Velobuild AERO GRAV Frame

[BikerJens]

Just order my frame, size XL with integrated bar. Quite tall (200cm) so had to discuss the sizing with my bike fiter. Compared to my roadbike it's quite a long and low frame, but with some extra spacers for the front that Chris kindly included we did the math and should be fine. Maybe not the most aestetic front but when you are literally several meters tall usually not how it goes anyway haha. Does anyone know if it's possible to leave some extra fork above the bar or it needs to be cut to size to be rideable?

I'm going to build it out with a 1x front and Eagle Transmission RD, paired with Rival shifters and calipers. Still deciding on chainring (probably alugear) and cassette (probably an ali one, yet to decide).

If I've done the math right for chainline a DUB wide crankset and DUB T47 BB should pair nicely. However, the sram DUB T47 BB is marked as 85.5mm wide, not 86,5. Does this still work?

Also, for future reference, according to Chris all frames are now supplied with 1.0 pitch rear axle by default.

Thanks a lot in advance,

Fellow 200 cm tall man here. I used the three spacers that standard came with the frame, there was not much of the fork left to cut! I can measure when I get home - think I have the piece I cut off still laying around.

I'm no bike build expert, but as I see it you can't leave extra fork. At least not with the handlebar and spacers I got along with it.

What are you riding normally? I don't think it's low compared to what I've else tried. It's close to the same as my Merida Reacto and higher then the Giant TCR I had before.

[jo1673]

Got mine built up this weekend and did two "test rides"  of ~65 km each. Was in a hurry, so didn't bleed the brakes, but that didn't matter much.

Mine is a size M with 110 mm stem. I left the smallest spacer underneath the stem. Built the bike with SRAM Rival XPLR E1, Senicx PR2 crankset, Elitewheels Aero Gravel wheels, Ullicyc handlebars and Ryet saddle. Thunder Burt 2.1" tires, Onirii silicone bar tape.





Weight is ~8.2 kg with pedals, but possibly without bottle cages, can't quite remember ...

The ride is so good! I just want to send it literally all the time, so my legs were quite cooked sunday evening. The bike is very stable, and the big tires is like a cheat code on washboard gravel, yet surprisingly nimble and it turns like the above poster said, like it's on rails. E1 levers are really nice and the handlebar offered nice ergonomics.

Building went surprisingly well, given this was my first foray into building with hydraulic brakes and full internal routing. There were lots of overspray on the brake mounts, so I had to file them down quite a lot. I ordered both seatpost just in case, but I am using the zero setback one. The hole which the entire clamping assembly goes into is conical, bot not entirely clean, so everything did not come together cleanly the first five times I tried to adjust the saddle tilt or change saddle. I filed down some excess material and mounted the clamp with a thin layer of grease, and no problems after that.

[thetallone]

Fellow 200 cm tall man here. I used the three spacers that standard came with the frame, there was not much of the fork left to cut! I can measure when I get home - think I have the piece I cut off still laying around.

I'm no bike build expert, but as I see it you can't leave extra fork. At least not with the handlebar and spacers I got along with it.

What are you riding normally? I don't think it's low compared to what I've else tried. It's close to the same as my Merida Reacto and higher then the Giant TCR I had before.

That’s good to hear! My road bike is a BMC roadmachine, which is a bit taller and not as long. But of course no huge differences but it’s about 25mm lower in stack. But of course depending a bit on stem, handlebar etc too. I think it’ll be fine but probably not slammed stem haha.

Thanks a lot.

Yes the Sram dub t47 bb does work, i thought the same and was going to get the rotor one which specifies 85.5 and 86.5 but the local mechanic said it was not an issue.

I have the SRAM one fitted with the sram wide crankset and it works great.

Thanks for confirming, then I’ll put in the order for that!

[BikerJens]

That’s good to hear! My road bike is a BMC roadmachine, which is a bit taller and not as long. But of course no huge differences but it’s about 25mm lower in stack. But of course depending a bit on stem, handlebar etc too. I think it’ll be fine but probably not slammed stem haha.

Thanks a lot.

Thanks for confirming, then I’ll put in the order for that!

I cut off 21 mm. I don’t know how many spacer you ordered, but that’s the max it can go beside the 3 standards

[thetallone]

I cut off 21 mm. I don’t know how many spacer you ordered, but that’s the max it can go beside the 3 standards

Should be more than enough! I think the standard kit is 15+10+5. I got an extra set but according to my calculations won’t need all. We'll see when I go to get it fited!

Thanks a lot.

[Unknownftp]

Got mine built up this weekend and did two "test rides"  of ~65 km each. Was in a hurry, so didn't bleed the brakes, but that didn't matter much.

Mine is a size M with 110 mm stem. I left the smallest spacer underneath the stem. Built the bike with SRAM Rival XPLR E1, Senicx PR2 crankset, Elitewheels Aero Gravel wheels, Ullicyc handlebars and Ryet saddle. Thunder Burt 2.1" tires, Onirii silicone bar tape.

Weight is ~8.2 kg with pedals, but possibly without bottle cages, can't quite remember ...

What size chainring and are you getting any rubbing on your 2.1's. Mine seems to be blowing up a bit wide so was getting some rubbing

[jo1673]

What size chainring and are you getting any rubbing on your 2.1's. Mine seems to be blowing up a bit wide so was getting some rubbing

44t pass quest chainring. No rubbing, even on the ridiculously wide Elite aero gravel wheels, but clearance isn't great between the chainstays. I'm not too concerned if I some rubbing should occur from time to time, but I don't expect it as these wheels are very stiff laterally due to the large cross-section.

I only used the 1 mm spacer on the drive side of my Senicx crankset. There's a 3 mm spacer included, I might install that instead to improve the chainline slightly.

[Requiem84]

The rear is really narrow re clearance. A 50mm tire blowing up to 52WAM is the full full maximum. You really can’t go any wider on the rear.

I doubt if Western brands could have sold this as ‘50mm clearance’ based on ISO standards. I believe the minimum required clearance under ISO is 6mm each side, which this frame certainly won’t have with 50 WAM tires.

Front is fine though.

[Edopizzo]

Got mine built up this weekend and did two "test rides"  of ~65 km each. Was in a hurry, so didn't bleed the brakes, but that didn't matter much.

Mine is a size M with 110 mm stem. I left the smallest spacer underneath the stem. Built the bike with SRAM Rival XPLR E1, Senicx PR2 crankset, Elitewheels Aero Gravel wheels, Ullicyc handlebars and Ryet saddle. Thunder Burt 2.1" tires, Onirii silicone bar tape.





Weight is ~8.2 kg with pedals, but possibly without bottle cages, can't quite remember ...

The ride is so good! I just want to send it literally all the time, so my legs were quite cooked sunday evening. The bike is very stable, and the big tires is like a cheat code on washboard gravel, yet surprisingly nimble and it turns like the above poster said, like it's on rails. E1 levers are really nice and the handlebar offered nice ergonomics.

Building went surprisingly well, given this was my first foray into building with hydraulic brakes and full internal routing. There were lots of overspray on the brake mounts, so I had to file them down quite a lot. I ordered both seatpost just in case, but I am using the zero setback one. The hole which the entire clamping assembly goes into is conical, bot not entirely clean, so everything did not come together cleanly the first five times I tried to adjust the saddle tilt or change saddle. I filed down some excess material and mounted the clamp with a thin layer of grease, and no problems after that.

Which Ullicyc bars are those? I was looking at a set with grooves on the underside to route cables. Are they stiff? Any worries on the interface with the stem due to the grooves? Thanks

[jo1673]

Which Ullicyc bars are those? I was looking at a set with grooves on the underside to route cables. Are they stiff? Any worries on the interface with the stem due to the grooves? Thanks

These are the Zipp SL 80 race clones, with groove on the underside. The whole front end of the bike feels nice and stiff, but I haven't tested it with other bars and these bars are actually a tad wider than what I'm used to (36 at the hoods), so it doesn't feel too stiff either.

No issues with routing hydraulic hoses, but I needed an extra set of hands for installing the bars. I'm on SRAM AXS, so no need to route anything more. Unsure whether that would've been problematic.

[awinner]

These are the Zipp SL 80 race clones, with groove on the underside. The whole front end of the bike feels nice and stiff, but I haven't tested it with other bars and these bars are actually a tad wider than what I'm used to (36 at the hoods), so it doesn't feel too stiff either.

No issues with routing hydraulic hoses, but I needed an extra set of hands for installing the bars. I'm on SRAM AXS, so no need to route anything more. Unsure whether that would've been problematic.

What have you done with the di2 holes for the RD and FD? I havent done anything but feel i should.

[jo1673]

What have you done with the di2 holes for the RD and FD? I havent done anything but feel i should.

I haven't bothered to do anything about them, honestly. Hurried the build a bit when I had all the parts to get in some riding before riding conditions become to wet and cold ...

I did however order a bunch of black nylon bolts for all of the mounting points that I'm not using, as the stock silver ones makes the bike look kind of cheap.

[awinner]

I haven't bothered to do anything about them, honestly. Hurried the build a bit when I had all the parts to get in some riding before riding conditions become to wet and cold ...

I did however order a bunch of black nylon bolts for all of the mounting points that I'm not using, as the stock silver ones makes the bike look kind of cheap.

Yeah i thought the stock silver ones looked cheap too, i have replaced them with Ti Oil slick.

[pavlo.k]

how much torque do you have on the top cap(headset preload) bolt? I had to crank it up quite a bit just to get rid of the play while rocking the bike back and forth but i can still feel some play under heavy braking.
The original compression ring is aluminum, very thick and probably requires a lot of force to compress. I feel like at this point the torque is already beyond of what I would consider acceptable. 

[ricchirock]

how much torque do you have on the top cap(headset preload) bolt? I had to crank it up quite a bit just to get rid of the play while rocking the bike back and forth but i can still feel some play under heavy braking.
The original compression ring is aluminum, very thick and probably requires a lot of force to compress. I feel like at this point the torque is already beyond of what I would consider acceptable.

I found difficult to put on place bearings when assembling the headset, like the housing was too tight. It could be the same on your case, that bearings are not well placed.