Kinesis 4S disc - opinions?

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Multebear
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Joined: Sat May 02, 2015 10:11 pm

by Multebear

I'm looking for a frame that does it all, in other words the swiss army knife of frames/bikes: Train, race, caliper brakes, disc brakes, summer, winter, fenders, no fenders, mechanical, di2 ready.

Seems this is the only frame with all those options. I like the fact, that it has clearance for bigger tires combined with fenders, and you don't have to settle for either caliper or disc brakes.

But how is the ride? And how have you guys put it together. Anyone in here with a 4S disc?

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by Weenie


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mpulsiv
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Joined: Mon Mar 24, 2014 9:17 pm

by mpulsiv

I have been eyeing this frame for a while but didn't pull the trigger because of QR's. Perhaps 2018 model will get thru-axle? Value is unbeatable https://m.probikekit.com/cycling-frames ... 93792.html
Racing is a three-dimensional high-speed chess game, involving hundreds of pieces on the board.

:arrow: CBA = Chronic Bike Addiction
:arrow: OCD = Obsessive Cycling Disorder

Multebear
Posts: 1395
Joined: Sat May 02, 2015 10:11 pm

by Multebear

mpulsiv wrote:
because of QR's.



Thru axle will definitely be the standard all round soon. But QR's on this frame makes really good sense to me, since I would be able ride discs during winter and change to calipers come summer. Gives a wide range of opportunities. Would even be possible to ride this bike with my carbon clinchers, that I only use for racing.

And another big advantage of this frame is, they made the geometry really aggressive with a short head tube and thus good stack/reach ratio.

-Robin-
Posts: 29
Joined: Thu Sep 13, 2007 9:26 pm

by -Robin-

I have this frame and I cannot recommend it to anyone. Somehow that bike feels incredibly slow. I don't have a power meter on the bike so I can't check whether my feelings match the reality, but I really feel I need about 50W's more compared to my good bike (a Cervelo R3).

Not sure what is causing this slowness: it might be the (rather heavy) parts I have put on the frame (Ultegra Di2 hydraulic, Shimano RX31 wheels, metal fenders) or perhaps the tyres I am running (Conti GP4 seasons in 25mm).

Anyway, the frame is indeed versatile. Decent fender mounts, and I had no problem running Schwalbe Duranos in 28mm in combination with my full-length fenders. I even had some room to spare.
Initially they said that the frame would accept 160mm rotors back and front, but now they have adjusted their website and recommend 140mm in the back. And with good reason ... a 160mm in the back touches the inside of the frame. Good thing that the tubing is rather thick, so I only ended up with cosmetic damage.

Conclusion: good enough for slow winter rides, but that is about it.

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TonyM
Posts: 3376
Joined: Thu Jan 22, 2015 4:11 pm

by TonyM

-Robin- wrote:I have this frame and I cannot recommend it to anyone. Somehow that bike feels incredibly slow. I don't have a power meter on the bike so I can't check whether my feelings match the reality, but I really feel I need about 50W's more compared to my good bike (a Cervelo R3).

Not sure what is causing this slowness: it might be the (rather heavy) parts I have put on the frame (Ultegra Di2 hydraulic, Shimano RX31 wheels, metal fenders) or perhaps the tyres I am running (Conti GP4 seasons in 25mm).

Anyway, the frame is indeed versatile. Decent fender mounts, and I had no problem running Schwalbe Duranos in 28mm in combination with my full-length fenders. I even had some room to spare.
Initially they said that the frame would accept 160mm rotors back and front, but now they have adjusted their website and recommend 140mm in the back. And with good reason ... a 160mm in the back touches the inside of the frame. Good thing that the tubing is rather thick, so I only ended up with cosmetic damage.

Conclusion: good enough for slow winter rides, but that is about it.


The fenders will slow you down, especially when you bike fast.

-Robin-
Posts: 29
Joined: Thu Sep 13, 2007 9:26 pm

by -Robin-

There isn't much wind tunnel data about the influence of fenders to determine whether that is the only cause :roll:

Multebear
Posts: 1395
Joined: Sat May 02, 2015 10:11 pm

by Multebear

Thanks for the honest review. I'm a little disappointed to hear, that it's that bad. I thought it couldn't be worse than most other alu frames, maybe except the Allez' and Caads. If you ever ride it without fenders and with carbon wheels and lighter tires, please keep us up to date if there's a difference.

I recon you ride it with rim brakes then?

Would you mind posting pictures?

rainerhq
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Location: Estonia

by rainerhq

Multebear wrote:But QR's on this frame makes really good sense to me, since I would be able ride discs during winter and change to calipers come summer. Gives a wide range of opportunities.

Some guys don´t bother to change wheels on their bike (they have 3 sets) and you will change brakes :D
"Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride"

Multebear
Posts: 1395
Joined: Sat May 02, 2015 10:11 pm

by Multebear

Ohh... I'm working on my bikes all the time. Can't help it. Changing, replacing, adjusting, upgrading, downgrading, changing back and so on. So this wouldnt be any bother at all. Probably some kind of disorder ;-)

-Robin-
Posts: 29
Joined: Thu Sep 13, 2007 9:26 pm

by -Robin-

Multebear wrote:Thanks for the honest review. I'm a little disappointed to hear, that it's that bad. I thought it couldn't be worse than most other alu frames, maybe except the Allez' and Caads.

I only had a Cervelo S1 alu frame to compare it with, and that is a day-and-night difference in favor of the Cervelo. To be fair, the Cervelo had better parts on it (Dura Ace, Easton EA90 SL wheels, Conti GP4000) which would explain part of the difference.

Multebear wrote:If you ever ride it without fenders and with carbon wheels and lighter tires, please keep us up to date if there's a difference.

Probably never going to happen. I ride it with disc brakes, and currently I do not have any carbon disc wheels. And if I would buy such wheels in the future (if I ever switch to discs on my good bike), they probably would not be QR wheels.

What I also forgot to mention is that the frame is Di2 ready, but installation is far from obvious according to my mechanic.
He had to send them an email, and if I remember correctly he had to drill some holes internally to be able to get the wires passed the bottom bracket. Also, there is no decent space for the internal battery so the battery on my bike is located inside my seatpost (at least I think it is ... I only know for sure that I have to be very careful if I want to remove the seatpost).

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MikeMoore
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by MikeMoore

It's not quite the same, but I have had a 4S as a commuter for the last 2 years and love it. Only thing I'd swap it for would be a GF Ti disc.
Weight 74.4kg, FTP 303W => 4.04 W/kg

Retired Bikes
Custom 650B Kingdom Double9
Kinesis Aithein / Kinesis Racelight 4S

Current bikes
Reilly Spectre / Cervelo R3
Pivot Les / Pivot Mach4SL
Ventana El Conquistador

Multebear
Posts: 1395
Joined: Sat May 02, 2015 10:11 pm

by Multebear

MikeMoore wrote:It's not quite the same, but I have had a 4S as a commuter for the last 2 years and love it. Only thing I'd swap it for would be a GF Ti disc.


I tried to check you pics out. But they seem to bee gone:

viewtopic.php?f=10&t=134178

by Weenie


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