Quote from: Dan S. on July 13, 2026, 02:52:44 AM
Are the calipers properly bled?

I'd say yes. Braking worked perfectly for a while. After a long and steep descent the pads started rubbing. I assume due to thermal expansion of the phenolic resin pistons which made the piston stick more somehow. Since then I have the sticky piston issue. That leaves me thinking that a bad bleed is not the root cause..
In the mean time I measured the diameter of the XG4 pistons with a digital caliper which seems to be around 15.9ish mm. I found that Hope uses pistons with 16mm Diameter so maybe I could use replacement pistons from hope. Although I don't know if hope matches the diameter tolerance and if the thickness is the same..

Hi Guys, the Pistons of the Zrace XG4 which I have on my bike are not retracting properly. I cleaned and lubed them and pushed them in and out several times. Sadly it did not help. To get them properly fixed I will have to take them apart and have a look at the seals and calipers up close. Now, my concern is if I'd have to replace the seals if there even are replacement seals available on the market. Does anyone by chance know which seals I would need or what the dimensions are? Or did anyone have similar issues with those calipers and was able to solve them? I'm evaluating if it's even worth to order a tool to open the calipers or if I should replace the calipers right away.

Quote from: adam900710 on May 08, 2026, 06:14:59 PM
For those who wants to customize the paint, I think one has to find out the OEM other than contacting VOOK.

AFAIK a lot of Chinese brands are just sticking a sticker, and if they really care, do some UCI certification using the branded frame name. AKA, pretty much the same as western brands, but less attention to some details/designs.
(I hate Aethos frames that are priced 5500 AUD here, but really love the clean and clever DI2 wire exit hidden behind the FD hanger, and no Chinese Aethos clone is really copying that.)

Thus those brands will not provide any paint customization.

Some branded frames have some known OEMs that you can contact directly.

Onirii One frame with external or internal cable routing -> 朝昇碳纤维, CRF51 (owned and loved, OEM allows extra frame modification with extra fee)
Bigrock non-team version (owned) -> Failed to locate the exact OEM, but microck is selling the same frame with lower price
Avenger -> Hongfu (Not sure if Hongfu still accepts direct orders, but Avenger pricing is reaching western brands)
Permeants ST-09 -> LTK266-D-SL (owned)

Although no OEM can be found for VOOK, considering the price, I'd say it may be very close to OEM price (all above mentioned OEM prices are already over 3000RMB).
I'd be completely fine with their branding on the frame, as long as the frame is mostly black. (But again, I can never tolerate any frames without dedicated FD Di2 wiring exit, maybe until Shimano goes full wireless next gen)

I've contacted the "microck" aliexpress shop since I was also interested in their aethos clone. They sent me videos of their factory where you can see frames with microck and bigrock brand names on them. They claimed to be OEM of Bigrock. Of course the video is not final proof since it could be faked. But the fact that the geometry and looks of the microck and the sohtea is identical leaves me thinking that they share at least the same mold.

Has anyone ridden a Tarmac SL8 and an LTK266-D-SL and can give some feedback on how the LTK "feels" compared to an SL8? So far the frame ticks almost all boxes (except aero) for me.

I messaged the microck shop on aliexpress, trying to get more details. They sent me some videos from their fab where you see their microck frames and also some frames with the bigrock logo. They told me they manufacture the frames for bigrock. But I did not get helpful infos on quality and testing..

Quote from: jonathanf2 on March 30, 2026, 10:42:49 AM
580g is for XXS. Unless you're a cute 152cm, you won't be riding that size! 

The bigger sizes weigh more and seems reasonable:

Unit Weight: Frame 650g on size 44cm 690(g) on size 49cm

That frame looks like the open mold Aethos clone floating around with UDH, T47 BB and internal cable routing. The size 52cm and up should probably be in the upper 700g range non-painted and probably EPS molded with predominately round tubes. I'd probably shop around for a cheaper vendor.

So you would trust this frame? I have seen cheaper offers from other sellers, I just decided to share this shop since it seems to be the "official" one of microck..

Quote from: Dan S. on March 30, 2026, 02:54:20 AM
Oh no, the brand name is even more terrible than Bigcock.

Just a tiiny bit But at least they offer frames also without the logo.

Hi Guys I'm new to this forum. Just wanted to add my build in case it might help anyone in the future, feel free to ask questions (regarding parts, compatibility etc.).
When I made my build reading through this forum was a great help.

I modified the left lever of the Sensah Empire Pro to actuate the dropper post. The shifters are compatible with the Sensah SRX Pro rear derailleur.

List of components:

• Frame: Carbonda CFR707
• Handlebar: Carbonda CGB02 90x440
• Dropper Post: KindShock LevSi
• Brake/Shift Levers: Sensah Empire Pro 12s Hydraulic
• Derailleur: Sensah SRX Pro 12s
• Wheelset: Easedon 36x35mm Carbon Hookless with XDR Driver
• Tires: Schwalbe G One Bite 45mm
• Cassette: ZTTO XD 12s 9-46T
• Chain: Sram XX1
• Chainring: PassQuest Oval 34T
• Crankset: Sram Force Carbon
• Pedals: Shimano SPD
• Brake rotors: Shimano 180mm IceTech
• Brake Calipers: ZRace M1 XG4

Hey guys,

I'm currently looking for a lightweight road frame and stumbled onto an AliExpress seller called Microck https://microckbikes.aliexpress.com. They have an Aethos-style frame https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005010618830595.html that has the exact same geometry as the BigRock Sohtea, for a tempting price. The weight they claim is actually very close to the weight of the team edition of the Sohtea.

I contacted them trying to get more details about manufacturing and their quality. When I asked them about ISO testing and quality, they got pretty vague, but they did send over some "factory floor" videos. In the clips, you can see their unbranded frames sitting right next to finished frames with full BigRock logos. They told me they are the OEM for BigRock and that their Aethos clone is actually the same frame as the Sohtea.

My worry is whether these are actually the same layup, or if Microck is offloading B-grade batches, or using a generic open mold that looks like the Sohtea but lacks the actual internal QC BigRock (theoretically) pays for.

I'm looking for some real-world feedback here..
Has anyone actually pulled the trigger on a Microck?
Does anyone actually know who BigRock's manufacturing partner is? Is there any truth to the Microck connection?

The price is tempting, but the lightweight build doesn't leave much room for error. There isn't a lot of "meat" on these ultra-light frames to hide a bad layup. I'd rather keep my teeth than save money on a frame that might fold during a descent.

Is this a "buy at your own risk" gamble, or what do you guys think about this frame? Cheers!

Edit: sorry about posting in the wrong group. I noticed it too late, not able to move or delete this post.