The beginners guide to chinese carbon wheels

kfinlay

I decided they weren't worth the risk when I saw how poor quality the carbon seatposts were - very incosistent wall thickness and poor finish - if they can't get something that simple right then there was no way I was going to put my life at risk with the wheels. I ended up paying £600 for a set from Wheelsmith instead so I know they are very well built and have decent quality parts that I feel I can trust.

rolf_f

kfinlay wrote:

I decided they weren't worth the risk when I saw how poor quality the carbon seatposts were - very incosistent wall thickness and poor finish - if they can't get something that simple right then there was no way I was going to put my life at risk with the wheels. I ended up paying £600 for a set from Wheelsmith instead so I know they are very well built and have decent quality parts that I feel I can trust.

Not that I've ever wanted these wheels, I have to admit that my doubts were derived from them not even being able to make a decent bottle cage out of CF!

But, to be fair, again my two bottle cages are a similar sample set to Ugos wheels. But, nevertheless........

kfinlay

Rolf F wrote:

kfinlay wrote:

I decided they weren't worth the risk when I saw how poor quality the carbon seatposts were - very incosistent wall thickness and poor finish - if they can't get something that simple right then there was no way I was going to put my life at risk with the wheels. I ended up paying £600 for a set from Wheelsmith instead so I know they are very well built and have decent quality parts that I feel I can trust.

Not that I've ever wanted these wheels, I have to admit that my doubts were derived from them not even being able to make a decent bottle cage out of CF!

But, to be fair, again my two bottle cages are a similar sample set to Ugos wheels. But, nevertheless........

Yup can concur with the bottle cages too, I've seen about 10 cages and 4 seatposts, still not a big sample but none were what I would call acceptable quality

smidsy

If something seems to good to be true it generally is.

If you can get a product for a 1/3rd of the price of the 'branded' one then something has to give.

Ok so the wages of the workers, lack of advertising and lack of development etc. help to keep the cost down, but ultimately the quality control is not there either.

So whilst you may get lucky and get a really nice set of wheels or whatever, your chances of doing so are generally less.

slowandsteady

kfinlay wrote:

I decided they weren't worth the risk when I saw how poor quality the carbon seatposts were - very incosistent wall thickness and poor finish - if they can't get something that simple right then there was no way I was going to put my life at risk with the wheels. I ended up paying £600 for a set from Wheelsmith instead so I know they are very well built and have decent quality parts that I feel I can trust.

C'mon then. Pictures and specs of the wheelsmiths please.

I've spent a while on their website lately.

kfinlay

Slowandsteady wrote:

kfinlay wrote:

I decided they weren't worth the risk when I saw how poor quality the carbon seatposts were - very incosistent wall thickness and poor finish - if they can't get something that simple right then there was no way I was going to put my life at risk with the wheels. I ended up paying £600 for a set from Wheelsmith instead so I know they are very well built and have decent quality parts that I feel I can trust.

C'mon then. Pictures and specs of the wheelsmiths please.

I've spent a while on their website lately.

Pics in my sig - They are Gigantex UD Carbon 50mm rims, Novatech hubs and Sapim CX Ray spokes weighing in at 1430g. They were £675 but I got a discount when at the Scottish Bike Show last year and I went to his place to pick them up as he is only 25 miles from me. He does new wider rims now (23 or 24mm) and also has his own line of lightweight hubs too - he does come on this forum sometimes and his website is www.wheelsmith.co.uk. I have no affiliation to him, I'm just a happy customer and my next set of wheels will probably be a set of his Race23s 8)

slowandsteady

I'm actually going to be around the Falkirk area on Monday and was toying with the idea of popping in and having a look around.

Is there much to look at and is the owner happy with walk ins off the street do you know?

ugo.santalucia

Slowandsteady wrote:

I'm actually going to be around the Falkirk area on Monday and was toying with the idea of popping in and having a look around.

Is there much to look at and is the owner happy with walk ins off the street do you know?

Mmmhhh, He has guns...

slowandsteady

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Slowandsteady wrote:

I'm actually going to be around the Falkirk area on Monday and was toying with the idea of popping in and having a look around.

Is there much to look at and is the owner happy with walk ins off the street do you know?

Mmmhhh, He has guns...

Course he has, he works in Larbert.

I have more though........

;-)

My point being I wasn't sure if it was a shop/factory/workshop type deal.

kfinlay

He works from home and has a large log cabin type of workspace. Would be best to call ahead as he is very very busy at the moment and has run out of the wider version of the 50mm carbon rims according to his website. He is always happy to talk when he has the time and is not the type to advise the most expensive option or upsell unnecessarily.

diy

I've given up trying to buy a set of second hand branded carbon wheels with alloy brake track, because I reckon I'll end up with some fakes. Was looking on Velobuild and came across DengFu, I have read good reviews on this company, does anyone have any experience of them and in particular the 50MM Carbon Wheels with Alloy Brake Track

A couple of questions:
Bitex Hub, any good or should I go novatec?

Price is:$489.00 + $19.56 (4% VAT) + $85 shipping

approx: £380 so
- Duty: £18
- VAT: £80

Total cost approx: £480

Does that sound about right based on people's experience?

richk

diy wrote:

...

Total cost approx: £480

...

At that price I'd just go to PlanetX http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/WPP ... r_wheelset

kfinlay

RichK wrote:

diy wrote:

...

Total cost approx: £480

...

At that price I'd just go to PlanetX http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/WPP ... r_wheelset

or wheelsmith.co.uk

dbb

you'll get something from planet x (or other local supplier) for that kind of money - plus the added peace of mind knowing it will be easier/cheaper in the case that something might go wrong

diy

The only thing I would say though is the Planet X rims seem to be an alloy rim with a carbon fairing. But yes - I am practically in to cosmic carbone money after the taxes.

smidsy

diy wrote:

The only thing I would say though is the Planet X rims seem to be an alloy rim with a carbon fairing. But yes - I am practically in to cosmic carbone money after the taxes.

Which of course are also an aluminium rim with a carbon fairing!

Mettan

Just got my 60 88's - ''no customs specific charges''? - although ~ £24 import vat £13 parcelforce charge - £37 quid charges in all - front wheel is slightly/somewhat out of true, front hub is very smooth, rear hub needs some grease, bit ratchety sounding - rims are decent, braking surface ok, spokes are a bit lacking in tension, not perfect, but good vfm all in all - quite pleased.

smidsy

Mettan. Let me get this right.

You bought some wheels and the front is out of true, the rear neads grease in the hub and the spoke tension is off.

Basically you bought a pile of pooh and your Ok with that.

How much did they pay you to take them off their hands.

Some folk are obviously easily pleased.

ugo.santalucia

Mettan wrote:

Just got my 60 88's - ''no customs specific charges''? - although ~ £24 import vat £13 parcelforce charge - £37 quid charges in all - front wheel is slightly/somewhat out of true, front hub is very smooth, rear hub needs some grease, bit ratchety sounding - rims are decent, braking surface ok, spokes are a bit lacking in tension, not perfect, but good vfm all in all - quite pleased.

You shouldn't be happy... as they are now, they will give you problems within the first few hundred miles. Low tension by feel means seriously low tension in Newtons, which kills spoke life by orders of magnitude. I have inspected three of these chinese sets and found the same issues... Rear hub ratchety... are you sure? Is it not the ratchet of the freehub you are hearing?

cycleclinic

Some of these chinese rims you see to save weight weight have the nipple bed reduced in thickness wich seriously limits the spoke tension that can be applied. It is difficult to know what tension is safe. If you raise the tension you may crack the rim while riding.

This is one reason I am very apprehensive about selling of the rims without conducting extensive testing first which I have not done.

monkeyeatsps3

Anyone who has brought the carbonzone 50mm wheels, what width are the wheels so I know what tyres to get.

Cheers

Mettan

Well - after a race on sunday and a club 10 last night..., the wheels are ok-ish - the rear hub sounds a bit naf and hollow (and I still need to get the front trued) - on the plus side, the basalt braking surface is quite decent tbh - happy with that bit - regards value for money, they're ok, although you'd get better build quality from a set of RS80's or similar.

(Having said that, I'll be getting some 38mm tubs for this autumn's hill climbs).

kfinlay

Mettan wrote:

Well - after a race on sunday and a club 10 last night..., the wheels are ok-ish - the rear hub sounds a bit naf and hollow (and I still need to get the front trued) - on the plus side, the basalt braking surface is quite decent tbh - happy with that bit - regards value for money, they're ok, although you'd get better build quality from a set of RS80's or similar.

(Having said that, I'll be getting some 38mm tubs for this autumn's hill climbs).

So depsite being advised by Ugo, who builds wheels for a living and really does know his beans, (and others) you went out and raced/TT'd on these wheels AND plan on buying another chinese set :shock:

It's not only your own safety your putting at risk (other road users and racers could be caught up in your accident waiting to happen) especially when racing but then I don't suppose that is a thought you have even considered. :evil:

Mettan

kfinlay wrote:

especially when racing but then I don't suppose that is a thought you have even considered. :evil:

How rude.. - that's a bit personal isn't it??

:evil:

(and the wheels are too bulky ideally for 'on the road', so no need to worry - I've got other more spritely ones for racing)

diy

I'm completely lost as to what is wrong with them, why you are keeping them and what you now plan to do with them?

It sounds very much like they were junk, but the hassle of returning them is too much so you are putting it down to experience without admitting it to yourself?

You say the rear hub is noisy - it is by design e.g. like a hope pro 2, or is not fit for purpose?
You say the front is out of true and needs to be trued, but you are riding on it anyway - it must be only a tiny bit out?

Why not get them checked over by wheel builder for a few quid. You could be riding on egg shells.

Also can you post what you bought and where from?

willy b

Having owned a set of Carbonzone 50mm clinchers i'm not sure I would buy another set.

They did look good, but I never fully trusted them, 3 spoke nipples snapped whilst on rides, and the bike shop said all the spokes were too short for the rim...

The braking wasn't that good (I knew it wouldn't be brilliant) I now use my Aksiums, and whilst they are heavier, and obviously not as Aero there isn't that much noticeable difference.

I am after some new wheels, but because I'll be using the bike in the Alps i'll be going for a lighter of alu wheels I think.

amaferanga

One of the issues with most Chinese wheelsets is that they usually use alloy nipples. A rebuild with brass nipples if you have issues with breaking the alloy ones would be a good idea.

ugo.santalucia

willy b wrote:

Having owned a set of Carbonzone 50mm clinchers i'm not sure I would buy another set.

They did look good, but I never fully trusted them, 3 spoke nipples snapped whilst on rides, and the bike shop said all the spokes were too short for the rim...

The braking wasn't that good (I knew it wouldn't be brilliant) I now use my Aksiums, and whilst they are heavier, and obviously not as Aero there isn't that much noticeable difference.

I am after some new wheels, but because I'll be using the bike in the Alps i'll be going for a lighter of alu wheels I think.

A crap build... yes, that reflects what I have seen on a few of these wheel sets...

ugo.santalucia

amaferanga wrote:

One of the issues with most Chinese wheelsets is that they usually use alloy nipples. A rebuild with brass nipples if you have issues with breaking the alloy ones would be a good idea.

To be honest, alloy nipples are the last of the worries in these sets I have seen. The build quality was pathetic

amaferanga

ugo.santalucia wrote:

amaferanga wrote:

One of the issues with most Chinese wheelsets is that they usually use alloy nipples. A rebuild with brass nipples if you have issues with breaking the alloy ones would be a good idea.

To be honest, alloy nipples are the last of the worries in these sets I have seen. The build quality was pathetic

I'm sure a competent wheel builder could easily resolve any build issues.