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Re: Interesting Aliexpress finds! - good deals, interesting stuff, new products etc!
i just joined the community and this is my first post. i've found this forum helpful in finding gravel bike parts on Aliexpress, and wanted to share my thoughts on a couple of items I've bought recently. Paul Components "Boxcar" stem - Purchased from "Shop1102602987" but can't find them now. URL: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805641142650.html Review: 0/10. Junk. Do not buy. Details: I bought both the 90mm / 0 deg and 90mm 15 deg versions. When installing the 0 degree version, using a torque wrench set to Paul Comp's recommended setting, the clamp bolts all stripped out suddenly. I reported this to Aliexpress and they refunded my money in full. I haven't tried to install the 15 deg version and won't be; I think the aluminum used for this stem is poor quality, and I don't want to take the risk that the clamp could fail suddenly while riding. Redshift "Shockstop" stem URL: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3256805944907424.html Review: 4/10. Arrived damaged. Details: The stem arrived with obvious damage/deformation to the pivot bolt consistent with someone ham-fisting an allen key tool. I complained to Aliexpress and they refunded half of the purchase price. It came with the elastomer inserts (with two installed). I reached out to Redshift for a replacement pivot bolt and they explained that they can't replace this bolt as it should never be removed from the stem or adjusted, and damage to it will wreck the stem. As a result, I'm not sure if I will try it on my bike or not. Ingrid RD-1 Derailleur - Bought from the F1Z BIKE SHOP store; it's saved on my mobile app but can't be found on their website. URL:  Review: 8/10 good stuff. Would recommend. Details: I bought two of these, one in long cage and one in short. I mounted the long cage on my gravel bike, with an 11-42 cassette and Sensah SRX shifting. It worked great right out of the box. Shifts accurately and cleanly across the cassette with no issues. I'm really happy with it and have been putting in miles on it. Hopefully it continues to function well into the future. Along with it, I also bought extra cages, pulleys, and different shifting system adapters. Just in case something breaks or I want to change it up. Ingrid Road Crankset CRS-R2 - Bought from the F1Z BIKE SHOP store; it's saved on my mobile app but can't be found on their website. URL: Review: 6/10. Very difficult install, but once installed, working well. Details: The spindle was out of spec; it's supposed to be 30mm but was closer to 30.5mm. It wouldn't fit into the appropriate BB30 cups. I had to spend hours carefully sanding the spindle down to get it to the correct diameter. The Q-factor of these cranks is very low, so I also struggled to get the spacing right and not have the crank arms hit the chain stays. There's very little room to mess with the spacing since you have to ensure the crank arms engage fully and tightly with the spindle. I ended up taking it to a bike shop, who added an additional .5mm spacer on each side, and now it clears. On one hand, I'd be leery of recommending this crankset to anyone given the spindle issues. On the other, once installed, it's working well and looks great with the matching rear derailleur. Make sure you buy the 110bcd adapter spider; the only chainring size available on Aliexpress is the 48T that comes with this crank. If you want any other size, you'll need to buy it from Ingrid at around $150 each; the spider allows you to use normal 110 bcd / 5-bolt chainrings that cost much less. All-in-all, I would not recommend this crankset unless someone really wants the look and is ready to deal with potentially very difficult install process. that's all for now. I have more items to review, including the Paul Comp seatpost knockoff, POC helmet, various lights, and other bits. hope this is helpful! December 05, 2023, 10:19:56 AM |
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Re: Interesting Aliexpress finds! - good deals, interesting stuff, new products etc!
Updates: Shockstop Stem I mounted the repro Shockstop stem on my bike ahead of my commute to work this morning and made it less than half a mile before I pulled over and put the old stem back on. The first bump in the road I hit caused the handlebars to flop up and down like a wet noodle. Afterwards, I could move them up and down with just my hand; the elastomer inserts don't seem to do anything. I was using the two yellow elastomers that came already installed in the stem. Also, I installed the faceplate screws with a torque wrench set to the recommended 5nm; when I went to remove the stem, two of the four screws were already loose. I could locktite them in the future, but also not inspiring confidence. I might try taking the thing apart and putting in different elastomers, but at this point I had a bad first impression when I got the stem, and now a bad second impression when I tried to use it. A stem failure is one of the most potentially dangerous component failures on a bike and I don't want to take chances in that area. Paul Klampers On a more positive note, I had the Paul Klampers installed over the weekend by a local bike shop that specializes in gravel bikes and has worked with Klampers a lot. The head mechanic didn't notice anything off with them and so far they seem to perform well. I'll need to put a couple dozen more miles in before the pads and rotors "bed in" and I can accurately assess how well they work, but so far, so good. Ingrid RD-1 I'm getting occasional phantom shifts now. It's been adjusted by two different bike shops in the past 4 weeks, each chalking it up to cable tension and saying they aren't seeing any issues. Indexing is still generally accurate and swift on 95% of shifts, but it gives me some concern that performance is going to further degrade over time. I'm also wondering if it would perform better with a higher-quality shifter than the current Sensah SRX, like something from SRAM or Shimano, but I don't want to spend more money to find out. - Edit: I adjusted the cable tension again and haven't had any issues since. It's probably just a side effect of cable stretch as I put miles on it. December 13, 2023, 11:58:55 AM |
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Re: Interesting Aliexpress finds! - good deals, interesting stuff, new products etc!
Paul "Tall & Handsome" Seatpost: URL: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805827826075.html Review: 8/10 Details: Very happy with this item. Would give it a 10/10 but I don't have a real Paul Comp seat post to compare it to, so I have to assume it could have small differences. Installation was easy (no different than any other seat post) and does what it's expected to do. Thomson Elite 27.2 Seatpost: URL: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806133158968.html Review: 8/10 Details: I haven't installed it yet, but I've owned genuine Thomson seat posts in the past and this one looks identical to them. It didn't come with a Thomson bag, which is why I've knocked some points off. Otherwise, though, this looks to be a solid replica with no issues. Thomson Elite X4 1 1/8" 80mm 31.8 clamp stem URL: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806133147036.html Review: 4/10 Details: Unlike the seat post, this one is trash. Looks nothing like a Thomson stem, and certainly not like the photo on Aliexpress. They ain't fooling anyone. The branding is poorly done, obviously fake looking. I haven't installed it since I wouldn't want something like that on my bike, it's embarrassing. Skip it. December 19, 2023, 11:39:35 AM |
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Re: Interesting Aliexpress finds! - good deals, interesting stuff, new products etc!
Re: fake stuff on AliExpress, I was fully aware I was buying fakes and I bought them out of curiosity to see whether they were useable or trash. The only stuff I asked for a refund on (and got said refund) were items that broke when being installed or arrived damaged. I can see that folks might think Shimano / SRAM stuff sold on AliEx is legit, and agree that AliEx should refund folks if it's reasonable that the buyer could have been fooled. I find it hard to believe that someone would think any of the bootlegs of Thomson, White Industries, Chris King, Paul Comp, or Ingrid are legit, not only because of where it's being sold but also because they're pricey boutique brands not manufactured in Asia. Interesting to note that no-one seems to be bootlegging Campagnolo, NITTO, or Sugino stuff. January 29, 2024, 02:44:56 PM |
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