Chinertown
Chinese Carbon MTB => 29er => Topic started by: jonxmack on July 11, 2014, 04:00:01 AM
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Just placed my order for a Carbonal Orion - http://www.carbonality.com/orion-29er-1250g.html
I'll be stripping my existing bike this evening (On-One Lurcher) but the build of that is as follows
Forks: Niner
Stem: Thomson Elite 100x0
Bars: Ritchey Carbon
Grips: ESI Chunky
Shifter: SRAM XX
Front Brake: Hope Race Evo X2
Front Wheel: Hope Pro 2 to Stans Crest
Front Tyre: Schwalbe Rocket Ron 2.25
Seatpost: Thomson Elite
Seat: Velo
Cranks: SRAM XX1 32t
Pedals: Time Atac Alium
Rear Brake: Hope Race Evo X2
Rear Wheel: Hope Pro 2 to Stans Crest
Rear Tyre: Schwalbe Rocket Ron 2.1
Rear Mech: SRAM X0
Chain: Connex 10S8
Cassette: SRAM PG1050
Not sure what the actual weight of it is since I changed the bars and rear tyre after I did my calculations and have now removed the Reverb that was fitted but with 2.1's F&R, alloy bars and a Reverb it came in at a claimed 9140g, that was measuring all the parts during the build as opposed to the actual full bike.
The weight of the existing frame is 1575 and the claimed weight of the new one is 1250g for the 19". I've ordered the 17 so I guess it'll be a little less, maybe 1200 or so. I've removed the Reverb and gone to a Thomson which is ~300g lighter, as well as gone from Answer Pro Taper alloy bars to Ritchey WCS Low Rise which are a claimed ~60g lighter, but have swapped the front tyre from a 495g 2.1 Rocket Ron to a claimed 520g 2.25 so there could be some weight gain there.
Either way it's looking like it should drop to around 8400g, depending on the weight of the new frame. I'll leave this up as a progress report since I've not seen much chat around these frames.
UPDATE: The bike is built!
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2020.49.05-1.jpg)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2020.58.36%20HDR.jpg)
The scales lack in accuracy, I weighed it three times and it came out at 8.2, 8.4 and 8.7.
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First thing to note, I just had an email from "Jason" at Carbonal regarding shipment.
Re. shipment, please check if just use real value for customs, or need to declare lower value for customs? please advise.
I asked for them to declare lower value :-\ we'll see.
Hopefully it won't get picked up, if it does I'm going to claim to be sponsored by them or some shhh like that.
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Nice looking build, you might struggle running a Sram PC1050 as a chain though ;)
Iirc the RoyalMail charge to pay a customs fee was more than the actual customs fee on my 'gift' of 'sporting goods', was about £25.
(And judging from your website the appropriate greeting would be, alright my luver)
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Nice looking build, you might struggle running a Sram PC1050 as a chain though ;)
Iirc the RoyalMail charge to pay a customs fee was more than the actual customs fee on my 'gift' of 'sporting goods', was about £25.
(And judging from your website the appropriate greeting would be, alright my luver)
Have fixed that now!
I think it's £11 fixed handling fee plus VAT on the declared value? If I can get away with not paying a £70 charge for it then that would be great, if not then not a massive issue.
Hahaha dear me, I am so thankful that I'm not actually from Bristol or I'd definitely hate my own voice!
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I often wonder how anyone gets anything done if their internal monologue is in Bristolian, I'm lucky enough to live just far enough away that the English language prevails. (Yate/Sodbury area)
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Glad we don't need to worry about VAT here in the US.
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Instead you get to worry about going bankrupt after stubbing your toe :P
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Instead you get to worry about going bankrupt after stubbing your toe :P
Lol.. Very true!
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Instead you get to worry about going bankrupt after stubbing your toe :P
Ouch, you are right!
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Carbonal seems to have by far the fastest lead time. A week!
Their website is much more professional than the others.
And the frames geometry looks quite right.
It is surprising they don't get much attention here and on mtbr.
Good find jonxmack. I'm looking forward to see your pictures.
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Over a year ago, I was set with Carbonal to get the Gaea or Orion...then the 56/57 with 142 dropout came out and I switched to that.
They haven't offered much in the 29" size(same frames from over a year) - more they look to be into the 27.5 size - if I were to go with that size I would go with Carbonal's Venture.
I guess, mainly, people are looking for the newest thing - 142 dropout or superlight frame(256)
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The problem with the 256 for me was that I sold my frame this week, before I found out that the lead time was 45 days, and I can't really deal with 6 weeks off the bike in the middle of summer. Plus with a 950g frame I'd be looking at a nearly sub 8kg mtb, that's bloody scary light.
Then again since the frames are so cheap I might decide in 12 months I wanna pick up something else and I can, it's the joys of these Chinese bikes, I can afford to try a new one every few months if I really want.
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The problem with the 256 for me was that I sold my frame this week, before I found out that the lead time was 45 days, and I can't really deal with 6 weeks off the bike in the middle of summer. Plus with a 950g frame I'd be looking at a nearly sub 8kg mtb, that's bloody scary light.
Then again since the frames are so cheap I might decide in 12 months I wanna pick up something else and I can, it's the joys of these Chinese bikes, I can afford to try a new one every few months if I really want.
You might want to speak with Peter at iPlay. I know that they are starting to get some of the IP-256SL's in certain sizes and configurations in-stock and ready to ship right way. Last I saw, the 21" BSA BB frames are in stock.
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I was in talks with him yesterday, he said 35-45 days. He did then come back today and say he's got the one I was looking at available next week but I'd already placed the order with Carbonal by then.
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Their website is much more professional than the others.
It is surprising they don't get much attention here and on mtbr.
I have to agree that Carbonal is doing a lot of things right. The website is nice. The name is very brandable, and finally, I like their frames.
But they don't get as much attention bc Iplay is kicking everyone's butts in the most important area: marketing. Being more involved on the forums, sponsoring the rim giveaway - very smart moves for Iplay. I mean, all this time I thought it was "Xmiplay" until I've been looking at that banner at the top of this forum that says " Sponsored by Iplay" for the last 20 days. I used to work in advertising a bit and people underestimate the subtle subconscious effects it has on our buying decisions. Iplay has created tons of trust by being involved in this forum early on. That's why and how advertising works. I think the banner on this forum for the rim giveaway is the very first time I have seen ANY advertising AT ALL being done by these Chinese suppliers. Big mistake. This market is soooo wide open it's not even funny.
IMO, Carbonal and Hong-Fu both need to get busy creating a presence here on Chinertown while the community is still small, or Iplay is going to mop the floor with them. This community is growing fast and is really the first of it's kind - big advantage. This is assuming, of course, that there isn't some unknown affiliation between Chinertown and Iplay?
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No special affiliation between Chinertown and iPlay, it was SN's idea to do the giveaway and since he and I both have ordered from Peter. SN contacted Peter about doing a giveaway to help promote Chinertown. I think SN's marketing idea had a very positive impact on the forum.
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This is assuming, of course, that there isn't some unknown affiliation between Chinertown and Iplay?
Sorry to derail your thread jonxmack.. Just wanted to say there is no affiliation at all - other than me and CD having positive experiences doing business with them. Nice guys, with good customer service/communication, and a good product. Like you said.. They just happen to be the ones that see the value in being involved in online MTB communities.. Any seller can come in here and represent their frames and brand.
Okay.. back to the build thread..
Looks nice. I'd like to hear what you think of the Hope brakes? Since pretty much everyone uses the Shimanos.
Also, I clicked through to your store.. This looks fun lol:
(http://i.imgur.com/23ZfDaM.png)
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Looks nice. I'd like to hear what you think of the Hope brakes? Since pretty much everyone uses the Shimanos.
I've not used Shimano so can't compare (although my dad has just bought a set so will have a go on them once his bike is built) but I have always been a fan of Hope stuff. Being that it was a SRAM build I didn't want to poison the build with Shimano, so decided to go to Hope because they were a good price and weight. Over the last 12 months they've been absolutely flawless, I really can't complain about them, one finger braking is easy, they stop me no matter what, they're just a great brake. Plus I like supporting UK companies!
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UPDATE:
They never sent me a shipping notification (annoying) but I just emailed and it turns out it was sent on Saturday 12th, despite them saying they're only open Monday - Friday (progress!)
It's now Thursday 17th and my frame is in the country, and with Customs.
Your item was handed over to Customs(UNITED KINGDOM COVENTRY PARCELFORCE) at 2014-07-16 11:38:00
So now I wait...
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Once my frame and wheels were handed over to customs at Parcelforce Coventry it took a day for wheels and two days for the frame to be delivered IIRC. !
8)
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Once my frame and wheels were handed over to customs at Parcelforce Coventry it took a day for wheels and two days for the frame to be delivered IIRC. !
8)
:D :D :D :D :D
As soon as it arrives it'll be being built up. I have no plans this weekend so if it arrives by Saturday I'll get it done then, if not then early next week I'll be posting photos!
Since the parts are all coming off an existing bike it's just a case of bolting everything on, took me half an hour to strip the old bike, will probably take around the same amount of time to build this one, although the internal routing is going to be "fun", and I'll have to chop the steerer on the forks, again (scary).
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No of course I haven't been checking the tracking data every day without fail for the last 5 days, what're you talking about :-[
Your item was released from Customs(UNITED KINGDOM COVENTRY PARCELFORCE) at 2014-07-21 21:43:00
:D
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Unfortunately I woke to a messages saying there was customs fees to be paid, noooooo!
However it's only £58.32, so I'm going to dash home after work, grab the note they dropped through the door, head back up to the depot and get it, then build it, then shred it tomorrow!
Pictures to come in abouuuuut four-ish hours all being well.
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Thanks for the update. Pictures are always good when you get the frame and start building.
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(https://scontent-a-lhr.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpa1/t1.0-9/10527880_677069405679572_8953841066385981565_n.jpg)
;)
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Looks great! What are your impressions of the bike so far?
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Did you hit your weight goal as per the title of this thread?
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Looks great! What are your impressions of the bike so far?
I'm really impressed with it, the finish is absolutely amazing, the internal routing works brilliantly with a full outer down the downtube then out under the BB, and cable stops for the inner to run through the chainstay out to the rear mech. The BB92 BB pressed in with ease using my headset press, the whole frame is just really well made, and I imagine they must paint them after because the finish is flawless.
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2018.44.00.jpg)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2019.08.44%20HDR.jpg)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2019.09.38.jpg)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2019.10.05.jpg)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2019.12.08%20HDR.jpg)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2019.19.02%20HDR.jpg)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2019.19.27.jpg)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2019.19.35%20HDR.jpg)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2019.20.06%20HDR.jpg)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2020.49.05-1.jpg)
Did you hit your weight goal as per the title of this thread?
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4896022/Orion/sized/2014-07-23%2020.58.36%20HDR.jpg)
However I did weigh it twice after, and it came out at 8.4 and then 8.7 so I'm not sure 1) how accurate the scales are 2) how much it actually weighs! It should be around 8.4, and that seems like a fair average.
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I'm impressed by the time it took you to decide for the frame, order it and build it.
Mine is still stuck at the customs... and far from built.
Is there any flex in the fork?
How are your hands/harm after an XC ride?
Or is there a special technique to ride with such fork.
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I'm impressed by the time it took you to decide for the frame, order it and build it.
Mine is still stuck at the customs... and far from built.
Is there any flex in the fork?
How are your hands/harm after an XC ride?
Or is there a special technique to ride with such fork.
Well when I started comparing geometries and lead times this came out on top, closest geo to the Open O-1.0 which was designed by Gerard Vroomen of Cervélo and Andy Kessler of BMC, and in stock ready to go!
There is plenty of flex in the Niner fork but since it's such a reputable brand I trust it's not going to snap underneath me, plus I only weigh 69kg on a heavy day! I do get cramp in my hands but that's because I hold my bars so tight, taking the edge off is all in the tyre setup. Schwalbe Rocket Ron 2.25 set up tubeless with 18psi gives a nice amount of bounce and you learn to suck the rest up in your arms.
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Thanks. This makes me want to try a rigid fork later.
But let's build a bike first!
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I thought I heard that the IP-256 SL was the frame that was most like the 0-1.0
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I thought I heard that the IP-256 SL was the frame that was most like the 0-1.0
Then you should take a look at the geometry charts for the three frames. 69º.5 HA on the 256 vs 72º on the O-1.0 and 71º on the Orion, that's a huge difference immediately. As well as the front center length being 20mm longer on the 256 for my size, whereas the Orion is 1mm different.
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Couple more photos anyway
(http://photos-a.ak.instagram.com/hphotos-ak-xaf1/10576075_697322343680496_1988845750_n.jpg)
(http://photos-g.ak.instagram.com/hphotos-ak-xap1/10520268_1501394006764414_991936809_n.jpg)
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Very nice. How much did you pay for the Niner fork if you don't mind me asking? And do you feel that the quality is superior to the chiner version?
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I paid £280 for them. They were second hand but the guy I got them from had bought them for a build but never used them. I can't really compare them to any other forks since I've not used any others, without a doubt the quality is high but I'm not sure it justifies the extra expense over the Chiner stuff. If I needed forks I wouldn't hesitate to buy some from Carbonal because the quality and finish on the frame is excellent.
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This build turned out great. I'm digging all these rigid forks popping up on these builds.
As you get more seat time, please share your experiences/impressions with us.
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This build turned out great. I'm digging all these rigid forks popping up on these builds.
As you get more seat time, please share your experiences/impressions with us.
I went rigid purely because it was cheaper than trying to get a high end 29er suspension fork for a good price (I ran SID's on my 26 and would want something of a similar weight/performance)
I took it up to the local trails this evening, it's such a fast bike, they're not the kind of trails you can rip through because they're pretty short and technical unlike the trail centres I frequent, but on the climbs it is so planted and absolutely flies, I am in love. Plus a few people have said it's the coolest bike they've ever seen so I'll take that!