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Re: My N019 Build, NASA themed!
IT'S ALIVE!!!  Build notes and ride review to follow... pics first!          November 27, 2015, 01:28:50 PM |
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Re: My N019 Build, NASA themed!
Just a long term update on my N019 bike experience --in short, the bike is still running great! I've tweaked a few things over the years, namely around the stem length and drivetrain. Stem length It took a while for me to dial in the turn-in feel caused by the long fork+spacer induced rake. I adjusted the front & rear tire pressures and stem length, and I also went to a flat Ti bar. The only surprise really was the impact the rear tire pressure seems to make. Up or down a few Psi transforms the bike substantially. I expected this for the front tire pressure, but the rear tire makes a notable difference as well. I suppose it is because the rear ride height changes, hence the head angle... Drivetrain The XT/XTR 10 speed setup gave way to the Di2-ification of the rest of my bike fleet, I now run a 1x10 Di2 setup with a 6770 Ultegra rear derailleur and an XTR shifter. It works just fine with the derailleur hanger extender and a 42t cassette big ring. With a 32t oval ring up front, there’s plenty of gear going up. I’ve taken the bike almost 1000 miles and now live on the west coast, where single track is either up or down 15 degrees. Not much flat anymore, and I’ve been really impressed that, we’ll, the frame hasn’t snapped from the foolish descents I’ve taken on it. No I’m not hitting 10’ drops and ramps on it, but there have been dozens of “whoa” moments where I pondered my sanity and the structural integrity of the head tube. My greatest annoyance with the bike is the fork axle and crankset — neither of which are the frame’s fault. The drive side BB screw just loves to back out 4mi in regardless of threadlocker. Since moving west, my MTB trail vehicle is now a Porsche Boxster which while cool as heck requires removing the front wheel 2x per ride. Pulling out the 15mm Bitex axle is a pain, and I may be switching to a Mendon Cyclery Lefty fat conversion this winter. The bike is a huge collection of unique weird hacks and oddities, and I admit I enjoy the befuddled look of dudes on their cookie cutter Specializeds. Especially passing them uphill  Here’s a short compilation video featuring this project bike and the Boxster bike rack rigging. Cheers! -Robert August 02, 2020, 12:11:06 PM |
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Re: Carbonda FM 1003 / Flybike FM 1266 180mm "Super Enduro"
Here it is minus the shock. hopefully the rim decals come in soon so i can get rid of that red on there.
April 29, 2024, 11:16:14 PM |
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Re: FM-1286 out of stock, Nukeproof Dissent offered as an alternative
Any news on the build thread? Did I miss it? No, I just had a mixup with the local shop that had me waiting 3 weeks for a job that was actually done in two days, and I just got the partially built frame back a couple days ago. I’ve been looking for a good spot to take pictures — messy house with no good backgrounds, and outside is still snowy without many spots I could put a bike that doesn’t have wheels yet. Coming soon though! I’ll try to get some pics today. It’s *insane* how good this looks and I want to make sure to do it justice
March 14, 2025, 02:28:07 PM |
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Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
I have now accumulated around 1300km on these wheels. But about 50% of that was indoors, however, when there was snow and/or bad weather outside. But I've done around 500k outdoors in just these past three weeks alone on various terrain and in various conditions: Flat terrain, very hilly terrain, zero wind as well as a very windy ride with particularly strong gusts. Here are my key takeaways so far: The weight: This is the strong point of these wheels, obviously. Being so light, they feel amazing uphill. Even on slight inclines when powering over small crests I feel it is very noticeable that there is very little resistance to accelerations and the bike just feels extremely light footed in general. The stiffness: The wheels' strong point is also their weak point. Obviously, if you built a rim like this with carbon spokes, it would make for a much stiffer wheel. Sapim CX Ray-spokes aren't the stiffest to begin with. Pair this with a - probably - less stiff rim and you do feel that there is some give. They don't feel inefficient. They're definitely stiff enough for climbing out of the saddle and the occasional sprint. But if you want something with minimal flex under high power-efforts like sprinting, you might want to look elsewhere. To me, these strike a very good balance between comfort and stiffness. Durability: I'm not a light rider. My weight varies between 80 and 85kg. My FTP is usually somewhere between 300W and 350W depending on the time of the season and my training. I am not an explosive rider, more of a time trial kind of guy. I was wary of the weight limit with these and found myself nursing them down descents on bad roads at first. But I think it was all in my head. After a while you kind of just forget about it. Some of the roads in my area are really pretty broken, super bumpy, open cracks and giant potholes on descents that you have to negotiate. There's also the occasional stretches of cobbles. I've done it all on these wheels and there is no sign of them running out of true. I'm pretty confident (SO FAR) that they hold up fine. Riding dynamics and cross wind stability: To me, these are perfect allrounders and I particularly love the way these ride in hilly terrain with short steep ramps. Being a heavier rider, these really help me power over short pinches and keep my average speed high on hillier rides. The lack of inertia makes these just go uphill effortlessly. But it is also what makes it feel slightly less satisfying on the flat. It might just be in my head because the numbers do not really show them to be much slower on the flat than my 55deep wheels. But it's just the way they feel. I definitely agree that they feel more stable in cross winds. I'm a heavier rider so I don't really have much trouble with winds to begin with. But these feel particularly unaffected by cross winds. I did a ride with super strong gusts and apart from one time where the front wheel on a very fast descent got slightly upset by a wind gust, they felt literally completely unaffected. I got 60mm deep wheels on my rim brake bike which feel much worse in those kind of conditions. However, the very light weight and lack of inertia in my experience makes them feel more nervous on descents through corners and over bumps. Less weight just means less gyroscopic force, if that makes sense? So at high speeds through corners, these wheels react more nervously against steering impulses and are easier upset through bumps in the road. You do get used to it but it's noticeable. Conclusion: These are great allrounders which make for a worry free wheelset to be ridden on all kinds of terrain and in all conditions (on the road, that is). They seem very well made for the money. I'd only really advise against these if all you ever do is riding on flat terrain. That's where these just feel less exciting to ride. March 25, 2025, 03:25:00 AM |
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Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
1700k now. Lots of outdoor riding on steep pinches out of the saddle. I found them stiff enough. I also really like the hubs. They feel super smooth. The only criticism I have: The spoke tension wasn’t as uniform throughout the wheel as I would have liked. Maybe I’m picky being a wheelbuilder myself. But I corrected that and retrued the rear wheel to evenly distribute spoke tension as much as possible. April 05, 2025, 11:47:06 PM |
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Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
Any updates on how they're performing? I'm interested in getting a set for my road bike and will provide feedback for the MTB set I ordered in the MTB forum once they arrive. Friend is using these on his bike for gravel competitions. He says they are the best wheels he had. Spoke tension was perfect on mine. My friend finished top 30 is most big gravel fondos for what it's worth. So he's really bombing them offroad. June 12, 2025, 05:37:03 AM |
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Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
I was about to write a review on these. I’m hugely impressed. I’ve ridden them on lots of different types of terrain. I’ve also raced on them. I’ve ridden these for roughly 2-2.500km now. For a wheelset that light I‘m very impressed with how much of a beating they’ve taken without any issues. I’m not light. Around 85kg currently. I’m particularly impressed by the hubs. Serenade confirmed to me that they’ve switched to TPI bearings from Taiwan which allegedly also DT Swiss use in their hubs. True or not, but these are some of the smoothest spinning hubs I’ve ever had. These are the best allrounders I’ve ever had. They can do pretty much everything on a very high level. And I love how nimble and agile they feel on steep ramps. Only for purely flat riding I feel that some even deeper wheels are a bit more satisfying in how they feel and also marginally faster. June 12, 2025, 11:47:19 AM |
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Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
This seller is notoriously bad at communicating. Don’t worry. You’ll get your wheels. I waited roughly four weeks for wheels that needed to be built and shipped from China to Germany. I ordered on April 29 and they got here on May 26. But I only ever received updated when I kept asking for it. I’ve told them many times that they need to do better. June 20, 2025, 12:59:27 AM |
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Re: Carbonda CFM-1286/ DCB F200 29er DH bike
some pics through out the day.
June 24, 2025, 09:48:50 AM |
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