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Chinese carbon rims..... Anyone got them are they any good?

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Chinese carbon rims..... Anyone got them are they any good?
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flag baz198
Posted: May 16, 2012 at 19:27 Quote
Has anyone used these carbon wheels?

They are a factory out of China producing some very well priced carbon wheel sets..

http://www.light-bicycle.com

Thoughts/reviews?
flag ktm87
O+ FL
Posted: May 16, 2012 at 19:30 Quote
There are some good threads on them over at mtbr, i am hoping to use them in my wheel build soon.
flag Rally-Fast
Posted: May 17, 2012 at 8:36 Quote
There was another thread on here in the road bike forum. I'll see if I can find it. I have heard that if you buy from a reputable company, you can save a good deal of $$$ if you are willing to wait for shiping.
The cliff notes of the thread was that the wheels were decent quality but the bonding agents used in the construction weren't as good as name brands, but that is pretty hard to determine and quanitify. One person had seen a set of full-carbon clincher 700c road wheels come apart on a long downhill from brake heating. We wouldn't have to worry about that using discs.

And to all those that saycarbon isn't strong enough for mountain use, I must disagree. If carbon layups are used from F1 racing to helicopter blades, I am pretty sure the technology has come far enough to support you 200 pounds rolling along a rocky trail.
flag Rally-Fast
Posted: May 17, 2012 at 8:37 Quote
here it is:
https://www.pinkbike.com/forum/listcomments/?threadid=126974

really some great info about the buying process.
flag iffy
Posted: May 18, 2012 at 6:21 Quote
more from china.... no thanks2 cents
flag DC1988
Posted: May 18, 2012 at 6:43 Quote
the Santacruz frame testing videos proved how strong CF is compared to Aluminium, Steve Peat went a whole DH race season on the same carbon rims too.

And most things are made in China so that's no reason to not buy them
flag iffy
Posted: May 18, 2012 at 6:55 Quote
manufacture in china based on poor workers rights, no enviromental controls, evil govt...etc Wink nuff reason for meSalute

Yeah Peaty rocks and he is not from chinalol
flag Rally-Fast
Posted: May 18, 2012 at 7:57 Quote
I think you would find it difficult to find a bike without at least some of the components made in China.
Maybe if you had a one-off something custom, but for 99% of all the bikes out there, there are components that are made in the far east (china, taiwan....)
flag sbrdude1
Posted: May 26, 2013 at 22:30 Quote
I have been rolling on a set of these rims for about a year and love them. My riding weight can be anywhere from 225-245lbs and I also don't pick the best lines through rock gardens. I had them on a 2007 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR S-Works for the majority of the time until the frame cracked and Specialized gave me a new 2011 FSR Carbon Pro to replace it. I just rode a 27+ mile AM trail ( http://www.mountainbikebill.com/CannellPlunge.htm) for the second time on these wheels and had no problems and in fact they improved my riding. For weighing in under 1500g they are pretty wide and the strongest wheel set I have ever ridden. I have pictures of them in my picture folders with specs. I recommend them for anyone looking for the most cost effective way to improve the ride quality of their bike.
flag sq225917
Posted: Jan 2, 2014 at 16:17 Quote
I've just pulled the trigger on a pair of the DH spec wide rims. I'll report how things go once they arrive and I have built them up. Hoping the UK Hadley importer can source the 142 rear hiub for me, if not I'll be building them up with Hope's.
flag xcguy
Posted: Jan 2, 2014 at 21:28 Quote
You should check out hong fu bicycles. I have a road frame from them and their work is top notch. Super stiff frame, while still being able to absorb the road vibrations and bumps. Theyre probably also one of the more reputible brands out of china.
flag sbrdude1
Posted: Jan 14, 2014 at 1:37 Quote
I have a set of the hookless rims on the way from light bicycle.
flag sq225917
Posted: Feb 7, 2014 at 0:57 Quote
Mine arrived this week from light bicycle. I'm fairly experienced with carbon fiber I've been building kitesurf boards and small components from it for over a decade and have been lucky enough to work with some really bright composite guys.

Structurally the LB rims are OK. They're not in the same league as the Enve or Reynolds's rims, they're not even up there with the Eastons or those from DT.

The internal sections of the rim that sit above the spoke bed are pieced together in four sections. The joins are butted against each other, with multiple layers ending and starting at the same point. I'd except to see them layered together with a number of offset bias cut joints to give maximum strength at this point. Having stuck an optical probe inside the rim it obvious that the guts of the rim are formed from 3k woven 90/0 degree. I have no issue with this, in fact i'd expect It given that they can't truly tape wind an entire rim from uni without using pre-forms. But I would prefer it was described accurately.

There seems to be a bit of variation in the fibre density across the sidewall, there are obvious areas where the bond between preforms roll over the bead. I doubt this weakens the rims appreciably in any way but it hints to a lack of QC. I bought the DH versions and theres certainly plenty of carbon in there, the spoke beds look suitably thick, about 2mm and are a mix of uni and biax so I don't forsee any issues with pulling through spokes, I'll not be using washers on the nipples.

The outer finish is very good, they get great mold fill and their vanity layer on the outside looks top notch, mine are uni. Visually and as far as you can tell looking from the outside I'd say they good enough. I'd give em 8/10 based on what's possible, based on the price, maybe even a 9/10.

I'm building them up with CX rays and should have them built up by the end of next weeks, spokes are on order Hope hubs are here already. I'll post pics then.
flag DC1988
Posted: Feb 7, 2014 at 5:21 Quote
Good review, it'll be interesting to see how they ride compared to a higher end aluminium rim
flag sbrdude1
Posted: Feb 8, 2014 at 12:45 Quote
I put about 2k miles on their wider 26r rims with no issues. I'll be doing a similar wheel build as SQ225917 but with DT 350 hubs and Sapim Polyax nips. Minus tape, valve stems, and skewers they should come in at about 1520g on the hookless 29r rims. For the price they're hard to beat and I can vouch for the fact that they're pretty strong. My riding weight was between 220-250lbs and I only popped a few nips due to a local wheel builder running too high tension.
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