Here's my final review of this frameset after about one year of using it. I spread my riding across four different bikes, so I've done only somewhere north of 5.000 km on it. Still, that's plenty of riding to give a qualified verdict:
The geometry & fit:
It took me a long time to get comfortable on this bike and start to love it. Probably the longest ever. Part of that is down to the geo, I believe. In my particular case the seat tube angle and saddle position (plus finding a saddle I'm comfy with for this bike. The seat tube is steep - i mean really steep. That in combination with the chunky seatpost makes for a harsh ride - with 30mm tires, however, it's actually not that bad. But I need setback because I'm a big dude at 190cm with long limbs. Particularly my legs are long. And if you need setback, be aware that you'll quickly run out of room on this bike. I got my saddle all the way back and the clamp is also all the way back. And the saddle is still further forward than I got it on my VB-R218/Chinarello.
The geometry is not actually as aggressive as the looks might suggest - I found the bars to be too high for my liking even with a slammed cockpit. I needed to use the biggest frame size to get the desired reach and also, because I like the look of a slammed stem more than a tower of spacers. I do also think it makes for a stiffer interface all around to have the stem sitting more or less on top of the upper bearing and the expander reaching into the head tube. BUT the -10 stem wasn't low enough. So I ended up getting the Tan Tan bars and now I'm finally at the point where the fit is where I want it to be.
Long term durability
This bike has given me ZERO issues. I had a few hickups during the build which are more or less expected on super budget frames like this, but surprisingly little happened since then - no creaks, seatpost never slipped, BB is fine. The Thru Axles started creaking after hours of riding in heavy rain, but that's normal. I cleaned and greased them and all good.
The disc brakes were hard to get rub free initially but it worked. The front disc squeals no matter which pads I use - it might be the rotor or I might yet have to get it faced by a professional bike shop. But it's not super bad. Only real issue: The headset bearings are junk and you should probably not even bother using them. Because of the opening on the upper headset bearing's top cap, water gets in there when you wash the bike. The lower headset bearing had rust on it. It's still smooth but I reckon it's only a matter of time. And in fact on my Velobuild frame the lower headset bearing needed to be replaced in less than 6 months after riding in the rain. I think most of the headset bearings supplied with these budget frames are junk and at least the lower ones which are sujected to a lot more dirt, grime and water, should probably be best avoided.
The riding experience
So first of all, tire clearance is more than enough. My tires measure 31mm (Vittoria Corsa 28c on 25mm internal rims). Everything up to (actual measured) 34mm should be fine. The drive side chainstay will be the limiting factor.
I'm lacking comparison with other disc road bikes since this is the first disc bike I built (other than my gravel rig), but I'd say this probably rides as expected for a pure aero bike. It's devastatingly fast in a straight line - in fact the fastest bike I own. I score lots of PBs on descents which I put down to the aero attributes but also down to the brakes. I do brake harder and later with this bike, because I have the confidence to do so.
Steering is neutral, which is good for high speeds in a straight line while being tucked. Weight distribution is more front biased, which when climbing out of the saddle leads to the rear wheel skipping quicker than I'm used to. The BB is VERY stiff, which is good.
What struck me most is that because of the neutral handling, the bike doesn't actually feel as fast as it is. If you'd ask me to estimate my speed on this bike compared to my VB-R218, I'd reckon the 218 to be quicker. And yet it isn't - even if it's pretty close. The wheelbase is longer, fork trail slightly bigger and so it feels more muted. Therefore, it actually feels less exciting to ride at times. But once you appreciate the speed and the (for me) very comfy position, it's very enjoyable.
Conclusion
Looks are obviously a personal thing but I really like the color and the horizontal top tube combined with a -17 stem. It kind of looks classic, while the frame attributes are decidedly modern and aero.
IMO, this is not an allround bike. I have done very long rides on this bike (+220km / +130miles) and it's alright. I use it for everything, including gran fondos but I also race on it so I want to feel at home on it even on very long rides. But I'd argue that if you ride purely for enjoyment and if your main focus are epic and long days out with your mates and if you like comfort across all kinds of roads, there's probably more versatile options out there.
The one area where it definitely feels less inspiring is on very steep climbs. It's just not as nimble when dancing on the pedals. It's somewhere between my 218, which for some reason just really shines in those situations and my gravel bike, which feels a lot more sluggish, probably also because of the squishy big tires giving way when standing.
But it absolutely shines on descents. I mean it picks up speed super quick and it rails around bends, it behaves super predictive and I kind of feel I'd need a bigger gear than 52/11. I just spin out way quicker than I used to.
Buy this if you want to go fast and hard, if you race and if you enjoy a pretty uncompromising bike.
The biggest CON about this frameset might be the weight (if you care about that sort of thing). The frame is somewhere between 1100-1200g. The bike as pictured is just a touch below 8kg, including bottle cages, Garmin and front light mount and pedals. I think, that's already as light as it gets. I'm running a fairly light carbon crank, a monobloc steel cassette, a Super Record Hollow Pin chain, pretty light Xpedo pedals (I think around 270g) and 36g Ridenow TPU tubes. You could probably run an even lighter saddle, lighter tires and rotors. The wheels weigh 1450g so there's lighter options there as well. But this is never going to be a weight weenie bike. So while this is a great descender, it'd probably not be my first choice if I was living in the mountains. For the mostly flat terrain that I (have to) ride most of the time, it's perfect however.
Value for money
My main objective with this was to build the most price conscious equivalent of a modern aero bike that I could get. That included used parts bought on the German equivalent of Craigslist, for example the cranks and chainrings, the saddle, the brake calipers (which I used mainly cuz I don't like the look of the LTWOOs) and even the tires. It's a 580 USD frameset (incl shipping), sub 500 wheels, sub 500 mini-groupset, 250 for the powermeter + cranks, cassette, chain, rotors and finishing kit. Well, and I invested in another handlebar. The bike cost me somewhere between 2.000 and 2.500, which I think is remarkable value for money. The resale value is zero, that's just the way it is with direct 2 consumer china parts.
But I'm not afraid to race this bike and I thoroughly enjoy it.
