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Re: VeloBuild Headset Play Issue Using Separate Stem/Handlebar: Resolved.
I also posted this in the VB-177 thread. Figured a brand new topic/thread would better raise awareness. Thank you Patliean1 for all the troubleshooting and your detailed assessment. We have been working on resolving the headset play issue some customers with the separate bar/stem combo have experienced and are happy to announce that the issue has been resolved by increasing the thickness of the C shaped bearing press by 0.5mm. All shipments since April have been sent with the new bearing press and we have also sent it to existing customers that have been affected and it has resolved their issues. If you have the separate handlebar/stem and are experiencing this issue please contact us for a new C shaped bearing press by email at info@velobuild.com New customer orders of the separate handlebar/stem will also include split spacers. May 13, 2022, 08:44:14 PM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-168 Frame
I ordered my R-168 in early May, received it mid May, built it up early June. 95% of the parts are from my old parts bin. Shimano RS 685 Mechanical shifters and calipers Shimano R7000 drivetrain Ali special carbon seat Ali special BB86 screw together with bearings changed out for NTN6805 Fulcrum Racing 400DB Innova Facemiles Build was relatively straight forward, used one foam tubing to house the 2 cables and hydro hose in the frame, easier than using seperate or cable ties, no rattle. I did have a small issue on the headset stem not compressing enough. I ghetto'd a 30mm ID 2mm washer and cut 80* out of it, sits on top of angled compression washer supplied and does not move and all 4 cables and hoses fit nicely through. Overall not bad, no defects noted. Only one small gripe is the amount of toe overlap on this 52cm frame. June 20, 2022, 07:39:51 AM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-168 Frame
I'm tempted to build a 168 (or 218) to test the stability claims versus the 177. Too many aero bikes in the collection at the moment... June 22, 2022, 08:20:02 AM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-168 Frame
My 168 raked more than 9000km outdoor and indoor now. No issues other than creaking headset. And recently, I've tried to change its attitude. And it worked! Here it is. Conti Terra Speed 650x35B on Hunt Adventure Sport wheels. September 02, 2022, 06:52:01 AM |
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TT-X34 Build/Ride First ~250 mile impression
Hey guys, bought the tantan x34 which looks like a trek madone, different seat post and handlebar setup. Some of you guys may consider this an endurance geometry, but im 6'7 and I need 600+ stack and 600+ reach, this is about as aero as I can comfortably go. So here's the review. There's 4 things I'd like to talk about, three are important, one is a nuisance. 1. The seat post is so wide/thick, it won't fit into my clamp-style maintenance stand. I have a stand like the PRS 3.3-1, same exact clamping mechanism. The top tube and seat tube are likely not going to fit either, but I never would try those two personally because its not meant to be used like that. 2. Because the seat post didn't fit I laid the frame on top of the clamping mechanism with towels but during installation they shifted, causing the aluminum to meet the carbon and rub, which hurt the paint job/chipped it, and so forth. Now on a more expensive name-brand frame the paint job is likely going to be better and not have this happen, but this paint job looks solid, but it's not that durable. I hit it lightly with an Allen wrench by mistake moving the wrench from a chair to the handlebar area to tighten it and I chipped the top tubes paint. 3. The front derailleur is slightly misaligned, at least on mine and in my experience. I don't know if mines just a defect. Its probably not an issue if you run mechanical because boomaye on here ran ultegra on the dengfu r12, which I had/have (broken). I, on the other hand, with force etap axs have to use an angled spacer. https://osymetricusa.3dcartstores.com/ANGLED-WEDGE-SPACER_p_47.html 4. The seat post has been slipping, ive been 5+ miles from home where it's slipped down to the bottom and I look like an idiot riding it. The way I remedied this is by putting scotch tape (masking/tan tape) in-between the wedge and the seat post, the sticky part is against the wedge. This can be because the wedge isn't rough, its smooth so there isn't a lot of friction to help it, or the seapost/frame isn't properly made, but the little hack I talked about has been working for the last 100-150 miles without flaw. The seat post also comes with that sandpaper-type thing glued/built into it, but doesn't change the fact it slips. been torqued to spec (6 nm, assuming 6 is the proper tightness, don't feel like trying higher) and with carbon paste. The handlebar/cockpit setup is just like the dengfu r12, in fact I think the handlebar is from the same exact supplier, nothing proprietary about it. If I needed I could use a spacer from my r12 on here, but I don't need to. Overall though, bikes held up, it's extremely twitchy, disc brakes line up fine, nothing else to really talk about. Any questions feel free to comment. September 15, 2022, 01:41:48 PM |
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Re: TT-X34 Build/Ride First ~250 mile impression
I been looking at this frame or TT-X33. Just curious where did you buy your frame through Tantan website or Alix? Went through tantan directly but they had me pay through their alibaba store sending me a link. Which is weird, i did PP through alibaba, but it surprises me they did alibaba, because id assume they get a cut of the $850 or whatever i spent. September 17, 2022, 07:04:14 PM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-168 Frame
ordered last week, arrived today with rims from a seller on here at the same time 56 frame separate stem/bar if i need to switch things up building up with a combination of sensah empire pro 11sp, campy cranks from my other bike, some sram and shimano bits and pieces ( I have no brand loyalty lol) September 26, 2022, 03:52:26 PM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-168 Frame
Finished build (parts bin / new mix): https://imgur.com/a/DBR12Pr Size 52 frame matte black Stock 120mm stem Stock headset cover The One handlebar 36cm Ultegra 8020 shifters Jagwire cables and housing 105 hydraulic calipers Dura ace crankset Ultegra left side crank pm Look carbon pedals Token threaded BB Rotor 53/39 chainrings with Rotor bolt covers Dura ace fd Ultegra rd Pro Stealth saddle DT Swiss Arc 1100 62mm wheels GP5000 S TR tires 25mm MT800 / Ultegra rotors 160/140 Zipp CX bar tape Generic stem bolt Garmin mount from Amazon First impressions after 3 rides (155 miles) It is strange to review a frame like this. Its a you-get-what-you-get direct-from-an-unknown-manufacturer frameset that costs so little relative to even entry level name brand frames that intuition dictates it should be, in the best case scenario, "acceptable", more likely some degree of "sketchy, problematic and/or vaguely frightening to ride"; unlikely that it would be "good". On the other hand, this is an SL7 in its tube shapes and geometry - the benchmark for a great all-round race bike - with a better bottom bracket (imo), more flexible headset out of the box, and 100-200 grams of extra weight (vs. standard and S-Works, respectively). How should we assess the things we generally assume occur with name brand frames (like QC and strict conformance to the claimed carbon fiber layup) that might (?) be commercially infeasible at this price point? I have ridden thousands of miles on a Tarmac SL6 sport frame (which was cannibalized for this build) and a Canyon Aeroad CFR. Building up and riding this frame leads me to consider what the frame itself really contributes to the entire bicycle. Geometry and the resulting fit is the most important contribution. Second is aerodynamics of the frame and tube shapes. Third is frame material / layup (i.e., desired level of stiffness or compliance in the right areas for the intended uses of the bicycle). Last is weight. Ride feel, feedback, and comfort are dictated mostly by the contact points, with only a marginal contribution from the frame. Tire width, pressure, and casing suppleness alone dwarf any differences in "compliance" between any reasonably stiff frames. In the most important characteristics - geometry and aerodynamics - this bike effectively is an SL7. All the superlatives about handling and speed apply. If you are looking for an all-around race bike, this will fill that need. The weight difference is quantifiable - materially heavier, though within the margin of difference made by a lighter seatpost, saddle and other finishing kit. Frame layup and construction is harder to assess without cutting open the frame. From a visual inspection, it looks clean. From my initial ride impressions, the bottom bracket is stiffer than my SL6 - power transfer feels immediate, comparable to the Aeroad. The fork does not flex when climbing or sprinting. The stock stem combined with The One handlebar feels extremely stiff, but still has the vibration damping I would expect from a carbon bar and stem. Against my expectations, the bike feels exceptionally good. Whether that means that my specific frame has a good layup, or the carbon layup for this copy is comparable to the SL7, or it means that the layup, so long as its solidly made and not defective, doesn't have much noticeable impact, I don't know. Maybe there is some hidden defect that will emerge in the form of a crack or failure after a few thousand miles, but I'm not sure what that would be. And I'm skeptical there is necessarily a higher chance of happening with this frame versus a name brand. My Aeroad spent three months at a Canyon service center to fix two separate design flaws, one of which (the seatpost) wasn't really corrected. I love this bike. This experience leaves me conflicted. Does this mean that an S-Works Tarmac frame would be that much better? What this does leave me wanting is a Velobuild Premier version of this frame: pay double for an 800g version of the frame with an extra QC cert for peace of mind. I would feel better throwing DA di2 on that and doing a sub 7kg build. The benefits of the S-Works without the dentist meme branding or the anxiety of laying down a $5.5k frame in an office park crit. Maybe I'm just describing winspace, yoeleo, et al. I will reiterate - maybe I got lucky, and the median frame is missing parts, has holes drilled off center and is full of voids in the carbon. Maybe carbon frame manufacturing has so matured that the default level of quality is high enough that the differences between frames are almost entirely geometry and branding, with the result that the carbon frame is the new carbon wheel. YMMV. Build experience Internal routing: more work with mechanical shifting but doable without any special tools. Just takes time and patience. Routing through The One handlebar was painless, I highly recommend it from that standpoint. I was concerned with the cable angles through the stem, but the shifting is smooth. The clean look is satisfying and worth the extra effort. It seems popular around here to do mechanical disc brakes, but I wouldn't put brake cables through this stem. Headset: it works. I read some reviews on this forum that suggested problems with headset play, but I have none at all. Maybe this has since been fixed. I purchased an FSA ACR headset assuming I would use that instead, but it left a large gap with the top of the headtube, and I ended up liking the look of the stock stem and the lower stack of the stock headset cover more anyway. Bottom bracket shell: nicely finished, no problems fitting the thread together bb. Stiff and smooth spinning, but will need a few thousand miles to assess for creaking, etc. Disc brake mounts: did not appear to need facing, no more annoying to align rotors than any other frame (i.e., very annoying but works with some fiddling). November 06, 2022, 08:50:16 PM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-168 Frame
December 13, 2022, 05:22:51 AM |
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Re: Velobuild VB-R-168 Frame
Hello. I order my frame on October 2022. After that I order the other components, some new some second hand (groupset). Order from Velobuild was easy and fast. I didn't have any questions because I get all informations from topic here or YT. This was my first build, I do all by myself.  Frame size is 56, handlebar is integrated also from Velobuild. Wheelset is Elite Ent-disc 60, groupset is one of the best mechanical Shimano Ultegra R8020, with R7100 crankset. In front 50/34 and at back 11/30 (of course 11 speed). At my old bicycle (Giant Propel Advanced 2 2017) I run 52/36 and 11/28, but for this I want a bit easier gears.  Here are pictures (without bar tape, now I wrap Supacaz black with white stars). Sorry for bad english.  March 04, 2023, 12:56:50 PM |
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