Interesting Aliexpress finds! - good deals, interesting stuff, new products etc!

[jonathanf2]

I have been looking at internal cable routing handlebar/stem combo and came across this bar -

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804668521773.html

The weight is scaring me off. Even with a regular alloy stem you are looking at 250gm total.

The one thing I'm starting to realize with being a weight weenie is the more weight you cut, the more durability issues you'll face. Something has to give at 150g, unless they're using some of that top tier carbon fiber that Specialized uses with their S-Works bikes.

[jonathanf2]

I know RXL has made a few drop bar duds, but I have these bars mounted on two bikes and they've been rock solid. Not the lightest, but not the heaviest though. Coming in around 220-230g depending on the size you get. They're also quite stiff and the top flat section is quite comfortable to hold.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256803093583495.html

[00Garza]

Well I'm going to have to reverse my decision on this crankset.

The drive side crank works fine, but the big problem is the 2 bolt clamping setup on the non-drive side crank arm. The design is way too fragile. Even with a low torque setting, I ended up cracking the non-drive side crank arm. This type of design is fine with alloy cranks like Shimano, but I think it would have been better to use some sort of center bolt locking setup that doesn't apply force to the carbon left crank arm.

Bummer. That was a great price point for a light carbon crank. Glad you got shipping taken care of. Thanks for sharing your experience.

[s3si1u]

Time to share my latest haul 
I have this fork on the way: https://www.ebay.com/itm/303880803441
I've been having some issues with my gravel bike (Poseidon frame with Trek fork) and finding a lower headset bearing that fits juuuust right. I'm guessing it's a replica of the Whisky No. 9 fork? I really like the look of fully external routing on the fork for a gravel bike and this was about the only affordable option I came across.

Also received this AXS carbon cage and pulley set a couple days ago: https://www.ebay.com/itm/124967134234?var=426038846323
It looked interesting so I ordered it for some cheap weight savings. I'm not sure how much (if any) of this I'll install, we'll see.

IGPSPORT IGS520 cycling computer on the way as well: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256801395069607.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.5.7a4e1802tIK8rR&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa&_randl_shipto=US
I've been eyeing the Magene C406 for a while now as it's a popular choice, but the IGS520 has navigation capability and is currently about half off so that sealed the deal.

Carbon inner cage plate is now installed on the AXS bike, looks fine so far, will ride it tomorrow. I'm skipping the oversized pulleys. A quick spin comparison in the hand against the stock pulleys asserts that they just don't spin as freely or quietly. Also, they're advertised as being 80% lighter than the stock pulleys, but they're actually heavier (stock 16g vs. these at 21g).

I've also just ordered one of these 12 speed cassettes to use on the trainer: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2255800049110907.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.5.21ef1802Nk4d8n&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa&_randl_shipto=US
Anyone have any experience with these? They're very light, hoping it's good...

[RDY]

Carbon inner cage plate is now installed on the AXS bike, looks fine so far, will ride it tomorrow. I'm skipping the oversized pulleys. A quick spin comparison in the hand against the stock pulleys asserts that they just don't spin as freely or quietly. Also, they're advertised as being 80% lighter than the stock pulleys, but they're actually heavier (stock 16g vs. these at 21g).

I've also just ordered one of these 12 speed cassettes to use on the trainer: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2255800049110907.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.5.21ef1802Nk4d8n&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa&_randl_shipto=US
Anyone have any experience with these? They're very light, hoping it's good...

Curious what you think of the carbon cage ... usually they're avoided because of later flex which causes problems.

[Crash217]

I love riding at night but I dislike spending money.  So what to do?   Been seeing a handful of internal battery light bars pop up on AliEx and Amazon (they come and go real quick from there)  over the past few months so...

Ordered this light today from the S-Wing Biking Store on AliExpress;  5200 Lumen, 8000mah internal battery w/ USB charging port.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804558555808.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.5.21ef1802D8xRpl&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa&_randl_shipto=US


Will report back when I receive it and get a chance to use it. 

I've got a cheap $15 USB powered light from amazon for the bars and a small helmet light that are adequate for most MTB speeds, but dealing with the wires on an external battery for the bike was annoying and I wanted a little more light.  I wasn't interested in spending $200-$500 on a light set up for my MTB so figured I'd try this out.

I'm curious to see it fired up next to my high end/expensive 6200Lumen 12 LED, 12" wide, 2 row light bar that I use for night time desert racing on my dirtbike.

[00Garza]

I need to stop visiting this thread lol! My Ali wishlist is getting out of hand!

[jonathanf2]

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256803606384539.html

I picked up these bar and brake end protectors from Muqzi for a bit of extra protection.

[coffeebreak]

Anyone has experience with A-Ex gloves? Need pointers. I need to rethink my glove buying strategy. Second pair of the set (Specialized) I bought on 4th July 2022 has given up today. That's $50 every 3-4 months. Not sure if that is the expected life from road gloves but to me that sounds terrible.
The first pair developed holes on index and middle finger and on the cushion of the thumb and I retired them around October. The second pair now has hole on index finger tip of left hand and is disintegrating around the rubber pads. My thought process was to not skimp on products like this (gloves, bibs, shorts etc) and always get a good name brand stuff. Now I am thinking how bad those $5-10 gloves will be off of Amazon?

[carbonazza]

Anyone has experience with A-Ex gloves?...

I tried quite a few, each time the size was kind of odd even when following their size charts.
And the finish and quality were not good.

[Crash217]

Anyone has experience with A-Ex gloves? Need pointers. I need to rethink my glove buying

I have gotten a couple pairs of cheap Amazon/aliex gloves over the years.   One was really comfy but all were sized a bit weird and very cheap.

I just use motocross gloves for road and mtb.   I can get them cheap on year end close outs and they’re generally heavier duty than most anything marketed towards bicycles.

[00Garza]

Anyone has experience with A-Ex gloves? Need pointers.

How’s your bike fit? When I was tearing through gloves I realized my fit was a bit off on my new bike causing me to grip the bars abnormally.
I’ve tried cheap gloves in the past and found it not worth the savings. Maybe quality has changed since then? It was a few years ago.

[ChrisB]

Well I'm going to have to reverse my decision on this crankset.

The drive side crank works fine, but the big problem is the 2 bolt clamping setup on the non-drive side crank arm. The design is way too fragile. Even with a low torque setting, I ended up cracking the non-drive side crank arm. This type of design is fine with alloy cranks like Shimano, but I think it would have been better to use some sort of center bolt locking setup that doesn't apply force to the carbon left crank arm.

I contacted the seller and they said they're already on vacation for the Chinese New Year until Jan. 28th, but I checked and the holiday doesn't officially start until the 21st!

https://www.chinahighlights.com/festivals/china-public-holiday.htm

I ended up submitting a return & refund request under the 15 day no questions asked return warranty. Though a work around would be to use a Shimano style non-drive side alloy crank arm and the weight difference between arms is probably less than 50g, but with a more stable clamping area.

Do you have some pictures of the damage?
I would be interested to understand the weak points of the design.
Will report my own experience in a separate post later.

BR Chris

[ChrisB]

I already use some Stone chainrings on my 1x Gravel bike.
Material and machining seem excellent and the lifetime of the rings seems much better than cheap chainrings from Zrace and others.
The weight is also lighter than the Zrace chainrings that came with the RX crankset.

The image below is for my new road project (Shimano 105/Di2 12 Speed) using a Sigeyi PM and at the moment combined RX DUB Crankset... Crankset may change if I find some nice and light carbon cranks.
Currently using the original 105 crankset until I find lighter carbon cranks, so can not tell you how well these chainrings work with 12 speed but expect no problems.



BR Chris

My plan was to create a light crankset with a Sigeyi PM and 50-34 Stone chainrings.

Following combinations:
Zrace RX4 - Sigeyi PM - Stone 50-34 chainrings: 859g
Racework N1 Carbon - Sigeyi PM - Stone 50-34 chainrings: 632g
Original 105 Di2 with Stages PM: 777g

The problem I discovered on my new Roadbike project is that the Sigeyi PM inner diameter on the drive side does rub against the T47 BB area of the frame... so had to go back to the original Shimano 105 crankset combined with my old Stages PM. So 145g heavier than with the carbon crankset.

I have installed the Zrace N1 Carbon crankset with a single 44T chainring on my Gravel bike for testing. So far I could not see the weakness on the non drive side that Jonathan reported... Will take a while until I have a chance to ride the bike outside to test if the crank is stable or not...

Here some pictures of the three crankset combinations with weight.


Shimano 105 / Di2




Racework N1 Carbon with Sigeyi PM




Zrace RX4 with Sigeyi PM



BR Chris

[jonathanf2]

I decided to keep the Racework crankset for now and found a work-around for the damaged left crank arm. The Racework axle uses the same Shimano non-drive side crank mount. I opted to use a Shimano left crank arm, though you need to use the Racework fixing bolt. The difference in weight between the Racework carbon crank arm and a Shimano crank arm is 50g (150g vs 200g) measured on my weight scale. Ultegra R8000 and 105 R7000 crank arms weigh the same as well. I also added Wolf Tooth protection crank arm stickers, which keep them looking matched.

I've attached a photo of the damage to my Racework crank arm. A crack formed by the red bolt fastener. I also opted to use the provided bottom bracket with all 3 spacers which was included with my Racework crankset. I removed my Ultegra BB, but surprisingly the bearings seem to spin well on the no name BB. Lastly I changed out my 11 speed chain to a 12 speed version and that seems to help reduce the ramping pin rub on the chainring while in the small ring.

I'm going to contact the seller again and see if they can provide another crank arm once they get back from the New Year holiday.