Diamondback Podium Equipe Team Carbon Disc Frameset

Born in California as a BMX brand in the 1970s, Diamondback is not known for its road bikes. With the 2014 sponsorship of the US domestic squad Optum Pro Cycling, Diamondback is hoping to change that.

Carbon is what gives Diamondback the flexibility to make frames have load specific regions. This means certain areas where the structural demands are greater can have more material due to the strength requirements while other places that aren’t stressed as much can have fewer fibers as the loads are not as great. Consequently these sections can have less material without sacrificing the structural integrity. The Diamondback Podium is handmade using our Advanced Monocoque Molding Process (AMMP). AMMP ensures that each piece of carbon ply is laid precisely where our engineers want it. These carbon plies are hand-wrapped around a polystyrene pre-form core, using a plastic bladder in the shape of the product. To achieve a precise mold during this layup process, we surround the emerging product with a plastic cavity, which guarantees a perfect fit. Silicone mandrel shells are then used to reinforce critical joint areas so as to create smoother overlapping fibers at these vital junctions—such as the head tube and the bottom bracket. Each silicone shell is joined together prior to placing the product in the steel mold. In this final mold, we use a proprietary coating for optimal fiber adhesion.

Fibers are rated by their tensile strength and their modulus which is what is used to denote their stiffness. High tensile strength fibers don’t always equate to high modulus and vice versa. The Podium uses the latest MR60 and HR40 fibers produced by carbon fiber leader Mitsubishi Rayon Co. Ltd. and also the industry workhorse T700 fibers by Toray Industries Inc. Diamondback chooses to use only these fibers to produce the latest Podium. These higher strength fibers are actually harder to manipulate and more precision is needed to accomplish this but they allow us to use walls with thinner thicknesses to reduce weight. It definitely requires a more skilled workforce but at Diamondback we feel that this is the only way to produce something that we can call our own.

The Carbon SL frame featured on the Podium Equipe’ is a lighter version of our Carbon Competition frames (Podium Vitesse and E’Tape). The difference is the addition of higher modulus material which is stronger with greater elongation and tensile strength. Adding these properties makes frame thinner while maintaining and increasing stiffness because of the additional material properties. Because it’s thinner, it’s lighter… 100 grams lighter to be exact.

The other critical material is the resin used to bind the fibers together. Our signature Optimized Resin Compound (ORC) is used to bind the carbon fibers together with precision alignment during the heating process. Using too much resin makes a frame feel heavy and sluggish. Too little resin can result in fiber separation and frame failure. Optimizing our resin-to-fiber ratio allows us to enhance our ratio of material weight-to-strength. The result is an exceptionally impact-resistant frame as the ORC not only bonds the fibers together but also reinforces the strength of the thin carbon walls from collisions.

KEY FEATURES:

• Continuous Fiber – Diamondback’s Continuous Fiber Technology uses full-length carbon strands to manufacture the fork that extend from the top of the steer tube to the bottom of the drop outs. Using that sameAMMP technology employed in the Podium frame, we’ve created one of the stiffest forks available. With a lower integrated crown race that’s completely carbon, we’ve eliminated the need for a separate aluminum race. This makes the overall system lighter, stronger and more responsive.
• Tapered Head Tube – 1.5 Tapered head tube provides front end torsional stiffness for precise steering and control.
• Compliant Stays – Seat tube and seat stays are designed to work together to produce an optimally compliant ride.
• Pressfit 30 –An oversized BB shell coupled with a larger down tube and chain stays provides increased rigidity for out-of-the saddle-sprinting, maximum acceleration, and optimal efficiency.
• Closed Circuit Cabling – Closed Circuit Cable routing provides a clean, uncluttered, and sleek finish to the frame.
• Headset included
• Thru Axels included
• Carbon Water Cages included
• Replaceable Front Derailleur Hanger – lightweight and easy to mount in the correct position… every time included

The Podium Optum Frameset comes in Black with white and blue and is available in 6 sizes: 50cm/XS, 52cm/SM, 54cm/MD, 56cm/LRG, 58cm/XL, 60cm/XXL

Frameset: DBR AMMP SL Carbon Technology Specific Modulous Monocoque Competition Road Frame internal cable routing Carbon Drop outs with Taper headtube Press-Fit 30 BB Di2 Compatible. Fork: DBR AMMP Carbon Competition Road Fork Carbon Drop outs with Taper Carbon steerer tube CFT Continuous Fiber Technology.

Rim Brake frame - shown in Picture as an example

Includes:

• Headset 
• Thru Axels
• Two Carbon Water Cages

27.2mm seatpost, not included. NOTE: Rim version shown in picture.

• GEOMETRY & SIZING DETAILS:

Seat Tube

(c-t)

Effective Top Tube

(eTT)

Stack

(S)

Reach

(R)

Stand Over

Head Tube

(HT)

Head Tube Angle

(HT°)

Seat Tube Angle

(ST°)

Bottom Bracket Drop

(BBD)

Chainstay

(CS)

50cm

52cm

54cm

56cm

58cm

60cm