Cycling UK Forum

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3281974 ... 5d1cC7vd5u

If it’s too good true be true..? It looks lovely, price isn’t silly. Has anyone gone this route?

I’m not about to rush out and order, but over the weekend I was idly thinking whether I could go into production and help solve the national bike shortage.

That’s if I could find a keenly priced basic frame (only the Brand X from Chain Reaction, or used picks off Ebay seem available - Planet X and Ribble don’t seem to have anything), if I could find a compete Claris groupset anywhere (I’d prefer a frame that could run band on downtube). Wheels and finishing kit I’ve found.

We've discussed very similar Taiwanese frames on here before - so similar, what with the chromed lugs and distinctive flam colour scheme, that I'd be rather suspicious as to whether that picture hasn't been copied. My suspicions are raised further by that Reynolds (853?) badge; if it were one, surely the description would be shouting about it?

My suspicion is that if you were ordering in wholesale quantities, then you would run into issues of delivery timescales, QC, and warranties. I know folks who have ordered carbon frames and other parts from AliExpress, and custom Ti from Watly etc, and whilst they've mostly been happy enough for the money, there's been enough glitches (including having to shrug and write money off) that I'd be leery of relying on the quality without someone on the ground to be responsible for QA and warranty issues.

It's described as "fixie" but it has vertical dropouts with a gear hanger which suggests something dodgie to me.

Good chance you would be hit with VAT and handling charge on top. So getting to around £400. Can't see the value there given the risk/difficulty of getting any problems fixed by a Chinese seller.

For less cash you could get a known quality Spa Audax frame with full UK retailer protection.

https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m11b0s143p2 ... -and-Forks

YouTube is jammed full of Punters of the Western World, singing the praises of their recently-purchased Chibson/Chender, alongside those moaning furiously about how royally they've been ripped off...

4130 Taiwanese frame sounds like my Thorn Audax Mk3
It's OK but as above the Spa kit is a far better deal IMO (I have the 725 tourer and much prefer it).
90% feedback doesn't inspire me either and waiting until September to be hit with duty and VAT, what's the point?

The shorter in stature Might appreciate https://www.cyclebasket.com/m4b0s211p13 ... _Framesets in your choice of colour for £290.

Someone must be selling a 525 frame somewhere?

4130 cro-mo is nothing special and not as high as the (pseudo?) Reynolds badge suggests. Beyond this one has to ask how many tubes are this spec anyway? It is not uncommon to spec only the three main frame tubes.

520 & 525 are 4130 tubing with a green shield

(and 525 only gets an extra 5 because UK fabricated, IIRC)

Bonefishblues wrote:520 & 525 are 4130 tubing with a green shield

(and 525 only gets an extra 5 because UK fabricated, IIRC)

I thought 525 was the new 531?

I remember the nicer Peugeots we sold at Halfords in the ‘80s were labelled 4130 - just a notch up from gas-pipe then?

Like with some of my EBay prospects you want a good clear look at any Reynolds label it might have - is it throughout, and is it genuine?

David9694 wrote:

Bonefishblues wrote:520 & 525 are 4130 tubing with a green shield

(and 525 only gets an extra 5 because UK fabricated, IIRC)

I thought 525 was the new 531?

I remember the nicer Peugeots we sold at Halfords in the ‘80s were labelled 4130 - just a notch up from gas-pipe then?

Like with some of my EBay prospects you want a good clear look at any Reynolds label it might have - is it throughout, and is it genuine?

Non - 531 was Manganese Moly, not Cromolly. Very different alloys.

4130 makes some very nice tubesets though.