Aurum, the bike brand owned by Grand Tour winners Alberto Contador and Ivan Basso, has released the second version of its Magma road bike.
The Magma was Aurum’s first bike, revealed as part of the company’s 2020 launch. The bike was already designed to be aero, but Aurum says it’s taken things to the next level with this latest design, which it says leads to some significant savings.
The frame itself has been made more aerodynamic, resulting in a claimed saving of seven watts compared to its predecessor at 45km/h. However, the new integrated cockpit delivered the biggest jump in performance, leading to a greater claimed saving of 10 watts.
The aerodynamic gains have also been joined by an improved stiffness-to-weight ratio and better integration, which Aurum described as an “evolution of excellence”.
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CFD testing results in 17 watts savings
The Magma, used by the UCI ProTeam Polti Kometa, including at the recent Giro d’Italia, is a race-focused bike, and Aurum has tried to make it even faster with the latest changes – a step further, it says, designed and developed. “with the idea of ​​being the fastest bike on the market”.
As is the norm with most brands, this development process involved a lot of CFD (computation fluid simulation) testing, which resulted in a revised design. While some of these changes can be seen at the rear of the bike in the form of NACA profile profiles for the seat post, seat tube and seatstays, it is at the front of the bike where the biggest gains have been made.
This isn’t too surprising as the front of the bike bears the brunt of the wind and is the area where the biggest aerodynamic gains can be made, leading to a trend towards narrower and deeper head tubes. The Aurum followed suit with a deeper, tapered head tube. The fork also has a wider stance crown, something that’s common on track bikes, though the Magma doesn’t come anywhere close in width.
All of these changes add up to a claimed savings of seven watts when the new frameset is compared to the outgoing model, both equipped with the same components. However, that number takes a big jump when the new integrated handlebars are added to the equation, resulting in a total savings of 17 watts.
This is achieved through a combination of aerodynamic carbon monocoque design and full integration with no cables in sight, which provides a sleek aesthetic on a visual level, but Aurum says it also results in some significant performance gains. The new cockpit is only compatible with electronic shifting, not mechanical alternatives.
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Improved stiffness to weight ratio
In addition to aerodynamic gains, Aurum says the Magma has made performance leaps in other areas as well, notably thanks to an improved stiffness-to-weight ratio.
This performance is powered by the carbon frame construction, which is made from six different types of carbon fiber. Laminate tube layouts vary by frame size because “different tube lengths and sizes require different grades of carbon and number of layers.”
This has also resulted in minor weight savings with the 54 frame size at a very respectable 780g. This is competitive with most crawlers, but the Aurum is designed to be more of an all-round race bike and this versatility is also reflected in the increased tire clearance up to 35mm .
In a move that will please many, the bike also features a threaded T47 center mount.
The frame is available in five sizes, either 48, 51, 54, 56 or 58, and two colors, either glossy carbon black or arctic white.
Prices for the complete build start from €8,099, while the frameset is available for €4,499.
Explore the new Magma V2 on the Aurum website.
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