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Re: I Am Slowly Getting Fed Up (Crybaby Rant)
What are some popular Chinese domestic brands? I'd love to get my hands on a Pardus, Dare, or DIZO frameset... Here's the thing, if you manage to get your hands on one of these brands it's because you're buying through a shipping agent or unproven seller where your back to square one of having no support Pardus is only in the business of selling complete bikes via dealers so getting your hands on a frameset in China means working something out with your dealer (expensive) or waiting for one to pop up on Xianyu (second hand/bulk goods platform). They have some overseas dealers but only in UAE and Malaysia IIRC. People on the forums love the Super Sport (cheap but decent starter bike like BROSS) and Spark EVO. The ZGL CR41 SL2 is an internet darling WW frame that was popular a couple years back when the company (huge OEM that supposedly weaves their own carbon) was still trying to promote their own brand. The Quick Zeit Pro (aka Carbonda CFR 1056) was also pretty popular. BROSS is a new, aggressively marketed brand that was supposedly started by the Cube OEM and official China agent, but their bread and butter is super inexpensive partial 105 endurance geo complete bikes rather than anything high end or racey. The mid range complete race bike segment is dominated by Giant and Merida. People like to recommend SCOM, UP-VINE and Weir (eponymous brand of a prominent LBS in Nanjing) for wheels. Farsports was actually in hot water for having super rude customer service in China but quite a lot of people do ride their in-house brand (not Wheelsfar). Winspace was also embroiled in forum controversy when they swapped parts without notice (Sapim spokes to Pillar due to shortage) so their reputation has basically plummeted. SEKA is slowly and steadily gaining in popularity for custom frameset builds while EXS is easily the most legit high end component brand. My personal favorites: Elilee (really nice frames, OSPWs & upcoming crankset, paint done by CarbonExpert), EXS (aims for the absolute best stiffness-to-weight in their products, makes cockpits, wheelsets and has an upcoming crankset IIRC), Pardus (proper in-house brand from a huge OEM), Caffeine Frameworks (custom steel framebuilder who experiments a lot with carbon, paint done by Unice Colorworks), CarbonExpert (carbon repair & painting), Kong 2 Studio (best custom painter in China IMO), Incolor (painting, crankset), Voicevelo/Voice for Victory (XC MTB frames, cockpits, seatposts, wheels), Builder Reserve (custom wheelbuilder), Trigon (OEM of Pinarello MOST & Shimano PRO cockpit components, their new AR01 frame is seriously cool), BLKTEC (cockpits and wheels, OEM is Trigon), HSCER (ceramic BBs), RCRACE (super boutique cassettes & TCR Adv SL ISP clamps), 0011 Cycle (hubs), Niuju (custom 3D printed headset covers for cable routing e.g. adapting Venge/SL7 stems onto Cannondales), S-PARTS (Ti screws) and Slipstream Cycling (clothing). June 20, 2022, 12:39:58 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: ICAN triaero A9
Have pulled the trigger and ordered ICAN A9 frame. The communication with Peggy was very nice, he could answer all my questions. Ordered shipping to be scheduled on specific date. All in all with black friday discount was 1002 USD incuding shipping to Germany. I will post here the pictures what I will get and hopefully the complete build. December 03, 2022, 03:01:07 AM |
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Re: Workswell WCB-R-306 Disc Brake - Who Sells It?
Girs bicycles is selling the 306 also. It's a French company. What I've seen from the webpage their price is kind of fair. 1399? Still more than you pay at Workswell probably but for that you get also warranty conditions and a direct contact in Europe. February 21, 2023, 12:56:13 PM |
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Re: ICAN triaero A9
I strongly advise you not to buy the integrated handlebar model HB017 but HB21 because it is not possible to tighten well and there is always a little slack,while with the HB21 model, once tightened it doesn't move anymore.
May 05, 2023, 05:41:25 AM |
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Re: Yishunbike R1058-D
I generally like the geometry of this one. However, I would like it better if there was higher offset fork option or even better if they made the fork with multiple inserts so the could vary the offset/rake across the size range from 45-50mm
June 04, 2023, 02:50:02 PM |
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Re: Yishunbike R1058-D
If they OEM for Ribble does that mean they could potentially create the same frame+handlebars as the Ribble Ultra SL R?
June 05, 2023, 09:21:52 PM |
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Re: LTWOO ER9 & ERX - Electronic groepsets
https://chinapatentstrategy.com/china-top-50-case-of-2019-how-a-functional-feature-is-construed-greatly-impacts-protection-scope-shimano-kk-v-sensah/ Good to know. It is interesting that ChinaCycling started the PandaPodium website. It is a big move for the cycling industry, but he might end up being sued for reselling these products. I might try the electronic groupset one day. Buy it, before it's removed from the market lololol. June 07, 2023, 02:18:50 AM |
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Re: LTWOO ER9 & ERX - Electronic groepsets
If you spec the ERX version to pair with Shimano Ultegra-level components (crank, chain, cassette, rotors) you are looking at around $1500 which is still cheaper than a complete 105 Di2 yet much lighter. GC Performance latest video shows the ERX being comparable in weight to Sram eTap Red. And in general, Di2 is lighter than eTap. June 08, 2023, 09:37:22 AM |
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Re: LTWOO ER9 & ERX - Electronic groepsets
If you spec the ERX version to pair with Shimano Ultegra-level components (crank, chain, cassette, rotors) you are looking at around $1500 which is still cheaper than a complete 105 Di2 yet much lighter. I dunno about retail prices in the US. I can get a full 105 Di2 group for 1100 EUR in Europe. A Sram Rival AXS upgrade kit can actually be had for less than the LTWOO kit. So unless this comes down further in price, I would not take the chance. June 09, 2023, 12:11:25 AM |
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