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Re: Elitewheels Edge wheelset
On hub noise, there's a video on YT from that Australian guy on the spectrum who waxes his chains, The guy who killed his neighbour's dog and went to jail? February 29, 2024, 06:34:29 AM |
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Re: New frame: Longteng RD301-D
In addition, I've never heard about this brand, can you please give me some background information, is it a reliable brand? There are lots of resources here on Chinertown on the different Chinese brands - I'm a new member, but did spend the past month looking at different frames and reading the forum here to see what brands are/are not reputable. You can do the same, it's part of the fun! I'm buying my first Chinese frame, so I don't have any actual experience with Longteng or any of the other Chinese brands. I've researched Winspace, Yoeleo and Seka, which are above my budget. Within my budget, I've researched Velobuild, Workswell, Yishunbikes, Longteng, Lightcarbon, Trifox and a few others. It seems that Longteng and Lightcarbon have decent reputation, based in part on the fact that they own their own production and act as OEM for other companies, and offer decent customer support. But as always, your mileage my vary. Happy hunting! Btw I'm talking to Longteng to get some pricing and confirm other details like availability, custom frame painting, geometry, zero offset seat post, etc. Will provide updates here if anyone is interested. March 09, 2024, 09:27:14 AM |
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Re: Onirii One
I'm interested to hear more about your experience further down the line! Going with the Avian Canary sounds like a much better idea than using Onirii's bar/stem. Final update on my Onirii One: It actually really grew on me, I got more used to the fit, it was still never quite right, but I was liking the bike more and more regardless. Loved the low bottom bracket's effect on handling. Every new bike takes some time for me to build up trust with but I did finally get to the point where I was trusting the One for just about anything, even full on sprints (I am much more of a sprinter than a climber). Dealing with Onirii was fine to begin with, they were very responsive and helpful but when it came to the whole bar/stem length and labeling issues, it got a lot more difficult and I am trying to get Paypal to refund me for the second barstem. I'm fairly certain they are mislabeling the reach, stem length, and drop on all their bars. Last week I sold the bike. It was a fun project, fun bike, and good learning experience. Now I am planning to take that experience into a new bike build  With a 5/10 being totally neutral I would say: Building the bike: 4/10 - some challenges, I needed to file some holes. The angle of the holes you use to route the rear brake line around the bottom bracket were awkward, hard to route through. The alignment features on the first handlebar were misaligned and I had to cut off one of the two nubs to allow the top spacer to nest with the stem. Riding the bike: 8/10 - it was good fun. Dealing with customer support: 4/10 - it was good until it wasn't. March 11, 2024, 11:44:15 AM |
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Re: New frame: Longteng RD301-D
The frame in the video is clearly not the frame in the brochure. Or are they doing like LC and the LCR017-D, with final product different than pictures on website. You are right - I posted the wrong video (it was the 268 frame instead of the 301). I've removed the video and added 2 photos from Longteng of the real 301 frame which match up what they have in the brochure: https://imgur.com/a/XvH327j. Sorry about the mix up. Here are some updates from my communication with them: - Quoted price of US$450 for frame, fork, seat post - They can offer for additional charge: integrated handlebar $80, headset $12, through axle $30/pair, spare rear hanger $6/pcs - 980g +/-40 for size 52 frame - Zero offset seat post is not available - Available 45 days from payment I've had some discussions with them around custom frame painting: - US$85 for 3 colors - They can do custom decals (which will sit underneath the final coat of paint), but for simple stuff, they will make it part of the frame painting instead of doing decal stickers - they prefer to get vector files instead of helping with design - They can do (or, at least they are wiling to try...) fairly complex paint jobs, unlike other sellers I've talked to - for example, I asked if they can do something like the Bahrain team bike kit from 2023 (https://www.ridemedia.com.au/racing/pro-bikes-2023-bahrain-victorious-and-merida-a-mechanics-perspective/), and they said it should be ok as long as they are provided with detailed sketches/instructions; I'm just relaying what they said and have no idea about the actual end product, although the paint jobs I saw at the Taipei Bike Show looked pretty nice Again, sorry about posting the wrong video  March 12, 2024, 09:02:25 AM |
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Re: LTWOO ER9 & ERX - Electronic groepsets
I have 34t with no problem, think 36 t would work, or maybe with a roadlink.
March 13, 2024, 01:26:53 PM |
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Re: TPU vs Latex innertube
a tpu user here, on 700c roadbike. i have used: - revoloop ultra - ridenow gen1 36g (big box) - ridenow gen2 26g (the slimmer box) - thinkrider 28g twinpack. so far all my punctures are from sharp objects debris on road (glass, nail etc). revoloop is expensive. however my ridenows have reliability issues (seam glue failed, the rubber seal on innercore failed n loose air, etc). it looked like theres ridenow gen3 with metal valve. haven tried that. now my rear tire is with thinkrider. from 118g butyl to 30g tputube, thats insane weightsaving for minimal money March 15, 2024, 04:16:27 AM |
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Re: TPU vs Latex innertube
I've been running TPU for the past 18 months. Not a single puncture out on the road yet (gonna jinx myself now). Routine maintenance and inspection of your tires are the biggest factors to prevent punctures, as is running the optimal tire width/pressure for both your weight and local road conditions, respectively. I also use baby powder. While the weight savings and puncture resistance of TPU over latex is very tangible, latex beats out TPU for road comfort no question. I've converted all my bikes to TPU except for my Winspace T1500 paired with D67 wheels. That bike being super aero isn't exactly light anyway, so I'd rather prioritize marginal rolling resistance and comfort over the 100g weight savings. We are talking like 1% of overall system weight. Personally I actually find latex more delicate than TPU. Latex handles rough pavement (and cornering/grip) better overall but TPU is better at preventing punctures from sharp objects. TPU is more affordable than latex nowadays. Almost two for the price of one. RideNow 36g versus Vittoria Competition. I make a good habit of inspecting my bike and tire pressure before every ride. It takes 45 seconds... March 15, 2024, 10:56:52 AM |
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Re: TPU vs Latex innertube
Offbondage tpu tubes are my go-to now, mainly due to the alloy valve. The plastic valve stems can crack if you're not careful. Though if you want the cheapest tpu tubes, ThinkRider are decent with a semi alloy/plastic stem valve. Plus I prefer 25c tires and it's hard to beat the lower cost/weight ratio of clincher tires+tpu tubes and ease of tire changes due to flats. You can also pack several tpu tubes and glueless patch kits in the saddle bag with minimal weight. With road tubeless you have to make sure you have tape that can handle higher pressures (if you have spoke holes), use heavier tires and carry more items (bacon strips, co2 cartridge, plus a tube for emergencies). Unless you're a 100kg ogre, for nimble riders it's tpu all the way.
March 15, 2024, 11:47:00 AM |
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Re: TPU vs Latex innertube
TPU user here, almost a year that I've moved completely to chinese TPU (mainly RideNow and Thinkrider, but also tried Offbondage) the rolling is for sure better than butyl, but I don't have experience with Latex so cannot compare them. about puncture resistance, my impression is similar to Pat's above, I think the tire and the road conditions are the main factors. When changing from butyl to TPU I honestly didn't feel any change in punctures. In this 1yr, around 7.000km ridden, only 2 punctures in my TPU tubes they're a bit more difficult to setup, especially with tight tires, but after you get the hang it's pretty ok and of course, using as spare tubes is a no brainer, they take little to no space in your pocket/bag what I think the main issues are: - Reliability, the batches vary a lot and some tubes are better finished than others. I've had all brands fail on the valve stem to tube connection, small leaks that first just deflate over days but then start leaking more and more. - Patching is more difficult and uncertain. I've used self-adhesive patches, and some worked well but others started leaking after some time. Seems the adhesive starts to fail, maybe temperature variation and stuff like that. I've seen some tips on using vinyl glue to patch, I bought it but still have to try - Setup is tricky, since the tube is very thin it may be pressed between the tire and rim, and ends up blowing up. I've had this happen to me 2 times now, fortunately, I was standing still with my bike but was mid ride so got me a bit scarred. Upon investigation, it was my fault, it's important to check every bit after getting the tire seated, pushing it from side to side, so it doesn't 'bite' on the tube. As I mentioned, when you get the hang it's ok. I've thought of going back to butyl after some of these valve stem fails, but honestly these TPU tubes on the '3 items for...' of Aliexpress are around 1/3 the price I'll pay for one butyl tube here in Brazil. So as long as the tpu tube don't fail me mid-ride (which is rare to happen) I'll continue using them About brands, RideNow seems to be the best quality, especially after the last generations and improvements. Offbondage is also a very good option, their stem-tube connection is very nicely done and reinforced. Thinkrider has the best cost, and the alloy/plastic stem was a nice improvement, but it's still the one that failed the most with me so I'm a bit skeptic. March 15, 2024, 12:05:36 PM |
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Re: TPU vs Latex innertube
a tpu user here, on 700c roadbike. my repair kit for these tpu tubes, I got myself the tubolito repair kit (yes, i patch my non-tubolito tubes with it). it came with glue and patches. The glue tube lasts a lot of patching job (so many nail n glass shards incidents). I create patches from my old retired tpu tube cutouts. I saved the tubolito thicker patches for only large cuts. patch success rate almost 100%. So as repair kit on the go (ie long distance, bikepacking etc) the reparability n reusability is close to/same as butyl with 1/3 the space. Never used latex, so i cant say for latex reparability March 15, 2024, 05:14:52 PM |
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