Chinese carbon frame and wheels thread

[BRLVR.v2]

Anyone had any experience with the Cycling deal unit http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/170619038283 ... 065wt_1397

Looks ok and the bonus of local dealer for any warranty issues.

[toppity]

Only thing i've bought from cycling deal is a work stand which is ok for the money. The factory/showroom is ok as well, nothing flash. They have been is the same spot for awhile now.

[PawPaw]

When it hit the fan with Farsport's hubsmith hubs, Smart sent me a set of Bitex Edhubs. I've put about 300km on them and they seem fine, quieter than hubsmith. Smart says they have 8 piece enduro bearings, 4 front and rear. 6 pawls on the freehub.

[Crawf]

Anyone had any experience with the Cycling deal unit http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/170619038283 ... 065wt_1397

Looks ok and the bonus of local dealer for any warranty issues.

Does look like an oldish no frills mold. I'd get one of the more recent popular frames if you weren't to set on Local supplier.

[jheeno]

Okay my turn for a mini review and it will be ongoing as I see how these rims go

I purchased BladeX carbon 50mm clinchersBladeX ROAD WHEELSET 250C Affordable,Durable Full Carbon Wheelset; 50mm Clincher/T700SC High Tensile Rims/Bladed Spokes-in Bicycle Wheel from Sports & Entertainment on !!! SPAMMER !!!

Why?
-I only wanted the rims for the aesthetic look. Weight didn't bother me
-I was surprised that the Farsport / Yinshun rims go up to $650 + ... that's getting quite close to a good pair of 'brand' name rims (not carbon but good alu rims not to mention pro lite breccianos)
-These guys are the only ones that freely advertise their rims can take on 130kg of weight. I'm 90kg but I still think at least that might mean durability.

Specs
Final cost was $470USD (with spare spokes ,carbon pads QR skewers but NO rim tape)
RIM DEPTH:-50mm RIM WEAVE:-3K
RIM FINISH:/Matte
HUBS:-Novatec A291SB/F482SB hubs-Black
SPOKES:WHITE-High Durability Bladed Spokes WHITE-20&24 Count, 3 Extra for Backup White <- they stuffed up and put black spokes so I got a small refund
NIPPLES:Black
QUICK RELEASE SET:-Novatec Quick Release Set-Black
BRAKE PADS:-2 Pairs/Specialized for Carbon Wheels
CASSETTE BODY: -SRAM/10 Speed Compatible

The box was demolished but the wheels came up fine
And here is a link to the pics
20120624 pictures by jheenoo - Photobucket
Overall I didn't see any fatal flaws or bubbling at the nipples and the LBS has inspected these rims and said they are true.
Weight was advertised as
Weight:
Front 726+/-10g, Rear 921+/- 10g but it came in as 860/930

overall I am satisfied enough and I will see tomorrow when I go on a 60km+ ride to see how they feel

[themerlin]

Did anything come of this GB ?

easier for you to join the ones happening on velobuild

Thanks I found those as well. Some really nice rides getting built !

[MichaelB]

Okay my turn for a mini review and it will be ongoing as I see how these rims go

I purchased BladeX carbon 50mm clinchersBladeX ROAD WHEELSET 250C Affordable,Durable Full Carbon Wheelset; 50mm Clincher/T700SC High Tensile Rims/Bladed Spokes-in Bicycle Wheel from Sports & Entertainment on !!! SPAMMER !!!

....
Weight was advertised as
Weight:
Front 726+/-10g, Rear 921+/- 10g but it came in as 860/930

....

Crikey, the front is significantly off what they quoted ??? Are you sure you either weighed it right or read the right ad ? Seems if the rear is spot on, but the front is more than 10% over.

Mind you, if you are happy, then that is the main thing

[pawnii]

It would be interesting to see what the spoke tension is.
How much horizontal flex are you getting?
Personally I'd get some swissstop yellows to give the wheels a fair go when it comes to braking.

They sure do look the part on a Scott Foil

[jheeno]

It would be interesting to see what the spoke tension is.
How much horizontal flex are you getting?
Personally I'd get some swissstop yellows to give the wheels a fair go when it comes to braking.

They sure do look the part on a Scott Foil

ride was okay ... still need a few more rides to be confident ... I had a mental picture of these wheels falling apart and my face scraping against the ground this morning

I'm overall satisfied at the moment - average speed is easier to maintain ... ride is a bit harser so my guestimate means they are stiff
horizontal flex - less than my fulcrum 5s I don't know whether it was because I pumped it to a higher pressure (i now run 115 psi front and rear as oppose to 110 on the fulcrum 5s)
I didn't risk using the pads and put on reynolds blue pads - these pads are ... well great ... it brakes just like alu rim brakes.

overall I am at this present time satisfied as I got what I was after ... a bit more aero ... maintaining good 'cruising' speed ... and it lets me accelerate more often.
might just be another justification but I have noticed my top speed based on my usual saturday morning ride has gone up by 3 km/h
theres a section where i go for it on the down hill and manage 60 km/h ... today i managed 63.5 ... not sure if it was me or the rims ?
I think I need to teach myself to regulate braking because on my alu rums I would just modulate and brake (often too much just to shed speed)

I usually ride the M7 cycleway monday/tuesdays and theres a few little hills there where I am off the bike climbinb and that's when I notice some flex on old fulcum 5's ... i'll see how I go on monday with these rims

[pawnii]

You'll always notice less horizontal flex moving to deep dishes due to them requiring shorter spokes.
Hub flange width and spoke lacing type make a difference in horizontal flex too.

Spoke tension (amongst other things) will determine how much vertical flex you get when you stomp on the bike. Higher the tension the stiffer...in theory.
Usually the spoke tension of a wheel is determined by the rims spoke holes ability not to split under high tension.
That's why I'd love to know what these Chinese/Taiwan generic wheels spokes are tensioned to.
How close is it to Enve's 130kg in the front and 150kg on the rear drive side.


I have no idea where i'm heading with this post so i'll get back to Howzat! on channel 9

[MichaelB]

Finally.

Have put in the order for a pair of Farsports 29er rims (25mm deep x 24mm wide) to built up as a disc set for the Kona Honky Inc. They are slightly wider & deeper rims when compared to those that Andrew Burns sourced from FS a while ago as a wheelset.

I'll be using bladed spokes, alloy nipples and my Circus Monkey Hubs, and should be spot on 1,400g complete. It will be a saving of near as damnit to 1,000g over the existing std wheelset on the Kona.

Might notice a teeensy difference.

[Crawf]

Maybe we can move this thread too!....

viewforum.php?f=68

[jheeno]

Okay my turn for a mini review and it will be ongoing as I see how these rims go

I purchased BladeX carbon 50mm clinchersBladeX ROAD WHEELSET 250C Affordable,Durable Full Carbon Wheelset; 50mm Clincher/T700SC High Tensile Rims/Bladed Spokes-in Bicycle Wheel from Sports & Entertainment on !!! SPAMMER !!!

....
Weight was advertised as
Weight:
Front 726+/-10g, Rear 921+/- 10g but it came in as 860/930

....

Crikey, the front is significantly off what they quoted ??? Are you sure you either weighed it right or read the right ad ? Seems if the rear is spot on, but the front is more than 10% over.

Mind you, if you are happy, then that is the main thing

Re weighed the front - scales were initally wrong (makes me wonder about the rears too)
Front weight 750(ish with rim tape)

Quick update on the bladex rims
I'll keep adding as I go
Its been on two rides (approx 100kms)
Pros
-Unlike those on other forums who have posted that they can't tell the difference, I can. I can maintain average speed easier (as if it rolls easier)
-I can also sprint to top speed easier
-Stiff (noticeable when I am off the saddly climbing versus my fulcrum 5s)
-I chose reynolds blue pads and I can say brake performance is equal to alu rims except for the issue noted below
Cons
-Appears to be harder to accelerate from stopping (say waiting at the stop lights)
-Mental thing but I still picture the rims falling apart and my face ending up on the bitumen
-Scary on cross winds (I need to get use to it but I get nudged harder than on my fulcrum 5s)
-I am experiencing brake pulsation under hard braking (but not hard enough to lock the rims - say modulation when on a really steep downhill to control speed). I have narrowed it down to the fronts only and the rears are fine
- The front rims appears to have an uneven braking surface. Mind you the wheels are true and so I think it is just isolated to the brake surface
I have contacted bladex but heres a few videos to give people an idea
http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y111/jheenoo/20120826/?action=view&current=IMG_0116.mp4
http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y111/jheenoo/20120826/?action=view&current=IMG_0113.mp4

[malocchio]

Just wondering on people's experience with shipping from Farsports / any other chinese distributor?

I'm tracking my parcel via EMS, and there's been no activity since August 22 (six days and counting) - the latest status shows that it left the mail centre in Xiamen on it's way to Sydney but nothing to indicate it's made it to Australia yet...

Is this typical and within their usual shipping times?

[steve-waters]

Mine was pretty similar when I bought from GOTO had a tracking from China then went it all went quiet for a while then just arrived at my door - these guys are all pretty good these days.

It is funny how people call them no brand/name Chinese frames but if you think about it the guys who are running the lager ones (Deng-Fu, Hong-Fu, FarSports, GOTO etc..) all have their own brand, company name they are working to create and make successful.

And they are all too aware of the power of the internet and how quickly bad news about them will spread.

At guess you will be fine - unless they put it on a boat to save money then you should have it about December (just jokes never heard of that happening)

[malocchio]

hehe cheers

Aye I've got complete faith that they'll arrive, just hoping it's normal to have this period of non-updates... fingers crossed they'll arrive in time for me to take them out next weekend!

[MichaelB]

Maybe we can move this thread too!....

viewforum.php?f=68

Thread started

[Yoda junior]

hehe cheers

Aye I've got complete faith that they'll arrive, just hoping it's normal to have this period of non-updates... fingers crossed they'll arrive in time for me to take them out next weekend!

I was a bit worried too...Tracking them since shipment 20th Aug and finally on Aust Post website today - they have arrived in Sydney!!

Hopefully, I get them either tomorrow or Thursday latest...

[nickobec]

@malocchio same for me with both shipments from FarSports and the one for DengFu

Go to Australia Post put your tracking number in there and sign up for email notification. That way you should get a email went it is on board with the Australia Post contractor for delivery to your address.

[malocchio]

Go to Australia Post put your tracking number in there and sign up for email notification.

Boom! Looks like they've been accepted in Sydney and are awaiting clearance for delivery... giddy up!

cheers mate

[jamesn184]

What's the average price for a pair of 38mm clincher's? Very tempted to order some

[azeng97]

The average price should be about $400 a pair of tubulars, clinchers are a bit more. The best price at the moment is probably the group buy on Velobuild: http://velobuild.com/velobuild-shopping-mall/catalog/show/61?catid=22 $345USD (about $330 at the moment) for 38mm tubulars that are 1290g. Shipping is $55 I think. The cheapest price I could find directly in China was about $270

[nickobec]

@jamesn184 average price I have no idea, good price $495USD + $55USD shipping + 4% paypal (?) for the FarSports 38mm 1260g clinchers over at Velobuild is $100 savings on what I paid for mine and I believe I got a good deal, so much so I have a 60mm front wheel & 50mm rim laced to my powertap from FarSports too.

You can save $50 by going for the Yishun bike (also have good rep for wheels on road bike review forum) 38mm clinchers at the VeloBuild group buy, but they are 250g/20% heavier

[Yoda junior]

Hey guys,

Just received my FSC50-CM (UD Matte) from Farsports.

Quick question to those who have purchased the UD Matte finish...Is the UD coverage complete? Does it cover the rim in between the spokes? My UD Matte coverage is only on the sides of the rim and not in the centre (except when the nipple hole is)...Please see pictures...Please let me know...Thanks

[nickobec]

(AT) yoda junior my 4 rims a pair of FSC-38CM wheels, FSC-50 rim and FSC-60CM wheel are exactly the same, matt UD on the sides, but not on the top.