cheap chinese clinchers?

turbo1191

I know you usually only get what you pay for, but just wondering if anybody has used this site or any company on it for a set of carbon clinchers. they do seem very cheap..

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/ffwd-c50 ... 88394.html

duckson

From my searching on the subject you are best looking at something like carbon-cycle on ebay who are i believe Flybike themselves, places like Hongfu and Dengfu are resellers of Flybike products.
Or Farsports directly, wheelsfar.com

But all in probably best going for tubulars.

turbo1191

Yeh ive been in touch with far sports and they want £308 for the same setup..

ugo.santalucia

.. hence you would rather buy a counterfeit that might fall apart resulting ina trip to A&E to save a few quid... :?

mroli

Ugo - that post you did on your blog where you sorted my Chinese clinchers out would be good here?

ugo.santalucia

mroli wrote:

Ugo - that post you did on your blog where you sorted my Chinese clinchers out would be good here?

Yeah, but I deleted it.
I think the OP is trying to purchase a counterfeit (if I understand correctly), which is a bit different and in my view a bit riskier. If someone takes a punt on being charged for selling counterfeit goods, then probably doesn't care much about where the rims actually come from or if they are safe to ride.
Alibaba is a big bazaar and as such there is a lot of junk

Camcycle1974

turbo1191 wrote:

Yeh ive been in touch with far sports and they want £308 for the same setup..

And? Isn't £308 cheap enough for carbon wheels? I went for Farsports and my transaction and the end product turned out very well indeed. Mine were £432 if you include the import taxes.

turbo1191

Im not trying to buy a counterfeit.. wasnt sure if there was a difference in materials etc that would make it cheaper.. hence the questions. I'm aware that £308 seems a good price.

Camcycle1974

turbo1191 wrote:

Im not trying to buy a counterfeit.. wasnt sure if there was a difference in materials etc that would make it cheaper.. hence the questions. I'm aware that £308 seems a good price.

£308 sounds too cheap. FF wheels like that are normally £1k + so how did you not think you were getting a counterfeit?

turbo1191

Sorry I asked

Calpol

Chinese Carbon wheels exist because there is a market there for reasonably priced bicycle components. The internet has brought the ability for manufacturers and distributors to reach globally at little cost. I really don't see the problem with products from Chinese suppliers particularly if you do some research, buy from a vendor who has a good reputations and are prepared to forego a local after sales service.

There are several UK and US vendors rebadging or assembling wheels imported from China. No doubt made in the same factories as FarSports, Dengfu, Light Bicycle etc. However they are trying to make some margin for themselves to support profitable business and a degree of product warranty. Personally I wouldn't buy some with another oem's decals on it but I am quite tempted by the products.

I am yet to read anywhere on the net of a disproportionate amount of cyclist dying because they rode on a set of Chinese clinchers. Yes there is the odd tale of rim warping, brake track wear but many more examples of people very satisfied with there cheap, well made wheels.

I read Ugo's piece on his blog when he wrote it and it was very balanced in its opinion and certainly did nothing to dissuade me from considering the "China" route if I fancy a lower investment in some sexy deep rims. Product quality seems to be pretty good these days and the vendors also seem to recognise the value of good service. I have nothing but praise for my Dengfu frame and my Soul Wheels which were both imported without any issues.

Chinese manufacturing is achieving things that require much more engineering than building wheels. Wheel building might be held in some artisan esteem in the UK but really its not complicated. Wheels have three components to be lashed together and the carbon rim construction is not vastly complex. Its no wonder the enterprising Chinese have turned there hand to it. The likes of Farsports are now established and have realised that they can even command a premium vs some smaller vendors hence their pricing increases. Even with their recent price take the products are still around 50% of the price of many competitive brands. The products certainly are not 50% inferior.

If you want carbon wheels and are prepared to write off the investment over a short period then why not by from China. At £400 the are almost disposable (sorry if that offends anyone) but cycling is an expensive sport to be in and £400 is a relatively modest amount vs what people spend on other items. If you buy and they break in two years then you can replace them. Hell at the price you can have some nice handbuilt training wheels for your alpine excursions and a set of deep rim CCs for less outlay than a set of Reynolds, Zipps etc. Imagine how you would feel when your £1500 404s hubs give up after 18 months.

Monty Dog

Calpol wrote:

Imagine how you WILL feel when your £1500 404s hubs give up after 18 months.

FTFY

turbo1191

Thanks for the comprehensive reply calpol. I think I'll go for the fareast clinchers ive seen. Decent wheels for £350 shipped I think..

ugo.santalucia

turbo1191 wrote:

Thanks for the comprehensive reply calpol. I think I'll go for the fareast clinchers ive seen. Decent wheels for £350 shipped I think..

Not sure... there is a big difference between the Farsport I have seen, which are very decent and built well and some sets bought on Alibaba, which were absolutely shocking... featuring rims built the wrong way round, wheels out of dish by a good 5 mm and other amenities... your call... bear in mind if you get a rat, you won't find many shops happy to sort them out

turbo1191

Sorry.. I did mean farsport..

on-yer-bike

Calpol wrote:

Chinese manufacturing is achieving things that require much more engineering than building wheels. Wheel building might be held in some artisan esteem in the UK but really its not complicated. Wheels have three components to be lashed together and the carbon rim construction is not vastly complex. Its no wonder the enterprising Chinese have turned there hand to it. The likes of Farsports are now established and have realised that they can even command a premium vs some smaller vendors hence their pricing increases. Even with their recent price take the products are still around 50% of the price of many competitive brands. The products certainly are not 50% inferior.

I wonder what Lightweight would say about this comment. Read the current issue of Cyclist magazine. Just an observation.

Calpol

turbo1191 wrote:

Sorry.. I did mean farsport..

Farsports, yoeleo or light bicycle all worth shortlisting. There is a long but informative thread on weight weenies that's good for research.

gmb

I've had jibe for over two years. They are used as my everyday wheel. No problems to report.

ugo.santalucia

on-yer-bike wrote:

I wonder what Lightweight would say about this comment. Read the current issue of Cyclist magazine. Just an observation.

What do they say? It's yet another attempt to claim German supremacy on manufacturing?

wishitwasallflat

ugo.santalucia wrote:

on-yer-bike wrote:

I wonder what Lightweight would say about this comment. Read the current issue of Cyclist magazine. Just an observation.

What do they say? It's yet another attempt to claim German supremacy on manufacturing?

To paraphrase:

Our methods are so good and advanced we can't patent them because if we did competitors would steal our methods ....
The company only exists because a wise old engineer said no to Lance ...

Even in the world of marketing BS that's quality BS

ugo.santalucia

wishitwasallflat wrote:

To paraphrase:

Our methods are so good and advanced we can't patent them because if we did competitors would steal our methods ....
The company only exists because a wise old engineer said no to Lance ...

Even in the world of marketing BS that's quality BS

Not really. They are a small company and they don't have a team of lawyers on their payroll. Fighting a battle in court over a patent costs hundreds of thousands and the outcome might not even mean anything to far eastern manufacturers, which are backed up by the State.
Many small companies don't do patents for that very reason, Brompton being one of them

wishitwasallflat

I stand corrected on patents - how about Heinz and Lance then ?

darkhairedlord

I would go with Gerald:
"People say, "How can you sell this for such a low price?", I say, "because it's total crap.""

Camcycle1974

darkhairedlord wrote:

I would go with Gerald:
"People say, "How can you sell this for such a low price?", I say, "because it's total crap.""

Whereas an expensive Zipp or Mavic wheel that fails due to inferior hubs or proprietory spokes that cant be replaced is after 6 months is overpriced crap!

darkhairedlord

Camcycle1974 wrote:

darkhairedlord wrote:

I would go with Gerald:
"People say, "How can you sell this for such a low price?", I say, "because it's total crap.""

Whereas an expensive Zipp or Mavic wheel that fails due to inferior hubs or proprietory spokes that cant be replaced is after 6 months is overpriced crap!

I didn't say anything about the virtues of overpriced crap but another gerald: "the people who shouted the loudest and appeared to give the best offers sold the most." so the power of marketting budget's will always win. I would expect both mavic and zipp to have marketting budgets that dwarf their research and manufacturing budgets combined.

Camcycle1974

darkhairedlord wrote:

Camcycle1974 wrote:

darkhairedlord wrote:

I would go with Gerald:
"People say, "How can you sell this for such a low price?", I say, "because it's total crap.""

Whereas an expensive Zipp or Mavic wheel that fails due to inferior hubs or proprietory spokes that cant be replaced is after 6 months is overpriced crap!

I didn't say anything about the virtues of overpriced crap but another gerald: "the people who shouted the loudest and appeared to give the best offers sold the most." so the power of marketting budget's will always win. I would expect both mavic and zipp to have marketting budgets that dwarf their research and manufacturing budgets combined.

Absolutely. As a customer you are definitely paying for their R&D and marketing budgets on top of the product. With something like Lightweight you are paying for the cachet of a handmade, luxury product and the man hours that have gone into making it.

cgrenn

Got of Tubs 50mm from Carbon Zone, They ante half bad. Dont get me wrong, You do pay for what you get but i paid about 270$ all in and got mine last year. Descended in the Wet/Dry all no problems at all. I really like mine, and if one goes, they sell front and rear wheels separately for like £110.

They also come with a Years warranty!