Go on Pull the Trigger!!

Well, after some deliberation and reading pretty much everything there was on the quality of the "Chinese Carbon Frame" market (go here, it's a wealth of information and some of the builds are class, especially the sub 8kg (excl pedals)).  I finally pulled the trigger, not before of course cancelling the order for the Canyon HT which I had been drooling over for a while.  I've somehow amassed a serious amount of "so called spares" (essentially unwanted bits from upgrades etc) and my rationale was that I have X of this and Y of that, why not put them to good use and build a bike instead of storing the bits in boxes, never to see the light of day.  And do you know what, I fancy a Hard Tail to ride around on.

Anyway, so what are your options? 3k, 12k or UD, Glossy or Matt, BB30, BSA, PF30?.

I've opted for the FlyXii FR-202 19" (as the geometry is about right for a medium Giant XTC), Matt with the BB30 bottom bracket option and standard quick release for the rear end, cables and lines are run internally to keep things clean.  To the weight weenies out there, the claimed weight is 1200gms.  As at writing the frame is sitting in Newry waiting for me to pick it up so I'll confirm later.

The obvious downside to getting a frame from overseas is that it may be hard to source a headset/rear mech hanger, but from what I can see, door to door China to Newry in 7 days for the frame!!  The price of the hangers/headsets are buttons, so wise to always have a spare headset and a couple of mech hangers.  My frame is supplied with a headset and I bought 2 mech hangers as well.

If you want to see the sub 8kg hard tail, take a look at this build thread.