Chinese Carbon MTB Forums
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Welcome to the New Server...
If you're seeing this, you are on the new host/server. Unfortunately, approximately the last 48 hours worth of posts were lost. Sorry about that.. it was planned to be like 12 hours tops and then little unexpected things kept popping up delaying going live with the new server. Definitely a learning experience. The positive side is that Chinertown is now on a (hopefully!) faster, more reliable, modern server. The SMF version has also been updated to 2.0.19 so we will see if the broken pages, slow downs, and error messages are fixed or not. Hope this all goes well! June 17, 2025, 02:27:00 PM |
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Re: XM Carbon Speed - "Gran Tourismo" Frameset
I've finally managed to put in some decent mileage over the past few weeks, so I'm able to write a short review of the bike. This is the third bike I've built this year, so I'll mainly be comparing it with my other builds and focusing on geometry details. I had my eye on this frameset even before EuroBike, but initially crossed it off my list after running some calculations based on the geometry. However, after seeing it in person and with Peter offering me a generous discount, I couldn't resist and took the frame home. Fun fact: I even got caught in the act in this YouTube video (https://youtu.be/4aRrWVxKaZ8?t=268) by forum member zealot128 at the XMCS booth. Meeting everyone was a fun experience, and I definitely recommend visiting EuroBike. With every new bike, I try to learn a bit more about bike geometry in my quest for the perfect frame. This year, I've been mainly riding the Factor Ostro V2 in size 58, which has the same wheelbase length but a very different composition - making comparisons particularly interesting. The standout feature of the GT is its massive 422mm chainstay length. For context, the Ostro's chainstays are 14mm shorter. This gives the GT incredible stability when descending or riding over 60 km/h. On paper, you might expect this to compromise agility, but in reality, it's still very flickable and corners exceptionally well. I would even argue that it feels more playful than the Ostro. However, part of that might be due to running the GT slammed with a stack about 2cm lower than the Ostro. Climbing and going out of the saddle feel great as well. On some setups, I sometimes get out of sync when going out of the saddle, but that never happened with the GT. It feels intuitive and responds exactly as expected. As for stiffness and comfort, I honestly can't tell much difference compared to the Ostro. Nothing stands out in either direction. On the downside, the long chainstay doesn't really improve rear tire clearance, which is limited to around 35mm if you want 4mm of clearance on each side. The tire makes contact with the chainstay before the seatpost, so there's always going to be a noticeable gap. Another downside is the relatively short front end, causing toe overlap with 30C+ tires for me. It's not a huge issue, but it's something to keep in mind. The biggest personal issue for me is the slack seat tube angle (73°) combined with the setback seatpost. Even with the shortest saddle, I can't move my position as far forward as I'd like. This was initially why I crossed the bike off my list. I tried convincing myself it wouldn't be a big deal, but I remain very aware of it on every ride. This is the main reason I probably won't be happy riding this bike long-term and am already considering replacing it with the Intropy Speedster. So for anyone in Germany interested, this one may be up for sale at a heavily discounted price once I move the parts to the new build - so HMU. My build includes a mix of high-end and premium Chinese components: - SRAM E1 Red/Force XPLR 1x13 - XMCS 40/50 Wheelset with 30C GP5K STR (32C in future) - Black Inc Aero 120/380 Cockpit (custom 3D-printed bearing cover) - Leese 165mm crank with ArcRayo PM and 52T PassQuest chainring - Kinan Kore Ti Pedals - Arundle Mandible bottle cages (clones) - SLT-style headset bearings from kugellager-shop - Custom Garmin Varia 3D-printed frame mount - Rainbow Ti-bolts throughout As mentioned in previous posts, I found some "Gran Tourismo" stickers on AliExpress and also added a random Black Inc decal on the headtube that I had lying around from a wheelset to make the bike look less empty. Bonus Fact: the exact same build of the Ostro would have been 93g lighter on the GT. September 23, 2025, 05:04:05 AM |
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Re: XM Carbon Speed - "Gran Tourismo" Frameset
Interesting -- What is the saddle setback in the setup in the pictures? 100mm ish? It looks pretty close to the bottom bracket but still far from the UCI limit, and you did have to fully slam it forward on the rails to get there... I never measured the actual setback. I've been running the same saddle on the Ostro with a custom seatpost that allows -3mm setback almost all the way forward. So even with a zero-setback seatpost, I'm always going to be about 1cm short on the GT. Please note that the picture of both bikes is from yesterday, after I sold my Ostro and the saddle had already been set up for the new owner. I also want to point out that my riding position is rather extreme, so this issue is very personal. The 73° STA isn't even considered slack by today's standards. The new standard for aero bikes in size 56/58 seems to be around 73.5°, but even the current Dogma F still uses 73°. Despite the issues I had with the frameset, it was always a pleasure dealing with Peter. I also want to mention that I paid via PayPal F&F and received a partial refund a month later, with no obligation to do so. September 23, 2025, 06:51:02 AM |
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Re: ArcRayo Powermeter
I noted the delay the ARS has. No residual torque issues but it was inconsistent between zero offsets by a few % (shifting during a ride). Having said that, it was one of the better spider meters I've tested in the last few months.... although the benchmark is pretty low given the critical issues the others have.
December 29, 2025, 04:30:38 PM |
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Re: Advice on Tubular Wheelsets for Cyclocross?
Timetec offers tubular rims for a very competitive price. I've build my wheel sets for CX racing with their rims and Novatec 411/412 hubs from AliX. Timetec offers complete wheel sets with tubular rims as well. Go to their website and if you don't find what you want, I'm pretty sure they'll build you whatever you fancy. January 07, 2026, 03:12:00 AM |
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Re: Bike build
Go ahead and share everything, and include prices so we can advise on whether you are overpaying for anything.
January 19, 2026, 05:19:18 PM |
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