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Re: Velobuild VB-R-218
Hi everyone! New to the forum and this is my first post. I just wanted to report that I have a V BR 218 in the rim brake version on its way to me. I’ll send some pics and keep you updated on the build process. I too would have preferred a non counterfeit design. But I wanted a direct mount rim brake frame with internal cable routing that I liked the look of and that does not look like a Tarmac or Venge. That narrowed it down to this one. The plan is to transfer my existing parts and wheels over to this frame. I currently got a Ridley Helium in its low spec T700/T800 version from 2016. Frame weight is just below 1000g. This frame in XXL should be between 1200 and 1300g. I’m fine with that since it’s pan flat where I live. The Helium in its current build is 7.1 kg ready to go with pedals and Garmin mount. So this one should ideally still be in the 7.5kg range. Let’s see if I’m right. Cheers June 19, 2022, 04:01:32 AM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-218
Hi everyone! I promised to update everyone as soon as I received my frame. Well, it took longer than expected because there was a bit of a mishap. Velobuild shipped my frameset after 10 days, exactly as promised. It took another three weeks for it to get to Germany. That's longer than usual but still perfectly OK. However, upon unpacking I realized that I received a disc brake frameset when I had actually ordered the rim brake version. I sorted it out with Chris and I will now get my actual frameset. The disc brake frame will now be shipped on to another customer. However, since I had it lying around for a week or so, I made some pics and weighed everything for y'all. So here it is. Frame Size is an XXL. Handlebar is 120/40. Overall quality seems perfectly OK for the price. Some minor imperfections in the carbon finishing here and there, maybe the caliper seats are not perfectly faced, BB threads are OK, bearing seats in frame and fork as well. I have never seen a Dogma F in real life but from what I can see on the internet, it's a carbon copy. It even has the asymmetrical rear seat and chain stays as you can see in the pics. More pics and details to follow. I also shot a few pics from inside the headtube seattube and downtube. Cheers Sebastian I ordered it with custom paint, which will add some weight, I guess. July 10, 2022, 04:06:08 AM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-218
Here are a few more details. I've made some shots from the inside of the frame. Everything looks fairly normal judging from my experience with other frames. The headtube area has some wrinkles. Some of it might be resin pooling. Some of it might be wrinkles in carbon sheets. Make of it what you will. I've seen similar things in other frames. I think it should be fine as this is not a lightweight frame and the headtube area seems fairly overbuilt. But obviously there's no way to know for sure unless you have someone scan and/or x-ray it. July 11, 2022, 10:22:27 AM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-218
Officially 28mm. Very tight 30mm for the real Dogma F. I’ve measured the chainstay clearance before shipping the frame. It is almost 40mm and narrows down to around 38mm right before the bottom bracket. I see no reason why a 32mm tire won’t fit, if that’s important to you. July 18, 2022, 03:41:19 AM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-218
Hello Sebastian, im thinking about buying this frameset and slowbly build a bike on it when i can obtain all the other components. i read that you chose the XXL size, im 186 cm tall and im not quite sure if i should go for the XXL or XL. how tall are you? I’m around 190cm tall. I have a pretty good idea of my bike fit and I will get within -4mm of my regular reach with a 120mm stem length and a 40cm bar. Stack will be similar or a bit lower to my current bike, if required. I’m currently riding a Ridley Helium in size 57, which comes out very tall. It’s around the equivalent of a “classic” size 60. The setback of the seatpost should be no issue since the seat angle is quite steep on this one. Also, the bb is lower than on my Helium. But it’s about the smallest frame I can get away with with a 120mm stem. July 25, 2022, 08:43:39 AM |
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Re: VBR 218 or VBR 099?
Perhaps my brain is a little slow this morning but what do you mean by looks that score lower on the copied frame? So there will be less comments from other people you mean? The 218 has a bolt on cover below the bottom bracket as well. It includes a Di2 battery holder there. So draining water is not a problem. Besides, either frame is a copy after all. Yes the 99 might be more inspired rather than outright copied. But let’s face it: Velobuild‘s 168 and 99 are pretty close to being Specialized counterfeits. So if you’re concerned about what people might say about that, you’re probably better off not buying any of them. I for one would never put decals on it to make it look like the real thing nor do I expect these frames to perform like the real thing. And for me it’s also about the dilemma that literally no one sells reasonably priced „modern“ carbon rim brake frames anymore, so I’m kinda forced to source them straight from China. August 01, 2022, 02:10:19 AM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-218
Hi guys, first post ever here No. It’s a battery holder I think. Though I’m not an expert on Di2 groupsets. Once I receive my frameset I can post pics. Maybe someone else can clarify. I think this is because there is no space for a Di2 battery inside of the aero seatpost. August 04, 2022, 01:32:05 PM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-218
New GC Performance video with initial impressions of the 218 I'm very curious to see how he gets through the building process. I'm almost done but it wasn't without problems - as expected. The exit hole for the rear brake cable on the top tube (i got the rim brake frame) was way too small for any cable outer to fit through. It almost looked like it was meant to be a cable stop. That wouldn't make sense however since there's no cable stop on the other end of the top tube. So I very gently widened the hole by hand with a drill, working my way through various sizes of drills until it was big enough, trying to not scratch the paint in the process. Not for the faint hearted. The fork steerer's wall thickness is not uniform. It looks clean on the in and outside but still, that doesn't inspire confidence in the quality control at whatever factory builds these things. The paint came off the fork dropouts as soon as I clamped it for the first time with skewers. No big deal. It shouldn't have been painted there in the first place. But it sure doesn't look pretty. The compression ring for the upper headset has super sharp edges where it meets the fork steerer. Not exactly confidence inspiring. So I sanded it to make all the edges smoother. Not hard to do because it's made of super soft aluminium. So soft in fact that I bent it by quite a bit when sanding it without noticing. It's so thin at the cable holes that you can easily brake it, so be careful. I'm probably going to replace the fork expander plug with a longer one, but the one that came with it is probably fine. No headset play. It all went together smoothly. The paint is not perfect here and there if you look closely. But it's still much better than I would ever be able to do myself. All in all, I'm rather curious to see how durable this thing is in the long run. At least with wheels installed, everything looks to be straight and in line. The bars are not the stiffest in the world but I've had worse. On the positive side, I found it quite easy to route mechanical outers through the bars and it steers smoothly. We'll see how well it shifts. Hangers are straight front and back, no setup issues. I'll finish the build tonight and post pictures later. August 18, 2022, 06:58:40 AM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-218
My build is done. I did a shakedown ride of around 45k. No issues like seatpost slippage or headset play. Everything works fine. Shifting is also smooth despite the full internal routing. The frame is surprisingly comfy. The bars are really nice as well. The shape works very well for me. Fit is not dialed in yet 100%. Saddle position not yet right. But it's great. Final build as pictured with pedals, cages and garmin mount weighs 7.65kg. I'm pretty happy with that. More pics and a full review once I got a few more Ks with this bike. August 22, 2022, 03:27:55 PM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-218
Thx! I bought all the parts used or NOS. Campag Centaur is very underrated IMO. It's the poor man's Campag EPS, because it has the same down sweeping thumb paddles which makes it a lot easier to shift in the drops. Brakes are Record, because I needed direct mount. I got them cheap NOS for less than half the new cost, bc in this day and age no one wants rim brakes  . Crankset is H11, which is Record level. It's got a different chainline for disc frames, but that's only because the original chainrings are sitting further outboard. I got aftermarket 11 speed rings from Specialites and it works perfectly. Cassette is a regular Shimano 105, bc Campag 11 and Shimano 11 cassettes are virtually identical. Chain is Campag Potenza, bc Campag chains are just top notch.So all in all, I could even make the bike a bit lighter with a lighter cassette and those fake EEbrakes on Aliexpress. But it's perfectly fine this way, since most of my rides are on pan flat terrain anyway. I did use a longer expander plug in the end and I would recommend to everyone else to do the same, especially if you're using multiple spacers. The stock one is fine but on the short side. I don't trust these designs. Tire clearance was a point of discussion here: I got a Vittoria Corsa 28mm tubular on the back. It's 29mm measured. I got about 4-5mm on either side of the chainstays, so I think 32mm might just about fit. BUT the limiting factor will eventually be tire height, because it get's very tight where the tire meets the seattube. Personally, I see no reason to run bigger tires than this and I do ride shit roads and cobbles with it. August 23, 2022, 02:57:57 AM |
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