My OEM Carbon Fiber Bike

Neo Exile

I actually don’t know if this can be called an OEM bike. I think that it falls into that category since it can’t be a boutique bike. One of the models has been sold at least 40 times and all of the comments I’ve seen are very positive. This bike was designed by the same people behind the Storck Fascenario, and uses the same carbon fiber weave.

I plan on using this as my training bike, though I’d like to get a cheaper frame for training. I wouldn’t mind getting a titanium frame. I can get a Wilier-like frame for about $600.

But for now, I’ll start saving for a race bike. I’d like to get a Pinarello Prince or a TIME RXR Ulteam. Both of those frames are similarly priced in Taiwan¹. The main difference is that one is a monocoque and the other is a lugged carbon fiber frame.

I’m pretty sure that I’ll get a SRAM Red gruppo for cheap in Taiwan, probably second hand. That’s what I’ll put on the race bike. Once I get the bikes, it will be time to convert them slowly to weight weenies. I don’t expect my OEM bike to weigh that much. I believe that it should be around 7kg. A fork and crank from THM-Carbones would be nice, as well as carbon fiber race wheels. I’ll probably start with some light brakes and work my way through the components to get them to the spec I want. I’ve read up on the Clavicula crank from THM and it’s been mentioned that it’s not very durable. Sounds like a deal breaker to me.

Anyway, the OEM bike will have ’08 Campag Record and Fulcrum Racing Zeros. Other than that, it’s pretty standard. The bike will be raw carbon with a clear coat and black decals, though I’m thinking about having red decals, as I’ll be going for a stealth black with red highlights look. Handlebar tape will be red as well as the seat. The Fulcrums are naturally red metal, so they will definitely look good.

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[¹] Even though the Prince is made in Taiwan, exported and re-imported, it retails for about $3,000-3.500 since the new Dogma is being sold here for $4,500. The TIME RXR Ulteam frame can be had for around $3,400.

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