# Nashbar Carbon Road Frame and Fork



## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

Nashbar Carbon Road Frame and Fork
Item # NB-CRFA


I received my Nashbar Carbon Road Frame and Fork and thought I’d post a few thoughts on this product. I’ll take some pictures later when I figure out how to post them. I don't even know if I can post them. I’m 5’ 8” tall with a 31” inseam. I ordered a size 52 and that seems to fit me perfectly.


* This part is subjective but I really like the shapes of the tubes. I wanted a frame with a semi-sloping top tube and this one is beautiful. The tapered head tube and bottom bracket are massive compared to my Trek 5200. The wishbone shaped chain and seat stays are beautiful.


* Actual weight of frame/fork/headset is 1520g. Weight was taken after the fork steerer was cut to size. Weight also includes the plastic tube used to fish the rear brake cable through the frame. 


* The paint job is terrible. I’m not sure if this poor paint job is limited to my frame or if all frames are this bad. The areas where the tubes joined together are painted black. The rest of the tubes have no paint and you can see the carbon weave. The entire frame is covered in a glossy clear coat. It looks pretty good indoors but when you take it outdoors and look at it in the sunlight it looks sloppy with only the joints painted black.


* The seat stays are very thin. I had to buy a smaller recessed brake mounting nut to mount the rear brake. I’m reusing the Ultegra brakes that came on my Trek 5200. The brake nut that came with the Trek was 26.5mm in length and I had to get a new one that was 15mm. The thickness of the frame where the brake attaches is 18mm. Since the nut is recessed, it needs to be 15mm. The standard Shimano retention nut has a head that is too large to fit into the recessed area. When I went looking for a shorted nut, I also had to find one with a smaller nut head. 


* The seat post collar looked cheap so I replaced it with a Thomson seat post collar.


* This frame is designed for internal Di2 cable routing. All the Di2 holes are in the right place. The frame can also be used with a mechanical group but you will have to buy some additional hardware. I’m installing Di2.


* The fork is full carbon but the recommended headset comes with a star nut which cannot be used with a carbon steerer tube. You will have to purchase a plug designed for use with a carbon steerer tube.


* The frame does not have a front derailleur mount. You will have to purchase a clamp on mount.


* The bottom bracket height is 272mm. for the 52cm frame. Don’t know why they don’t post bb height in the specs onine. I measured this with a laser so it's spot on.


* I waited for a 21% off special and paid about $474 for this frame. I choose the Nashbar frame over the other Chinese frames for the convenience of dealing with a US company and because Nashbar has a very good warranty and return policy.


I will post pictures when I start the main build process. Overall I’m happy with the frame. The poor paint job doesn’t bother me much because I had low expectations to begin with. I didn’t expect much for a sub $500 frame. However, as I said earlier, I love the tube shapes. I may consider having the frame painted by a local professional. Considering the price, I am happy with my purchase. The real test will be when I get this thing on the road.


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## bvber (Apr 23, 2011)

k9taxi said:


> The areas where the tubes joined together are painted black. The rest of the tubes have no paint and you can see the carbon weave. The entire frame is covered in a glossy clear coat.


That's typical of these generic brand frames. When I buy carbon fiber frame, I want to see the carbon weave.


> It looks pretty good indoors but when you take it outdoors and look at it in the sunlight it looks sloppy with only the joints painted black.


Some paint job or custom decals will add more to the look.

Good luck with your new frame.


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## Johnnie Walker (Apr 5, 2015)

I just bought the exact same frame off of Nashbar and finished building it a couple days ago. So far I'm pretty happy with it.


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## looigi (Nov 24, 2010)

bvber said:


> ... When I buy carbon fiber frame, I want to see the carbon weave...


FWIW: In bike frame construction, unidirectional CF is structural whereas woven CF is mostly decorative.


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## bvber (Apr 23, 2011)

Johnnie Walker said:


> I just bought the exact same frame off of Nashbar and finished building it a couple days ago. So far I'm pretty happy with it.


How close are the dimensions of actual frame compared to the geometry chart?


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## bvber (Apr 23, 2011)

looigi said:


> FWIW: In bike frame construction, unidirectional CF is structural whereas woven CF is mostly decorative.


This one looks to be more than skin deep.








Also, when I received my Chinese carbon frame, I saw the weave pattern on the inside surface (head tube).


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

Was your paint job like I described above? The joint areas were painted black and the middle of the tube lengths were mostly clear coated? Just curious.

How would you describe the ride quality?


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## robt57 (Jul 23, 2011)

k9taxi said:


> Was your pain job like I described above? The joint areas were painted black and the middle of the tube lengths were mostly clear coated?


That was a popular paint scheme of carbon for a while. My 2006 Roubaix is like that, but not as contrasting and noticeable as I am getting from the text of this convo....


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## Johnnie Walker (Apr 5, 2015)

k9taxi said:


> Was your pain job like I described above? The joint areas were painted black and the middle of the tube lengths were mostly clear coated? Just curious.
> 
> How would you describe the ride quality?


The paint job is mediocre at best! It is kind of different in each area. That is what you get when you buy a frame for under 500 I guess. So far I've only done one good ride and the bike frame seems like it is good quality. It is really stiff and very comfortable. The frame feels very stable/strong as well. I am 69.5 inches and got the size 52 like you did. I just wrapped the bars and cut the steerer tube last night so today I am going to take on a longer ride today as soon as it stops raining. 

I'm really interested to know who nashbar had manufacture this frame for them. I'm guessing it is from the same manufacturers that make fuji/kestrel.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

I will measure the angles for you later tonight.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

The angles are pretty close to those listed on the Nashbar web site considering the tools I used to measure them. I also measured the tube lengths and found that my 52cm frame differed somewhat from the documented tube lengths.

Seat tube listed as 520mm, mine measured 522mm
Head tube length as 150mm, mine measured 152mm
Chainstay length as 408mm, mine measured 410mm
Wheelbase listed as 983.8, mine measured 978mm

The differences could be due to technique I used to measure. Other than the wheelbase, everything else was really close.


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## bvber (Apr 23, 2011)

Thanks for the info. Let us know how it rides.


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## looigi (Nov 24, 2010)

bvber said:


> This one looks to be more than skin deep...


Suboptimal.


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## Johnnie Walker (Apr 5, 2015)

K9taxi I've taken the bike out for a few 10 mile plus rides since I finished building it and getting the fit correct. For the record I have 25mm tires on the front and back Mavic wheels. The entire groupset is Ultegra 6800. 

I took this bike up lots of hills and stood on the pedals with all my weight, there was no flex in the bottom bracket. It absorbs road vibration really well compared to my old aluminum road bike, I don't get that jittery feel when going over rough roads. The cornering going down hills is really good but not amazing which is probably because the headtube angle isn't super steep and the wheel base is a bit longer then a race bike like a Specialized Tarmac of similar size. 

This geometry makes it a little more stable and a smoother ride overall. I weighed the bike using a bathroom scale and it came out to about 16.5lbs.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

Thank you for taking time to add your comments. That's the type of frame I'm looking for, geared a little towards the comfort side. I'm still waiting for my Di2 internal battery and some eTube wires so I can build it up. Been held up in customs for three weeks now. Getting anxious.


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## Johnnie Walker (Apr 5, 2015)

Good idea putting on an electronic groupset, if I could go back in time I would have used the Ultegra 6870 instead of the 6800 for this build.


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## hernluis (May 1, 2014)

does any one have a separate weight for frame and fork? would like to see how they compare to other Chinese carbon frame weights. man nashbar detail to full specs sucks so bad. I have been looking at this frame and it does look nice. minus for the clamp on front derailleur, would have loved a bolt on. you guys have any complete bike weights just to get an idea with components and wheels.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

I will weigh my fork tonight when I get home and subtract from the total weight. I already have derailleurs mounted and eTube wires run inside the frame and don't want to take all that off.


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## hernluis (May 1, 2014)

thanks that will help.


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## spectastic (Sep 4, 2012)

bvber said:


> This one looks to be more than skin deep.
> View attachment 304994
> 
> 
> Also, when I received my Chinese carbon frame, I saw the weave pattern on the inside surface (head tube).


is that argon 18 real or fake?


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## Johnnie Walker (Apr 5, 2015)

When I weighed the frame and nothing else right out of the box on a kitchen food scale it was approximately 1150 grams. Never weighed the fork only.


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## bvber (Apr 23, 2011)

looigi said:


> Suboptimal.


Different companies use different combo.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

The fork by itself weighs 393g
Frame + fork + headset + plastic tube is 1520g
Headset is 81g
Plastic tube is 2g

Doing the arithmetic, my 52cm frame weights 1044g 

I might add that I have already cut the steerer tube to length. I'm running a Thomson X4 stem with 30mm of spacers below and 15mm spacers above. I will eventually cut off another 10mm of stem once I have everything dialed in.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

Here are the Di2 E-Tube cable lengths I used for the 52cm frame with internal seatpost battery and all internal wiring. I hope this helps anybody else who is considering a Di2 build with this Nashbar frame. YMMV

Main down tube cable: 1200mm
Rear derailleur cable: 600mm
Front derailleur cable: 350mm
Battery cable: 700mm
Handlebar cables: 400mm

Notes: I searched the internet for guidelines on cable lengths and several sources were really close except for the battery cable. Every reference I checked had the battery cable way too short. I want to be able to remove my seatpost (with battery installed) for maintenance purposes without having to disassemble the other Di2 E-Tube wires. A 700mm cable allows me to pull the seapost all the way out and still have a few inches of cable left over to easily disconnect the battery.

Also, my Di2 group set came standard with a 1200mm down tube cable. This is about 150mm longer than it needed to be. The next shorter size is a 1000mm cable which will work but you don't have any spare cable. I would recommend sticking with a 1200mm down tube cable.

I'll post other build tips as I progress and make mistakes. Hopefully you won't have to make the same mistakes.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

Concerning Di2 frame gromets. This Nashbar frame uses the 8mm Shimano frame gromets. I bought both the 6mm and 8mm because I didn't know which ones to buy at the time. On the new frame, all Di2 wiring holes are covered with rubber plugs. When you remove these hole plugs, save them! You can use them to plug the unused holes under the bottom bracket. 

Since I am running internal Di2 wiring, I removed the plastic cable guide under the bottom bracket. The cable guide looks fragile so save it. You might be able to sell it on eBay later.


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## Roland44 (Mar 21, 2013)

Johnnie Walker said:


> I just bought the exact same frame off of Nashbar and finished building it a couple days ago. So far I'm pretty happy with it.


Looks great, congrats!


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## jbinbi (Jan 7, 2013)

I am about your size, op, but I have a specialized roubaix with a 54 frame.

I too have been looking at this nashbar, how did you decide on 52? Have you had 52s always in the past?


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

jbinbi, frame sizes can be misleading. This Nashbar 52cm frame is only *slightly* smaller than my 56cm Trek 5200. Since I was happy with the fit on my Trek 5200, I choose the Nashbar model that was the closest to, or slightly smaller than my Trek. I went mostly by _Effective Top Tube Length_ and _wheelbase_. 

Here's one reason frame sizes can be misleading. My Trek has a straight top tube that does not slope downward. The Nashbar has a sloping top tube. It's not quite what I would call a _compact_ geometry but it does slope some. Both frames sizes are determined by the seat tube length. Since the Trek does not have a sloping top tube, the seat tube has to come up further to meet the top tube. The Nashbar frame has a sloping top tube so the seat tube does not have to come up as far to meet the top tube. So the Nashbar frame has a seat tube length of 52cm. Both frames are nearly identical in overall size and fit from my perspective. If the Nashbar frame did not have a sloping top tube, the seat tube would have been closer to 56cm. 

It's really misleading to go strictly by listed frame size without looking at other factors. I found through my own research that bottom bracket drop, wheelbase and effective top tube length were the only measurements that could be reliably compared "straight up" between frames. 

My "on paper" comparison between the Trek and Nashbar frames was quite accurate. The Nashbar was only slightly smaller than my Trek and that is exactly what I needed.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

I'm still waiting for my Di2 seatpost battery and internal junction box ordered from Ribble Cycles. It's been almost 30 days now. Not sure if it's ever going to show up. I can't button everything up and install the bottom bracket until that stuff shows up. I saved a lot of money by ordering from Ribble (in the UK) but the free shipping to the USA has been hit or miss with no tracking numbers. Anything else I order from them will have a tracking number from now on.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

Finished installing all the Di2 E-Tube wiring and junction boxes. One word of caution on this frame: the metal bottom bracket housing has holes cut in it to allow for internally routed cables. These holes have very sharp edges and may cut the E-Tube wires. I have cuts all over my fingers where I was pushing the wires through the holes. These edges need to be smoothed off with sandpaper. I sliced my fingers opened in four places. Hope I didn't ruin the wires.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

Question for any of you who built up your own bike on this frame: Did you torque the front derailleur clamp to the Shimano spec which is 5 -7 nm? I just read a thread on this forum where someone tightened to 5 nm and it cracked his frame. Now I'm paranoid!

EDIT: After reading more horror stories I've decided to order an eXotic full carbon front derailleur clamp. Specs are 3nm torque. Anybody need a Shimano front derailleur clamp? I'm not going to take any chances.


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## bvber (Apr 23, 2011)

k9taxi said:


> Anybody need a Shimano front derailleur clamp?


You may want to send this member a message. :wink5:


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## Johnnie Walker (Apr 5, 2015)

k9taxi said:


> Question for any of you who built up your own bike on this frame: Did you torque the front derailleur clamp to the Shimano spec which is 5 -7 nm? I just read a thread on this forum where someone tightened to 5 nm and it cracked his frame. Now I'm paranoid!
> 
> EDIT: After reading more horror stories I've decided to order an eXotic full carbon front derailleur clamp. Specs are 3nm torque. Anybody need a Shimano front derailleur clamp? I'm not going to take any chances.



I just torqued it until it was hand tight. Didn't have any problems and it has stayed in the same place after several rides.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

The new frame comes with plastic sheathing used the thread the brake cable through the top tube. After running the brake cable, did you cut the sheathing to size and leave it on the brake cable or did you remove it completely. I've watched some youtube videos where the installer cut the sheathing to size and left it on the brake cable. Others removed it.


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## Johnnie Walker (Apr 5, 2015)

k9taxi said:


> The new frame comes with plastic sheathing used the thread the brake cable through the top tube. After running the brake cable, did you cut the sheathing to size and leave it on the brake cable or did you remove it completely. I've watched some youtube videos where the installer cut the sheathing to size and left it on the brake cable. Others removed it.


I removed that plastic sheathing from the rear brake cable. When I pull the rear brake lever it does make a very slight grinding sound depending on the how the rear brake cable housing is positioned around the headtube . It brakes fine though and sometimes I don't hear or feel the grinding at all.


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## hernluis (May 1, 2014)

I missed the 25% coupon but the 20% is back today. I looked at the sizes and they are wonky. I would have to get the 46 cm to match my 54cm jamis ett. I wish they carried other cf frame nashbar models.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

The 25% off sales come around quite often. You won't have to wait long for the next one.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

I cut my brake cables yesterday but won't be installing the brakes for a while; just ordered new calipers. One thing I do not like about this Nashbar frame is the plastic "gromet" or "cover" where the brake cable exits near the seat tube. The plastic cover does not snap in place. It just sits over the hole in the frame. If you don't cut the brake housing to the EXACT proper length, that plastic cover just pops out of the frame. That is a poor design. I'll either use a small amount of clear silicone caulk or I'll wrap some electrical tape around the frame to hold the plastic piece in.


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## robt57 (Jul 23, 2011)

k9taxi said:


> One thing I do not like about this Nashbar frame is the plastic "gromet" or "cover" where the brake cable exits near the seat tube. The plastic cover does not snap in place. It just sits over the hole in the frame. If you don't cut the brake housing to the EXACT proper length, that plastic cover just pops out of the frame. That is a poor design.


FWIW, my $3500.00 in 2005 Litespeed Blade does it the same way. The piece is Titanium and not plastic. But correct cable install and the tension once installed of the cable keeps it tucked tight into the milled hole in the frame. I am more concerned about loosing when I am putting on a new cable or similar.


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## k9taxi (Mar 5, 2015)

Had a ten week absence from cycling due to surgery. I've finally been able to get a week's worth of riding on this new Nashbar frame. This frame is a keeper! When I originally purchased the frame I couldn't afford a top level name brand frame. I purchased the Nashbar frame as a temporary solution to upgrading to a more "modern" road bike. My previous two road bikes were a LeMond Buenos Aires and a Trek 5200. This Nashbar frame is *WAY* stiffer that either of my previous road biles. However, it also soaks up road vibrations better than any of my previous bikes. I have never ridden a bike in the class of a Pinarello or a Devinci Leo SL (which is what I ultimately want) so I have no reference point to compare to higher end bikes. After riding this frame, I am seriously considering not upgrading to a "name brand" frame. I am so happy with my current setup, ugly paint job and all.

I put Ultegra Di2 on this frame and have no problems shifting with full finger gloves. Shifts like a dream. The down shifts are completely silent. I tried all kinds of "bad" shifting combinations and had no problems. I'm loving this new bike.


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