Hey

I received a custom-ordered TFSA JH-33 frame a.k.a copy of the Tarmac SL7. I asked for no shifter holes so they plugged the rear and the bottom service hatch, although they still left a big hole next to the front derailleur mount which was bolted on.... WTF had to drill it out.

Anyhow, the frame is insanely light at 825 grams for a medium size 54. Not much heavier than the S-works which costs $5500 USD. Although I have some minor, maybe major issues I would like to address and ask for your opinion about.

First of the fork which is quite light for an uncut aero profile! The bearing is seated directly on the fork without a collar which I find kinda weird, especially since the seat looks very weird IMO. Or what would you say? They shipped it with IS52 bearing 45/45, one 7mm thick and the other 8mm. I have ordered FSA SL MR128R lightweight alloy 7mm bearings to replace with.


Secondly, the front axle is too short. Only covers half the thread which is terrible! Additionally, the axles are threaded internally to attach a bolt/nut thing to the end. I've never seen anything like it before.

The facing for the brake mount is not properly done judging it to my other bikes, one being an Italian-made Basso. Trying to mount a brake caliper and it is just not sitting very well.

Same thing with the dropouts, they are so thin that the wheel hubs barely have anything to rest on!!! Does not feel very safe at all.

I have contacted a professional carbon expert to have him look over the frame which I pray will be ridable. Does not look like it right now and definitely not feels like it.

More pictures to come in addtional posts.

Hey, been reading a lot on this forum and WW.

My question: Are there any frames that can compete on the same weight like the $5000 frames by Specialized, Pinarello and a few others?

The only one I know about that would be an option is the Seka Exceed RDC, which is just slightly heavier than the top tier frames but also not very racy aggressive geometry. Read that the Seka is more laidback.

The Velobuild 168 looks fantastic as it is a copy of the Tarmac SL7 geometry, but it is a lot heavier.

I don't really care about pricing, I understand that a Velobuild frame for $500 cannot compete with a +$5000 S-works frame, but why is there nothing in between? I wouldn't mind paying $2-3000 for a top-tier frame from China.