That's awesome, you will be the first member of Chinertown with an IP-156, look forward to seeing your build progress. 

Did you ask for any custom paint work on your frame?

Thought I would put together a list of vendors that sell carbon frames, wheels, and other parts.  Take note that many of there Chinese companies are trading companies that sell some of the same products under different names.

http://www.XmCarbonSpeed.com/
http://www.xmiplay.com
www.carbonal.cn
www.light-bicycle.com
www.flyxii.com
www.carbonality.com
www.hongfu-bikes.com
www.dengfubikes.com
http://carbonbicycle.cc
www.carbonbike.com
http://www.ltbikes.com
http://www.gotobike.com.cn
http://www.yoeleo.com/
www.honsenbikes.com
http://www.nextie-bike.com/
http://www.asiancyclexpress.com
http://www.x-goods.com/
http://www.carbonbicycle.cc
https://www.lightcarbon.com/

Hi there! First post!

Carbon Dude I think I read somewhere where you said you were in Georgia? I live in the Auburn, Al area, do you think it would be possible for me to come give your IP-036 a test ride sometime?

Of course you're always welcome to come ride the trails here in Auburn too! We've got some sweet new trails that have been built in the last few years!!

Cheers,
Cade

Sure, no problem.  If you don't ride Eggbeaters, you'll need to bring some pedals.  I'd be glad to meet you at one of the local trails and swap bikes with you for a loop around the trail so you can get a good feel for an IP-036.  Driver's license and credit card required .

There's a really nice trail just 15 min from my house so I tend to do a lot of riding there as I can fit in a ride including driving to the trail and back in about 2 hrs.  I see Auburn, AL is about 2:25 min from here, not a terribly long trip, including the ride you might be in for a 6 hour trip out and back but hey, I'm up for it if you don't mind driving.

For my IP-056, I purchased a DT Swiss Wheelset with DT Swiss 240 hubs. The wheels were take-offs from a high end Rock Mountain element.  The XR1450 wheel set is super light but the rims are not as strong as I would like given my weight and trails conditions.  I have bent a rear rim and had to replace it.  I may replace the rims in the future with carbon hoops but for now they are working well enough but the hubs have been great, definitely would recommend them.

By far DT Swiss have been my favorite set of hubs that I've owned and here is why:
1) Tool-free serviceability.
2) Available in straight-pull spoke configuration.  The J-bend in a spoke is a weak point, I like straight pull spokes as they are generally stronger.
3)  XD freehub compatibility for SRAM XX1 11-speed cassette.
4)  Excellent durability.
5)  IMO, the star ratchet is far superior to any pawl type rear hub.
6)  The bearings are extremely high quality compared to my new set of BiTex hubs that I got with my XMIplay Carbon wheels.  With the same effort, when I spin a wheel with the bike on the work stand, the DT Swiss wheels spin up to 6X longer than the wheels with BiTex hubs, it's like the hubs have nearly zero friction.

If I were to build another set of wheels, I'd do XMIplay Carbon Hoops along with DT Swiss 350 hubs (much cheaper than the 240s hubs) and not much difference.  Another hub alternative is SRAM XO hubs, I believe they are very similar to the DT Swiss 240 or 350 hubs.



 

I think you should wear whatever helmet you feel most comfortable with while on the trail.  You should not be pressured to wear what everyone else is wearing.  If you feel a FF helmet is what you want to wear then go for it.  A FF helmet provides more protection and for a lot of trails is a great idea.  I wear a FF helmet on my motorcycle, I should probably wear one on my MTB, but I am happy with my standard Giro helmet.

The only drawback I see is the helmet does not have that many vents, it might be really hot in the summer.

I would skip the goggles though .

Would freaking love to walk up on an IP-036 at a demo day and be able to compare with other name brands. Do you mind sharing how much the bike was priced at? My guess is 6k? With SLX / X9 level components?

The company, which I'm amazed I remembered, is Ballistic Bikes:
http://ballisticbicycles.com/products-page/mountain-bikes/full-metal-jacket/

Looks like a moderate build from that company is $4,200, frame only is $1,230.  Don't care for the Camo theme they have going.