Just completed my copy of it also buying the 50mm wheels from Velobuild. The finnish of the frame wasn’t perfect, but solid. The BB shell was fine and it seems they cut the BSA thread post mold. Hence, facing was fine, coaxial alignment was fine too. I had to file down a protruding rivet holding the bottom battery cover to fit a dub axle. If the mechanic did not do this here, that may explain the issue with the crank. Easy to fix. I used SRAM AXS, but the wire fittings seemed okay too. Routing hydraulics only was easy, using anti-rattle foam is obligatory. The break mounts seem to be not machined. Fork is fine anyhow, rear may need additional facing. All in all little to complain about in terms of build quality, test-drives still to be done.
I know I'm stringing you guys along which may appear to be dragging it along. But yet, I am doing it on purpose to build suspense like you noticed while I buy myself some time to make sure I have hundreds of miles on it to render accurate assessment when I put out the final video. I thank you sincerely for your time investing in watching me ramble on. Thank you !
@@DiabeticCycling no worries man, I fell asleep yesterday to you rambling about the Orbea orca and here I am driving 90mins to DC and find a bike shop that had one I could test ride. Keep rambling!
I'm following this build and GC Performance Build. He put Sensah groupset and Winspace wheels at 100psi on there and said it was too harsh, so I am really interested to see if Shimano DI2 premium groupset and different wheelset makes a difference. New subscriber 😊
Hi Greg. Thanks for your time watching. Normally I don't watch someone else's videos for a product I plan to review since I don't want someone else's opinion to cloud my own to be genuine in these videos. That said, I did watch the episode of his when he introduced it about a month ago before he built it. So him using the parts you mention is new to me at this point. If he's using Hyper from WP, aren't they tubeless? I suspect 100psi would mean he's running innertubes not tubeless. 100psi would impact the ride quality for sure and I could see the correlation between that and "harsh". As to my build, I will have a few more episodes going over it so those who are considering one could be equipped with information going in. Di2 bits obviously work well independently from this frame, no issues. I am using my spare set of wheels which are Mercury Cycling's S5, a sturdy set with 50mm depth for that all-arounder feel. Coincidentally, the wheels match the overall aesthetics of the frame which made the bike look deadly fully murdered out. As you saw, there are issues, More on this in future episodes. Thanks for your time watching! \m/
My opinion is similar to Greg. Just think if you are doing a comparison, then ensure you factor in all variables Recall when GC compared two different (different manufacturers -continental grand prix 5000 vs Vic. Corsa Next tubeless) tires and concluded the tubeless was slower because its tubeless yet forget the non tubeless tire (GP5000) had lower rolling resistance (independently tested)
@@DiabeticCycling Ahh..Dang it. Sorry for the spoilers!!! Yeah, I think you're taking the right approach to remain unbiased with other reviews. Your. Bike. Looks. Sick!!! I saw it out on IG and it looks soo good... I thought about buying it and doing the build, I even priced out a Sram Rival AXS groupset, but on the fence. If I decide to pull the trigger, they will be all gone I'm sure.. Lol!!! Keep up the good work. I can't wait until the next video!
@@cornelhughes6763 Hi Cornel. Thanks for taking the time to write. I am not aware of what's he's done to his or what he used as I stayed away to make sure I'm not influenced by someone else's thoughts. For this build, test, and review, I am using Pirelli Race TLRs tubeless FWIW.
@@Stealthgate007 LOL of course it will be gone as soon as you click "BUY". Despite the issues, the final product does look devastatingly good. It looks like a B-2 stealth bomber turned into a bike. She looks murdered out, totally stealthy, and nothing but business with no branding what so ever to clutter the aesthetics. They leave it unpainted so the customer can paint as he pleases I suspect but I reckon this look is the way to go personally.
I'm excited for this project to take shape from buildup through ride impressions once you've taken the bike on some shakedown rides. I have a Dogma F12 and the build quality is impeccable but it was also a $6500 frame set. Luxury items have a place if it gives you happiness and motivation but also this Velobuild frame intrigues me.
Race is no big deal. Mill a few microns off and you are good. If the bb is that bad they need to send a new one I don't know why they don't use a one piece. Also make sure that the face of the bb are parallel to each other it can help reduce the not square. Also inside make sure that it's not rubbing on the inside. And even on the high end bike sometimes needs to square up the rotor mounts. Nothing beyond the race is really shocking.
Hi Lawrence. The top of the fork where the race would it had to be filed a bit to level out. There are other areas on the frame where filing was necessary like rear brake caliper mounts etc as well. The crank "still" does not turn 100% freely due to the BB left hole and right hole "not" aligned properly. Instead of sitting square to the frame, the bottom bracket holes are ever so slightly off angle causing the spindle to not be flush with the frame. I have been riding it and it does ride. I would suspect I'm losing about 5-10 watts possibly from increased friction due to this BB machining issue. More on this later. Thank you for your time watching! \m/
@@DiabeticCycling there is extra carbon parts making friction on the crank inside sometimes, on the bottom, maybe you check it already, just a maybe is the same case. Very curious on your review/experience wanna get a carbon frame from same company.
LOL I hear ya. You and many folks who emailed and messaged me separately all waiting to see if it's worthwhile ordering... I have the final review video scheduled to go up online the week of Oct 10th. By then, I will have enough miles ridden on it to properly render thoughts on it, shoot more footages necessary, edit the final video etc. Unfortunately, I do this UA-cam thing as a hobby and wanting to be as accurate as possible to not cheat anyone also means it takes a ton of time.
@@DiabeticCycling give me a clue. Money better spent elsewhere. Velobuild deep dive research throws up the same issues. Facing the BB, facing the brake mounts and headset issues on most of their frames.
@@DiabeticCycling thanks exactly what I was wondering. I've decided to leave it as too many horror stories and I value guys like you doing the hard miles for us. Thanks buddy. Much love ❤️🙏👍
I tried VeloFix once. It took my guy 4 hours to re-cable a rim brake shimano 105, and install a new bar and stem. Standard bar/stem, not integrated cables or anything wazoo. That was $365. A $365 lesson that I'll never use VeloFix ever again. I wish my mechanic was good. He also tried to sell my a new Ultegra cassette which I didn't need, at all.
I hear ya. I definitely reckon their pricing is a bit high as well. For me, it's more the mechanic I work with than the outfit, VeloFix. While I got to know him through VF, it's really the guy I got to know which weighs more. In other words, if my mechanic, Jeff, shown here leaves VF and works for some random place, I will be taking my stuff there to get the guy not the outfit itself.
@@DiabeticCycling No I understand. I see all these mechanics on UA-cam who are actually passionate about it. I just got unlucky and mine was crappy. I also didn't realize that if you pay for the two hour service, it doesn't include what you actually want them to do. I thought it was going to be $250 because I supplied all the parts. Nope, I was also charged individually for everything (recable, bar install, stem install etc) on top of the $250. I guess the $250 literally only covers the time, nothing else. So for $250 they'll come and stare at you for 2 hours.
I held many Elves in person, they were rough. I hope you can view at least one in person. I know the UA-cam is hyping it up, but the finish quality is poor for its asking price. I’ve seen better finish with fakes at half the price. I’d say save up a bit more for a Winspace or a YoeLeo. Don’t bother with Elves.
Hi. I haven't bothered to request a refund or exchange as this will not be a long term bike for me. The cranks still turn with "resistance" introduced by ever so slight misalignment issue of the BB holes left and right. I'd say the added resistance is probably robbing me 5-10 watts perhaps. More on all this will be put together on the next episode. Thanks for your time!
@@DiabeticCycling thanks. Excited for the ride review as thinking of buying. I've been in the bike industry for 17 years and the industry is pricing normal people out of the sport. But these bikes have come a long long way in ten years. I've subscribed and enjoy your content. Thanks. Peter. Devon UK.
Velobuild? with very bad customer service, ordered the same frame on 06 Sept. still awaiting shipment with third excuse due to PRC national holiday and ask if I would like a refund? WTF
![Ep 33 [ENG] - VeloBuild R-218 Comprehensive & Definitive Review](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/8LPiqdzkugM/mqdefault.jpg)
![Ep 33 [ENG] - VeloBuild R-218 Comprehensive & Definitive Review](/img/tr.png)
![Ep 46 [ENG] - Yosemite Bikepacking feat. my new Lauf Seigla](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/2NDHICFee4U/mqdefault.jpg)
Just completed my copy of it also buying the 50mm wheels from Velobuild. The finnish of the frame wasn’t perfect, but solid. The BB shell was fine and it seems they cut the BSA thread post mold. Hence, facing was fine, coaxial alignment was fine too. I had to file down a protruding rivet holding the bottom battery cover to fit a dub axle. If the mechanic did not do this here, that may explain the issue with the crank. Easy to fix. I used SRAM AXS, but the wire fittings seemed okay too. Routing hydraulics only was easy, using anti-rattle foam is obligatory. The break mounts seem to be not machined. Fork is fine anyhow, rear may need additional facing. All in all little to complain about in terms of build quality, test-drives still to be done.
Dude, I love the way you’re building up the suspense on this. Can’t wait for the next episode. Thanks for sharing DB!
I know I'm stringing you guys along which may appear to be dragging it along. But yet, I am doing it on purpose to build suspense like you noticed while I buy myself some time to make sure I have hundreds of miles on it to render accurate assessment when I put out the final video. I thank you sincerely for your time investing in watching me ramble on. Thank you !
@@DiabeticCycling no worries man, I fell asleep yesterday to you rambling about the Orbea orca and here I am driving 90mins to DC and find a bike shop that had one I could test ride. Keep rambling!
@@mpad680 LOLOLOL!!! A super bike without a super bike price tag! I reach for it more than I reach for my Pinarello or Factor!
I'm following this build and GC Performance Build. He put Sensah groupset and Winspace wheels at 100psi on there and said it was too harsh, so I am really interested to see if Shimano DI2 premium groupset and different wheelset makes a difference. New subscriber 😊
Hi Greg. Thanks for your time watching. Normally I don't watch someone else's videos for a product I plan to review since I don't want someone else's opinion to cloud my own to be genuine in these videos. That said, I did watch the episode of his when he introduced it about a month ago before he built it. So him using the parts you mention is new to me at this point. If he's using Hyper from WP, aren't they tubeless? I suspect 100psi would mean he's running innertubes not tubeless. 100psi would impact the ride quality for sure and I could see the correlation between that and "harsh". As to my build, I will have a few more episodes going over it so those who are considering one could be equipped with information going in. Di2 bits obviously work well independently from this frame, no issues. I am using my spare set of wheels which are Mercury Cycling's S5, a sturdy set with 50mm depth for that all-arounder feel. Coincidentally, the wheels match the overall aesthetics of the frame which made the bike look deadly fully murdered out. As you saw, there are issues, More on this in future episodes. Thanks for your time watching! \m/
My opinion is similar to Greg. Just think if you are doing a comparison, then ensure you factor in all variables Recall when GC compared two different (different manufacturers -continental grand prix 5000 vs Vic. Corsa Next tubeless) tires and concluded the tubeless was slower because its tubeless yet forget the non tubeless tire (GP5000) had lower rolling resistance (independently tested)
@@DiabeticCycling Ahh..Dang it. Sorry for the spoilers!!! Yeah, I think you're taking the right approach to remain unbiased with other reviews. Your. Bike. Looks. Sick!!! I saw it out on IG and it looks soo good... I thought about buying it and doing the build, I even priced out a Sram Rival AXS groupset, but on the fence. If I decide to pull the trigger, they will be all gone I'm sure.. Lol!!! Keep up the good work. I can't wait until the next video!
@@cornelhughes6763 Hi Cornel. Thanks for taking the time to write. I am not aware of what's he's done to his or what he used as I stayed away to make sure I'm not influenced by someone else's thoughts. For this build, test, and review, I am using Pirelli Race TLRs tubeless FWIW.
@@Stealthgate007 LOL of course it will be gone as soon as you click "BUY". Despite the issues, the final product does look devastatingly good. It looks like a B-2 stealth bomber turned into a bike. She looks murdered out, totally stealthy, and nothing but business with no branding what so ever to clutter the aesthetics. They leave it unpainted so the customer can paint as he pleases I suspect but I reckon this look is the way to go personally.
I'm excited for this project to take shape from buildup through ride impressions once you've taken the bike on some shakedown rides. I have a Dogma F12 and the build quality is impeccable but it was also a $6500 frame set. Luxury items have a place if it gives you happiness and motivation but also this Velobuild frame intrigues me.
thanks for sharing this!
Thanks for your time watching!
Race is no big deal. Mill a few microns off and you are good. If the bb is that bad they need to send a new one I don't know why they don't use a one piece. Also make sure that the face of the bb are parallel to each other it can help reduce the not square. Also inside make sure that it's not rubbing on the inside. And even on the high end bike sometimes needs to square up the rotor mounts. Nothing beyond the race is really shocking.
How did you get round the headset not being true. The crank wasn’t running right either
How did you overcome this ?
Hi Lawrence. The top of the fork where the race would it had to be filed a bit to level out. There are other areas on the frame where filing was necessary like rear brake caliper mounts etc as well. The crank "still" does not turn 100% freely due to the BB left hole and right hole "not" aligned properly. Instead of sitting square to the frame, the bottom bracket holes are ever so slightly off angle causing the spindle to not be flush with the frame. I have been riding it and it does ride. I would suspect I'm losing about 5-10 watts possibly from increased friction due to this BB machining issue. More on this later. Thank you for your time watching! \m/
@@DiabeticCycling there is extra carbon parts making friction on the crank inside sometimes, on the bottom, maybe you check it already, just a maybe is the same case.
Very curious on your review/experience wanna get a carbon frame from same company.
Need your video up ASAP as will help me make my decision. Please, hurry up 😂😂😂
LOL I hear ya. You and many folks who emailed and messaged me separately all waiting to see if it's worthwhile ordering... I have the final review video scheduled to go up online the week of Oct 10th. By then, I will have enough miles ridden on it to properly render thoughts on it, shoot more footages necessary, edit the final video etc. Unfortunately, I do this UA-cam thing as a hobby and wanting to be as accurate as possible to not cheat anyone also means it takes a ton of time.
@@DiabeticCycling give me a clue. Money better spent elsewhere. Velobuild deep dive research throws up the same issues. Facing the BB, facing the brake mounts and headset issues on most of their frames.
@@DiabeticCycling thanks exactly what I was wondering. I've decided to leave it as too many horror stories and I value guys like you doing the hard miles for us. Thanks buddy. Much love ❤️🙏👍
BB축이 틀어진게 눈으로만 보고 확인이 가능한가요? GC Performance처럼 프레임아래 튀어나온 리벳이 크랭크축에 닿는지 확인이 필요할듯 보입니다. 제가 샀던 벨로빌드 프레임도 그게 유난히 튀어나와 있었죠.
Bikeshaped object that is a good one 👍 like it.
Would you recommend this frame today?
Ahn yong HaSeo!
Road cycling is the best way to control blood glucose. Just remember your energy bars!
I tried VeloFix once. It took my guy 4 hours to re-cable a rim brake shimano 105, and install a new bar and stem. Standard bar/stem, not integrated cables or anything wazoo. That was $365. A $365 lesson that I'll never use VeloFix ever again. I wish my mechanic was good. He also tried to sell my a new Ultegra cassette which I didn't need, at all.
I hear ya. I definitely reckon their pricing is a bit high as well. For me, it's more the mechanic I work with than the outfit, VeloFix. While I got to know him through VF, it's really the guy I got to know which weighs more. In other words, if my mechanic, Jeff, shown here leaves VF and works for some random place, I will be taking my stuff there to get the guy not the outfit itself.
@@DiabeticCycling No I understand. I see all these mechanics on UA-cam who are actually passionate about it. I just got unlucky and mine was crappy. I also didn't realize that if you pay for the two hour service, it doesn't include what you actually want them to do. I thought it was going to be $250 because I supplied all the parts. Nope, I was also charged individually for everything (recable, bar install, stem install etc) on top of the $250. I guess the $250 literally only covers the time, nothing else. So for $250 they'll come and stare at you for 2 hours.
And that settles it. Next frame will be an elves
🤣🤣🤣
I held many Elves in person, they were rough. I hope you can view at least one in person.
I know the UA-cam is hyping it up, but the finish quality is poor for its asking price.
I’ve seen better finish with fakes at half the price.
I’d say save up a bit more for a Winspace or a YoeLeo. Don’t bother with Elves.
Winspace customer service is second to none. Also shipping is crazy fast
Sir. How are the cranks spinning now? Can velo build offer you a refund or new frame?
Hi. I haven't bothered to request a refund or exchange as this will not be a long term bike for me. The cranks still turn with "resistance" introduced by ever so slight misalignment issue of the BB holes left and right. I'd say the added resistance is probably robbing me 5-10 watts perhaps. More on all this will be put together on the next episode. Thanks for your time!
@@DiabeticCycling thanks. Excited for the ride review as thinking of buying. I've been in the bike industry for 17 years and the industry is pricing normal people out of the sport. But these bikes have come a long long way in ten years. I've subscribed and enjoy your content. Thanks. Peter. Devon UK.
Velobuild? with very bad customer service, ordered the same frame on 06 Sept. still awaiting shipment with third excuse due to PRC national holiday and ask if I would like a refund? WTF