Shinnster

Well, i got my first Road bike.
Blue competition cycle RC8
after a lot of research and advice from my LBS i went with this bike.

Now, i've searched before and i've read people swearing off and by carbon frames for clydes.
I want to help the community by posting my experiences with the components i have and updating frequently on any problems i have.

Hopefully this might put to rest some concerns that people have when they look for a bike.

here we go

I'm 29 yrs old
current weight 276 (was 320 6months ago)
6'2" tall

now onto the bike

Blue competition RC8 frame large


Sram Rival Groupset


Mavic Ksyrium equipe wheels with continental gator skin tires at 25c


aerus composites carbon handlebar with cateye v3


aerus composites alloy seat post with fizik arione wing saddle


speedplay frogs (will upgrade later when i get real road shoes)


now some more pics



So far i've had the bike 3 days and have put in about 30miles
Still needs a couple of adjustments but the bike is comfortable and fast!!!

Now i hope to update this thread often and let everyone know how these components handle my weight.
and hopefully i will be dropping the weight as time goes on.

Herbie53

sexy.... I'd do it.

jordanb450

That is a beautiful bike! I look forward to hearing about your experiences (I am 6'3" and 280lbs so we are very similar) Congratulations

youcoming

WTG and you'll never hear me say a clyde shouldn't ride carbon. I have about 3000k on my new this year 5.5 project one Madone and have had no issues to date.

mkadam68

Blue's are kinda sexy, aren't they? Even the name.

Saltybeagle

very elegant bike and great components.

Dewey Oxberger

Please keep us posted. I'm considering a carbon for my next bike so I'd like to know how it's going.

Nighteyez

Awesome looking bike. Looks like it is going fast just sitting there.

Homeyba

I have 35,000-40,000 miles (in 4yrs) including a couple 1200k's, 2 RAAMs and one t-boning a van at 40mph on my carbon bike. No need to convince me either. Carbon is tough stuff.

You have a awesome looking bike there! Hope it performs for you as good as it looks.

PS, after you put a couple hundred miles on those wheels take them to a good wheel builder and have them properly tensioned. Those Ksyrium's are machine built (I'm pretty confident) and should be gone through. If you do that, you'll have some bullet proof wheels there on your pretty new bike.

maddmaxx 

The only reservations (not hard facts, just reservations) I have with carbon are in the area of seatposts. Specifically, seatposts that are squeezed too tightly or those which are scratched and nicked due to clamping problems. I suspect that a failed seatpose might ruin your day. Beyond that, well engineered systems from good brands....................

Kotts

Beautiful bike. My only comment is I'd probably keep the Speedplay Frogs. If you like the shoes you have, and the Frogs work for you, why change?

ArtO

Beautiful bike. I hope you enjoy it and thanks for sharing your experiences with us.

surfjimc

That's a sweet bike. I'm 6'5" 285, although I've lost almost 20lbs this month living in Korea. I've had my Carbon frame for almost two years and it's still going strong. Mostly Dura Ace components with Mavic Ksyriums. I went with those wheels because the Mavic rep told me they were far stronger than the 36 spoke MA 40's I was riding. He was right, two years and they are perfectly true.

IAmCosmo

I've always liked the Blue frames. Only wish I could afford one...

pennstater

+1 on the seat post if your post is carbon.

I am 260 and cracked the original carbon seat post on my 06 Spec Roubaix Pro. Cracked a replacement carbon post and replaced it with an aluminum Thomson Elite. I have always used a beam torque wrench to tighten the seat post clamp.

No difference in ride quality. Big difference in piece of mind.

Brando_T.

I think a post above me implies this - but did you buy the bike with the spec'd wheels, or did you change out the wheels with something with more spokes?

and i'm interested in any results.

Shinnster

yea, thats why i chose the alloy seatpost. Saved me a few bucks as well.

I've only got a pair of shimano mtb shoes. I'd like to go to a more serious shoes(stiffer) and move to the speedplay x series pedal. So far the frogs are good, hard to tell if i'm clipped in, no noticiable sound or click. still easier to get into than spd's.

Hey where are you in korea, i lived there for 2 years in shinchon.
The mavic rep said the same thing, but also said that mavic wheels built for individual resale are built better than ones built for complete bikes. Could be horse manure but who knows. I've got an plan with the distributer that if i have any problems with the wheels breaking or anything, they will repair.

I Custom built this bike, i.e. i chose all the components including the wheels. the mavick kysrium equipe have 18spokes front 20 spokes rear. I thought this was maybe too low for my size, but have had assurance that it will be ok. I'll let you know if i have any problems with them

CliftonGK1

I'm also a proponent for carbon at almost any weight. I've got a friend who hammers the snot out of a full carbon rig, and he's 230.

The only suggestions I have:

- Buy a good torque wrench. I see a lot of carbon accessories on there, and all that stuff is tempermental to proper torque. If you're making adjustments on a carbon rig, a torque wrench is an essential tool to own.

- Keep a close eye on the fork for any minor external damage. While I trust the strength of CF, there is the matter of integrity loss with scratch/nick damage (which itself is unlikely to happen unless the bike topples over or something of the sort.)

Other than that, man that's a beauty. Lugged CF? It's like a handbuilt steel frame went through a time warp and got transformed into CF. Very awesome looking.

BTW, my friend rides the Ksyrium SL wheels and hasn't had any problem with them.

JSWhaler

Great bike I ride a Blue RC4 with a full dura ace 7800 setup. I started riding it at 245 lbs and am now 210. I've also racked over 2k miles on it this summer. I should tell you that I'm normally 205 lbs but do to an accident was unable to exercise for over a year. I'm working on getting below the 200 lb mark.

RatedZeroHero

buy me one so we have another test subject...

it would add to objectivity...

valiantjedi

I built this one using the Leader Bike store on Ebay and parts I bought off there as well. Their customer service was great and answered every question I had. I've had no problems with the Carbon frame and I'm a pretty big guy. 276, down 13lbs in the last month and a half. I've had the bike for a little over a year now. I biked and then needed gear for cold weather biking, so I stopped for awhile.

Note: Looks like they were running a special on Ebay for awhile. They raised the prices now. I am using the 7965R frame, and the I802 fork. I've had no problems with the carbon seat post either.

https://www.leaderbikestore.com/pd-7965r.cfm

Oh and hi all First post.

bk12

Good carbon bikes are fine for Clydes. I have a few pounds on the OP, and I have been riding the heck out of my Trek OCLV road frame. I am very familiar with the Trek OCLV line through the years, and I can speak for them being excellent frames and built for clydes...especially with the metallic-crowned forks.

superdex

I have a Blue RC4AL --Aluminum with carbon seat stays, and I LOVES it. Congrats on a sweet ride!

surfjimc

I'm in Ilsan, NW of Seoul about an hour at the end of line #3 (Orange). Close enough to head in on the subway for dinner or to look around though. I'm headed home Monday. Can't wait to go for a ride.
I never heard that about Mavic before. Maybe they use different factories.

markdavid570

I'm 6'5 and 265 lbs and carbon worries me...but just because of things I have read and heard. There are some bikes that I have considered, but have been unsure because while they are aluminum frames, they have carbon seat stays. I hear people say things about "a good carbon frame will be just as strong as anything else", and I wonder what constitutes a "good carbon frame"? A $10,000 Trek Madone? A $2,000 Trek 2.3? A Giant TCR A1? Masi Gran Corsa? The Giant I'm considering is half carbon, half aluminum. It's good to hear that other people my size are having good results.