Chinese carbon frames
 

I want your thoughts on Chinese carbon frames. Go.

Any particular ones or are we just talking about all of the frames made there?

i only trust those chinese as far as i can throw them

Racist, IMO.

I think your coffee sucks.

I heard it's made in China by 12 year old orphans. And you beat them daily.

I always suspected you of having this disease...

I'm all for it.

I've been using one as my rain/backup bike for 5 years. It rides fine, my only complaint is the tight tire clearance around the BB that requires me to unscrew the QR nut to get the wheel on without forcing it. It sees about 3000 miles a year and I've done a few races on it. It hasn't failed yet. The Cervelo R3 I got at the same time did fail a couple years ago, but was replaced under warranty. Admittedly the R3 saw more like 5000 miles a year.

cervelos are built in china

Most carbon frames are made in China, as well as most aluminum frames as well. I would have to say I like the one I own, a Felt.

Troll. Don't bother. Three posts since 07?

Twenty-two posts since '07. Not that it matters... I'd be more inclined to call someone with 900 posts in 12 months a troll before a guy with 3 posts in 5 years.

Not a troll. I just bought one and I would like opinions from users, and people who have done their homework. Lazy... a little. Troll, no. I just got my first road bike a few weeks ago. I have been a mountain biker for over 10, so please, stfu.

^^^Nice.

I'm sure people will be very willing to share their experiences with you.:rolleyes:

This was a good notion, OP! :thumb:

My next bike will be one. I just haven't managed to kill my current bikes yet.

This really isn't the best forum to get objective input. Try roadbikereview.com.

That said, I've ordered 3 frames from China:

The P1 from http://www.cyclingyong.com
The FM-015 from http://www.hongfu-bikes.com
The RFM101 from http://www.greatkeenbike.com

All 3 setups were about $600 delivered (unpainted, including headset, full carbon fork, and seatpost)

They are some of the best frames I've ever ridden. I thought my Madone 4.7 was nice, but I sold it this year. The FM015 rides nicer, climbs better, and has just been a b*tchin bike overall. Super stiff through the BB area and the carbon steerer really helps smooth out the ride.

There are some shady places out there for sure, but if you deal with a reputable place, you'll get a quality product with a 2 year warranty.

Some things to be aware of:
1) Quoted lead times can slip -- if you are turned off by this, these frames aren't for you. I was quoted 30 days on the P1 and took more like 45.
2) Communication can be a bit of a barrier -- the people at Hong Fu seem to be the most fluent and best at returning emails
3) You need to be a somewhat capable bike mechanic to put these together. DO NOT SAND THE STEERER ON THE FORK TO GET THE CROWN RACE TO FIT. Seen someone do that and the fork broke the first time he rode it (duh). I had to some minor clean up to 2 of the frames (ran an M5 x 0.8 tap through all of the water bottle bosses and barrel adjuster threads and had to use a dental pick to clean out some resin in the BB of one of the frames).

Overall, I had the best experience with Hong Fu and give them the highest marks. Communication was the hardest with Great Keen. Hong Fu seems to be the most expensive (by maybe 5-10%), but they seem to have the biggest selection (ie, I wanted a UD gloss finish on one frame and the others couldn't do it).

Bob

Yo homie, shouldn't you have asked this question before purchasing one? Haha.

Here's a recent, huge thread on what people think about one particular Chinese carbon frame. Very divided... CHINARELLO

Thanks for the detailed post Bob. I should have asked first. I just figured if the frame broke, I could use the back up bike, or just build the old one back up.

Yeah, Cervelos and just about every other manufacturer you could name!

Come to think of it, what's not made in China?

That's where the entire world gets over half of everything, ceramic, aluminum, electrical, technological, medical, etc..

These guys need to wake up and smell the friggin' coffee!...Perhaps even coffee from thecoffeedean.com, eh! ;)

Those SWORKS are peeking my interest...just don't wanna mail $800.00 into the air never to be seen again, but for a second bike might be kinda worth it...

I have a problem buying stuff from China, so I try not to. If I was in the market for a Carbon bike I would be searching out one that was either still made in the USA, Italy, or someplace other than China.

I just checked that site and am confused. They claim the market price for this saddle is $747.50 USD. Ehhhhhh????!!!
http://www.cyclingyong.com/goods-474...45g+Black.html

I don't have a Chinese carbon bike, but I am curious to ride one of the open mold bikes. Some of the designs look very nice. If I had $500 to burn on a frameset, I'd rather buy a CAAD off ebay though. That's just me.