They may be stronger at the corners, but the thin tubes can crack easily a la the C50 from Colnago (in a crash, but that’s just as with any carbon tubed bike, lugged or not). I have not seen any particular evidence of stress cracks appearing more frequentlyat the edges of the lugs, but that’s where they would appear on a straight gauge tube. But then, some of the older Colnago Carbitubos are still going, and that’s a lugged frame. Colnago only does lugged carbon frames, I think, but I believe that a monocoque (properly designed and laid up) has the potential to be far stronger.
It is difficult to make generalisations, though, as there is far more variability in lay up techniques and the design skills of different manufacturers than with steel frames. Another problem is that you can only see the outermost layer of carbon, and you have no idea of what goes on underneath.
But Maunaloa does have a point that a CF frame will be more likely to collapse before a steel frame, or a Ti one, because they will eventually delaminate or corrode, at places like water bottle bosses and where perforations are made through the tube, like brake bosses, or the seat tube. Not within a year, and not all at the same rate, of course. Steer clear of magnesium frames for they have terrible corrosion problems (even with chrome overplating). CF does actually contribute to electrolytic corrosion against aluminum or steel if the outer plastic layer is rubbed off, as the carbon fibres are conductive.
At my LBS, they just received an '08 Pinarello Dogma. Maybe it’s an '09, I’m not sure. It’s not the new dogma, which is a monocoque carbon design, even stiffer and lighter than the Prince.
It’s partially made out of magnesium and I had a hard time understanding why they made it. It had to do with being able to customize the frame to specif geometries, something for bigger and heavier riders, etc.
I was only impressed by the price. US MSRP is $5,500. I’ve just read an interesting review of the Cento Uno at BikeRadar, which makes me believe that the Kom might be a good idea. The Kom doesn’t have internal cable routing, therefore it maintains more structural integrity vis-a-vis a frame that has cable routing.
not so bad if you’ve built for it, but i would certainly avoid internal routing for any steel frame: the most perfect access route for sweat to the inside of your frame for very hidden rust to develop.
the KOM looks quite nice, but one wonders about the utility of internal cable routing on such a wide-framed bike.
OK, i read futher and found that theKOM does not have internal routing.
Which of these stores would you guys recommend for a “full service”? I took my MTB to a store near my house and it cost $1500. That was to have the whole thing stripped down, BB removed and greased etc etc. I saw a thing on the news a few months ago and there was a store somewhere in Taipei offering the same service for $800. Didn’t catch where it was. Any ideas?
Hi,
I can’t speak for the Taipei shops, but the LBS near my house is very good for repairs. I only pay for parts, never for labor and they know their stuff. I didn’t even buy my Giant Anthem 0 from them and they service it for free.
With LBS, it’s all about creating a relationship with the store. I have been disappointed by the prices and general service I’ve received in Taipei. My store is located on Wunhua Rd, sec 2, right near exit 5, Jiangzicui, in Banciao.
Yep, I read that about the KOM. No ISP and no internal cabling. Sounds like a good idea, because the Wilier Cento, Cento Uno and Cento Uno SL have got issues with the internal cabling. They don’t shift cleanly. The only workaround, since the geometry remains unchanged this year, is to use external cabling.
It makes sense. If a frame hasn’t got internal cabling, this means that it’s more rigid and has a bit more structural integrity. The less holes it has, the better it is, since some of those carbon fiber walls are pretty thin.
Anyone know of a friendly English speaking shop that also organizes rides? I’m near Da An park, and hoping to find a ‘home’ cycling shop.
In the spirit of the OP:
Personally, I had a negative experience with the Giant shop near Da An park (NE). In view of the other positive comments, perhaps I caught him on a bad day, but I found the service very disinterested. A new store on Fu Xing just south of Da An MRT (forgot the name) were polite and friendly, but then tried to bullpoo me when I took my bike there for a couple of small things. I also have had great experiences with Sean’s in tienmu, great and knowledgeable service without bs or selling more than I need, but alas it is a little far to be my regular FLCS (friendly local cycling store).
[quote=“FSBDavy”]Anyone know of a friendly English speaking shop that also organizes rides? I’m near Da’an park, and hoping to find a ‘home’ cycling shop.
In the spirit of the OP:
Personally, I had a negative experience with the Giant shop near Da’an park (NE). In view of the other positive comments, perhaps I caught him on a bad day, but I found the service very disinterested. A new store on Fuxing just south of Da’an MRT (forgot the name) were polite and friendly, but then tried to bullpoo me when I took my bike there for a couple of small things. I also have had great experiences with Sean’s in Tianmu, great and knowledgeable service without bs or selling more than I need, but alas it is a little far to be my regular FLCS (friendly local cycling store).[/quote]
I am moving to Taipei Neihu area and moving my bike / hobby shop to my house also. Welcome anytime need anything. I am mostly into service. I have some parts for sale but not much. I have many tool and equipment.
November end will be ready to operate and mostly weekend afternoons.
The section of RuiGuang Road (Neihu district) near the flower market and just up the hill towards MinQuan has a whole slew of bikeshops that have opened within the last year. Specialized, RST, Orbea, Giant, and Merida flagship store. Good engrish spoken in the merida store.
Any shops in northern taiwan that are DH/FR oriented?
Or at least able to service forks/shocks in a proper way.
Also in need of a complete overhaul of my Santa Cruz Nomad (replace bearings etc.). Any suggestions?
Greetings to you all from Germany!
I’ll be visiting Taiwan the whole month of November and at least 10 days staying in Taipei.
I could use some up to date tips concerning bike wear.
Esp. I’d like to know whether it is worthwhile buying ASSOS gear in Taipei. For example the Assos T FI.13 S5 is in Germany 219 EUROS which is currently in Taiwanese Dollars around 9.066,17.
How much would this be in Taipei? Which shop would have ASSOS?
Another question I have is:
I’d love to get around by bike at least in town.
I’ ve heard of the possibilty to rent a bike along a bike path. I’ ll be staying at a hostel near main station. Is it advisable to take the bike into town to ride there as well or is it better to take the MRT instead?
Also I’m into photography and very much interested in architecture and beautiful landscapes.
Do you have any other suggestions or tips for my visit?
I’m looking forward to my trip!
Hi, as for your gear i would suggest getting it in Europe. It is much more expensive here unless it is Made in Taiwan.
For renting a bike, plus taking MRT is possible so you can travel into mountains as well and get past the city traffic quickly. Main station should have cart with Bike compartment.
[quote=“nazmikarakoc”]Hi, as for your gear I would suggest getting it in Europe. It is much more expensive here unless it is Made in Taiwan.
For renting a bike, plus taking MRT is possible so you can travel into mountains as well and get past the city traffic quickly. Main station should have cart with Bike compartment.
Enjoy cycling[/quote]
Hi nazmikarakoc!
Thank you!
So it is possible to rent a bike directly at the main station, right?
Wolfgang
[quote=“wolfgang1320”][quote=“nazmikarakoc”]Hi, as for your gear I would suggest getting it in Europe. It is much more expensive here unless it is Made in Taiwan.
For renting a bike, plus taking MRT is possible so you can travel into mountains as well and get past the city traffic quickly. Main station should have cart with Bike compartment.
Enjoy cycling[/quote]
Hi nazmikarakoc!
Thank you!
So it is possible to rent a bike directly at the main station, right?
Wolfgang[/quote]
I thought bikes at main station were a no-go? Once going west they made me board near Ximen. Coming from the east they made me get out near Xinyi. The new MRT maps show which stations allow bicycles and which don’t but I can’t find one online with bicylce markings. I know Jiantan and Danshui are no-go, Shilin and the one just south of Danshui are OK. Also, you need to buy a bike ticket for MRT, forget how much.
This is all assuming you just want to walk the bike on and not take it apart and bag it.
I was having a very hard time finding a shop that had any fixed gear wheels. After talking to several shop owners and having them tell me that it is very had to get in Taiwan I found BreakBrake 17 http:BreakBrake17.com/v1 I ended up spending about 15,000nt building my frame up. They were very nice and helpful and had a lot of selection for fixie parts and clothes.
I just want to say something to the other lazy shop owners I talked to before I found BreakBrake 17 “I have 6 nice (high end) bikes that I have bought in TW. You don’t want to lose me as a customer just because you don’t want to get off your lazy ass and call around to help a loyal (maybe not so much anymore) customer! You just lost 15,000nt, next bike could have been 350,000nt. It’s your loss!” :fume:
Sorry about the rant I just get very sick of people here just saying “No can’t get it” instead of saying “Let me check or Oh, you can try this shop”. That leads to a happy customer. This sorry I don’t care about you Mr./Mrs. customer drives me nuts!
[quote=“MandalayRoad”]Just wanted to add in my experience bike-buying. Most posts seem to be for people who know what they’re looking for in a bike, and are intending on using it for touring. I just wanted a bike to get me around town, but didn’t want a second hand bike for safety reasons. Also, I’m very tall so needed a bigger than the average frame.
In the end, I bought my bike from the bicycle repair place inside Tai-Da (National Taiwan University, NTU). They said that at that time they didn’t have any second hand bikes for sale (the old bikes outside were all ones they were repairing for students), but their new bikes seemed to be pretty much all in the NTD 1000-4000 range (most around 2000-2500). Obviously, they cater to a poorer student market. The other bicycle stores I’ve seen around the place selling new bikes seem to cater to selling much more expensive name brand bikes for more serious bikers.
I ended up buying one of their most expensive bikes (still under NTD 9,000) because I needed their largest frame and decided in the end to get a model with a bit more going for it than an average ride-around (I am strangely attracted to all things shiny). They subbed out the saddle for one more suited to a bigger bum, reinforced the seat stem bar thingee with a metal thingeemabob inside for a riders of a heavier weight, and appeared (I have no expertise) to make suitable adustments to the bike for my height and give the bike a good safety check and test before letting me ride off into the sunset with it. Service was good
This could be a good place to go if you just want a basic get around town bike (you know, the league of bike which has a basket on the front) like the ones you see everywhere, but not pre-used.
I don’t know whether they spoke english as I used Mandarin, and if you want to find the place there’s a good map here (look for the bicycle store symbol) homepage.ntu.edu.tw/~fss/coconet … us-Map.png.
Hope this helps someone! Cycling in Taipei is as it turns out (excuse the poor grammar) awesome funness so I totally recommend those hanging around for a while pick one up, if only to sail along the river paths [/quote]
Not that it matters which flag they fly… just looking for a good mtn. bike shop that can do good tune-ups, work on hydraulic brakes, advanced accessories, etc.
Greetings to you all from Germany! 
