On July 3rd 3T sent an e-mail to 3T newsletter subscribers announcing the new 3T Strada Due (essentially a Strada with a FD mount slapped on):
[The full e-mail can be viewed HERE as a PDF]
I subsequently send an e-mail to 3T to give my thoughts and ask for comment. After nearly two months without response (despite a follow-up from me), I thought I'd post the e-mail here to get feedback form the ST community (and possibly from 3T):
Gerard Vroomen / 3T,
I have a Strada. I love the bike. I shouldn't care, but in an odd way I'm disappointed by the announcement of the Due. The Due goes against the 1x DNA of the Strada. It's like you're taking a step back, or compromising, just because the "market" isn't "ready" for 1x. You describe the development of the Due as though it was the natural evolution of the Strada ("Phase Three"), but I find it very hard to believe you intended to have a 2x Strada at the time you announced the Strada. "Let's take a 1x optimized frame and slap a FD on it for Phase Three." Yeah, right. Following are your two primary arguments for the Due and my respective rebuttals:
Argument #1
You state that "having [an] extra gear can be an advantage," but how is that the case? Once the 3T 9-32 cassettes are available (the wait has been very frustrating btw. I'm still waiting for the Overdrive to be available), how will 2x provide any advantage? Let's look at two examples:
Customer A: Not very fit and slightly overweight. Wants a top of the line bike with lots of gearing so she can comfortably crest the the hills on the local group ride.
- Option 1: 2x: Compact (52/36) with an 11-30
- Option 2: 1x with 38T up front and a 9-32 cassette
These purchase options provide near-identical gearing at the high end (32.4 vs. 32.1 gear inches, respectively) and at the low end both options will get you above 40MPH at 120RPM. While you'd theoretically get a bit more with the 2x setup, why would you even bother pedaling above 40mph?
Customer B: MOP Wattie Ink triathlete that thinks he needs to run a 54/39 because that's what Sebastian Kienle does.
- Option 1: Shimano DA Di2: 54/39 rings with an 11-28
- Option 2: 1x with a 42T up front and a 9-32 cassette
These purchase options provide near-identical gearing at the low end (127.6 vs. 126.0 gear inches, respectively) and at the high end the 1x build actually gives you a bit more (37.6 vs. 35.2 gear inches)
Argument #2
You're second point is that the Strata isn't optimized for electronic drivetrains. I don't understand how this is relevant as you can run the Strada setup with a XTR Di2 clutched RD or one of the newly-announced clutched Ultegra Di2 RDs. I suppose this argument applies if you want to run Campy, but who in their right mind runs Campy? And has anyone ever actually said to you "I love the Strada but want to run Campy"?, I doubt it.
I guess if you want to ride up and down Monte Zoncolan all day and want to be able to pedal when you're above 40mph, there's a place for 2x, but otherwise, I don't see it. Why didn't you instead invest in a campaign to show how there is no benefit to a 2x setup in any realistic scenario? Help me out here.
[The full e-mail can be viewed HERE as a PDF]
I subsequently send an e-mail to 3T to give my thoughts and ask for comment. After nearly two months without response (despite a follow-up from me), I thought I'd post the e-mail here to get feedback form the ST community (and possibly from 3T):
Gerard Vroomen / 3T,
I have a Strada. I love the bike. I shouldn't care, but in an odd way I'm disappointed by the announcement of the Due. The Due goes against the 1x DNA of the Strada. It's like you're taking a step back, or compromising, just because the "market" isn't "ready" for 1x. You describe the development of the Due as though it was the natural evolution of the Strada ("Phase Three"), but I find it very hard to believe you intended to have a 2x Strada at the time you announced the Strada. "Let's take a 1x optimized frame and slap a FD on it for Phase Three." Yeah, right. Following are your two primary arguments for the Due and my respective rebuttals:
Argument #1
You state that "having [an] extra gear can be an advantage," but how is that the case? Once the 3T 9-32 cassettes are available (the wait has been very frustrating btw. I'm still waiting for the Overdrive to be available), how will 2x provide any advantage? Let's look at two examples:
Customer A: Not very fit and slightly overweight. Wants a top of the line bike with lots of gearing so she can comfortably crest the the hills on the local group ride.
- Option 1: 2x: Compact (52/36) with an 11-30
- Option 2: 1x with 38T up front and a 9-32 cassette
These purchase options provide near-identical gearing at the high end (32.4 vs. 32.1 gear inches, respectively) and at the low end both options will get you above 40MPH at 120RPM. While you'd theoretically get a bit more with the 2x setup, why would you even bother pedaling above 40mph?
Customer B: MOP Wattie Ink triathlete that thinks he needs to run a 54/39 because that's what Sebastian Kienle does.
- Option 1: Shimano DA Di2: 54/39 rings with an 11-28
- Option 2: 1x with a 42T up front and a 9-32 cassette
These purchase options provide near-identical gearing at the low end (127.6 vs. 126.0 gear inches, respectively) and at the high end the 1x build actually gives you a bit more (37.6 vs. 35.2 gear inches)
Argument #2
You're second point is that the Strata isn't optimized for electronic drivetrains. I don't understand how this is relevant as you can run the Strada setup with a XTR Di2 clutched RD or one of the newly-announced clutched Ultegra Di2 RDs. I suppose this argument applies if you want to run Campy, but who in their right mind runs Campy? And has anyone ever actually said to you "I love the Strada but want to run Campy"?, I doubt it.
I guess if you want to ride up and down Monte Zoncolan all day and want to be able to pedal when you're above 40mph, there's a place for 2x, but otherwise, I don't see it. Why didn't you instead invest in a campaign to show how there is no benefit to a 2x setup in any realistic scenario? Help me out here.
