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Messages - daforce84

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1
I mentioned in one of David Author's (Just Ride Bikes) videos on the Ventum NS1 that the frame is basically an open mold. Ventum's marketing team replied to my comment with the following:

"The Ventum NS1 is not an open-mold, we have a team of engineers that are dedicated to designing our bikes. We'd be happy to answer any other questions you may have about the brand!"

I don't fully believe them. These micro brands are more marketing than they are engineering and frame development because having your own production is expensive.  I say this to say is the reason they can sell $1100 frames on "clearance" because those frames are probably not much better than a VeloBuild or Dengfu. Cheap Chinese stuff. You don't see Specialized or Trek selling their flagship frames for $1100 on sale.

??? ::) That seems to be a bold claim based on some loose logic there... Commenting only on your claim about the 2023 model, and not the one that OP posted about, would you like to share which open mold frame the 2023 model is using, and where to buy it? I'm sure folks in this forum would love an aero frame with clearance for 35c tires and and T47 BB (I'm one of those people). UDH is a nice to have as well. Otherwise, it sounds like a custom mold frame for them... and it sounds like a decent competitor for the Soloist.

Spesh and Trek can keep their prices high cuz they know ppl will buy them given their brand power, because of their marketing... and they also create scarcity in terms of stock. 

For market predictions they screwed up on, have you looked at Stumpjumper carbon frameset prices this entire year? You can get one for $1750. Not far off from the final price of a painted and shipped Carbonda FM1001 + rear shock you need to get on your own... the S-Works frames are only a little bit more.

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Hmm good observation. The paint is throwing me off.

3
It looks like the fork lacks an integrated like this: https://handsonbike.blogspot.com/2020/02/cervelo-aspero-fork.html

the photo above appears to show the fork just having a straight tube.

4
Hi folks,

my frame arrived some weeks ago - assembling was a little bit tricky, for example the bottom bracket-area was very very tight, so I really had to cool the bearing down, but finally it went in. The biggest problem is the front end - I don't know if this is because of the painting or the frame hasn't the right measurements: First the Headset-Cover above the steering tube was to tight, so there needed to be d-shape microspacer, which Airwolf sent me really fast.

But the same problem occurs on the other side below the steering tube - when tightening the headset you can't steer. Unfortunally I got I nice scratch on top of the fork, but that's ok. The bigger problem is a) there a no bigger bearings in this size available here in Germany (49,5mm outerside, 38,5mm inner and 6mm height) and microspacer aren't available in 1 1/2" --> because of the shape of the bearing/fork/steering tube I can't imagine how a microspacer at this point should work. So for now I am waiting 2 weeks for a solution from Airwolf - at the moment I am really disappointed and think everything is trash.

Problems in the beginning of the project: I ordered the stock pink frame - Airwolf sent two times painted pictures of a reddish one - finally they got it and the color is amazing. When everything arrived I recognized that the seatpost was matte and the stem/handlebar were glossy - nowhere is mentioned that this is the way it is send when you order a glossy frame. After all I bought a new stem in matte and a handlebar from another brand with more flare.

So, this is my 4th chinese frame and till now it's the badest - from the beginning just problems, if the huge one with the down bearing of the headset cannot be solved I think I need a new frame, it's really a shame.

Anyone has an idea of solving this? As written a microspacer would be great, but I don't think it can work at this place because of the shape of the bearing.

Do you have any photos of the headset parts that it came with, and how you currently have it setup as? do they align with what's shown in this figure? I'm also curious about the paint, any photos would be appreciated!

5
Sorry but as the bike is fully built I won't be able to help with that.

I did post a photo down the seat tube on this post http://chinertown.com/index.php/topic,4109.msg45930.html#msg45930. It was very clean.

Other than that, I can only comment that I didn't notice any anomalies when building the bike up. The BB went together fine, same with fork and headtube.

Someone else may be able to provide photos when they receive a frame.

Have you gotten any rides in yet? How does it handle? is the ride stiff or comfortable? how are the handlebars (comfy or stiff?)

Also, does the downtube have the holes to attach a downtube protector?

6
Build complete! 8.59kg as pictured.

In regards to saddle, a SMP Dynamic was the only spare saddle I have at the moment and I have the carbon railed version on another bike. Angle looks a bit off in photos so need to adjust it, but they work well for me.

Changes still to be made
- PD-M520 SPD pedals (currently have PD-EH500 installed)
- 11-36t 12 speed rear cassette (currently have 11-30t installed)

Thank you for sharing your build! Have you been able to get any rides on it yet? How does it ride?

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I'm curious, what's the German brand?

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It's 100% the Workswell frame, which is sold in the UK as the Pearson On and On. There are a few reviews of it online and on YouTube.

Where did you get that photo? Is it from a build thread somewhere?

9
Don't fall for the silly marketing associated with cycling tool brands, and terms like "shop quality"

There are companies, like Bondhus, that supply aerospace and automotive factories (I've seen them there). A set of their t-handle hexes start around $50 USD. If it's good enough for the people that put together the planes your fly on, they'll be more than fine for your open mold bike, or any high end bike.

Just look for a set that is comfortable, is long enough to reach the things you need (like water bottle cage bolts), has a lifetime warranty, and preferably get them from a local store where you can deal with any warranty issues that come up (should be rare in my experience). I would spend around $30-60 USD for a set, and use the savings elsewhere.

10
Any t-handle ball head hex wrench set should be fine for bikes IMO. I prefer ones with ergonomic handles. I have a set of old Craftsman hexes, and a newer set from Klein. I really like the Klein set. If you're in the US, the in-store brands at Home Depot and Lowes should be fine too. If you deal with a lot of seized bolts for whatever reason, just get a longer L-shaped key in the common size(s) for the extra leverage.

https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/t-handle-ball-end-hex-keys-metric/hex-kit-set-metric-ball-end-t-handle-6-inch-stand-8-piece

11
Road Bike Frames, Wheels & Components / Re: Speeder cycling
« on: September 26, 2022, 12:12:27 AM »
Thanks. Yea ok. Maybe I be a Guinea pig and order the 49D then. A lot of people discussing them but can’t see whether many have actually ordered one. Very interested to see how it stacks up against winspace frames

There have been a few threads for Speeder, and there have been a few folks that've ordered from them, including me. Just email them and arrange an order... Like my post in the other thread mentioned, don't expect much in terms of customizations, unless you're willing to pay for it. And like the post above mentioned, there will probably be some sort of lead time. If those terms don't sit well with you, there's always Winspace.

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Road Bike Frames, Wheels & Components / Re: Speeder SC-R48
« on: September 17, 2022, 12:22:58 PM »
I have come to the conclusion that there are 2 possibilities: 
the first one, Winspace and Speeder are the same factory, the second, Speeder is the supplier of Winspace, in both cases the direct sales by Speeder are helpful to sell the frame that don't have passed the QC required by the main customers.

I can't say I agree with your conclusion. Speeder has multiple commercial clients that they sell their open mold frames to (Winspace, Adris, and Parapera being some of the documented ones).

And they happen to sell their frames direct-to-consumer as well. I have one, and it's great. What you do not get to do as a B2C customer with them, is any sort of customization (no special or custom paint, no decals, etc). You also do not get the typical "after sales support" that you would with most major brands, where you can go into your local bike store to deal with any issues. Speeder does have a 2-year warranty (look at their website), so can coordinate with them directly, but your mileage may vary.

If you have concerns with the dealing with Speeder, then you can always just buy from Winspace, Adris, or Parapera for the peace of mind.

13
Hmm, let me know how that goes. I guess it's just about bothering them until they get it right?

How much is he charging for decals?

It was $30 USD for decals on the top tube, head tube, and a seat stay. Chris quoted a 3-week lead time to get the decals made, but it actually took ~5-weeks.

To fix it, he wanted me to pay $10 USD and wait another 2-weeks to reprint the decals...

My goal is to have them just sand the decals off, and paint the frame correctly... and see if they'll refund me the cost of the decals.

14
I have an order on a GF001 with Velobuild right now, with a two color paint scheme and decals. I made a pdf with the details on where the paint color transitions should be, and the decal locations, sizes, and orientation.

Chris sent me photos the other day, and they got nearly all of it wrong... The decals were were rotated 90-deg, and they didn't seem to get the right colors in the right place... I'm waiting to hear back on their ability to fix the mistakes, but I'm not impressed so far... at all.

Part of me is surprised because based on their website photos, they should be able to do this simple design... but who knows what happened that day. I probably *would* trust their ability to paint a 1-color paint scheme...

15
Thanks!

It's Mini Jungle Green, Paint Code is C15. We added some gold pigments, but they're only visible in direct sunlight.

This pictures matches the paint real good.

The stickers are cut from vinyl.

If you like that shade of green, VW L94E Oak Green or Renault DNP Vert Olivette might be something for you.

I just used the old stick to the crank bolt trick and removed it while editing the pictures.

Thanks for sharing this info!

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