:| what if know mike tho and i'm into supporting his ****? kinda thought it looked dece there

Seems like he's doing well enough that sparing your otherwise pretty bike of his gawdy logo won't hurt his revenue flows.
I mean people are already paying him $30+ to advertise his brand with a shirt that has his logo.

i dunno about gaudy but i do know the design element of the bike that i dont like is the red fork. wait til you see the terrible scene front wheel on this thing currently...

Hey Scrod,

What do you think of these welds: 1 and 2 ? picture 1 is the bottom bracket, picture 2 is the seatstay

I'm worried about the holes that are right next to them/in between the welds.

Thanks!

Sloppy weld. But a cosmetic, not a structural problem.

Thanks for the response, but could you clarify with some of your reasoning?

I've looked at a few frames that I own from 2007, and even those, with their ugly welds, don't have these weld craters anywhere.

I hate to be so nitpicky, but I do plan on sticking with this frame for the next 4+ years, and wouldn't want it to fail prematurely. I did research on welding craters, and found this, along with other welding forums that seem to come to the consensus: "Fill the weld crater at the end of a weld. Craters are the leading reason aluminum welds crack".

Seeing as how the bike will be used very regularly, it seems very likely that the vibrations and stress will cause the frame to fracture/fail at those points.

What frame is that?

(Surprisingly, to me at least, that this frame would have such problems) the 2015 Leader 725.

So what's your take on the welds/weld craters? I know you've had leader 725's built up and you have a friendly relationship with Leader Bikes (That 735 prototype is beautiful)--have you ever noticed these? Holes in welding cannot be only a cosmetic flaw..

Those are more like pinholes than craters, likely a result of impurities on the metal preventing the bead from flowing smoothly. If you're concerned, inspect regularly and hang onto your receipt to facilitate warranty replacement.

That's weird. All the 2015 Leader frames we've got in the shop have pretty nice welds around the brake bridge and BB shell.

I probably wouldn't worry about it but they'd probably replace it if you contact them about sending it back.

That's what I thought-- I've had leader frames and none had this type of problem, so I was pretty unhappy.

I have contacted them, I'll update with results when I get a response.

Thanks for your input as well JDT!

i'm looking to upgrade a crankset (chainring has a lot of high/low spots) and overall it's a stock lower quality set. everyone is in love with omniums but i don't think i have the legs or budget to warrant spending that kind of money on the stiffest track crank i can find. or maybe it's not about ability, and the stiffness is worth it in the long run for quality…. any thoughts or recommendations?

also i'm getting a lot of noise off the chain. part of the issue was the chainring. i swapped it out for a sugino ring i had on an older bike which quieted the crank up. the generic cog in the back is still pretty noisy. i double checked the alignment of the crank/cog so the chain is straight and greased it, and the tension is even but it still sounds like i've got a baseball card in the spokes. any cogs you've used that seem quieter than the rest?

An update to the 2015 leader 725 frameset I received: Alex from Leader bikes has told me that both the inch long scratch on the fork (that I can run my finger over and feel an obvious skip/crevice) and the craters/pinholes on the frame are purely cosmetic; they will not be replacing any parts. The best they can do is have me pay for return s/h and refund me. To be fair, the head badge is also falling off, and they have sent me a new one to replace it.

Overall, I'm pretty dissatisfied. No leader frame I had before had those holes in the bb shell, brake bridge, and down tube/head tube connection area (found a new one there..) and it bums me out to know I paid for a new frame that has those things. I respect their decision, but begrudgingly so. Just wanted to fulfill my update on the situation.

Edit: I should also add that I spent over an hour trying to fish out a foreign object out of the seatstay through the tiny vent holes. Every time I moved the frame it would make a sound. Turns out it was a piece of welding that came loose and was rattling in there.

I can almost understand them saying that about the welds, if it really is cosmetic.
But if you buy a 500 dollar frameset, I think you deserve a fork that doesn't have a gash down it........... just my two cents


/notscrod

I honestly can't diagnose why your drivetrain is loud over the internet. Some cogs are loud. Some are quiet. In my experience, EAI cogs are silent when you're using a good chain like an Izumi Super Toughness but there are far too many variables. I've had the exact same chainring/chain/cog setup on two different bikes simultaneously and one was much louder than the other. No idea why.

Also, your chain could just be too tight.

Regarding the crankset, if you don't want to spring for Omniums or think they're unnecessary and still want something good having 144bcd, pick up a set of Andels or the IRD Defiant (depending on which aesthetic you're going for).

thanks for the suggestion. I'll try the eai cog and check on my chain tension and see if it helps.

Hey Scrod,

There is another problem that I found with the 2015 Leader 725 frame. The bottom bracket is welded badly and is not round: Picture 1 Picture 2

This frame wasn't bought off their eBay site-- I am aware those framesets are not warranted.

I ordered this off their official website, and with the slew of problems I've been mentioning earlier, I'm really questioning why they're so reluctant to replace the frame.

Do any 725's at your shop have this, or have I been shipped an eBay-worthy frame?

Thanks!

None of the 2015 leader frames I've seen have any of the issues you are describing.

Also, I don't work for Leader so I suggest taking this up with them (again).

Have you heard of any issues with the Andel deluxe track bb? I'm looking into both Andel's but don't want the issues some of the Sram ppl have had with the outboard bb.

I've put quite a few on customers' bikes and haven't heard any complaints.

Scrod, you know a fair bit about Leader's merchandise...


what's the bottom bracket shell width on the 2015 Leader 735 frames? I'm trying to select a BB and crankset that will fit properly.

See bottom of the RG webpage for the very obvious answer:

2015 Leader 735/I806 frameset | Retrogression

Hey do you stock the gum hood version of the Cane Creek SCR-5?

SCR-5 levers are only available with black hoods but gum hoods can be bought separately. My shop stocks them for $12.

Thanks, TT.