seven stage races in 2018 alone, including the Giro d’Italia and Tour De France, the F10 epitomised the fast ‘allrounder’ cyclists yearn for.
Acknowledging the success of their highly coveted F10, Pinarello chose to maintain many key design features, focusing their attention on a handful of subtle tweaks. This approach ensures the new F12 outperforms its predecessor, without losing any of the ride characteristics the brand are renowned for.
Look Familiar?
The most obvious ‘roll-over’ features include the flat backed seat tube, concave downtube and aero ‘Fork Flap Fairings’. Each of these plays a crucial part in drag reduction, with the downtube tucking the bottle cage neatly out the way, while the fairings divert air smoothly around the caliper.
Constructed from the brand's famed T1100 1K Dream Carbon Fibre, the frame and fork are exceptionally light - 820 grams for the rim brake frame, and 840 grams for the disc variant to be precise. Admittedly these figures are based on an unpainted frame, so won’t truly reflect the weight once that beautiful Italian paintwork is applied.
What's New?
As we’ve just touched upon, the F12 is available in both disc and rim brake options. However, unlike the F10, the caliper brake now utilises the direct mount format to improve performance thanks to increased stiffness from the dual mounting points. The disc model has been designed for use with flat mount calipers and features 12mm front and rear thru axles, perfect for maintaining precise handling on varied surfaces.
Both the disc and non-disc models come in an impressive 13 size options, ensuring every rider has a bike that fits without compromise. Additionally, both frames remain highly versatile and somewhat future proof thanks to their ability to accept mechanical and Di2 groupsets without modification.
Now we’ve established the similarities between the past and present Dogma, let's take a look at what’s new. Pinarello’s aim was to create a bike that’s both stiffer and more aerodynamic out on the road. To achieve this, they tested the F12 in a wind tunnel, with a rider aboard, ensuring accurate real-world results.
Aero Efficiency
Cable integration sits at the forefront of this aero quest, the new Talon Ultra handlebar has allowed all the cables bar the brake inners (non-disc) to be completely hidden. Not only improving the overall aesthetics but reducing cable drag by an impressive 85%. Utilising a larger 1 ½” upper headset bearing, Pinarello has created space for all the cables to fit neatly within the headtube, while a new removable front plate on the bars provides easy access should it be required.
If you prefer a traditional setup, don’t fear - a simple spacer can be fitted, allowing any bar and stem combo to be run. The spacers are also split, enabling 40mm of stack height adjustment without the need to disassemble the cockpit. As with the frame, the Talon Handlebar comes in a number of sizes for perfect rider position - 16 to be precise!
Subtle Changes - Big Performance
Moving onto the frame, the F12 reintroduces some design cues reminiscent of Pinarello’s earlier days; namely the kinked top tube. A revised Onda Fork reduces associated drag by 15% whilst simultaneously reducing fork twist by an impressive 40% compared to the F10.
Beefed up chainstays and bottom bracket results in a 10% improvement in lateral stiffness, while revised tyre clearances comfortably accept modern 28mm setups. In the real world, these developments equate to a power saving of 8Watts at 40kmph, while this may sound marginal, remember that it can, and will, make a huge difference over long distances.
With such a successful predecessor to outperform, it’s safe to say all eyes will be on the F12 this weekend at the Tour of Yorkshire.
Pinarello Dogma F12 Range
