Chinese Carbon Road Bikes > Cyclocross Frames, Wheels & Components
Carbonda Gravel CFR505 build
carbonazza:
Everything but the chainring and brake discs are there.
I got even two Haribo bears bags from r2-bike.com
Build time !! :D
Hopefully nothing is missing, everything is compatible, and my spoke lengths are correct( these are my first straight pull wheels ??? )
bxcc:
I think this frame just moved to the top of my list. Well, when I get around to building a CX bike that is.
Any chance of running an internally routed dropper on it? I know that sounds odd but it would be nice to lower it a bit while on rougher stuff without getting off of the bike.
carbonazza:
--- Quote from: bxcc on January 08, 2018, 08:09:32 PM ---... Any chance of running an internally routed dropper on it?
--- End quote ---
If you stick to BSA ;) you are probably out of luck, as the shells are usually closed.
You could still route it from the front derailleur exit hole if you go 1x or etap, for a semi internal routing.
But if you go for the BB86, there are holes in the BB space where you could route a cable from the front derailleur( 1x ), or both derailleurs entry(etap), fiddling over the BB to the seatpost.
However it is a 27.2mm, so not many options.
bxcc:
--- Quote from: carbonazza on January 09, 2018, 07:18:43 AM ---
If you stick to BSA ;) you are probably out of luck, as the shells are usually closed.
--- End quote ---
Haha, well played.
I can live with BB86 or BB92 shells as the GXP cranks still work ;D. My daughters CS-406 frame I just got from Peter has the BB92 shell and that was open like you mentioned. I tried the OTSO Warakin and loved that bike. The durability of the stainless steel frame has some definite benefits but being lightweight isn't one of them. So I've been searching for a generic carbon frame with similar geometry and this one is pretty darn close. Some things are a little off but one calls for a 400mm axle to crown fork and the other calls for 385mm. That should make up for the HA difference. I guess I'm just looking for more of a road capable drop bar mountain bike than a trail capable road bike. If that makes sense.
carbonazza:
It is built !
From a quick tour around the block, the first impressions are great.
Feels light, stiff, agile to turn and I love its ultra-flashy look compared to my other black bikes ;D
Some doubts or issue I had during the build:
* Straight pull hubs & spokes:
I thought the hubs were two cross, while they were 3 cross.
The ERD was 593mm instead of the 590 announced, that would have made a difference too.
So I had to return and reorder a set of spokes.
They were the easiest wheels I ever built.
And the lightest at 1218g(Ultralight 29er rims from Peter, CX-Ray spokes, SAPIM alloy nipples, and Novatec hubs D411CB/D412CB.
The rear hub freewheel is dead silent ! And without a front derailleur, this is a very silent bike. Will need a bell !
* Tires:
One of the most complex choice to me was about the tires for a gravel.
There doesn't seem to be a best solution.
Either you want to ride more on hard or soft terrain, and need appropriate tires.
So in the end I took them light and mixed. The Maxxis Rambler 40mm.
They were surprisingly easy to setup tubeless on the internal 19.6mm rims.
Mount. Inflate with the compressor. Pop/Pop. Done.
* The axles:
I ordered a pair of Hardlite axles on ebay.As another Carbonda owner did( although poorly detailed ).
They looked good but in fact were not compatible.
The front 15x100 was an MTB one. Road ones are shorter, 125mm long axle.
So I took a ROCK SHOX Maxle Stealth 15x100 with 1.5mm pitch.
The rear drive dropout is not threaded, but need a nut, like the DT Swiss E-thru axle.
I have a temp solution for now, but will find a M12x1.5mm nut somewhere to put on the Hardlite rear.
* SRAM Red Etap:
Using etap without front derailleur, is not a problem.
11x36 cassette(CX1 Cassette PG-1170) with the wifli version of the rear derailleur is not an issue either. The capacity of the derailleur is 28T.
The conversion of my two ring crank(with hidden bolt) to a single CX1 chainring went without issue.
The Titanium bolts are from Ali. And used the hidden screw that came with the ring. The 2mm washers were useless.
I rotate with 3 chains, the SRAM PC-1170
* Brakes:
I didn't have the bleeding edge tool to bleed the brakes(damn SRAM to add yet another nozzle).
So, I was extra careful when cutting the brake hose and route them through the frame.
And not add air to the system.
Setting the lever to have the nut vertical and adding some DOT liquid in it before remounting everything.
It worked.
The internal routing was very easy. A white tube was there in the frame to guide the rear hose. And there are holes in the fork for the front.
Unfortunately I cut the front hose a tad to short( my first road bike bar... ), it is quite ok but sad.
I was scared by taping the bar too, but it went well. I hesitated a long time between black and the yellow, but returned the black.
And I didn't receive the brake disc from Ali yet, so I've temporarily put some used ones I had.
* Design blues:
Just for the aesthetics. When I see now all these useless black holes and screw, I could have ordered the frame without them. I saw later it was possible.
Carbonda provide a set a various plugs/end caps but they didn't think as minimalistic as this build. No plug at the rear derailleur exit cable. No second rubber plug for the right shifter hose entry.
Not sure I will ever use mudguards. And I replaced all screws with vinyl ones for now.
For the ones who care about this: it weights just over 7.4kg as it is on the pictures, and feels very light when holding it and riding it :D
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