On One/Planet X Free Ranger

[dunkdafunk]

Morning,

I'm thinking about buying an On One Free Ranger and was after peoples opinions. The frame is the well reviewed Carbonda 696 and I'd be getting the bike with a SRAM Rival 22 groupset.

There's a couple of reviews from magazines online but not much.

It seems like a proper bargain!

Cheers

[DaveO]

Hi, I have the Carbonda 696.

It’s a well made frame and built up very easily. Having dealt with Planet X before I went direct to China paid less then half price.

It rides real nice, much better than the aluminium kinesis it replaced.

[dunkdafunk]

I did message Carbonda about getting a frame direct but by the time I paid postage & then vat and whatever other fees would be charged, it worked out as cheap to get the free ranger.

I'm hoping that with a few bits changed, it'll be a nice light bike.

Any pointers on decent mudguards that I can use with chunky 40odd mm tyres and then road slicks?

[saldegracia]

I looked at it closely some time ago and though it is a very good deal, I just wanted something with a longer reach, even the XL is a little short for my liking. That seems to be a common issue with Chinese frames, even the largest sizes aren't that large.

[Steve Curtis]

Just thought I'd join in.

I've been looking for a winter frame and a free range came up today on the planetX eBay shop.
It was pretty damn cheap so I jumped at it. It's new so no potential issues and the warranty is included so I'm pretty pleased.

I have a load of WW bits I'll use for the build but it will be a winter bike so full guards etc.

I'll weigh it when it arrives

[Point]

...on the planetX eBay shop...

Do you have a link to their shop? I cant seem to find it.

[Steve Curtis]

...on the planetX eBay shop...

Do you have a link to their shop? I cant seem to find it.

Just search for free ranger frame.

[Point]

Found, thank you. They're a bargain at that price accompanied by a UK company to deal with if any issues arise.

[Steve Curtis]

I never really likes the pain Jobs on these but it's fine for a winter bike.
I may strip it over the summer for the naked carbon look. I did one of my frames this year and it turned out really well.

[Point]

I never really likes the pain Jonbs on these but it's fine for a winter bike.
I may strip it over the summer for the naked carbon look. I did one of my frames this year and it turned out really well.

You've read my mind. I like the understated look myself, the weightweenie in me says naked, the vanity in me says metallic racing green...

[Steve Curtis]

The frame arrived today, 48 hours after purchase and I'm in a different country .

Anyhow, it's a medium frame and the weights are .........

Fork, uncut with no bolts or axle 510g
Frame with no bolts but with mech hanger 1260g
17 bolts were removed. These are for guards, mounts etc 66g
I'll replace with nylon

Front axle 35g
Rear axle 44g

So the plan is to built it up and save weight where I can, replace the bolts with nylon, and use the parts I have " in stock"

I'll probably naked the frame next spring and just go with spraymax 2k clear as that works really well.


Initial thoughts.
The frame and fork are really clean inside and out. No wrinkles inside that I can see with my endoscope and no bits of bag etc remaining.
It's a very tidy frame for not a lot of money

[dunkdafunk]

That's a decent enough weight for the frame. The forks a bit heavy though but I suppose it's beefy to handle more abuse.

I'm be keen to see/know how the frame stripping goes as might do mine (never tried before). Do they look ok stripped back to bare carbon as I've read some frames have loads of filler in them? And how long does this take/what's involved?

My large Free Ranger with SRAM rival 22 groupset is spot on 9kg which I'm happy with but will look to save weight.

Are nylon bolts ok to use? Will they hold bottle cages & mudguards ok?

Cheers

[Steve Curtis]

The time taken and difficulty level depends on the frame shapes and paint.
The free ranger looks quite easy to do as the paint is pretty thin and it isn't lacquered. As for what it looks like under that - you don't know until you do it.

New frames don't tend to have much filler but older ones do.


I wouldn't use nylon bolts for anything which has load. I use them for filling the holes left that I don't use.

[emotive]

That's a decent enough weight for the frame. The forks a bit heavy though but I suppose it's beefy to handle more abuse.

I'm be keen to see/know how the frame stripping goes as might do mine (never tried before). Do they look ok stripped back to bare carbon as I've read some frames have loads of filler in them? And how long does this take/what's involved?

My large Free Ranger with SRAM rival 22 groupset is spot on 9kg which I'm happy with but will look to save weight.

Are nylon bolts ok to use? Will they hold bottle cages & mudguards ok?

Cheers

Plenty of guys have bought the frame with just a clear coat straight from the factory. Have a search for Carbonda 696 to see how they look over on the Riding Gravel forum. They are pretty well made.

[saldegracia]

man, on the Carbonda website there is a size 61 of this frame...geometry sounds perfect for me...the biggest one they sall at PlanetX is 58...