Hello, first time poster here, so I hope I made the topic in the right place.
I want to build a bike from a scratch with intent to start racing on it eventually. It would be a do it all bike, used for commuting, training as well, because I really don't have the space to store multiple bikes. I'm 178 cm tall with approx. 81 cm inseam, I currently ride a decade old Diamant Pinnacle R3 in size 54. I'd like the frame to have both reasonable weight and some aero features, but I kinda hate how full on aero bikes look like, so if I had to choose strictly between lightweight and aero, I'd go with lightweight. Also, I'd like the tire clearance to be 28c at minimum (Trifox states 25c for X16, but I've seen people say that it has room for 28s).
The frames I've looked at so far are:
Velobuild 077, 168, 177.
Trifox X16, X18.
X16 is available in both disc and rim brake versions, 077 is rim only, X18, 168 and 177 are disc only. I was comparing geometry on geometrygeeks, it seems like the 177 has longest reach at size, followed by SL7 replicas. Also, 168, 177 and X18 have fully integrated cabling, which means I'd have to spend extra money on something like FSA headset that makes the life easier.
Velobuild frames tend to have headset play issues on the top of random stuff you get from cheaper frames, as for X16 I've seen people say that fork is flexy, which is bit concerning, and I saw one poster saying that due to short seat tube and seatpost, you can't insert the seat post for the supposed minimal insertion distance.
Because I'm on a somewhat tight budget, I'd like to equip the build with Sensah Empire groupset, which limits me to either rim brakes or mechanical/hybrid disc brakes. I was wondering if any of those frames have smoother cable routing for less bending, resulting in a smoother shifting/braking?
