Cheap eBay carbon - real world experience

[lune ranger]

I’d like to get some carbon forks for my Fargo and have been perusing the less expensive Chinese stuff on eBay.
I’ve read a bunch of posts in various places about the inherent risks of poor quality control etc but a lot of what i’m reading seems like guess work and assumption.
Does anyone have real world experience of the cheap Chinese carbon forks from Toseek. Are the more expensive ones by Exotic any better or just it flashier branding?
How might ones by Carver be different?
Ideally i’d buy second hand as I prefer to do that but no suitable forks are turning up. Must be 9x100mm QR with a >220mm steerer.

[ScotRoutes]

I bought some no-brand carbon forks off ebay for my Pact. There were no other 15x110 Boost options at the time. They've been running fone for a couple of years. I did see that Shand had used the same forks (visually at least) on their hardtail so my mind was put a little more at ease.

FWIW, I'd not buy 2nd hand carbon unless it was from someone I trusted.

[jameso]

I’ve read a bunch of posts in various places about the inherent risks of poor quality control etc but a lot of what i’m reading seems like guess work and assumption.

There's a lot of posts on China carbon threads along the lines of 'I bought these and they've been fine', that's good to know and 20 posts like that on a 'what direct carbon supplier' thread could reassure, but it's a single or small number of samples of a product where a 1 in a few 100s failure rate could be a big problem. Almost all major brands have recalled carbon forks in recent years but I'm not aware of a recall from a direct seller (there may have been but I don't know of one). I'm not sure why that is but statistically there must be as many issues with the direct-seller product as a big US brand product.

[redefined_cycles]

Luke... If you subscribe to the 'carbon bike repair' or something similar to that name. From the autralian guy. He has so much carbon frames coming through his workshop that every so often he does a 'cut and check innards' of some of the bigger brands (and probably IIRC cheap chinese too) and finds alot of flaws in the workmanship of some of them.

Mainly the workmanship on the inside not being very uniform and smooth with a lot of substandard moulding/layering work going on from even the likes of DeRosa.

On that basis, if thats the quality of workmanship from reputable brands (I think Giant aswell but can't remember proper) with socalled quality control stuff going on... Then whats gonna be the workmanship from them cheap chinese things. Unless you do your research and find out which frame/fork builders are used ny the likes of Sonder etc etc then I'd really probably give a miss...

Coming back to the subject of Giant. My Defy frame (the one down from the top end version of defy but same frame/fork layup etc) had a nasty little fracture in the rear triangle which luckily I spotted. Hence (even before that) I'm very wary of carbon products (I have a few now) and if its something thats gonna be holding me up then I want it to be overbuilt...

Cheap chinese knockoffs... I do see a good return.. So I'll not be investing... So I'm out

[redefined_cycles]

Get yerself on Tritons website and find something with some sort of reputation (which they'd like to keep) for not too much money. Save up a few extra weeks/months if you have to. The ride quality on the quality stuff really is phenomenal aswell (although I've not ridden cheap chinese but heard a few stories here n there and can imagine !)

[lune ranger]

Damn, was hoping to get a massive stream of go for it type replies.
You know, what can go wrong with a £50 full carbon 500g mtb fork
This is just confirming what i’m thinking really.
There are some Carver forks - carbon with Ali steerer/crown in USA for about £180 inc. postage. If I don’t get diddled with import duty they may be a goer.

[fatbikephil]

Reading all of this, particularly R_C's post, makes me glad that all of my forks are good, heavy steel.....

[slarge]

It's one of those choices isn't it? Chinese carbon is going to be as variable as Anywhere else carbon. Most factories will be producing good stuff with good control, but some won't. The trouble is you cannot be sure who is good and who is out to make a quick buck with no consequences........

The real issue is that you can't tell by looking at it, so you can either go for the "if it fails what's the worst that could happen?" - for a bottle cage you might not care too much, but for bars or forks you might lose some face. Or you can go for the "well it's ok as I read some good reviews", but they might have been written by the bloke who made them.

For critical bits like frames, forks, bars and stems you need tested parts - CE marked to show it conforms to a minimum standard. Branded means there is comeback also. I would steer clear of unbranded forks, or those where there is no evidence it conforms to a standard - and stating it is not evidence - you really should be looking for a European supplier with some pedigree even if the parts are made elsewhere.

Having said all that I have a carbon saddle on my road bike that was a £25 ebay jobbie. It's not failed yet, but it did take me 12 months to pluck up the courage to fit it......

[redefined_cycles]

Damn, was hoping to get a massive stream of go for it type replies.
You know, what can go wrong with a £50 full carbon 500g mtb fork
This is just confirming what i’m thinking really.
There are some Carver forks - carbon with Ali steerer/crown in USA for about £180 inc. postage. If I don’t get diddled with import duty they may be a goer.

Hmmm... (geek hat on)

1. Stay away from alloy steerer with carbon main body. In my opinion full carb is the way to go for comfort as well as (IMO) that interaction between alloy and carbon is always a potential weak spot... remember the kinesis mtb frames of old with a carbon/alloy integration ... looked nasty aswell

2. 500g for an mtb fork... too light IMO... my boost Trav Prongs (overbuilt slightly maybe) in full carbon including steerer are circa 650g... the Legend/Bertoletti roadie forks (again seem overbuilt with a massive gash from last idiot owner who must have been running a buckled wheel upfront far too ofyen) with a 3 to 4mm tyre rub are still going strong and again weighed just short of 650g. The canyon Ultimate rd forks. Lightest I dared go and could afford. Carbon steerer. 395g... so for an mtb I reckon you wanma be looking in that dept of 600 and over grams at least... sorry for the mouthful...

3. I had another point... but will leave it to the imagination.

Btw. Them "what could go wrong" replies are probably coming. I'm glad its not another vote

[ScotRoutes]

My full carbon, Boost, MTB forks weigh 645g (770g incl axle).

[benp1]

Phew, flag you have a weight with an axle

My prongs are 768g, I was wondering why they were so heavy but must be the axle! I wouldn't have taken it off to weigh it

[redefined_cycles]

https://www.wiggle.co.uk/ritchey-wcs-ca ... yQQAvD_BwE

These any good?? If you worked it carefully you could grab 10 percent discount i reckon

[jameso]

Do you want a new fork for the weight savings? A carbon fork to fit a sus fork length will be 650-700g or so, perhaps more. An average steel fork for a Fargo might be 1100g. A good custom builder could make one around 850g if they used a light steerer tube and the right blades and it's unlikely to cost you more than £200. You'd get the bosses and dimensions you want as well as piece of mind. Might be 200-350g heavier but on a descent touring/BP bike that's hardly anything to worry about unless you're racing hard and really counting the grams.

[Charliecres]

I’ve had good experiences with Exotic carbon forks and bars. Seem very good quality and have been trading from the UK for many years. Prices are keen, too.

[lune ranger]

https://www.wiggle.co.uk/ritchey-wcs-ca ... yQQAvD_BwE

These any good?? If you worked it carefully you could grab 10 percent discount i reckon

Totally!
Good find that man

[Ray Young]

I bought a Chinese full carbon fork for about £68 a few years back. Works fine and is still going. The only problem I had with it was the dropouts weren't set at equal heights so I had to file about 1mm off of the longer one.