Argon 18 Anti Matter review: Tested in the wind tunnel and on the trail

According to the Department of Energy, ‘Antimatter is the twin of almost all the subatomic particles that make up our universe’. The scientists at CERN make Anti Matter to test; has Argon 18 meddled with the very fabric of the universe to bring us this new bike?

The Anti Matter appeals immediately. The narrow headtube, chunky fork crown, big down tube and dropped, angular chainstays all work together to produce an aggressive and aesthetically pleasing frame silhouette.

Pair that frame with a pair of deep, wide wheels in the form of the Zipp 303 XPLR S, aero chainring and that eye-catching black and blue fade paint with lurid neon decals, and you have a fantastic-looking package.

The neon on the ‘sea foam/neon’ paint scheme is an inspired choice. It’s the pick of the paintjob bunch for me and really brings the whole look together.

Related reading: Cyclingnews Labs tests

(Image credit: Future)

There are small flourishes dotted across the frameset, from the chequered flag-type logos on the forks and chainstays to the little easter egg behind the fork crown, which is the equation for the power needed to overcome aero drag and road vibration.

Argon 18 has used its ‘pro-level carbon’ for the Anti Matter layup; it keeps the exact type to itself, though. In terms of design, the bike possesses the features a top-end race bike needs.

Here’s the non drive side, note the dropped chainstays to help execute the 55mm clearance. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)

The Anti Matter feels absolutely rocket-ship fast, particularly in faster gravel or off-road sections. Even on my first ride, I mouthed to myself ‘this is rapid’ on a fast and flowy dirt section that requires a quick shimmy as it traces an S through my local woods.

Why does it feel fast? The bike picks up speed instantly, and if the surface is smooth, that combination of the stiff bar and frame, 44-tooth chainring, aero Zipp wheels and the fast Schwalbe tyres means it does indeed feel road bike fast off-road.

This feeling of speed, and the bike urging you to press on, is a key theme of the Anti Matter. It’s one of those bikes that makes you want to drop the hammer, and it feels great to do so.

I value a gravel bike that can handle itself down a rough descent. On rough terrain, I felt some harshness from the bike and felt quite a lot of feedback via the ATTEN integrated handlebar. The bike is a good descender, and handled my technical test descents well, but it is a harsher experience.

The ability to hammer rough, rocky descents probably wasn’t a key aim during the Anti Matter design process, but if this is something you enjoy in your own gravel riding, the Dark Matter would probably be a better bike to go for.

SRAM’s XPLR groupsets rule the roost when it comes to gravel equipment, and Force is excellent; it’s slightly heavier than Red, but the brakes are just as powerful. That 44-tooth ring worked for me, and the bike’s fairly low overall weight of 8.3kg helped when climbing (the Red-equipped model will be lighter still), but it would be easy enough to purchase a few alternate rings to suit your racing or riding. The groupset hasn’t missed a beat, and is a fantastic choice for any gravel bike right now.

The Zipp 303 XPLR S wheels with their 32mm internal width are at their best on faster, smoother terrain; get the bike moving on road sections or gravel, and it really flies. They aren’t a magic bullet, though; their 32mm inner rim profile and skinny rim sidewalls can be susceptible to rock smashes, especially when running narrower tyres at low pressures.

They are all-rounders with the right tyres, but in my experience they are at their very best on faster, smoother terrain and with 45mm + rubber fitted.

Rattling down rocky, rough trails is at the harsher end of the spectrum, but everywhere else the Anti Matter feels racey, stiff and exciting. There is balance there; however, the steering isn’t so sensitive that it’s frantic, and it wasn’t so stiff that it left me wanting to stop.

We tested the bike using a standard ‘In the drops’ posistion. (Image credit: Will Jones)

Thanks to our recent gravel bike wind tunnel test session, we have a set of aero data for the Anti Matter, helping to paint a clearer picture regarding its aero credentials.

We tested the same bike I’ve tested here, and it performed very strongly against a crop of the latest and most popular racy gravel bikes.

We carried out bike-only testing, as well as test runs with a rider. After all, you never see a bike racing on its own, do you?

Our test runs were all completed at 35 km/h, and across seven yaw angles from -15° to +15° in 5° increments.

Long-time followers of Cyclingnews’ wind tunnel testing should by now be familiar with our trusty Trek Emonda baseline test bike; we use this as the baseline for all of our tests, so that we have a reference point for how fast every bike we test is.

Included below are two new graphs showing how the gravel bikes in our test group performed against the baseline so we can compare them.

We tested with a rider too; CN Associate Editor Josh Croxton rode each bike and held a standard ‘in the drops’ position for each capture in the tunnel.

The Crux 5 took the top spot with a rider, followed by the Wilier Rave SLR, and then the Anti Matter. However, our error margin meant those bikes, along with the Reap and Dogma GR, could also claim the top spot; there was only a couple of watts in it.

We also tested the bike with the frame bag fitted and found a 0.75w saving (tested as bike only). So although the difference is small, you’re probably better off using it, even if it’s empty.

Our own testing showed the Anti Matter is a highly competitive gravel machine and that its aero frame design backs itself up in testing.

In the real world, the individual rider, their position on the bike and tyre choice and pressures need to be optimised to make potentially huge gains, but it’s clear that the Anti Matter is putting you in a competitive place straight away.

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The Anti Matter has a standard 1 1/8in steerer

(Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)

The lower headset bearing and integrated crown race are easy to access for cleaning.

(Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)

Brake housing is routed via a cutout on the compression ring.

(Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)

Here are the torque specs and assembly compound guidance for the frame hardware.

(Image credit: Argon 18)

There shouldn’t be any nasty surprises when it comes to living with the Anti Matter. In fact, the stock headset and bottom bracket choices should help boost longevity.

The CeramicSpeed SLT headset bearings and Alpha BB both have lifetime warranties and have long service intervals. The SLT headset bearings were designed as a response to integrated front ends creating headset issues.

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The CeramicSpeed BB Alpha is an expensive unit.

(Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)

Frame hardware will need periodically checking, like any bike.

(Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)

The thru axles come with a rear lever to make life easier, it is removeable.

(Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)

The seatpost clamp assembly is nice and clean.

(Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)

In this spec, the Anti Matter Force costs $8,999 / £7,900 / €8,995.

In context, things could be worse. I’d say the pricing is in line with plenty of other Force-equipped performance gravel machines in this price bracket, and if you are shopping, there’s plenty to choose from.

I’ll compare it to its nearest two competitors in our wind tunnel test for a start. One thing I will say now is I suspect that this will be a popular bike; it’s been well received, and though we all have different tastes, I see riders wanting one.

A top-level S-Works SRAM Red Crux 5 comes in at $14,000; that’s another price bracket.

The Anti Matter Force sits between the new S-Level Crux 5 (2nd tier frame but Red XPLR spec), and the Expert model (2nd tier frame, SRAM Force XPLR spec). The Crux 5 Expert sits at $6,995, but it has a two-piece bar and stem, and arguably less exciting Roval Terra C III wheels. It’s also about the same weight.

A Wilier Rave SLR iD2 with Force XPLR comes in at $9,200 or $7,200 (no power meter), depending on the spec, with Miche carbon wheels. I see no weak spots in the spec of the Anti Matter; Force XPLR is great, the BB and headset bearings have been upgraded, and the bike comes with the frame bag. Things could be worse.

The Anti Matter is a great-looking gravel race bike that feels absolutely rapid to ride. It has backed the on-bike, real-world experience up with a very competitive performance in our own wind tunnel testing.

Its focus is speed, and it’s best when you’re pressing on smoother, faster gravel surfaces. I found it started to get a bit chattery and harsh when hitting rougher stuff at speed, but for everything else, it’s a rocket ship.

I could get aero, but the geometry let me find a comfortable position, which let me have fun in the rough stuff and hook into the drops for the techy stuff.

For me, it looks great, and rides brilliantly without being a one-trick pony that’s only capable of being pointed in a straight line.

The mad scientists at Argon 18 have created their own form of Anti-Matter that is guaranteed to convert all of your energy into forward momentum.

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Testing Scorecard and notes

Design and aesthetics

An aero frame design that stands up in wind tunnel testing, overall build results in a mean looking bike that looks fast standing still. The pictured colourway is the pick of the bunch for me too.

10/10

Build

Strong. Force is a fantastic gravel specific groupset, good tyres and wheels. CeramicSpeed bearings as standard. Unless you’re gram counting or just want Red, this is the model to go for.

9/10

Performance

Excellent, wind tunnel test winner, rapid off-road with good technical chops and a great overall ride. Slightly harsh feeling over rougher ground, but that isn’t this bike’s priority.

9/10

Weight

8.3kg with cages and sealant. Competitive and easily in line with other similar gravel race bikes, not as light as the Crux 5 which is something of an outlier currently.

8/10

Value

Could be worse, in line or beating similarly priced machines with more inconsistent specs.

8/10

Overall

Row 5 – Cell 1

44/50