aeonderdonk

I'm planning to buy a bike from a friend next week: Orba Orca, full DA (option of DA crank or FSA K-Force Lite Carbon Compact), Reynolds 46 carbon tubulars. It's a good deal as best I can see (under $2k) but had a few questions for you folks out there:

- Anything I should look especially for when checking out a carbon frame? I've never riden carbon before so not familiar. He takes good care of his bikes so I assume it's fine.

- I'm 210 and not comfortable riding on carbon wheels without destroying them, what do you think the Reynolds could sell for on craigslist or ebay (or here)?

- I'm leaning towards the DA full crank vs FSA compact because again 210 and carbon might not mix too well. Any drawbacks or reasons to not be worried?

- All said and done do you think it's a good deal or might I be better served picking up a new CAAD10-5 for the same price?

Carbon Unit

I have bought a few used bikes. Check out the fork. My first one had a cracked fork. I wouldn't want tubulars but some people lke them. I would check out Ebay and see what they can sell for.

TrojanHorse

I doubt you'd destroy the wheels - they're probably a lot more sturdy than you give them credit. reynolds may or may not have a rider weight limit for them, check them out on their website. However, they are tubulars and I prefer riding on clinchers (familiarity) so they'd probably be worth selling for that reason alone... for me at least.

Sounds like you're getting a fantastic deal, and you say this is a friend - are you so worried that he'll screw you over that you're asking a bunch of random internet strangers?

Your carbon crank will be fine - they tend to have an aluminum frame to them. Your carbon frame will also be fine, they're strong as hell. DuraAce chainrings are expensive as *#@&# to replace when they wear out, I'd probably prefer k-Light for that reason alone. it won't look weird when you stick praxis chainrings on them.

Things I'd check before buying - make sure everything is fastened tight to the bike - physically grab things like the brakes, shifters etc and see how they feel. With the wheels mounted, try to move the rim back and forth to see if there's any plan in the axles. Spin the wheels and inspect for trueness. Make sure the brakes function. Grab the cranks and try to move them back and forth and in and out - should be no play whatsoever. Turn the cranks and check for smoothness. Check the frame for dings, scratches and cracks. Damage to the finish is probably fine but anything deeper needs to be investigated.

Take a test ride and shift through all the gears. Shifting should be smooth and easy.

Enjoy your new bike.

aeonderdonk

Not worried about being screwed over, just trying to learn some basic info and address concerns about carbon frame/components from a broader community knowledge source. Thanks for the tips!

tagaproject6

Carbon is not as fragile as you percieve them to be. Just don't leave it out in the sun nor look at it wrong and you'll be fine


But, seriously, just check out the limitations on the wheels. Personally, I would change out the wheels regardless of rider weight, just for convenience.

aeonderdonk

I will do my best to break my mental block on carbon. Looks like I can get some decent return on the wheels on ebay so I'll probably sell them there.