All my Aliexpress MTB purchases reviewed.

fjohn860

Alice in diaperland
A few recent aliexpress purchases of mine...

New Monarch. Holds pressure, all adjusters work. Doesn't come with volume bands. Was for a mate's older bike, no issues after a few rides.



Steel axle for novatec rear hub. Was hoping to prolong the life of my cheap novatec hub so picked this up. Seems to be genuine, made in Taiwan. Measures 12x147.7 so pretty close to 148 (closer than the original alloy one).



2 self-contained rockbros bike lights. A V6-800 model and V9m-1000, 800 and 1000lm claimed. To my untrained eye they look to be as claimed. Definitely brighter than the ebay specials I've had for a few years now. Might actually be able to see where I'm riding at night now. Will find out Thursday when out for a night ride.

First night trail ride at the You Yangs with the rockbros lights.

Pretty impressed with them. Lasted for the 1.5hrs or so that I was out, even after leaving the 800lm one on high during a climb, which did drain the battery a bit.

Descending they were great on their highest setting.

The 800lm is an older model I believe and if I was to buy again I would just get 2 of the V9M-1000's instead. I think it was only another $10.

But these two together work great for trail riding.

The below beam shots are the 800lm first (at the end of the ride with /uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210325/ff571d859129d674cb36b48095885d7b.jpg[/IMG]
 

fjohn860

Alice in diaperland
First night trail ride at the You Yangs with the rockbros lights.

Pretty impressed with them. Lasted for the 1.5hrs or so that I was out, even after leaving the 800lm one on high during a climb, which did drain the battery a bit.

Descending they were great on their highest setting.

The 800lm is an older model I believe and if I was to buy again I would just get 2 of the V9M-1000's instead. I think it was only another $10.

But these two together work great for trail riding.

The below beam shots are the 800lm first (at the end of the ride with /uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210325/ff571d859129d674cb36b48095885d7b.jpg[/IMG]
Both taken on a cheap Huawei 3i phone, so not the best indication I guess
 

Flow-Rider

Burner
@ozzybmx
I'd forgotten that I had ordered one but can confirm it's a copy. It doesn't have the different material panelling under the arms or the zip up pocket. It looks like it is fairly well sewn and they've used a stretch material at least.

374313
 

ozzybmx

taking a shit with my boobs out
@ozzybmx
I'd forgotten that I had ordered one but can confirm it's a copy. It doesn't have the different material panelling under the arms or the zip up pocket. It looks like it is fairly well sewn and they've used a stretch material at least.
Damn... there goes my $18 :p

Size small ordered and promptly claimed by #2 son.
 

Flow-Rider

Burner
So it's not that good either then?
The original jersey has sewn mesh material for ventilation on the sides, and this one is simply painted in black. It's an $18 jersey delivered compared to a $70 jersey, you can't expect the world. It's still wearable and it will most likely last a long time like the others I already have.
 
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Isaakk

Likes Bikes and Dirt
I've been wearing those $18 knockoff jerseys quite a bit recently, not the same as the originals but definitely comfy enough. Stitching is above average for knockoffs I reckon, and the arm on the longsleeve jersey I scraped down the granite of Detonate this weekend didn't have a hole torn through it (scuffed a bit), so seem durable enough for me.

Will grab a pic of the collection + damaged one mentioned above when I get a chance.
 

fjohn860

Alice in diaperland
I've been wearing those $18 knockoff jerseys quite a bit recently, not the same as the originals but definitely comfy enough. Stitching is above average for knockoffs I reckon, and the arm on the longsleeve jersey I scraped down the granite of Detonate this weekend didn't have a hole torn through it (scuffed a bit), so seem durable enough for me.

Will grab a pic of the collection + damaged one mentioned above when I get a chance.
How's the sizing on them?

Did you go a size larger than you would ordinarily wear? Or like for like?
 

komdotkom

Likes Bikes and Dirt
I had a Chinese copy of a Scott spark for years and now it's the town bike used for mates who have huffys.
It's done thousands of km of riding and been ridden on trails like Cressy and Turbulence without breaking. Shit headset and the cups are bonded to the frame but the quality was good.
A mate got a copy of an Enduro and it was rubbish, border line un ridable the pivots were so shit
 

Scotty675

Cable thief
I bought a Chinese frame to see what they were like. It is an xm carbon speed 27.5 ht. I did a lot of research before I bought and did pay $600 for it with spare hangers, bb and headset. The bb was rubbish and I replaced it with a wheels thread together push fit(still going). Headset bearings were rubbish to. Only other thing I have replaced is rear axle. I have thousands of k’s on it and it’s still going strong. Now it’s a dedicated gravel/bike path bike. I rode it xc and trail. Very stiff frame but it climbs well just a little to lively when things get hectic on the descents. There are ok frames out there just a bit of a gamble buying blind.
 

Flow-Rider

Burner
How's the sizing on them?

Did you go a size larger than you would ordinarily wear? Or like for like?
The sizing numbers are all over the place, the best way I've found is to measure a jersey you already have and transfer the measurements to their sizing charts. They usually give you charts with measurements with every different vendor like this one below, I tend to ignore their weights & heights.


374335
 

Isaakk

Likes Bikes and Dirt
How's the sizing on them?

Did you go a size larger than you would ordinarily wear? Or like for like?
Normally being a size large, the short sleeve L ones I found fairly bang-on, long sleeve the XL was the better fit length-wise in the arms but L fit well enough too.
 
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