Pinarello Bolide F HR 3D Frameset

The Pinarello Bolide F HR 3D Frameset is a track frameset built around one task: holding a fixed, flat-out position for as long as a rider can sustain it. Pinarello designed the original for Filippo Ganna's Hour Record attempt, which he completed at the Grenchen velodrome in Switzerland with a distance of 56.792 km. This is the replica of that bike, and it is a very unusual piece of equipment. The frame is not laid up from carbon fiber. It is 3D-printed from metal.

A printed frame

The material is Scalmalloy, a high-strength scandium, aluminum and magnesium alloy that Pinarello describes as an aerospace material designed specifically for 3D printing. Pinarello says the aim was to combine strength and stiffness with aerodynamic gains, using a production method that allows millimeter-perfect sizing. A printed frame is built up layer by layer, so a designer can shape the tubes and place material with a freedom that carbon molds and metal welding don't offer.

That freedom shows up in the tube shapes. Pinarello points out that the seat tube and seatpost together account for almost 40 percent of the total drag of the frame and fork, so the company concentrated much of its aero work there. It also borrowed an idea from biology. Researchers who studied how humpback whales maneuver found that the bumps on the front of their flippers, called tubercles, help the flow behind each peak stay attached. According to Pinarello, applying a similar ridged shape to a bike can reduce drag by creating streamwise vortices in the troughs between the bumps.

Narrower where it counts

The Bolide F HR 3D also benefits from the removal of the UCI's 3:1 rule, which Pinarello cites as a chance to shrink the frame's frontal area. The bottom bracket is narrowed to 54mm from the usual 70mm, and the hubs are narrowed to match: the rear from 120mm to 89mm, the front from 100mm to 69mm. Pinarello reports substantial gains from these narrower dimensions. For a rider spinning at a steady cadence for an hour, a slimmer pedaling position through the bottom bracket area is a direct reduction in frontal area.

Built for one position

The frameset comes in three sizes: 45cm, 52.5cm and 55cm. All three share a 77-degree seat tube angle and a 390mm chainstay, with head tube angles of 72 or 73 degrees. Stack runs from 469mm to 508mm and reach from 377mm to 430mm, a low, long fit that suits a time trial bar position rather than a general-purpose track setup. The frame uses 700c wheels, and the package includes an integrated headset, a Bolide HR custom fork and a Bolide HR custom seatpost. The finish is Hour Black.

Because the geometry is so specialized, sizing matters more than it does on a typical track frame. With only three sizes available, a fit conversation before ordering is not optional.

Who it's for

Pinarello has been building race bikes in Treviso since 1952, and the Bolide line is the company's flagship in time trial and track racing. Pinarello calls the Bolide F HR 3D the fastest bike on earth, which is the company's claim and one that Ganna's record gave real weight. But this is not a bike for a weekly session at the velodrome. It suits riders chasing hour-style efforts, teams with a specific record project, and collectors who want the production version of one of the most significant bikes of the era. For that small group, the frame is a rare chance to own a bike that rewrote what a track frame could be made of.