BH promises a frame weight of 745 grams for size M and calls its new top model - nomen est omen: Ultralight. Although little known in Germany, BH is a brand steeped in tradition. Founded in 1909 by the Spanish Beistegui brothers (Beistegui Hermanos), the company is now headquartered in Vitoria-Gasteiz, south of Bilbao and San Sebastián. Cycling fans will recognise the brand as the equipment sponsor of the former Liberty Seguros team with Manolo Saiz as its sporting director.
Smooth transition
The technical innovation with which the Basques are showing off is the new bottom bracket dimension - you can't even call it standard any more given the flood of new dimensions - BB386 Evo. BH developed this technology together with FSA. The new dimension combines the 30 millimetre thick bottom bracket shaft (BB 30) with the wide bearing spacing of BB 86. This technology is intended to offer carbon frame manufacturers the possibility of improved fibre layup, as the down tube and chainstays can be joined to the bottom bracket over a large area and without creases. At the same time, the very thick chainstays that are common today can be placed far to the outside of the bottom bracket shell, leaving plenty of space for the rear tyre. This type of bottom bracket design is intended to provide more rigidity. Brands such as Wilier and Merida have announced that they will soon also be offering BB386 Evo bottom brackets.
The Basque racer is not a bargain - the Ultralight is offered in eight equipment variants at prices between 8,000 and 11,000 euros. However, our test bike is exquisitely equipped with Corima carbon wheels, components from FSA and Shimano's Dura-Ace, although the cranks are also from FSA and cranks from Campagnolo, SRAM or Shimano do not yet fit.
The silhouette of the Ultralight emphasises the comfortable geometry with a relatively long head tube. This benefits riders who prefer a relaxed riding position where the saddle is not too far above the handlebars and the lower link remains within comfortable reach even on longer rides.
Top League
In the saddle, the bike impresses with its comfortable riding position. The K-Force handlebar from FSA with its narrow handlebar curve and small height difference between the upper and lower handlebar positions is the perfect choice. Thanks to the lightweight wheels, the bike is very agile and follows every steering impulse immediately. The thick bottom bracket box hardly gives way even when pedalling hard, but at 57 Newtons per millimetre it doesn't reach record values. The biggest criticism of the BH is the weak braking performance. Even on dry roads, the titanium Evo brakes with the Corima pads on the carbon rim hardly decelerate at all - choosing the braking point before corners requires foresight.
The test frame in size L weighs 855 grams; a featherweight frame, no doubt; but if the frame in size M actually weighs the promised 747 grams, that would be 108 grams more, which would go to the account of the larger frame; a weight jump of around 50 grams would be normal. Nevertheless, the BH bears the name Ultralight with some justification: Together with the light fork, the tested frame set reaches a weight of 1,259 grams - this would put the BH in the current weight ranking list of TOUR (see TOUR 3/2012 ->) take seventh place.
Price complete wheel 8,999 Euro
Price frame set 3,499 Euro
Weight 5.85 kilos
Reference/Info www.bhbikes.com
Frame sizes** XS, S, M, L, XL
Seat/steering angle 73°/74°
Seat/top tube/head tube 503/575/185 mm plus 10 mm headset cap
Wheelbase/caster 985/51 mm
Stack/Reach/STR*** 585/395 mm/1.49
EQUIPMENT
Steering bearing FSA top 1-1/8, bottom 1-1/2 inch
Brakes Titan Evo
Circuit Shimano Dura-Ace
Bottom bracket FSA K-Force (50/34 t., BB386 E vo)
Wheels/tyres Corima MCC/Michelin tubular tyres
Handlebar/stem FSA K-Force/FSA K-Force
Saddle/post Selle San Marco Concor/ (27.2 mm)
MEASURED VALUES & INDIVIDUAL NOTES
Weight of complete wheel (without pedals) 5.85 kg
Frame/fork/steering bearing weight 855/327/64 g
Standardised weight frame set**** 1.259 g: 1 , 0
Steering head stiffness 88 Nm/°: 2 , 0
Lateral stiffness fork 39 N/mm: 3 , 3
Bottom bracket stiffness 57 N/mm: 1 , 7
Comfort frame 179 N/mm: 1 , 3
Comfort fork 98 N/mm: 5 , 0
* The frame set accounts for 40 per cent of the overall score and the features for 60 per cent. Individual grades are included in these two assessments, only some of which are printed for reasons of space. The grades are calculated up to the final grade with all decimal places; however, for the sake of clarity, all grades are given with rounded decimal places.
** Tested frame size greased.
*** Stack/reach: projected vertical/horizontal measurement from the centre of the bottom bracket to the top of the headset; STR (stack to reach): Values between 1.45 and 1 .55 indicate a sporty riding position, values below are race-like, above are comfortable.
**** Adjusted weight for frame size 57 cm and fork steerer length 225 mm.
