Chinese Carbon Framesets on Ebay or Aliexpress

[Paddles]

Has anyone had any experiences with these carbon framesets? Good or bad? Are there any to steer clear of? Are there any that can handle 28mm tyres? Thoughts?

[rodneycc]

There is some good info in this thread....I've had some good experiences with Light Bicycle, HongFU and DengFU and also carbonzone...

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=51377&hilit=chinese" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Paddles]

Thanx for pointing me towards that Rod, that's exactly the sort of info I'm chasing.

[jaythefordman]

Dengfu get good reviews for frames and components, and Light Bicycle get thumbs up for their wheels (I may in fact be getting one of their wheelsets soon )

[Ross]

http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/lat ... isk-173977" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Paddles]

Very good article Ross, thanks. It still tells us that common sense must prevail when buying one of these frames. It also shows us the commercial reality of frame manufacture these days, essentially the 'brand name' frame will have a local distributor that must comply with all local consumer laws and this along with advertising budgets and sponsorship budgets costs money. The 'brand name' manufacturers then manufacture in a location where production costs are extremely low, sell the frame/bike for the most they possibly can (this involves creating a perception of value/worth) and then pocket the greater cost margin that this style of production allows. The hypocrisy in this is that the 'brand name' could even speak badly of the very manufacturer (his processes and quality controls) making the 'brand name' frames.

[jules21]

i've got a DengFu frame. it wasn't dirt cheap, but it's been good. it is light. the only issue i've had is the cable exit point under the top tube, near the head tube, has delaminated slightly due to rubbing caused by the cable as it is pulled left and right as I steer the bike. i fixed that by cable tying the cable to the top tube, stopping the section of cable (housing) that exits from the top tube moving around.

there's little points like that which show the difference in attention to detail compared with a name-brand frame. you get what you pay for. as a racing bike/frame, it suits my purpose nicely. i prefer the matte black styling too.

i've seen no evidence of generic frames failing catastrophically. as noted in the article linked above, they're often built by the same companies who build for the big brands. my frame seems well built. i'd say the talk of unreliability and danger to your safety is mostly just scaremongering by those whose businesses are threatened.

[warthog1]

i've seen no evidence of generic frames failing catastrophically. as noted in the article linked above, they're often built by the same companies who build for the big brands. my frame seems well built. i'd say the talk of unreliability and danger to your safety is mostly just scaremongering by those whose businesses are threatened.

I agree. Whilst I don't own one there have been a number in the bunches I ride with. I have heard of failures with name brands (not catastrophic) but not generic, probably in large part due to the smaller numbers, but there you are
My next frame will be generic. Resale value on new bikes is non-existent so it makes sense to me to reduce the outlay.

[Paddles]

I'm starting to do a bit more research on them now, I particularly want something that will fit 28mm tyres so if anyone has friends with any of these frames and it looks like 28's will fit in then can you let me know what frame they have, thanx.

[AUbicycles]

The cycling weekly website article was interesting, pity about all of the irrelevant and distracting links peppered inside the content.

I spoke to a mechanic today who has built hundreds of generic Chinese frames and showed me a few he just got in. He said that the quality has been really good, you can expect them to be heavier as they 'over manufacture' and they may miss some attention to detail, such as removing the bladders, but his experience has been really good.

For wheels however this has been a problem with a lot of wheels having failing as a result of heat buildup and delaminates and blows out. Light Bicycle (wheels) however was suggested as a brand with more reliable quality.

Of interest, it appears that there are different sellers / agents, however the bikes from many different generic Chinese brands are often coming from the same factory.



On quality, as Jules21 suggests, it is easy to understand brands who warn against. The 'brand names' also are responsible for QC and have their name on the line and a responsibility to rectify. With wheels it appears to be more likely to get a dud purchase and it would be a disaster to have a catastrophic failure while riding (brand name wheels can fail, but do have a better reputation).

[Ross]

http://www.slowtwitch.com/Features/Tale ... _5128.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Crawf]

I'm starting to do a bit more research on them now, I particularly want something that will fit 28mm tyres so if anyone has friends with any of these frames and it looks like 28's will fit in then can you let me know what frame they have, thanx.

Have owned FM098/FM099/FR316, all take 28mm tyres.
Also, do not buy a frame on Aliexpress, the buyer protection is non existent. Ebay/Paypal looks after the buyer, Aliexpress look after the seller.

[Paddles]

Cheers Crawf, thanx for that info.

[Ross]

http://velonews.competitor.com/not-all- ... feit-bikes" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[AUbicycles]

Thanks for sharing this. A broader cross-section would be useful to determine if this is a general rule as Open mould frames direct from established brands are common.

Even then, there is security / certainty buying from brands directly, not only quality, also consumer rights.

[Duck!]

The problem with open source moulds is that one set of moulds can be hired & used by many different manufacturers, and that's where the problems of quality appear. For example, a firm such as Merida, who supply "blanks" to small players in the industry as well as produce their own stuff, have good quality controls, but if they hire the moulds out to someone else, the bike may look the same, but if the attention to quality is lacking, you can have a vastly inferior product that you just can't tell on the surface.