Alpha One: Dragonfly Upgrade

We've made no bones about the idea that Alpha One is our best and most important product ever. But that doesn't mean it's perfect. On the contrary; we are always looking for ways to upgrade and improve it. Since its original launch in November 2017, we have made several incremental changes. Some of the bolts have been updated with better materials, certain interface shapes have changed slightly, and (most significantly) the Monopost was upgraded to a unitary alloy construction that offered several significant improvements.

Today we are announcing a similar upgrade, this time to the Dragonfly. The original version of the Dragonfly was much like the Monopost. That is, it was a molded carbon fiber product with alloy inserts for the threaded portions. And while that does make for the lightest version of the part, it comes with major concessions to stiffness, fitment, and finish. (Notably, it doesn't make much difference to cost. The unit cost of the machined alloy part is roughly the same as the molded carbon version.) In the case of the Monopost, the weight difference was negligible, and an easy choice. In the case of the Dragonfly, the alloy version is indeed a little heavier, by about 50g. However, the benefits far outweigh this small difference in weight.

So what are the benefits? Well, it's all described best in the images here. But we will attempt to provide a written description as well. First and foremost, we have changed the clearance envelope of the extension clamps such that the extensions now avoid any contact with the Dragonfly itself. This means you can run your extensions long, without the need to trim them. At the same time, we lengthened the clamp itself. This improves overall stiffness of the system, even at lower torque values for the pinch bolts. And finally, the part is made out of one solid piece of T6-6061 aircraft-grade aluminum, then hard-anodized black with laser-etched graphics. This unitary construction makes the part as stiff and durable as possible, essentially providing a rock solid platform for your cockpit. We also think it looks slicker too.

So, how can you get this upgraded Dragonfly? Easy. EVERY Alpha One bar shipped since December 1st of last year is already shipping with this upgraded version as original equipment. If you've ordered since then, you're already getting the new version! The older carbon version is now discontinued.

UPDATE: If you own an older Alpha One with the original carbon Dragonfly and you would like to upgrade to this newer version, we are woking on making them available as a separate upgrade purchase. Just bookmark this link - www.tririg.com/Dragonflies - and as soon as they are in stock, that store listing will be updated and they will be available. Or, if you don't own Alpha One yet, get yours now in the the TriRig Store, and it will come already stocked with this updated Dragonfly!