Velobuild's price vs other options

[Ultralemon]

I've been looking through many threads to hopefully do a build of my own, and noticed that Velobuild seems to have a much cheaper price compared to manufacturers, I've mainly seen this price difference when comparing workswell to them, most people claiming their frame was ~700 usd quoted, whereas Velobuild is 480 for what seems to be the same frame.

Is there any difference in final product buying from velobuild versus a manufacturer?

[FlyingPower]

I wonder this too. Everybody says Dengfu Hongfu bla bla is much better and much cheaper and Velobuild and they also say that Velobuild is trash.

So I have got a suggestion from Dengfu for a bike 550+160 shipping.
From Velobuild you get a bike with the same features for 450+83.

?!?!

[Zoc]

i ordered  the VB-R-168 two weeks ago
very good communication right now,
keep you posted

[Snacks]

i never read anywhere that velobuild is trash 

although you're right you do hear more about dengfu/hongfu. in anycase, i have two from velobuild. purchased r 099 late last year and purchased their gravel frame gr01 last month( build post coming soon  ). both have been amazing to ride on

granted ive put a only a couple hundred miles on the gr01 so far but i take it down steep MTB trails, its been really fun and has held up well carrying me, im 104kg . put a lot more on the r099 , id have to double check but maybe close to 1k but in any case its been great. super fast frame and feels plenty stiff when i mess around on sprints with my buddies.

you'll read about it everywhere and its not an exaggeration, chris and his customer service has been amazing. plus i get my frames super fast from them. china to california. i think it was about 3 weeks for the road frame and 1 week for the gravel frame. i  was actually very surprised when the gravel frame came in. exactly 7 days after i paid, i went to check to see if chris had emailed me a tracking number and it was literally on my doorstep 20min later. i thought it was my super late tan tan frame but nope, was the second velobuild frame.

i really dont like advertising for companies nor reviewing anything but when you have had such extreme experiences with these companies( from my terrible time with tan tan to an amazing purchase experience with velobuild), i feel it necessary to at least provide my thoughts.  i would say save the money ,go with velobuild and ride with some peace of mind knowing its just as good as the other guys.

[1Sigma]

I am also looking at Velobuild. Specifically the R-168
The price is right, and has the geometry I am looking for.

I've compared adding ICAN, Tantan, Dengfu, and Miracle.
Comparable frame are all more expensive, shipped to Canada.

Hongfu, Trifox, and Twitter are excluded as they don't have a fully integrated model and/or have older designs.

There is cheaper than Velobuild.  However, anything cheaper I've seen tends to be an unknown factor, and I start to get uncomfortable

[Nickk2000]

I own two dengfus. I think velobuild you might see more issues, ive heard a lot of people struggle with internal routing, handlebar breaking, and a few other issues that i cant name off the top of my head.

My two dengfus thenonly issue is the r12’s braze on mount is slightly angled so the fd sits 4mm above the big ring when it should be 1-2. No issues besides normal creaking issues which is just pressfit.

Though looking back i think doing velobuild would have been a better buy personally. I love the 177.

Whether or not my anecdotal evidence justifys $250, thats your call. The old me thought that id have much less issues buying from them compared to velobuild. This is coming from a guy who was considered yoeleo, ican, and winspace. Id rather ride my bike than have it sit in my garage.

[1Sigma]

Here is my experience:

Chris is very responsive, and VB will accept custom paint schemes and decals for a price.
However, with VB it is best to keep the order as simple as possible, as their fulfillment system leaves much to be desired. 

They are prone to making mistakes on orders, even on straight forward items such as frame and handlebar size. 
While responsive, getting them to correct an order after shipping is near impossible.
They may make mistakes or switch parts and not tell you until the item has shipped.  This occured to me with the handlebar (model switched) and seatpost (incorrectly painted).
They will give you the run around, and eventually throw you a bone, but unless the mistake is severe, do not expect good post sales service.

They will quote 21 days, but expect up to 2 months.  Shipping by EMS took about 2 weeks.  I didn't pay duties

The frame I received was quite good.
Geo was correct, and weights were within specified, even with paint, axles, and hangers
A couple superficial scratches.  The carbon was mostly nice and clean internally.   The steerer was smooth, but deep in the fork were a lot of loose fibers. However, I understand this also is the case with some name brands.
The handlebar holes that interface with the spacers was slightly misaligned as were the mounting holes for the rear brake caliper.
The handlebar cavities were the sloppiest, with cables constantly catching on the carbon while routing.

The cable only caught in one place on the chainstay.
The BB hole was round and very clean. Super easy installing the BB

The front fork could use a cable port, as the exit hole for the brake cable is very shallow.  This results in some thin carbon around the hole.   While the brake cable easily went through, it did chip off carbon around the hole in the process.

No torque specs are given other than the thru axles.

In short, they make decent frames for the price.  They are disorganized and prone to making mistakes.
If you are patient, and they deliver as ordered, you'll likely be satisfied.
If you need post-sales help, god help you. 

[GilardiRT]

have you been able to track dpd shipping from velobuild? i ordered my 168 a week ago, dpd is still giving that info when i track the parcel "
DPD data centre, Order information has been transmitted to DPD."

[1Sigma]

have you been able to track dpd shipping from velobuild? i ordered my 168 a week ago, dpd is still giving that info when i track the parcel "
DPD data centre, Order information has been transmitted to DPD."

Try checking the tracking number on 17track.net

[Irideslowly]

I received a better price with Longteng by a few dollars for the LTK-268. Its the same bike as the velobuild 099

[Greenred]

I received a better price with Longteng by a few dollars for the LTK-268. Its the same bike as the velobuild 099

Do they offer the same coloring options as velo build? Currently also considering it.

[Irideslowly]

Similar color options.

The quote was about 50$ cheaper.

IIRC, they don't offer as many chameleon colors. That's it.

[Zoc]

Riding the VB-R-168 plus carbonwheels from velobuild now for half a year,
very satisfied,
the only thing i dont't like is the aero seatpost, as you don't get any replacement or variations like 0 offset
maybe VB-R-177 is a better choice

i didn't had any issues like cable routing or headset/sparcers as metioned by other users

full recomondation from my side

[hazzer19]

Riding the VB-R-168 plus carbonwheels from velobuild now for half a year,
very satisfied,
the only thing i dont't like is the aero seatpost, as you don't get any replacement or variations like 0 offset
maybe VB-R-177 is a better choice

i didn't had any issues like cable routing or headset/sparcers as metioned by other users

full recomondation from my side

Similar experience on my end. I've done just over 2,600km on my VB-R-168 build and very happy so far.