Is it worth it to build an AliExpress MTB?
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- Опубліковано 5 лип 2024
- In this one I am going to give you guys a look of my AliExpress hardtail MTB build. Afterwards, I'll review it and tell you whether or not I would do anything different if I were to build it again.
The build in total cost about 2400 Euros and the final weight is 9.5 kg.
Hope you enjoy and if you have any questions make sure to leave them in the comments!
I have not been compensated by any of the companies mentioned in the video in any way.
Bike Build Parts:
- Carbon bottle cage (s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_okcLdg8)
- Spycycle t1000 carbon 29 hardtail frame (s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mKgAUNQ)
- Spycycle full carbon seat post 31.6mm (s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_oE1iie8)
- HUNT RACE XC MTB 29 wheelset
- Bolany MTB crankset 36T 170mm (s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mMoMLJW)
- Sunshine 12 Speed 11/52 casette (s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mt6o5bq)
- AVID G3 160mm rotors (s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mNh6cHQ)
- TALRED MTB shift cable
- QILEJVS MTB rubber grips
- ZTTO BSA bottom bracket 68mm standard (s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_olWVagY)
- LTWOO 1x12 MTB shifter & deraillieur (s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Exn3RBh)
- RISK cable housing foam (s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mPr9PwG)
- Shimano XT Hydraulic Brakes
- RockShox Race Day SID 100mm suspension fork
- Maxxis Pace 29x2.1 (s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mPl8wsy)
- Stans Sealant
- Selle Italia SLR Boost alloy
- Shimano SPD 520
Video Equipment:
- Camera: Fujifilm Xh2
- Lens: Viltrox 23mm f1.4
- Mic: Hollyland Lark M1 - Спорт
Pretty sure the brand is SPCycle, not SpyCycle.
Also, the listing title is not the model. It's just a sting of search terms that describe the product. Pretty sure this frame is called the SP-M05.
I wouldn't put any more or less faith in carbon over other materials. Plenty of aluminium and steel frames have snapped.
I have those same wheels on the bike I race marathons on. The rims and really soft. I destroyed the rear rim in the first race. Replaced it with a Spank rim which has been a lot more reliable.
I just checked and you are right!! I will pin your comment in case someone wants to get their hands on that frame as well. Thanks!!
SpyCycle is more chinese-like namefor brand. The Big Brother watchs You
SpyCycle....comes with TikTok pre-installed.
@@wvjeepguy8178 Good One!!!
looks so mint, awesome bike. dont get drawn in by big brands. ive used expensive and cheap things and most times its useless to buy more expensive things especially consumables like cassettes and chains
It can definitely be true, however, for chains in particular I have made some bad experiences as well. I've gotten one of the more reputable 12s chains from AliExpress and that one was done after about 800km - while all other drive train parts were like new. Could have been a bad apple of course but QC is not quite up there.
Buying used is also the way to go. I use them for my bikes a lot, its very rare you see people wear parts.
I thought You have more subscribers than 181. I am not english native speaker and I appreciate speakers who normally speaks like you and I can understand them. Nice video! Sorry for my grammar.
Thank you so much, that means a lot!
Your video obviously hit right in the algorithm :D
Nothing wrong with Ali if you find the right parts.I built an Aliexpress bike in 2018 , raced a bunch of xc and i weigh around 240. Frame still holding strong all these years. Ali carbon cranks is a different story,lol.
Just got done with my Aliexpress carbon build.
HyperX Carbon walmart i ended up getting free after trading.
Carbon bars
Carbon seat post
MT200 hydraulic brakes
Buckaloos stuff
Bolany fork
Shimano Deore drive
Ceramic bottom bracket
Every other oart from Alieexpress.
Total build cost = $322.13 for a Carbon hard tail 29er with an air fork.
I also have a RAW jibb with thousands invested. This build was for fun to see how cheap i could build a decent Carbon bike.
Nice build. Only suggestion would be replace that bolany fork with a suntour epixon from Ali when it wears out. Much better fork with replacement parts you can easily find.
@davidgarza2267 Yeah i agree. The Bolany was 34mm and cheap. I just wanted to see it in person. It's been very good but I'm not dying huge jumps with it.
Suntour has a trade in deal. I might do that anyways and just keep it on the shelf
Damn that sounds like a really awesome deal you got!! How does it ride so far?
First of all the bike looks sick! The blue is mint!
Very cool video overall and great breakdown, I wonder how long will it last so be much appreciated if you do a long run video in the future!
Good job!
Thank you so much for the kind words!! 'll definitely keep you posted on how the bike will perform in the future and especially if something doesn't work as desired!
@@nikinikcc Sick!
Thanks for walking through your self built bike. I enjoy building bikes, you can build them to ride how you want, get to try different parts, and smile when you find that great value part.
I also build electric commuters and MTB, and share batteries between the builds. Enjoy testing the different motors, including the CYC Photon.
Glad you liked it!
Great video, man! Gave me inspiration to start my channel. I've been buying Aliex parts in the last two years and i recently finished my MTB build with some Aliex parts in it. I live in Brazil and their parts are a great save of money.
Glad to hear that and the best of luck on your journey as well!!
I'm planning on making a touring bike with internal gears. Bikes are so much better, when you build them yourself, it makes you aware of how everything works and helps you customize it to fulfill your needs. Nice video!
100% agree!!
I am currently building a XC bike myself (the first time though) and I could get it for around 850€. I went with VeloBuild, as aliexpress frames were slightly worse for the price, but every other component was from Ali and I could mount a full Shimano Deore change in it (derailleur+cassette+crankset+chain) and MT200 hidraulic brakes. I risked it with the fork and went with a Nanlio, but seems really good for what I paid.
I think that AliExpress and the Chinese market in general is a great choice for budget builds. You won't obviously get the peack performance, but I guess they are far from being bad.
It's always good to see other people going the AliExpress way. Congrats on your build, it looks great!
Cheap and carbon in the same sentence scares me lol.
I would have the carbon checked by a professional to make sure there are no air bubbles between the layers and for spots that are too thin before sending it too hard.
Looks amazing. I actually like that it doesn't have decals cluttered on it. Just plain matte black is so cool. Please keep is posted on how it holds up. I often thought of buying direct from Ali myself, but just wasn't too sure about their quality. Good luck!
Thank you so much! I totally get where you are coming from thats why I wanted to try it out and see whether or not these AliExpress items hold up long term. For now it works out
This looks like a very decent bike, well done 👍🏼
Thanks a lot!
Looks clean bro !
Thanks a lot!
If you’re concerned about the carbon fiber parts, it could always be a pavement princess.
That's what i built. Light trails and urban mountain biking.
hahaha true that! But as long as I dont hit the pavement I'll try to trust the bike
Nice build bro. Im sure you'll be competitive with this build
Thank you!!
Nice build dude.
I can recommend use Continental tyres Race King Performance 2.2" in back and Cross King Performance 2.2" in front and I think for XC that is super. I also seen Tom Pidcock use them on that Pinarello Dogma MTB so it must be good :D (he had both tyres race king tho)
Thank you for the recommendation! I might try those as my next ones
2400 euros, for that price you might as well get a name brand bike.
Please show me one example of a bike in that price range that has a 12s drive train and is below 10kg
@@nikinikcc Just saying, it ain't exactly cheap for AliExpress. What happens if something fails?
@@crtgamer2355 of course there are concerns but that's the gamble I was willing to take. I wanted to see how good value-for-money can get on AliExpress. Whether the customer support is as good as with established brands is probably doubtful but maybe things work out okay
@@nikinikcc Gotcha, I totally get where you're coming from. It is a nice bike for sure.
I think a large chunk of that cost is in that fork! That's a top tier item in comparison to everything else.
1:38
these are not tubeless compatible, i have yet to have a problem, however, pss- *cuts out*
😍Just got yourself a new subcriber
Thank you!!
BEAUTIFUL BIKE
Those are the great carbon parts , here in the Philippines alot of mtb riders use those parts , also toseek carbon and ec90 carbon and no issues at all durable and cheap
I thought of doing this but i would be worried of stuff snapping and getting hurt.
Are you planning on taking it on anything more rough then dirt roads?
We do have quite a few flowly kinda trails around here and I have tried a few of those but not all. If I find the right one I would also try a rougher trail.
Have you had a look at a Waltly titanium frame with custom geometry? You could transfer some of the parts of this build.
It is so funny you say that, I just recently stumbled across that brand! That would also be a cool build! For now I have to save up though haha
I built 5 Bikes off AliExpress already thay all worked out really good, just need to pick the right parts!
Can't see the handlebars in the list. Mind stating which handlebars you used?
Unfortunately, the listing seems to be deleted. When I go to my past purchases and click the link to that item it reads something like item no longer available.
I've been eyeing a couple of full suspension frames from ali but all things considered shipping and duty to Canada would make it too expensive for the level of uncertainty, carbon rigid frames are very well priced tho 🙃
*I've personally broken two of these bottle cage holder, the little tab in the back snapped on both, don't push like a mad man on it I guess 😢😂
Haha that's good to know, I mean the bottle cages are pretty thin. Have you been looking at any suspension frame brand in particular if I may ask?
Do they sell derailleur hangers as spares, or are you completely screwed the second you break the one you got?
They do sell them fortunately - also they are pretty inexpensive.
I can recommend the Maxxis rekon race 29x2.25. The race version has smaller and more knobs than the normal rekon casing. I have ridden 1500+km on my trail full over forest and park paths as well as tarmac with this profile
Only for dry conditions. On the wet they are terrible.
@@beafmilk oh interesting. interesting. i have driven 1500+km in northern germany, where there is 50% rain. it was okay for me.
Nice build. For that budget I probably would've used a cheaper fork and spent money on a better drivetrain. Ltwoo now has rear mech's with a sort of clutch that works well. I have one on my chinese gravel bike and it has zero chain slap or chain drops.
You are definitely right, however I got the fork on a good deal off of ebay so it made sense in that instance. I am also keen on trying this mtb with a rigid fork from AliExpress but thats for a later date
If your taking it off road you dont want the fork to snap wich can happen with cheap forks
@@zevcohen7456 by cheaper I meant something like a rockshox revelation or marzhocchi. Not the cheap chinese forks. Would never trust those.
Aren't those brakes overkill for an XC bike? I got simple cheap mt200's and they do their job fine. They do fade a bit off course, but none of my loops is taxing enough on them where it really matters.
Yea, perhaps you are right but they weren't that much more expensive than lower grade ones so I just went with them
@@nikinikcc you're extremely lucky then, the price difference I'm used to here is quite atrocious, though last time I was buying it was just after everything came back into stock after the pandemic when everyone else bought the entire inventory and even mt200's were more expensive then they are worth.
Is that a 27.5 fork? 2.10 feels to tight for that fork
Im going to be honest, ive started to move away from Aliexpress on my bikes now. I love their products, and they were very, very appealing in my early mountain bike days. However, its just been nothing but problems. Between the long shipping, so so returns, lack of dealers, and wide variety of quality, its just been better to find deals from other brands. Ive bought two XD cassettes from Zitto, they were about $100. The greatest build quality ever, super super light with great range. But after about 150 miles, both cassettes developed play. It would be fully tightened on the hub and still wiggle slightly. It led to bad shifting sometimes, an awful grinding noise, and might have led to the downfall of my hub, as the internals literally exploded metal on the inside but that might not be related. So im going to look for an actual xx1 cassette once it wears out again. I bought some inexpensive mountain bike shoes and used them for about 2 years. They were super ripped and scratched and scarred but somehow held together. When riding the shoe I could never get the cleat far back enough as there wasnt built in enough room to push it back. For 2 years I had really bad foot pain when riding because of how far forward and to the right the cleats were, but I just thought thats how clipless shoes were. But then I bought a pair of Giro shoes for about $70, and for the first time was able to get the cleats in a good position. Turns out it was simply bad design on the part of the aliexpress shoes, and it all could have been avoided if I had spent $20 more.
Thanks for giving your insights on the topic! I agree, AliExpress can be hit or miss and at some point in your life you just dont want to deal with that risk anymore.
Do you have the link to buy this bottle cage?
de.aliexpress.com/item/1005006582602986.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.27.7b89G9nDG9nDAd&algo_pvid=8b1d592a-4093-47b6-af47-932f1672c9d6&utparam-url=scene%3Asearch%7Cquery_from%3A
Did you pay customs when the frame arrived? I'm in germany and wondering if I need to consider that.
Yeah unfortunately. In Switzerland it was roughly 10% of the purchasing price
@@nikinikcc thanks!
pretty hefty pricetag considering most parts are chinese nonames. not sure if i would do smth like that. stay safe and good luck with it :)
this looks great, now lets get a riding video =p
Planing on doing that this week!
would you mind sharing the store link of where you got the bike frame?
Of course! de.aliexpress.com/item/1005002982566507.html?spm=a2g0o.store_pc_home.productList_2009177775217.1005002982566507
You say the front sprocket is 32T but on the video it's 36T?
Oh yeah, seemingly I had it wrong in my notes. Its a 36!
Sweet video
Thanks a lot!
I build a emtb from AliExpress and its awesome
The derrailleur is ltwoo not zzitto. Love your video you got a new suscriptor
Oh yeah, you are right! Thank you!!
in the philiphines we Buy rigid fork and negative stem big front chain rings so that we can use mtb for racing lol
I oder a lot of stuff from Ali, and some is pretty good. For doing Road or XC build Ali parts might be alright, except for suspension forks and brakes.
But as soon as you start riding trails, please get some reliable name brand stuff. You can't trust any of these Ali components with your life.
The only things I'd maybe try from Ali on my Enduro bike would be drivetrain, but with name brand cranks. If any of that fails I'll mots likely stay on the bike.
For good path only to avoid issue
Nice video, I kinda lost you on "I don't want to compromise on safety" when it comes to the brakes, but your OK with your tires blowing off the rim (using non tubeless tires for tubeless)
Just seems like bad risk management, IMO (specifically regarding the tires, I know Ali have high quality carbon)
You could have ordered a proper set of TR tires (also from Ali) for a really fair price
You are totally right! I wanted to buy tubeless tires, though I guess I have mistaken these ones for TLR. I will get proper tires next
@@nikinikcc nice, personally I'd probably go for a pair of 29x2.35 Maxxis Rekon Race, in EXO + 3C, to keep the build nice and snappy
GL 👍
Can you do a gravel bike AliExpress build?
I'll put it on the list!
You mentioned your tires need more grip, i ride with maxxis ardent race both front and rear, it's grippy enough in trails but also slick enough if you're just hitting the road. Anyways, i really love your build, great work!!!🫶🏾🫶🏾
Thank you for the suggestion. I will check them out!
I’m very skeptical as I owned a bike rental/repair shop for thirty years and I assembled a thousand bikes from China and even though pre-assembled Chinese bikes are typically great in the higher end, whenever you cut costs by using lower end components you typically get a bike that doesn’t work well or hold up more than a year or two.
Respect for building quite a nice bike. No respect for the Chinese rear derailleur and non tubeless tires lol.
I respect what you're doing but let me just say one thing. You're young. I'm old. There's a saying that rarely fails. " You get what you pay for." Regardless, well done and thanks for making this video. Aloha. 🤙
Mekus men ..that's my Rd Ltwoo AX
Cool bike, bit of a shame you don’t run Chinese wheels. I do mtb races at quite a level and I have had 4 bikes all with Chinese rims and never had any problemsn
Yeah you are right, I might change that in the future. I'd also like to have one xc kinda setup and one with a bit nobblier tires for going on rougher trails. But thanks for sharing your experience!
Try the "MOUNTAINPEAK EVEREST" Frame
I'm surprised you were able to order. Every time I try to order from Ali Express, both my credit cards block the sale?
Oh really? That must be your bank though
@@nikinikcc idk, I've tried a couple of times using two different credit cards from two different banks, and the sales were denied. Scared me into thinking AliExpress is a scam. Now that I know it's not a scam, next time I'll call the bank first. Thanks for the info.
I always use Paypal. Built 2 bikes already and ordered tons of other stuff. Never had an issue.
@@headofmyself5663 Yeah, I put in my card(s) directly instead of using Paypal. The fact that it didn't work out made me so nervous that I reported both cards lost, so the bank would issue new ones. Next time it's Paypal. Thank You!
I would go with titanium parts, particularly frame.
titanium parts from china? is that a thing on aliexpress?
edit: turns out: it is!
that would be a cool build as well!
nice bike
I’ve thought about making this video
Whats the total weight?
About 9.5kg
Weapon MTB was china too...
But they used ALU6069
Just like in the west, looking for popular domestic brands and authentic product is probably the only way to avoid a stinker for important components
Very true! Research is everything
I think your front Brake disc is the wrong orientation
Apparently the frame is a replica of a Scott Scale :).
Ahh yes could be.
Those are some of the most expensive components for Aliexpress :) I mean for $2000 you can get a CF brand name bike these days. Not under 10kg, but with nothing Ali
Will it last?
That's what we are here for to find out
@@nikinikcc Yes maby some ride and footage and montly update video if you have the time
Sounds like a great idea! I'll put it on the to-do list
@@nikinikcc Maby get the frame tested/checked by Carbonfire Expert make a video about that
Riding a chyna carbon frame, you need your head read..
Here in Russia we have a lot of chinese parts and brands due to sanctions. At first we were very cautious about it. But due to lack of big brand supply people eventually start buying them. And they arent too bad actually. Plus the prices went down a lot. For example I've purchased full carbon aero road bike with carbon wheels and electronic shifting just under $1000 dollars. Which is impossible for a major brands.
Carbon hardtails with air fork starts at $600 and $850 for a full suspension XC bike. Carbon gravel bike is around $700. With hydraulic brakes and everything.
Obviously quality isnt top notch, but i never heard anyone having an accident due to a failed carbon. Maybe not enough time has passed. But so far so good.
Hey, thanks for your take! Really glad to hear that you don't know anyone with a broken frame yet. Makes me feel a bit more at ease with the frame and handlebars. After all, you are completely right when it comes to the price point. If you can score good parts then you'll have a bike much cheaper than from comparable western brands.
Those are very good prices. For those prices you only get shit from western brands
Can you tell me the most common Chinese brand you guys are riding over there? I'm interested in doing a project.
@@bonbonflippers4298 If we talk carbon hardtails i can recommend Spcycle frame. It cost ~$250. Has decent geometry and build quality. The main downside is 19 inch is the biggest size. No XL is avaliable.
I know one person who found a crack between seat tube and seatstays after a season. But the seller just sent him a new one. Which is fine imo.
noice
You could have gotten some decent goldix wheels for $600 and the build would have been in the sub 22lbs.
Have not heard of that brand before but will check it out!
Dangerous Bike! 🤔🤔🤔😮
A little danger is the right amount of danger
I had a blow out with non tubeless tyres.
Could of been catastrophic.
I was lucky...
Good to know that it can happen! Glad you were lucky though
@@nikinikcc glad to hear your ok bud.
Theres only a hanful of carbon factories in china and ALL the bikes of the market comes from them
Thats very true but there can be large differences in quality control and execution.
Та не зламається та рама, то хіба важити 120кг і стрибати, тоді може трохи страшно ))
haha yes
i mean.. you didn't follow the premise of the title of your video
Are you sure? In the end I did say that I think it might be worth it for an experienced tinkerer to try and build your own AliExpress MTB as its a rewarding experience. During the video I elaborated on the pros and cons of such an AliExpress MTB build.
@@nikinikcc saying and doing are different. Many of your major parts aren’t from aliexpress. I have some parts on my bike from Amazon. Does that make it a Amazon bike? Come on bro
I guess what constitutes an AliExpress bike is in the eye of the beholder - I would argue the frame is the most important element but I agree that I could have used more parts from AliExpress.
I'd recommend putting on at least 180mm brake rotors
Your chain is way to short
I was listening for a few minutes and then I ger bored. You sure love talking. You should've created a podcast If you're just going to talk and talk and talk and talk
make a video when you buy everthig on ali, so this title is worthy and not just clikbait
would you be any wiser now if they did?
It's heavier than I thought all things considered, but one can't complain with 2400 euros for a new carbon bike
As a student I went down the hole of very old, but high end and modified with my 2009 Ghost Lektor 7700 Carbon Edition Fully that I bought in Allgäu for just 500 euro used from an older gentleman that had maintained it very well and done some light upgrades like a XTR crankset, ZTR Olympic Tubeless rims and it even came with some fresh Schwalbe Nobby Nic Evos. To be honest most of what I do is XC, but for that price and the fact that it's still only 11.5 kg despite being a L frame fully (though it is a 26"), I've been having a lot of fun with it, having done over 1000 kms in the past month and a half on it and only having to change the worn chainring bolts and nuts for 10 euro
Hopefully the weather improves from this heavily rainy season so we can go ride more!
That also sounds like a very fun endeavor!! Do you ever feel like 26 inch wheels are too small for rougher terrain? Because that is also what deterred me from going with 27.5 inch wheels on this build.
@@nikinikcc I haven't tried out any 27.5"s, but I have tried two of my friends' new 29" cube aluminum frame fullys on some trails this year and done extensive riding in a high-end 29" Nikolai GT1 Eboxx EWB e-MTB last year (all three were XL, so a bit big for my 185 cm self). What I can attest to is the increased ease of riding and comfort in rough terrain, but I found that all three of them (especially the 30+ kg Nikolai) felt very unresponsive, disconnected even, making it a lot harder to take turns quickly on asphalt or go down gravel trails, compared to my bike, but I do believe that could also partly be due to them having wider handlebars, too big of a frame for me, the difference in weight of 6-7 to 20 kilos, as well as their aluminum frames. Either way, the feeling of being much lower to the ground in my bike definitely helps in the corners and I haven't had any issues with ground clearance either.
With all of that said, if I was building out a bike on top of my current one, it'd likely be a 27.5" gravel bike, but if I didn't have my current bike, it'd be a hardtail carbon 26" instead.
I hear a bit of german😂😂😂
For a start you should not buy a carbon frame for a _mountain bike_ 😆
mach bitte deutschen Videos
Sunshine is not very good
oh okay, have you had a bad experience with them? For now its still running and shifting well
wtf? I thought china paper frame was for poor countries. this frame is low quality, it has no hardness and flexible
incorrect
You mean assemble the bike, you're building nothing
In the literal sense you are correct but these types of videos are called "bike build" videos and not "bike assembly" videos
Rear cassette, too heavy, and looks stupid, just walk if its that steep.
Junge warum redest du nicht deutsch
Du siehst dass du mit Englisch nicht weit kommst
Der deutschsprachige Raum hat wesentlich mehr Abonnenten und auch da wärst du viel erfolgreicher
It would be interesting to take that frame and handlebars to carbon repair shop to check for voids in carbon layout. It would provide information about quality and how much you can trust the bike.
Very true, I might check whether there are such shops in my area