Has anyone confirmed that this frame really gives 120mm of rear travel when using a 190x45 shock?

Is this the same frame that Airwolf has been selling? https://www.diycarbonbikes.com/collections/fullsuspensionframes/products/dcb-fxu120-specialized-epic-evo-style-carbon-frame-29er-120mm-udh?variant=40832375881808

Any chance this is a better version, or is the DIY guy just acting as a domestic reseller? If it has better/reliable hardware and the actual stated rear travel (110mm with 190x45 shock) then I'm interested. I suspect it's just the same thing but sold at a premium due to it being a US seller (perhaps less sketchy than dealing with Chinese factory).

Heads up -- the bolts/hardware provided by Airwolf on the frame I purchased this time last year are garbage. I managed to get one replacement bolt after some push back and now I have a request for more. See attached photos. This has caused lots of noises and some trips to bike shops when I finally gave up (I'm not the best mechanic but I try first).

The hardware set for Specialized Epic Evo are incompatible so it's either get more (crappy?) hardware from Airwolf or machine your own, right? Or is there another possible solution here? I guess sometimes you get what you pay for, and this is part of the DIY adventure? Good times!

I have had a creak with this frame for months. After re-installing the bottom bracket twice with lots of grease and greasing the linkage bolts it still persists. The main linkage bearings are crunchy already but they seem to be impossible to remove (as if they're glued in). I ended up breaking the bolt that attached the rear shock (see photo). I contacted Airwolf about this and they told me that the bearings should not be removed and that a replacement bolt for the rear shock mount would be $25. I am unable to get the replacement bolt from a local Specialized shop, the only remedy seems to be purchasing a complete hardware kit (https://www.performancebike.com/specialized-epic-evo-suspension-pivot-bolt-kit-black-s200500003/p1237090?gad_source=1)

Overall my experience with this frame and Airwolf has been much worse than expected. The first time I built a bike using a Chinese frame I had great luck, this time the poor quality control has made me rethink ever doing this again.

For those of you who have replaced the bearings in this frame, how did you get them out? My friend who has a bearing extractor tried to help me do that yesterday and we gave up after going at it hard on the lower pivot linkage. I didn't want to stress the carbon further (it's a tool that uses percussive force to pop it out) and figured I should just leave well enough alone and it's good enough for a recreational rider like me even though the bearings feel rough already after riding it for only a month.

Because of a creaking noise that wouldn't go away after re-doing the bottom bracket and seat post (One Up service) we also took apart the upper linkage that attaches to the shock. We only found bushings there whereas I was expecting to find bearings. Was I mistaken about there being bearings in there? Previous advice from this thread indicated that there would be bearings. There was one juncture of the upper linkage we didn't disassemble so maybe that's where the actual bearings mentioned are located.

I've ridden a Tantan/Seraph FM078 for almost three years with good luck so far. I'm lightweight and don't ride too rowdy, but I ride a lot and the FM078 has held up just fine.

Quote from: riaan on March 07, 2024, 10:31:19 AM
Hi guys , any idea of quality of the tan tan mtb bikes. Are they on par or better than the other manufacturers . ( hongfu / lightcarbon /carbondo ) type brands. I saw the bigger bikes come with 2 bottle mounts. My favourite so far for xcm is fm138hongfu and fm121 tantan. Would like your opinions please.

Can anyone provide a source for replacement hardware for the frame pivot points? I've been riding my build of this frame for a couple of weeks now and I can't find where it's squawking, the noise is driving me nuts. I've read that you might need to check and/or replace the hardware on these Chinese frames for safety so that's what I intend to do and hopefully, it'll eliminate the creaking sounds. The shock mounting bolts already show signs of rust so I should probably replace those as well for peace of mind. Also, how can I determine the torque settings to use? I'm not confident about any info I might get from Airwolf, but I guess that's part of this adventure.

I have used these for three years with no complaints: https://www.ebay.com/itm/266356554380?var=566176299620

I recently bought a wheelset for a new bike I built. The wheels have DT240 hubs but I'm very suspicious they're knock-offs. Here's what I ordered: https://www.ebay.com/itm/225762245586. If they weren't so loud these would be perfect, and I have no complaints overall.

The loud, buzzing noise while coasting is unbearable. It seems that quietening them by adding grease is tedious and doesn't work that well anyway. I want a hub that's just quiet and doesn't require more than normal/routine service.

It might be cheaper to order a new wheel than trying to rebuild my wheel with a different hub. Can anyone make a recommendation? I have another cheap carbon wheelset that used DT350 hubs, and I think these are probably legit (from BTLOS). Maybe those are the sweet spot for me in terms of getting a reasonably quiet hub which is low/easy maintenance. Who sells a good/legit DT350 wheel I can use as a replacement? Should I just cut to the chase and go back to BTLOS after learning my lesson?

Thanks in advance for your advice or suggestions.

Here is the finished build, photo from my first ride.

I cut my chain too short, then when a friend was helping me install the derailleur we couldn't get the B-screw adjustment right, and instead of realizing that the chain was too short causing the problem we assumed it was still too long and cut out another couple of links. Yes, we're amateurs.

How can I avoid doing that again? I followed a Park Tool video on how to size the chain, but maybe this frame needs a little different approach to find the right chain length. I have the large size of this frame and I'm using a 30T chainring with a 10-51 cassette (Shimano XT 12-speed drivetrain) -- how many links do I need to remove from a fresh 126-link chain?

Another chain-related question -- when the chain is on the largest cog the chain line looks to be at its limit, too far really. I might need to use a spacer between my hub and my cassette to bring it out. Did anyone else need to do this to get a reasonably straight chain line toward the larger cogs (inner cogs) of the cassette? I'm using a new DT Swiss 240S hub with Shimano XT cassette.

BTW the derailleur hanger shipped with my frame was wonky and needed to be bent quite a bit. So if you're like me and can't get your derailleur to work as expected then try checking that. Am I likely to get a better result right out of the box with an official SRAM UDH (vs the Airwolf part), or is this maybe because the frame is not square at the dropout and I'll need to do this again if I ever get a new derailleur hanger?

Has anyone put any rubber foam around the cables to prevent rattle? I've had to do that on my previous bike and it was possible to MacGuiver it with some Nerf gun bullets, but the holes are so tight on this frame, and in such precarious spots, that it seems using that approach might be impossible. Is it something to worry about?

Maybe by accessing the cables via the headtube and/or bottom bracket I can just stuff it with something that'll keep everything from banging around? Or is that just asking for more headaches later? All it'd take is just a little bit of balled-up newspaper etc.

A second opinion from another bike shop mechanic has me less worried about the frame's quality. I'm keeping it and forging ahead.

I have the cables internally routed now which was a bitch. It required taking the linkage bolt out at the bottom for more clearance. I added a drop of Loctite to the bolt when I put it back on but there are no torque-setting indicators so I just went really tight by hand. If anyone knows the right torque for this bolt then please advise. How would someone work that out, or does it matter too much as long as it's reasonably tight?

Airwolf advised me that the shock mounting hardware they'd send would work for my shock, but it doesn't -- you need a 8x20 and 8x14 kits from Rockshox. I anticipated this, which is why I asked so I could get ahead of it, but to no avail. Had I known this, or at least the correct dimensions, I could have saved myself some waiting around by pre-ordering the parts. On that note here's something that may save someone else some time -- if you're using a Rockshox Select+ 190x4*, which is a typical shock to pair with this frame, then you'll need these two Rockshox mounting hardware kits:

8x14 part# 11.4118.091.800
8x20 part# 11.4118.091.806

Where I live most shops don't stock any mounting kits so everyone has to order, and since they all use the same distributor it's mostly a waiting game if one is on backorder, as is the 8x14 kit now. Luckily I found one on eBay, fingers crossed it'll be here next week.

The adventure has begun.

I contacted Airwolf asking which mounting kit I should order for the shock I'll use (Rockshox Select+), and they assured me all the proper parts were included. But it turns out they aren't fitting so I went to a shop to find an appropriate kit.

While I was there they pointed out a few quality control issues with my frame that have me a bit concerned, and I wonder what others might think.

- The rear dropout holes aren't perfectly round, looks like someone went to town with a router a little too outside the line.

- The headtube where the headset cups go in is a bit off, not as exactly even as it probably should be. Looks like a sketchy layup.

- The bottom bracket threads are rough and should probably be finished again before inserting the bottom bracket.

I will follow up with photos later if there's any interest, but for now, I wonder how much further I should go with this build. My mechanic who spotted all this is solid and not just trying to steer me to another frame. I'm not completely against keeping it and moving ahead if I can get over these issues on my own, but it's discouraging after waiting so long and finally having the frame in my hands. Otherwise, the frame seems perfectly legit and if these issues weren't present I'd feel confident bombing down all my normal hills on it (I'm old and skinny, don't go hard, I'll never break a typical XC frame).

I'm pretty suspect at this point.

Yes, you're right. According to the product page, they all go into the same hole. I should have checked that before posting here. Seems like they'll be too bunched up, but I guess it works fine. Let's see how it goes!