Carbon cross frame

[xnavalav8r]

Yeah, I get to build bikes while my 5 year old pounds away on the drums. I think I'm deaf...

[xnavalav8r]

First ride impressions...

I took my first ride on the new rig today. It wasn't much. 5 laps around our 1 mile neighborhood. It's almost like a crit course with about a 300 foot elevation change per lap. So there was a chance to mash the pedals out of the saddle, take some sharp corners at speed, and hop off some curbs to see how things feel.

First, my cockpit is too tall. I need to pull a spacer from under the stem or flip it. I'm inclined to remove the spacer from underneath but I don't want to cut the steerer tube any shorter. I'll decide in the next day or so. The front end felt plenty stiff even with the spacers.

Second, the Sibex fork is cool. It's stiff enough but compliant too. I have a Morati fork on another bike so I had an idea what to expect. But that fork runs with disc brakes and has a completely different pattern of flex under braking. That said, the Sibex fork visibly deflects when braking on choppy bumps. It's not a bad thing, but seeing it the first few times was a bit spooky. However, all the flex appears to be low in the fork. It didn't affect brake performance at all. As a matter of fact, the brakes didn't chirp, squeal, or make a sound on the front end. The rear brakes howl like a banshee.

Third, the TRP brakes perform superbly so far (apart from the rear squealing). But they are a pain in the ass to set up. There is no way to toe-in the pads. It appears the front brake bosses were manufactured with an inward cant as there is adequate toe-in up front, but none in the rear. I chalk the rear squealing up to this.

Fourth, the Mortop headset is a decent headset for the money. But on installation the o-ring that seals the bearing cover rolled, pinched, and cut on the sharp metal edge of the headset and chewed itself to bits. The headset is essentially unsealed now. We'll see how it holds up over time.

Finally, the frame. For a cheap, Taiwan-made, carbon frame I am very pleased. I bought it from a WW member (mentioned in earlier post) and wasn't sure what to expect. It feels stiff out of the saddle, but didn't jar my teeth loose over the small bumps and bunny hops I encountered. It is built with a short head tube and appears to have a pretty agressive head angle. But the Sibex fork mellowed it out a bit. I think the fork has a 45mm rake which seems to stretch the wheelbase a touch, slow the steering, and also appears to have raised the front end a bit over the original included fork.

I'll be racing the bike this weekend in Gloucester, Massachusetts (Master's 35+). I'm still out of shape and slow, but looking forward to the outing. Hopefully my mud tires arrive in time. I'll give a post-race review but if it rains as forecast and I race on the tires I have I expect performance to be underwhelming at best.

[xnavalav8r]

A set of tubulars (Challenge Grifo 32mm) showed up in the mail so I mounted 'em up. I was hoping to get closer to 7kg but the race wheels and tires only brought the weight down 400g to 7.3kg. A respectable weight none the less. First race is tomorrow. It's supposed to rain cats and dogs and my mud tires have not arrived. I'm going to have to take my chances with this setup.

[Irish]

Best of luck in the race, the rig looks sweet.

[Dr.Dos]

It's supposed to rain cats and dogs and my mud tires have not arrived. I'm going to have to take my chances with this setup.

Grifos and Typhoons are great tires in thin mud (when it actually rains). Fangos and especially Rhinos excel in deep, loamy mud.

Keep air pressure in the 1.8-2.0 bar range (25-30 psi) and ride as fast and as smooth as you can, good luck!

[xnavalav8r]

The bike was superb this weekend. I raced on Challenge Fangos both Saturday and Sunday. Saturday was nasty... cold, pouring rain, and soupy mud. I kept both tires on the ground but my fitness isn't where it needs to be yet. I was 73rd of 93 finishers. Sunday was drier and I finished 60th... still a way off the pace. I managed to fall twice Sunday but wasn't lapped either day so I'm happy. I have room for improvement but can't blame it on the bike.

As far as the frame is concerned... it was excellent. Plenty of mud clearance in the muckiest conditions I ever raced in. Stiff in every out-of-the-saddle moment, but compliant enough not to beat me up. If I broke the frame tomorrow I would say I got my money's worth as I had such a good time riding it. The Sibex fork was excellent too. It really took the edge off some of the rocks and roots... especially when I was getting winded and didn't pick the cleanest lines. The only thing I think I'll change is to get rid of the Nokon derailleur cable and go back to something like Gore. The nokon was full of water after Saturday's rain and really affected my shifting during the race... though it worked fine Sunday after I dried it out and lubed it. I may go to a smaller front chain ring... the 42 seems a bit tall, even with a 12-25 cassette. Maybe I'm just a Sally...

I wanted to post some pictures, but got home and discovered my memory card in the camera is wiped out. Not sure what happened. I had some great photos. The elite races on Saturday were epic.

[timbat]

Nice looking bike! Do you know if the frame is sold under any brand names in the US ?

[elmar schrauth]

Brothers-bikes has got a cheap, light and nice Frameset,
Frame, Fork and Headset are about € 790,-
Frame : 1200 Gramm +/-
Fork : 450 Gramm/300 mm.
Headset 78 Gramm.

[xnavalav8r]

I don't know about name brands, but you can find this frame on eBay. It's advertised as being the "same" as a Lapierre frame. I don't know if that is true or not. But I am happy with mine.

[crossrider]

i think this is the same as the lapierre frame

http://cgi.ebay.com/Lapierre-Carbon-Cyc ... _790wt_932

Please note not my add so this is not a plug!

[xnavalav8r]

Different cable routing though.

[elmar schrauth]

Only difference seems to be the cable routing.
rearstays, dropouts, all looks the same.

[BmanX]

I was thinking about picking up the Pedal Force CX-1 frame and picking up the Easton Cross fork off of Ebay for $200 and comes with no decals. so for $1100 you can pick up a very light cross frame and forks for a good price. However, picking up a cheaper frame on Ebay and throwing away the fork and buying the Easton Cross fork would be cheaper still.

[BmanX]

There seems to be some great deals on the UK ebay sight for carbon frames and forks which works out to about $575 USD. Seems very nice but not sure if they would ship to this side of the pond.