Look KG 196 Monoblade Mavic Zap Electronic Shifting

In road cycling, pretty much everyone knows Look. This French company started its fruitful history long time ago in 1951. Its founder and passionate skier Jean Beyl once broke his leg coming down a steep slope. Naturally, he blamed the rigid foot to ski connection for the torn meniscus and eventually changed sports history. Some years after he developed the first safety ski bindings, a technology which later revolutionized road cycling.

in the late 80s, the company was known not just for its pedals, but also for their top level carbon composite frames. Look was bringing several new high-tech stuff to the pro peloton, but when the Look KG196 Monoblade was introduced in 1990, it was a revelation.

This carbon monocoque frame was not just stunning, it was also brimming with innovative solutions. Creating a frame from a single mould was groundbreaking, but also very challenging. From the beginning, it was difficult to produce the frames in high volumes, different sizes and the whole manufacturing process was very very expensive. But it allowed for more complex shape and riding characteristics changes then ever.

To achieve the best aerodynamics, the shape had to be radical with a massive down tube and bottom bracket area. The seat stays create small "shoulders" to better channel the air around the rear brake. And of course the party piece - the first integrated fork. The straight bladed carbon fork is connected to the frame by a single pivot and an elastomer vibration dampening elements.

The result was incredibly stiff frame with excellent power transfer, great aerodynamics for that time and stunning looks. No wonder that the professional teams Once and Festina were using these frames in early 90s and such riders like Laurent Jalabert or Alex Zülle used them for flat stages.

Our KG196 is equipped with very rare Mavic Zap electronic groupset. The Mavic ZAP System which was introduced in 1992! Yes indeed, It was not Shimano who came up with the idea and in some aspects, the Mavic engineers were decades ahead of their competition. The whole system was hardwired and unlike modern electronic shifting, it did not need a massive battery. In fact, it is so small that it is easily stored in the end of a handlebar. But how is that possible? Simple: Mavic decided to just use the battery to send signals but not to power a motor for the actual derailleur. The movement of the derailleur is powered by the movement of the chain and is initiated by an electromagnetic switch. 

The systems had some real friends in the pro-peloton the likes of Tony Rominger and Chris Boardman.

There is not a lot of these iconic machines out there and this one is in nice condition on top. Great opportunity to enlarge your cycling collection or just to enjoy the utter stiffness on a fast ride.