Velobuild VB-R-218

[Sebastian]

For the freehub, do you guys put any lubricant on the hub before adding cassette or just add cassette & then anti-seize lube to threads on lockring ?

Never. And I don't see why you should, at least with aluminium freehubs. If the cassette is hard to get off, it's usually because of cassette bite. Grease will do nothing to alleviate that problem. Campagnolo freehubs have taller splines however and cassette bite is much less of an issue.

[madmax]

Never. And I don't see why you should, at least with aluminium freehubs. If the cassette is hard to get off, it's usually because of cassette bite. Grease will do nothing to alleviate that problem. Campagnolo freehubs have taller splines however and cassette bite is much less of an issue.

Thanks.
Cassette went on smoothly after I watched a few videos which showed me how to align everything with the notch.
Added a light coating of parktool asc-1 antiseize to the locking threads & torqued to 40nm & added tubes & tires
I might deflate the tires tomorrow & add in blue Rhinodillo liners as the vittoria's are more prone to punctures & theres always broken glass/debris on the road on the way to the dedicated bike path

I took a brief look at the paper manual/foldout that came in the campy cassette box & to my amusement, their US support office is in Carlsbad, literally 9 miles down from me.

Will start on rest of build tomorrow / fri night & try to get it done over the weekend.
Chris replied that they would send out the missing top cap, but I guess I can still get the build done without that, as all the other parts are there & get an idea of where I need to cut the steerer

The geometry is very similar to my existing Madone SL7  +-/2cm in some places, so I expect the reach to be the same & the seatpost to be a bit higher, so that height will be lowered to compensate.

Elite-Wheels Drive 50V are pretty darn good with the ceramic bearings, though they shipped it with Shimano Dura-Ace brake pads that I gave to my neighbor
I emailed support asking about the pads compatibility & they got mixed up & decided to ship out another set of wheels  , resulting in a mad scramble to stop them from sending something I hadn't paid for

[madmax]

Can anyone post the following pix, if their parts are not in the bike as yet

1. Headset compression plug

2. Top cap & screw/bolt

Basically my plug above has a bolt that is completely smooth on top, so I'm not sure how after putting it into the tube, I'm supposed to tighten it or torque it
or maybe I'm just looking at it wrong....

Edit:

Never mind....my mistake. The bolt had a plastic top that was probably added on with locktite

The compression plug looks a little small in length, in my opinion  & from checking the Madone I will probably need atleast 2 more spacers

At this point it might be cheaper for me to go to my local shop & buy the actual Pinarello top cap + spacers + headset plug for $35 & be done with it

[JonMS]

Still waiting on a couple things but I put some spare components on to go for a ride. This thing is great!

[madmax]

Still waiting on a couple things but I put some spare components on to go for a ride. This thing is great!

Beautiful bike

[Sebastian]

The compression plug looks a little small in length, in my opinion  & from checking the Madone I will probably need atleast 2 more spacers

At this point it might be cheaper for me to go to my local shop & buy the actual Pinarello top cap + spacers + headset plug for $35 & be done with it

I always try to use an expander plug that protrudes the full length of the stem and preferably down til the upper headset bearing. That’s why on this bike I used the longer Deda expander that’s available. But with the height of the top caps on today‘s modern fully integrated frames and with the amount of spacers that most people run this becomes more or less impossible. The plug that VB deliver is OKish. There’s worse designs out there. But I prefer longer ones for peace of mind. The long Deda one is 7cm I think. There’s areas on the bike better suited to saving weight.

[madmax]

I always try to use an expander plug that protrudes the full length of the stem and preferably down til the upper headset bearing. That’s why on this bike I used the longer Deda expander that’s available. But with the height of the top caps on today‘s modern fully integrated frames and with the amount of spacers that most people run this becomes more or less impossible. The plug that VB deliver is OKish. There’s worse designs out there. But I prefer longer ones for peace of mind. The long Deda one is 7cm I think. There’s areas on the bike better suited to saving weight.

Post a link to the dead plug or let me know if this one will fit

https://www.incycle.com/products/most-stem-1k-aero-top-cap-cmpplug

I don’t know when Chris will ship out the missing part and extra spacers
If the above fits I might as well use a higher quality part and solve the missing cap issue in one go

[Sebastian]

Post a link to the dead plug or let me know if this one will fit

https://www.incycle.com/products/most-stem-1k-aero-top-cap-cmpplug

I don’t know when Chris will ship out the missing part and extra spacers
If the above fits I might as well use a higher quality part and solve the missing cap issue in one go

This is the one I’m talking about: https://dedaelementi.com/expander-70
You can of course use any other top cap with it.
The original Pinarello expander is fine as well, obviously. It seems to be around 40mm long which is pretty standard. Like I said before, I prefer longer expanders.

[madmax]

Thanks. Looks like the link is for eu and I was unable to find the same part here that would ship in time
Will check Amazon and I think they have the 70mm with a red top

Did you wind up cutting your steerer tube to size after doing a test fit ?

[JonMS]

Thanks. Looks like the link is for eu and I was unable to find the same part here that would ship in time
Will check Amazon and I think they have the 70mm with a red top

Did you wind up cutting your steerer tube to size after doing a test fit ?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/384953767375

California based seller.

[JonMS]

Some general notes.

Better sized grub screws are stem and seat post.

Seat post: 2x M6x12mm 1.0mm thread pitch
            - result is a nice flush fit
Stem: 2x M6x12mm 1.0mm thread pitch
            -semi recessed, much better than stock


Check your local Home Depot for availability:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/M6-1-0-x-12-mm-Alloy-Socket-Set-Screws-2-Pack-813898/204274349

[madmax]

Some general notes.

Better sized grub screws are stem and seat post.

Seat post: 2x M6x12mm 1.0mm thread pitch
            - result is a nice flush fit
Stem: 2x M6x12mm 1.0mm thread pitch
            -semi recessed, much better than stock


Check your local Home Depot for availability:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/M6-1-0-x-12-mm-Alloy-Socket-Set-Screws-2-Pack-813898/204274349

Lifesaver...... thanks...... since I dropped one screw somewhere in the garage 

I found top cap & plug for $10 more in Escondidio & headed out to pick that up in 30 min.

[Sebastian]

Some general notes.

Better sized grub screws are stem and seat post.

Seat post: 2x M6x12mm 1.0mm thread pitch
            - result is a nice flush fit
Stem: 2x M6x12mm 1.0mm thread pitch
            -semi recessed, much better than stock


Check your local Home Depot for availability:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/M6-1-0-x-12-mm-Alloy-Socket-Set-Screws-2-Pack-813898/204274349

Thanks! That's really helpful. Personally, the seatpost screws being recessed doesn't really bother me that much. I'm covering it up with tape anyway. But the stem bolts just don't look right sticking out like that.

[JonMS]

Thanks! That's really helpful. Personally, the seatpost screws being recessed doesn't really bother me that much. I'm covering it up with tape anyway. But the stem bolts just don't look right sticking out like that.

See I installed it the other way round. Longer hardware in the seat post and shorter in the stem. It also material. I don't know what the stock hardware is made out of but the Home Depot stuff tells you right there.

Here is a bit more information from Pinarello. https://pinarello.com/storage/download/7aa0c78fe7bd3423eab73c73b65f818b.pdf

These are the torque specs. (not saying they should be exactly the same since its the F12 but I ballparked most around these values.

[Sebastian]

See I installed it the other way round. Longer hardware in the seat post and shorter in the stem. It also material. I don't know what the stock hardware is made out of but the Home Depot stuff tells you right there.

Here is a bit more information from Pinarello. https://pinarello.com/storage/download/7aa0c78fe7bd3423eab73c73b65f818b.pdf

These are the torque specs. (not saying they should be exactly the same since its the F12 but I ballparked most around these values.

Thanks again. Some good info, there.
Interesting: The rear brake housing for rim brakes is supposed to be routed through the hole on the right hand side of the steerer. I did route it like that but thought I've done it wrong after assembling the bike. Because traditionally with external routing, the rear brake would be routed around the steerer on the opposite side. AND: If I turn the bars all the way to the left, I cannot pull the rear brake. I'm not sure why. The cable seems to be compressed in a way that completely stops the cable from moving. It doesn't bother me. I would never have the bars in that position on the road anyway and braking is perfectly smooth otherwise. Still, instinctively I would route the cable on the other side.