This is the like to the store. Unfortunately I think I am going to have to get another as I am finding it a bit big. I am 6' tall and bought the large but I am a bit too stretched out for my liking. I did a bit more painting to mine after I got it as well. It is a great riding frame with very few issues in the build up.


https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005599109789.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.40.2b0f1802lbPhcy

It pretty much looks like that. Anyhow, I chased Chris again and was told they'll be shipping my order on Saturday (initially promised mid-week, but ok..).

Fingers crossed!

Cinelli Cork Ribbon is the gold standard IMO if you want a firm, “dry” (instead of rubbery/tacky) but grippy feel.

I’m experimenting with Wolf Tooth Supple right now on my new CFR707, which is 5mm thick and 40mm wide — I have big hands and usually run 33mm grips on my MTBs — but tricky to install, has a very “moist” feel, attracts every conceivable kind of dirt or debris and refuses to let it go.

I wish Cinelli Cork or something with a similar texture came in a thicker version, but normal width. I’ve had trouble finding any other tapes thicker than 2.5mm, and will probably just swap out to the Cinelli until I find something else that seems worth trying.

The SPEEDAO 1-piece cassette is a design that's been sold under a lot of different brands including S-ROAD and ZTTO. It's a solid unit, I've bought 3 of this specific kind of cassette in HG guise, used them for road, CX, and commuting. It's a solid-performing ultralight cassette for the price. I'll echo the sentiment that they aren't as refined, but I haven't managed to put noticeable wear into any of my units so far.

Contrary to nicklej, I actually prefer the HG design. In the XD/XDR design, the cassette is clamped to the splines (near the hub) by the threads, and all static forces are cantilevered off these splines. (you could argue that some force transmits through the sleeve, but since this is a sliding component, it will only transmit force if the cassette flexes into it--potentially causing wear and creaking)

There's also the issue that the soft aluminum threads on these XD/XDR bodies are super-fine and susceptible to cross-threading. OEM SRAM MTB cassettes are manufactured with super tight sleeves that are almost impossible to turn without using a lot of force, making it very hard to feel the engagement of the threads. I've watched a couple bodies get damaged in this way. The GOLDIX XDR cassette that I've used doesn't have this tight-sleeve problem, interestingly. 

The other issue is that since XD/XDR is a system of moving parts, arguably the manufacturing tolerances of the system need to be stricter in order for the system to work properly. The HG cassette is much simpler to manufacture in comparison. When you're buying cut-rate equipment on AliEx, it's generally safer to buy the design that has fewer moving parts and lower demands on precision.

Lastly, HG splines do not really wear with these one piece cassettes. The main reason HG splines wear is that when you use cassettes with loose cogs (and fail to tighten them properly, which everyone does), the force applied to the spline is only distributed along the width of a single cog. One piece cassettes have solid engagement splines spanning the the width of ~2 cogs on each side. This means all forces are transmitted to the freehub splines over a much wider area compared to single cogs. I've been using one-piece cassettes for around 8 years now (SRAM Red before the SROAD cassettes), all freehubs I've put these one-piece designs on look virtually brand-new.

If you don't have a pressing need for a 10T cog (i.e. 1X bike with large demands for range) I can't really recommend pushing for XD/XDR, but I also won't recommend against it.