Since 2015, Bastion Cycles have produced impossibly beautiful bikes, pairing hand-finished, polished 3D-printed titanium lugs with their own filament-wound carbon tubes. The Australian brand’s Archetype aero road bike was a star of last year’s Rouleur Live – now it has launched the Panterra, a gravel platform engineered from the Archetype and, like all Bastion frames, each one is handcrafted in Melbourne and custom made for its owner.
With clearance for tyres up to 50mm front and rear, the Panterra is, according to Bastion, equally at home on remote gravel roads, fast all-road adventures and everything in between.
"Most gravel bikes are built down to a price point. The Panterra is built up from a principle. It's gravel, done differently... because it matters," says Ben Schultz, CEO of Bastion Cycles.
“Aerodynamic principles developed through the Archetype have been carefully integrated throughout the design, delivering efficiency without compromising the ride quality and capability required for gravel riding.”
Ethan York, engineering manager at Bastion Cycles, adds: "The challenge was balancing capability with ride feel. We wanted generous tyre clearance, modern drivetrain compatibility and genuine gravel versatility, while preserving the connected, refined ride feel that defines a Bastion. The Panterra allowed us to bring those requirements together in a very cohesive way."
Built around a 700c platform, the Panterra weighs a claimed 8.5kg with SRAM Force XPLR and Zipp XPLR wheels, delivering in Bastion’s words a "rare combination of capability and lightweight performance".
Every Panterra is supplied with a custom frame bag developed in collaboration with fellow Australian brand Skingrowsback, providing storage designed specifically for the bike and the journeys it will undertake.
Annual production at the Bastion Foundry in Melbourne is limited, with 11 people building only approximately 100 bikes each year. Each Bastion bike starts as a detailed digital model and is engineered specifically for its owner. Geometry, stiffness and handling characteristics are refined to suit individual physiology, riding style and goals.
Once reviewed and approved by the customer, each bike takes over 200 hours of manufacturing and craftsmanship: the lugs, which are the signature feature of a Bastion, are made from 3D-printed aerospace-grade Ti6/Al4V grade 5 titanium and feature a complex internal lattice structure that provides exceptional strength while increasing stiffness and reducing weight.
Meanwhile, the tubes are produced using a filament winding process where carbon fibre is wound layer by layer around a mandrel with precise control over fibre orientation and placement. This allows Bastion to fine-tune the performance characteristics of every frame, balancing stiffness, strength and comfort with precision.
The Bastion Panterra is priced from AUD 27,000 (approximately £14,315) plus shipping, duties and sales tax. Lead time is seven months from order. To enquire, contact ben@bastioncycles.com.
Bastion Panterra Key Features
- Aerodynamic design informed by the Bastion Archetype
- Clearance for tyres up to 50mm front and rear
- Optimised exclusively for electronic 1x drivetrains
- UDH compatible
- 700c wheel platform
- Custom frame bag by Skingrowsback included with every bike
- Weight: 8.5kg with SRAM Force XPLR and Zipp XPLR wheels
- Individually engineered and handcrafted in Melbourne, Australia
