Interesting Aliexpress finds! - good deals, interesting stuff, new products etc!

[jonathanf2]

Any suggestions for good carbon stems? Pref light weight

Yeah don't get one. That's one area carbon doesn't have an advantage. An UNO ultralight alloy stem is the way to go. Get a set of titanium bolts to cut an additional 10 or so grams.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806179921956.html

[coffeebreak]

If you have a 27.2mm seatpost you can "adapt" it.
Drill two holes, by rotating the plate 90º as a guide.
And you need a 8mm(usable length) screw.

It's an oddly shaped proprietary post. That's why I got that particular under the saddle mount because nothing else fits on it. Anyway I found a GoPro adapter for that mount which has correct orientation for Varia and installed on it.

On an unrelated note, does anyone know if these third party derailleur cages will convert my short cage Ultegra RD to long cage RD? Made by LTwoo it looks better than some other no name cages.

https://a.aliexpress.com/_mNv4xBk

[Mic553]

On an unrelated note, does anyone know if these third party derailleur cages will convert my short cage Ultegra RD to long cage RD? Made by LTwoo it looks better than some other no name cages.

https://a.aliexpress.com/_mNv4xBk

I think it should work to convert the RD. But I wasn't happy with the LTwoo cage. The bearings are looking nice and spinning fine, but they had no sealing whatsoever. In fact the bushings leave a 1mm gap where everything can run into the bearings. I used the CS copy instead.

[Jet the Panda]

Yeah don't get. That's one area carbon doesn't have an advantage. An UNO ultralight alloy stem is the way to go. Get a set of titanium bolts to cut an additional 10 or so grams.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806179921956.html

My Uno stem just arrived today installed and will be testing it on the ride to work in the morning.

What about computer / light mounts? Do you guys have a preferred one of these?

[jonathanf2]

My Uno stem just arrived today installed and will be testing it on the ride to work in the morning.

What about computer / light mounts? Do you guys have a preferred one of these?

If you have a separate stem, I prefer stem computer mounts over the bar attached computer mount. This OGEVKIN CF stem computer mount is good...if it's not a lemon. I bought 3 of them. 2 work fine, but 1 had a bad garmin mount attachment which cracked. It's hit or miss.

OGEVIN mount:
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806212659969.html

I found this ZTTO stem mount to be solid with no issues. Only minor con is that weighs about 10-12g more than the OGEVIN CF mount, but is dirt cheap.

ZTTO mount:
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805825325597.html

[hahel]

If you have a separate stem, I prefer stem computer mounts over the bar attached computer mount. This OGEVKIN CF stem computer mount is good...if it's not a lemon. I bought 3 of them. 2 work fine, but 1 had a bad garmin mount attachment which cracked. It's hit or miss.

OGEVIN mount:
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806212659969.html

A word of warning on those mounts, you need to be careful when assembling it and put washers and spacers in the right order. A friend of mine made a misstake with that type of mount and had a hair-rasing experience when the handlebar started rotating in the stem on a fast, twisty and bumpy decent.

[coffeebreak]

What about computer / light mounts? Do you guys have a preferred one of these?

My favorite mount is by Blackbird and I have it on on all bikes except one.

https://a.aliexpress.com/_mLWzv8e

[sbellote]

If you have a separate stem, I prefer stem computer mounts over the bar attached computer mount. This OGEVKIN CF stem computer mount is good...if it's not a lemon. I bought 3 of them. 2 work fine, but 1 had a bad garmin mount attachment which cracked. It's hit or miss.
(...)
I found this ZTTO stem mount to be solid with no issues. Only minor con is that weighs about 10-12g more than the OGEVIN CF mount, but is dirt cheap.

I'd advise against the ztto one, had 2 of these and issues with both, ended up on the trash. The spacers seemed to be a bit soft, so after mounting it up to the spec torque and all, after some rides it started to loosen

I bought the one from Og-Evkin and never had this kind of issue, last time I tightened was probably a year ago and it's still all well, total of 3yrs of use
a bit more expensive (not that much actually) and well worth the extra cost...

[jonathanf2]

Where are you guys mounting the washers? I mount the washers in front of the mount behind the screw head. I also bought have set of stainless steel washers for applications like this as opposed to using the supplied washers. Prolonged water exposure eventually leads to rust, if not checked. I periodically change them out.

[coffeebreak]

I think it should work to convert the RD. But I wasn't happy with the LTwoo cage. The bearings are looking nice and spinning fine, but they had no sealing whatsoever. In fact the bushings leave a 1mm gap where everything can run into the bearings. I used the CS copy instead.

Which CS copy would you link it please? I bought a no-name Amazon cage and it was pretty bad. Flexy, narrow wheels, and just poorly made.

[jonathanf2]

Which CS copy would you link it please? I bought a no-name Amazon cage and it was pretty bad. Flexy, narrow wheels, and just poorly made.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806117049941.html

I'm pretty sure this is the same vendor as the Sensah Factory Choice store under a different name. I can confirm this is a slightly improved version versus the ones that were selling on Amazon. Though I never thought cage stiffness was an issue on the Amazon version. This one shifts very well on my Ultegra R8000 RD. They were like $15-16 USD a few weeks ago. The only reason I use these is for spring tension adjustability since this is the only derailleur cage that allows 4 levels of adjustment. I wish Shimano would allow higher tension on stock RD cages. Seriously, you could just save weight and do away with the clutched derailleur.

[Serge_K]

I've installed 4 cockpits from Aliexpress "Airwolf official store" in 36cm wide, 2 different stem lengths (80&100). I've ridden myself c.1000km on one, including sprints (note: I suck at sprints, can't do more than 1000W). The model is the HB009, which is (allegedly), FULL T1100. I weighed them at 333-350g. I also got the carbon garmin mounts from them (you need to use loctite on the threads btw, otherwise road vibrations will send it flying).
They're super stiff, they were reasonably simple to route (only routed 1 brake hose, though, running er9 as a group), very pleased.
Importantly, the stem cap is FLAT, which means you can play with stem height WITHOUT having to cut the steerer (something you can't do with the velobuild bars for eg).
I paid 75 usd a piece (w/o shipping) including the garmin mounts.
Very pleased, and happy to recommend at this point.

[dukey]

 

I've installed 4 cockpits from Aliexpress "Airwolf official store" in 36cm wide, 2 different stem lengths (80&100). I've ridden myself c.1000km on one, including sprints (note: I suck at sprints, can't do more than 1000W). The model is the HB009, which is (allegedly), FULL T1100. I weighed them at 333-350g. I also got the carbon garmin mounts from them (you need to use loctite on the threads btw, otherwise road vibrations will send it flying).
They're super stiff, they were reasonably simple to route (only routed 1 brake hose, though, running er9 as a group), very pleased.
Importantly, the stem cap is FLAT, which means you can play with stem height WITHOUT having to cut the steerer (something you can't do with the velobuild bars for eg).
I paid 75 usd a piece (w/o shipping) including the garmin mounts.
Very pleased, and happy to recommend at this point.

I am looking for a 380mm handlebar to go with my vb-r-099 but not sure if it will fit, specifically the first piece that slide onto the steerer that goes between the frame and handlebar.

[Wet Noodle]

Don't know if it's already been mentioned: Neck gaiters (the buff/had kind)! Last time I bought genuine buffs, they were on sale in a Spanish online shop for around 7...8 Euros, I think, which seemed very cheap back then and much more so today. Just for context ...

On ali, there is a 3 pcs set for 2 bucks in the 3-for-6 section (5 different options, 3 different prints each).

Other than that, they go for below 2 bucks up to 3ish when bought separately, still cheap. I have one of those 3 pcs sets and they feel pretty much like my genuine buffs. Can't say anything about longevity, but for now, I like them; ordered a bunch more with different prints from the coins discount section, too, for effectively around 1 buck a piece.

[jonathanf2]

Kactus lightweight disc rotors selling for under $30 USD a pair. I ordered a pair of 6 bolt rotors for my recent gravel CF wheelset:

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806205553049.html