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Is Chinese carbon any good?
Isn’t most of it Chinese? Or are you asking a different question?
https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/anyone-bought-any-carbon-bars-off-alibaba/
Hundreds of threads
https://forums.roadbikereview.com/general-cycling-discussion/chinese-carbon-vendor-list-359660.html
Chinese is not a brand or factory, quality will vary from Del Boy/Exploding batteries to as good as the top bike makers in the world. Price will too.
Been looking at carbon rigid forks on eBay. All the ones from China are around £80. Damn site cheaper than anything over here. Not sure how quality compares.
If buying on ebay or Ali avoid top named brands if its cheap. Go for the brands that are trying to make a name like light bicycle or ican etc.
If in doubt put up a link on here for us to have a look at.
The brand I was looking at was airwolf.
We have two sets of ICAN full carbon rigid forks on bikes for the last two years or so... been battered on all sorts of trails and so far, so good. I would buy ICAN again....
I've been using a Boost version of that fork for the past 3 years without any problems. No idea what manufacturer it was but it was bought off ebay. Shand Cycles are using an (externally at least) identical fork on one of their hardtails.
i bought an ican carbon cx frame and fork 5 years ago. i use it as a road bike, touring bike and occasional gravel bike. it is light, well balanced and i love it!
i have had 3 sets of carbon forks for various projects - mainly turning old mtb bikes into gravel bikes. all have been faultless.
Virtually all carbon mountain bikes and components come from Taiwan or China, regardless of what most 'brands' would like you to believe. Plenty of good unbranded or OEM-branded stuff. The reason UK prices are high is simply down to 3 lots of people between you and the maker i.e. maker sells fork for $50 to bike co. Bike co charges $100 to distributor, who then sells it for $200 to shop who then charges $400 to customer. It's the same $50 fork, no difference in quality.
Virtually all carbon mountain bikes and components come from Taiwan or China, regardless of what most ‘brands’ would like you to believe.
Even 6-7 years ago Santa Cruz had a Made In China sticker proudly on their carbon bikes, Giant/Trek etc have done factory photoshoots out in China for the big mags/sites.
It’s the same $50 fork, no difference in quality.
It is, you just need to work out which one it's the same as....
there are companies doing 2 levels of carbon on their retail frames/forks, Spec used to do it with their Alu frames for years, they look identical but are a different alloy.
Unless you've been to the factory and seen it made you have no idea what it's the same as or what the quality is.
In all honesty, it's a bit like asking "Is welsh thai food good"- you can get some of the best carbon in the world from china or you can get crap. The hard bit is knowing which.
Sometimes it legitinately is identical- the White Bros carbon fork was the Nukeproof carbon fork was the Exotic carbon fork, and there was over 100% price increase for one of them. Other times, not so much. Sometimes that's because they're just rebranding the same product, other times it's back-door stock (when Hope first started getting carbon levers made in China, you could order the exact same item directly from the suppliers for less, they just made a bunch of extras and sold them direct).
But really the hard part is knowing. Same as with metal frames. Sooner or later, it just comes down to trust.
+1 for advice above. In particular, aim for a manufacturer-direct company that has been around a while. My impression is Airworlf is just a reseller and could disappear quickly.
I have a Chinese carbon 29er (from eBay reseller, not direct). The top tube snapped on the first serious ride- from my limited understanding of composites I conclude it was a manufacturing fault. I did a DIY repair and it's been OK since. I even raced it at the Gorrick last weekend. I've got other Chinese carbon parts that have been faultless. Basically quality is variable.
On the first ride it snapped and you repaired it yourself and carried on using it?
Wow, that's brave
The reason UK prices are high is simply down to 3 lots of people between you and the maker
That's not the only reason. Carbon items need to be checked after they're made to make sure the don't have defects or voids etc. The tighter your quality control the more you reject, so the higher your costs.
What do you think they do with the ones they reject...?
Ah, good old quality control - so whilst those wise western manufacturers dragged those farmers out their field to glue their bits of carbon string together, they kept the little secrets of how to check it correctly to themselves. I do love it when someone whose never stepped inside a modern manufacturing facility is an 'expert' - there lots of down my local bike shop too / cynic mode
o whilst those wise western manufacturers dragged those farmers out their field to glue their bits of carbon string together, they kept the little secrets of how to check it correctly to themselves.
I do love it when somebody misses the point completely. For the record I've been in some fantastic and diverse manufacturing sites over the years.
A brand has a reputation to uphold in many ways, [Insert New Name Here when old one is burned].com doesn't need to. Again the huge variability in the manufacturers and their priorities mean you are taking a chance on stuff.
The cost of stuff depends on a lot of factors but to suggest the price difference is nothing but greed or fat is naive to say the least.
So what’s the verdict on £80 Chinese carbon forks then?😂😂
Why not pay the extra and get the Exotic ones if you are worried? I bought them based on a recommendation from here and rate them. Nicely put together and light as anything.
I bought some cheap-ish carbon forks direct from a Chinese re-seller via Ebay, and though they looked the part they flexed so badly the bloody things nearly killed me first ride out! After a lot of to and fro, the seller issued a full refund, but I wouldn't buy any unbranded parts again, or those from outfits who didn't have a good reputation. Any manufacturer can produce a faulty item, but at least with a recognised seller/brand, you're (hopefully) less likely to have an issue.
So what makes the Exotic ones any better than the direct from China ones - or does the person who applies the stickers in the UK have X-Ray vision? I've bought expensive, branded forks and they were rubbish, I've bought Chinese bay ones and they were lighter, stiffer and a third of the price. I'd suggest the OP does research to find out who the reputable sellers / makes are but to say "Chinese" carbon is rubbish is completely meaningless when 99.99% of carbon forks come from the Far East
Ah, good old quality control – so whilst those wise western manufacturers dragged those farmers out their field to glue their bits of carbon string together, they kept the little secrets of how to check it correctly to themselves.
Nnnoooo... that's not what I'm saying at all. Chinese engineers clearly know how to do QC, the question is where their customers ask them to set the tolerances and what happens to the rejects.
The rejects could easily find their way back onto eBay for a reduced price, could they not? I believe this was looked at by a magazine a while back, they took a cheapo eBay special frame to a testing factory with an X ray machine and found it had voids and imperfections in it.
Plus the cheap ones could simply be copies of the nice ones made in a different factory to a lower standard.
but to say “Chinese” carbon is rubbish is completely meaningless when 99.99% of carbon forks come from the Far East
Glad we all agree, that is exactly what we have all been saying, the issue is knowing what you are going to get.
Brant explained this best IMHO.
He put me off when he explained how the whole process worked. Open moulds and processes and quality control etc. I'm guessing that he probably knows more about it than most of us, possibly enough to satisfy doverbike?
My ten pence is it's worth buying from a reputable UK company for a few reasons.
1) They have insurance should anything go wrong. Warranty processes and factory recalls etc.
2) They have a reputation, they won't just set up a new company with a new name tomorrow and ignore all your emails.
3) They have customer feedback that hasn't been bought online. Real people with real world experience.
I have a 2nd hand pair of genesis tarn carbon forks. These are plentiful on ebay as a lot of people change them for suspension forks.
Just wait for an ebay discount day and buy from exotic.
I've got no complaints about my carbon LB wheels.. But then they are pretty established with a good rep and not exactly dirt cheap either.
There's no way I'd consider buying things like carbon bars or seat posts on Ali or ebay for £20, too much of a lottery.
In fact I went with a high end aluminium bar from a legitimate shop over a cheap carbon one off the net.
If a name brand is £200 and an unknown £80, even if you keep the forks 2 years that's a price difference of just over £2 a week.
A £2 I'd be happy to spend as I descend the steps on my way home every day.
The brand I was looking at was airwolf
Is that Airwolf with Jan Michael Vincent or Barry Van Dyke? 😁😁