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Re: Disconnecting hydraulic hoses
You MAY be able to reuse barbs and olive if you can get it out and if you haven't tightened the olive too much but it's heavily recommended to cut and put new barb/olive as you likely lose some seal. This is why you are often advised to leave as much hose as possible in the bike. If crimped properly the olive shouldn't come off anyway You can pick up a pack of olive/barb/hose kits for 4 bucks on ali, or for 30 at your LBS who will urge you not to get them from aliexpress as they might explode. The olives are universal afaik but the barbs and hoses are not, i think the standard Ltwoo uses is BH59, same as shimano road You seal the open hoses with a toothpick And yes both ends of the hose have a barb and an olive May 14, 2024, 03:35:48 AM |
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Deerobust/Goldix wheel build 50/55mm 1319g
I wanted to share with you all the results of my first wheelbuild. The headline specs/stats are:
I've been meaning to make this thread for a while. I've been busy finishing my PhD and finally had the time to cobble it together. Theres some more build info I want to add in a later post but I'll put this up for now. I had recently bought myself a truing stand and tensionmeter to rebuild a wheel with a rim that I broke racing CX. Now having the tools to build wheels, I got curious about the phenomenally low prices on wheelbuilding components, as well as the freedom to pursue interesting build configurations. I'll be transparent here: this is a vanity build driven by questionable weight and aero-weenie-ing. Experienced wheelbuilders will probably cringe at my choices, and that's fine with me. The irony of scraping for grams on this build while I could stand to lose 20lbs of body fat is not lost on me. At the end of the day I had a lot of fun building these up, I think they look super cool, it's exciting to me that I've built up such a lightweight wheelset, and I've had a pretty good experience riding them so far. Given this premise of vanity over practicality, I hope you can appreciate my wheelbuild for what it is. Rims: I did a bit of searching for the manufacturer of the lightest rims and landed on Deerobust. It helps that they are the first result when you search "lightest carbon rim" into aliex. This is no exaggeration, the 21mm-internal-width, 50 and 55mm-deep rims I chose ("featherweight"-spec + paintless finish) were quoted at 390g and 420g respectively; the only manufacturer that seems to come close is Lightcarbon. I chose 50/55 simply because it's a depth that seemed to strike a good balance between weight and aero. I also won't lie and say that the decision was influenced by the fact that the Enve SES 4.5 rims used by Pogi and UAE are 50/55mm deep, even though if we're being realistic those are completely different wheels. I chose 21mm internal width because it seems that this is still the ideal rim width for aero given a 28mm tire. I understand the rule of 105% says otherwise. On the other hand, Peak-torque's testing results (particularly the comparison of the Polaris Ascent 42 against the ICAN Aero 35 across 28mm and 32mm tires) suggests that a 28mm tire is faster on a 21mm internal width rim compared a wider one. Another feature I chose for my rims is internally-drilled spoke holes. For one, there is the (dubious) aero benefit of having hidden nipples. But more importantly--as ENVE's marketing material points out--smaller spoke holes means stronger spoke holes, and therefore a stronger, safer rim. I paid $507 (inc. shipping) to order my rims from Deerobust, with bespoke paintless finish, hole-drilling, and logo. The rims weighed 410 and 415g respectively. I was a tad disappointed that my front rim came 5g over the spec weight +/- 15g margin of error. On the other hand, my rear rim came 5g under spec weight, the average weight between the two was under the +/- 15g per rim margin of error, so I called it good and decided to not complain. Hubs As for hubs, I chose GOLDIX 21-spoke hubs with 2:1 lacing. These have no official model number but appear to be a DT-swiss style ratchet hub with straight-pull lacing. I chose these because a) Goldix seems to have a fairly decent reputation on here, and b) these hubs are very lightweight. The standout unique design feature of these hubs is that there are 21 spokes, 14 spokes laced in a 3x pattern on the stressed side (drive side on rear, brake side on front), and 7 radially-laced spokes on the non-drive side. I went for this unusual design because fewer spokes theoretically means lighter and more aero, while the 2:1 3x lacing, especially when paired to such deep rims, potentially could make up for the loss in stiffness. Remember, this is a vanity build. When my hubs arrived, they seemed to be of decent quality. The bearings were a tad notchy--something that has gone away since I started riding them. The bearings are "NBK" brand, and have metal ball cages, which are a feature of decent-quality bearings. These aren't showstoppers, but they aren't complete garbage either. One criticism I have about these hubs is that that to achieve radial lacing on the non-stressed side, the hub axle has a hole drilled out to allow a spoke to be passed through into the back of the spoke hole. This means that the wheel bearing on the radially laced side is offset inboards an entire centimeter. This is bad for hub stiffness and longevity. The further inboards the bearing sits, the longer the unsupported section of the axle is (making less stiff), and the bearing has to bear more axial/side loading (which harms longevity). In the future I might swap these hubs out for a different design. Spokes and nipples For this build I chose Pillar Wing 20 with Pillar hex-10 internal nipples. I have a whole extra story to tell about these nipples that I will get to another time. I chose these spokes over the alternative (Sapim CX Ray/DT aerolite) because they are supposedly stiffer, lighter, just as aero, and definitely are cheaper. The idea that a wider spoke section is just as aero as a narrower one baffles me, but I'll trust in Campagnolo and Boyd, who have supposedly tested this difference and chose the Pillar wings. I also spoke-prepped my threads using Rock n Roll Nipple cream. Finishing touches As is common, I have wrapped my wheels in 28mm Continental GP5000 clincher tires, with RideNow 19gr tubes inside, likely the lightest and lowest-rolling-resistance combo in the Continental range, barring the GP5000TT. I'm also running ONIRII's super-light 160mm floating disc rotors, and an S-ROAD one-piece 11-32 cassette Overall impressions So far I've logged about 100 miles on these new wheels on my road bike. They certainly sound cool and feel fast. And they do not feel like they're particularly lacking in stiffness. One major complaint I am experiencing is that my freehub ratchet has been slipping occasionally. I serviced it and found that I had reinstalled the o-ring incorrectly and that some dirt/grime had made its way into the ratchet. After a bit of cleaning and regreaseing it was nearly perfect once again, perhaps I need to clean it more and regrease with the special DT swiss ratchet grease. Are these truly "fast" wheels? Who knows. They haven't stopped me from setting a bunch of Strava PRs here and there. But as far as bling factor, these are 10/10, super cool and super fun wheels to have. Thanks for reading my wheelbuild story. Would love to hear your thoughts and questions. Hopefully soon, I can make a quick post about how I dealt with some challenges I experienced using the Hex-10 nipples. May 15, 2024, 03:30:12 PM |
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Re: LTWOO eGR
The attachment contains the reply I received from Ltwoo's official support regarding the waterproof performance of the EGR. The main point stated in the response is that the waterproofing of the EGR has been improved compared to earlier versions (at least according to their official statement).... Do we have any idea where the ingress is? ... Unfortunately, I don't have the physical EGR item with me, and my friends are also unaware of the specific areas where potential gaps may exist. All repairs are handled by Ltwoo officially. However, I have a suggestion that may not be fully matured. Perhaps applying some waterproof spray meant for outdoor clothing on the outer layer of the rear derailleur could be helpful? May 16, 2024, 12:06:59 PM |
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Re: What are some of the unanimously loved frames?
For me the lightweight/aero VeloBuild VB-R-268 paired with Magene EXAR Ultra wheels has been awesome so far.
May 16, 2024, 02:19:53 PM |
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Sensah Phi review - great shifters for repurposing old Shimano parts
Some impressions here on Sensah Phi. Nothing on the forum here yet (and nothing much on the internet generally) so some thoughts below. I've been rebuilding my spare/trainer bike so it's been a good opportunity to try some Aliexpress parts. I had a Shimano 5600 RD and a couple of different FDs about so I thought I'd try Sensah Phi to bring it all together with a variety of other budget 10 speed parts. As a small-handed rider, I was looking forward to repurposing Shimano's 10 speed parts without having to resort to their shifters. I've always hated the ergonomics of both the 7800/6600/5600 levers (cable out the side) and the 7900/6700/5700 so the idea of having modern ergonomic shifters that worked with older parts was appealing. The TL;DR is that these shifters pretty much do what they say on the tin. It's a version of the Sensah shifters that works with the Shimano 1.4 actuation ratio (basically everything 8/9/10 speed except Tiagra 4700 / GRX 400) I had two different front derailleurs on hand to try - 5800 (11-speed 105) and 3500 (9-speed Sora). First I tried the 5800 but it didn't feel quite right to begin with. Noting that the Sensah Phi shifter seems to be a very similar design to the 7900/6700/5700 FD (see below), I decided to try the 9 speed Sora FD - this had a better feeling right from the get-go. I'm not sure if the FD cable pull is the same as other Sensah levers.  Thoughts: Rear shifting Excellent - works nicely, easy enough to good feel to make sure you're not shifting the wrong way, action is light, no issues at all. Feels at least as good as mechanical SRAM used to. Front shifting Meh to reasonable. The actual shifting performance is okay, but it's just a weird design. The front shifter has 4 spots (so 3 clicks) - assuming it's meant to be like Shimano, there should be two spots for each ring. The difference with Shimano is, particularly for going from big ring back to small ring - you can either to the light press just to trim (one position), or do a normal press to go down to the inner ring. With the Sensah shifter you can only move down one position at a time, so you basically have to do two small taps to drop down to the inner ring. It works fine, but it's just weird. Is there any documentation or guide to what the positions of the FD are meant to be - is it meant to be like Shimano? Shifter ergonomics Great, basically the same as current Shimano mechanical. Heaps better than old Shimano levers. Adjustable brake reach is nice for me with small hands. Hoods fit nice and tight. End result  Chinese parts on this build: Sensah Phi shifters - as above Senicx PR3 cranks - needed a 1mm spacer on the NDS (not supplied) when used with a Shimano BBR-60 BSA threaded BB. Seller sent a 165mm instead of the 170mm I ordered. Shifting on the chainrings seems nice though and it's always good to have cranks that are easy to put a power meter on. YBN 10 speed chain - seems to work just fine - put it through the ultrasonic cleaner and am using Squirt drip wax on it. Sensah 10 speed cassette, 11-28 - would like to go more but that's the max the 5600 derailleur will allow. Works just fine. OG-Evkin bar tape - basically a copy of Lizard Skins, not quite as good as the real deal but not far off. The key test will be longevity though. West Biking SPD-SL pedals - surprisingly good given the price ($14 USD). Haven't tried the included cleats but action with genuine Shimano cleats feels much like Shimano. Had to disassemble to grease the axle (was totally dry) and as a result movement was very slow on unboxing but now it's greased (and the grease has had a chance to move itself around) it's been fine. Velobuild VBR-016 - bought this back in 2014 and it was my main bike from 2014-2020. Obviously it's been surpassed by many other Chinese frames since but it's still a nice bike, well constructed and easy to work with (threaded BB, easy to find headset bearings). Tyre clearance is typical of the time, 25mm at the rear is the absolute maximum. The pictured version on the site are the original finished pics of my frame. May 19, 2024, 06:29:08 AM |
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Re: Interesting Aliexpress finds! - good deals, interesting stuff, new products etc!
I was switching out my front derailleur shift cable on my gravel bike and I noticed there was some rust on it. I replaced the cable and put this rubber protector right at the end of the plastic guide tube to prevent water ingress on both the FD and RD. It can also be used with mechanical brake cables as well. https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2255800590400115.html 
May 23, 2024, 01:18:00 PM |
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Re: LTWOO ER9 & ERX - Electronic groepsets
Damn bleeding these brakes is a mess. Front brake failed to bleed multiple times. For me, it's actually quite the opposite. I have easier time bleeding the calipers, especially with the additional air port. I very much prefer L-Twoo's system compared to previous 11 speed Shimano. I haven't tried the new 12 speed system from Shimano, but I'd guess it's similar. May 23, 2024, 01:41:42 PM |
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Re: LTWOO ER9 & ERX - Electronic groepsets
My main hypothesis is that I didn't plug the cables properly into the battery, and that the vibrations from being transported in a care shook them loose. Then when I started riding, the movement caused just enough of a connection to be established so I could shift. I'd suggest either heat shrink plastic, hot glue or rubber cement. I actually didn't use any adhesive at the battery holder end for my ER9 build. I just made sure the cables were properly snug. I'm using bubble wrap packaging tied to a string to secure the battery holder inside my seat post. I just used the bubble wrap that came with the groupset. I'm wondering if this stuff makes for a better vibration insulator than using those fancy Di2 mounts? My cables on the FD/RD end are all rubber cemented in and I added coat of dielectric grease. Anyways, I've transported my bike multiple times on a car bike rack and I regularly ride on rough surface roads. Also I'm using Ebay batteries as well with no problems. May 26, 2024, 10:18:19 AM |
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Re: LTWOO ER9 & ERX - Electronic groepsets
That was a very long message to say: have you tried unplugging it and plugging it again?  You could work in IT support now, you know enough to fix 90pc of people's problems! May 26, 2024, 11:10:44 AM |
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Re: LTWOO ER9 & ERX - Electronic groepsets
Today I finished up a ride and I was cleaning my ER9 bike when it fell on the drive side knocking the rear derailleur. It was enough of an impact to bend the derailleur hanger and threw off my RD fine-tuning adjustments. I had to realign the hanger and then redo my gear fine tuning. Luckily I was able to get everything back in working order. I'm at about 13,600 shifts with the ER9. Issues I've encountered so far is jamming the chain into the cassette (dumping too many gears without pedaling) and dropping the bike on the RD (throwing off indexing). Both issues fixed. Batteries are still in working order and front/rear derailleurs shifting properly. Let's see how long my ER9 will last! 
May 27, 2024, 04:32:41 PM |
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