Joined: 02 Sep 2009Posts: 1116Location: White Center/Burien
I've been looking for a replacement tapered carbon disc fork for my CX bike for some time. I see lots of viable, affordable, unbranded options on eBay, and I am wondering if there are any major things I should be wary of when looking at chinese carbon products. I think carbon technology in the bike world is pretty reliable these days, but I don't know if there are specific factory outlets, etc. I should avoid because of poor workmanship/quality.
This is a general question for forks, frames, wheel sets I am too heavy to ride, and the basic idea of buying unbranded composite products from overseas.
Zack H. doesn't really use the forums much, but you could send him a message.... his carbon race bike is a knockoff, and I bet he did quite a bit of research before buying.
langston
Posted: Tue Jun 07, 2016 10:07 am
Joined: 25 Jul 2005Posts: 5547Location: Columbia City
I'm interested in no-label carbon too, I have finally come to terms that my fast bike is dodgey and uncomfortable, and I would like to swap the wheels & drivetrain over onto something nifty and quick.
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blasdelf
Posted: Tue Jun 07, 2016 4:10 pm
BAD NAVIGATORJoined: 01 Mar 2010Posts: 1505
don't get a knockoff Pinarello, the real ones are bad enough
Torrey that fork should be good, I've seen some out of the same mold show up in pretty legit places. The tire clearance is great and the fender mounts do work, more than you can say for a lot of name-brand shit.
The most significant product failures, Beckwith says, involve product flaws that lead to failure of a bike fork at speeds often under 20 mph, which in almost all cases causes head or upper body trauma severe enough to maim or kill the cyclist.
My risk tolerance has gone down, so this scares me. Your fork and handlebars are what keep your face from hitting the pavement.
Before riding a carbon fork, I would want to see that the manufacturer has tested their forks to the applicable standards, and has a quality process to inspect for voids and reject bad parts that come out of the molds.
Yes, even welded steel forks can fail, but they tend to do so gracefully.
The composites I work with are not the same, but the consequences of failure are.
Dan
Posted: Wed Jun 08, 2016 7:34 am
Shut UpJoined: 03 Aug 2014Posts: 566Location: Beacon Hill
Joined: 06 Dec 2010Posts: 1235537Location: a hammy melange...
Hmm. I wonder if perhaps tweaking the paramount to add a carbon fork would be a good idea. gotta save me those ounces! I could drop it to sub 18lb if I put a carbon for on.
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whitenhiemer
Posted: Wed Jun 08, 2016 9:16 am
Joined: 26 Sep 2013Posts: 591Location: somewhere up north
I'm just going to cover my bike in this stuff. I'll be hella fast.
To be fair, that article is talking specifically about counterfeit bikes. Similar but definitely not the same.
Derp. I misunderstood the question as referring to knockoff bikes... I ride a China-made carbon frame pretty regularly. It's solid enough to take a swording with no more damage than a chip in the gel coat.
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