Kinesis Aithein - Budget Build

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humanstrobe
Posts: 12
Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2015 4:34 pm

by humanstrobe

Hi all, thought I'd share the build process of my new "best bike".

I really enjoy seeing the pics and processes on here, this build will be a lot more humble compared to some but as a poor student in my first full season out racing I've got a limited budget to work with.
To keep costs down I've bought a fair amount second hand from ebay and privately from other members of my club, as well as transferring parts from my current China-carbon build.
I'll be using the bike this summer for nice weather rides as well as racing duties.
Obviously this won't be super light, I'm aiming to come under 7.5kg.
I've ordered the frame from my LBS so should be here within the week, in the mean time here are a few shots of what I've managed so far.

Fully expecting some slagging for this but I think I've been sensible enough in my choice to build a bike thats fit for the job!
Hopefully someone can learn something from this - I aim to update the thread and give a total price and weight before seeking improvements.

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First, my current bike - upgrading due to issues with the frame. I'll be re-using the crankset and wheels for training purposes.

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The frameset - decided for a higher end aluminum instead of cheap carbon option. Spent plenty time looking at options and the UK made Aithein seems to be a good alternative to the CAAD10 I originally had my eye on - it also works out more friendly on the wallet.

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First thing I picked up were Sram Red 2011 levers, hardly worn internals but scratched shifters.
I wasn't a fan of the logos and decided from here that build will be as "stealth" as possible apart from the frame - keep everything plain and black.

So I cracked out the sandpaper - started with 600 grit to barely remove the painted on details and finished with 800 then 1000 to give a smooth surface for a new layer of lacquer.
Pictures are after already cleaning up and prepped with tape for spraying on the lacquer.
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My rig to make spraying easy!
Just used a rattlecan general purpose lacquer - I've had good experience re-spraying guitars in the past so just followed my normal process. 3 coats with 24hrs drying time and 1500 grit wet sand between coats.

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The finished product. As a note all my pictures aren't too great - the flash on my phone camera was way too bright making thing look pretty crap. The cracks and blemishes arent as visible in sunlight!

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Fast forward to today when I received my weighing tool! Not sure how accurate the thing is for £5 but it'll give me an idea where I can slim down in the future.
Both levers were 155g.

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Seatpost - Hylix carbon (ebay) seems to pretty good quality. Had the same treatment to remove the logo from the sides.

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Bars - BBB Aluwing with the logos rubbed off with a sponge and acetone. I wanted to try out flat top bars and got these for a bargain £9. Weighed at 295g so room for improvement, if I like the flat tops I can upgrade to carbon or a stem/bar combo in the future.

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Brakes - Planet X forged - picked up during their black friday sale. Add another 10g or so for the crimp bolts. Lifeline carbon pads installed.

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Rear mech - Sram Rival - Acetone to remove logo (not visible under normal light)
The build kit is a mixture of what I think will give the best bang for buck so removing logos might make that all a bit less obvious!

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Front mech - new Rival Yaw. Read up and a few articles suggested this performs much better than the older one, I wanted to try out the Yaw system anyway.
The logo was etched fairly deep and I left quite a lot of scratches on the outer plate in my hurry to remove it.
Hard to tell from the picture but to cover this I used some enamel model paint to paint the whole plate and the chain catcher branding as well.

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Wheels I bought from a friend - the rear needed new bearings and a true up so got another bargain for half an hours work in the garage.
Generic chinese clincher rims with "Blackjack" branded hubs. Had only been used for a couple of hundred miles last year so still in good condition.

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Had a couple of these lightweight tubes thrown in, so I also made the most and swapped to veloplugs as well.
Cassette is just a 105 for now - can't afford to go to red/dura-ace and the ultegra wasnt worth the extra spend to save under 20g.

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Rear total weight including cassette, tyre/tube and skewer (with the Novatec branding painted over!)

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Front fully built.

I've not ridden the wheels yet but they seem pretty good for the weight.
I also have a set of Chinese 50mm Tubs that I'll race on mainly - they weighed in around 100g lighter so I'll be taking the aero option most of time time.

Updates to follow, and questions encouraged!

Raineman
Posts: 185
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2014 2:03 pm
Location: Kent, UK

by Raineman

You seem well clued up and should get a nice build out of it, those frames are really nice too.

The small details are where you can find some easy weight for not too much cash. Light squewers, bottle cages and seatpost clamp can easily be found on ebay for good prices. I find lightweight consumables less worthwhile due to cost of replacement but that is up to you. It is also worth remembering that buying lighter more expensive stuff initially is cheaper than upgrading to it later.

Be interested to here a bit more about that China-carbon build and what you plan on moving over.

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
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Marin
Posts: 4035
Joined: Wed Jan 22, 2014 11:48 am
Location: Vienna Austria

by Marin

This will be a really nice build, very much looking forward to seeing more?

What kind of issues were you having with the old frame?

BR
Marin

ultyguy
Posts: 2330
Joined: Fri Aug 06, 2010 1:35 pm
Location: Geneva

by ultyguy

Nice, really like the look of this frame, enjoy!

humanstrobe
Posts: 12
Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2015 4:34 pm

by humanstrobe

The old frame had issues with flexing in the seat tube and uneven headset cups which made steering a bit iffy at times. It was my first build so I learned a lot but happy to move on!
I got the frame second hand to upgrade me from the old steel bike I had so I cant really complain, think it is TCR style copy but with aluminium chainstays.

Parts I'll be moving across:

Saddle - Toupe
Pedals - Exustar E-PR100PP
Crankset - Ultegra 6800 170mm with 50/36 rings
Stem - Hylix Ultralight with Ti bolts
Bottle cages - Blackburn carbon
Bryton rider GPS mount

The last thing I'll be getting is a shimano press fit BB and Jagwire racer cable kit.

As for weight savings I'll wait for the final build and decide if it's worth investing in some lighter parts but I don't know if trying to save 30g here and there is worthwhile when using heavy bars and saddle (carbon upgrades would be easy)

humanstrobe
Posts: 12
Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2015 4:34 pm

by humanstrobe

Updates!

Frame came through at the weekend and looks stunning.
Didn't manage to weigh it bare as I needed the LBS to install BB and crown race etc so its a frameset and hardware setup for now:

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Lighter than any bike I've owned so far!

Marin
Posts: 4035
Joined: Wed Jan 22, 2014 11:48 am
Location: Vienna Austria

by Marin

Is that the complete weight with fork, headset, bb & clamp?

humanstrobe
Posts: 12
Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2015 4:34 pm

by humanstrobe

Yeah.

Weight includes:

Frame
Mech Hanger
Shimano BB86
Cable guide
Seat Clamp
Fork
Headset bearings
Compression cap
Spacers

The headset seems to be a bit on the heavy side - 60g for expander, top cap and bolt so I've ordered an extralight expander replacement already.
Can anyone recommened anywhere for a lighter top cap and bolt?
Happy to order from ebay if it stays cheap!

Marin
Posts: 4035
Joined: Wed Jan 22, 2014 11:48 am
Location: Vienna Austria

by Marin

Thanks for weiheng the frameset! :D :D

bm0p700f
in the industry
Posts: 5777
Joined: Sat May 12, 2012 7:25 pm
Location: Glermsford, Suffolk U.K
Contact:

by bm0p700f

Seriously why bother spending more on carbon with a alloy frame that light! Actually I am quite shocked at how light it is.

User avatar
Powerful Pete
Moderator
Posts: 4132
Joined: Fri Dec 10, 2004 10:22 am
Location: Lima, Peru and the Washington DC area - it's complicated.

by Powerful Pete

Very nice build thus far, looking forward to seeing it completed.
Road bike: Cervelo R3, Campagnolo Chorus/Record mix...
Supercommuter: Jamis Renegade...
Oldie but goodie: De Rosa Professional Slx, Campagnolo C-Record...
And you can call me Macktastik Honey Pete Kicks, thank you.

humanstrobe
Posts: 12
Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2015 4:34 pm

by humanstrobe

Completed!

Got everything together and built over the past week or so and waited for a nice enough day for final pictures!
Didn't manage any pictures of the build in a cold wet garage but I'm sure everyone knows how to put a bike together...

First off the budget details:
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Overall a bit more expensive than I'd hoped but I'm delighted that its came in under 7kg with an aluminium frame and a functionally high end compenent set.
A note - I changed bars to my trusty Easton EA50's as my hands just couldn't get on with the wing-tops after trying them for a couple of hours on the turbo.

Just waiting for the weather to dry up a bit before taking her out on the road now :)

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Questions and comments wanted!

tbrix
Posts: 88
Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2014 4:17 am
Location: Melbourne

by tbrix

Magnificent! Well done!

MattBeOne
Posts: 146
Joined: Wed Apr 22, 2009 4:46 pm

by MattBeOne

Always cool to see someone showing what can be achieved with little expenses!
Classy looking bike with a good weight!

Michel
Posts: 108
Joined: Tue May 11, 2010 7:43 pm
Location: Hamburg, Germany

by Michel

Great Build! Well done!

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



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