Seka Exceed RDC

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dsveddy
Posts: 63
Joined: Tue Jan 17, 2023 8:56 pm

by dsveddy

WHEW so it's been officially a week since TakeSend updated my tracking info. I've felt really nervous all week about not seeing any updates, dreading the possibility that the package was lost (or never sent!) and that I would have a $1.6k headeache on my hands.
Thankfully, today I managed to scrounge up the Fedex tracking number for my frame shipment, which says it's en-route to being delivered today. I entered my TakeSend tracking number into posttrack.com and my FedEx tracking number appeared. How posttrack managed to scrape it when Takesend or Cycling100 could not is beyond me, but I'm happy to now see the updates in real time.

dsveddy
Posts: 63
Joined: Tue Jan 17, 2023 8:56 pm

by dsveddy

Alright bike was just delivered and I have opened up the frame. Words cannot describe how stoked I feel. Can't put start putting it together in earnest until this weekend, but I managed to at least get the parts of the box and on the scale

First thing's first, weights:
-Frame, Midnight/Transparent blue, size L, with bottle cage screws and hanger: 1077g
-Fork, midnight/transparent blue, uncut: 398g
-Handlebar in 380x130mm, protective plastic left on: 345g
-zero-setback seatpost (2nd generation, without hardware): 124g
-Edit March 29, 2023: seatpost with hardware: 178g


Hardware box includes:
-aluminum computer mount
-GoPro bracket for computer mount
-computer mount insert kit
-computer mount bracket for headlights
-really nice aluminum, integrated, headset compression screw/top cap
-appropriately designed headset bung/expansion plug. looks substantially longer than the stem so that's nice
-front+rear aluminum thru-axles with integrated brass slip washers
-headset bearings
-headset/bar spacer kit

I have to say I am VERY excited. Words cannot describe how stoked I feel. The frame looks beautiful in photos and is even more beautiful in person. The way all the parts are packaged is just so nice and makes it feel very special. The paint looks BEAUTIFUL. Paint was dusty in the box, but it didn't look scratched up like it has in some photos. Carbon indeed subtly shimmers through the blue paint. Only quality qualm I have with the paint is that the transition from blue to black on the fork looks a tad harsh, and has a noticable step-down. It's clearcoated over, so it feels fairly smooth, but you can tell that the paint thicknesses are different. The design is amazing as well. While there's an abundance of photos and video of the bike out there, I think nothing really compares to seeing all the detail in person. Everything about it is exactly as I would design a lightweight-aero bike. The tube profiles are a sight to behold, and are SO intricate in terms of how many slight changes in shaping there are. For example, the downtube slightly flares slightly wider near the bottle bosses, meaning that the upper section is just a little bit more aero, and the lower section faires your bottles just little bit more. Similarly, the headtube has an hourglass profile to it when viewed head-on, to get just that little bit more aero.

Now, onto criticisms.
-flat-mount brake bosses do not look well faced. The paint has been faced off, but they are not flat
-questionable facing on the bottom bracket. The outer edge of the shells looks faced, but the facing is SUPER crusty, almost as if the facing tool was a rock, or low-grit sandpaper. I will have to check when I install the BB.

Anways, all in all I have to say I am super impressed, and SO stoked to get this built.
Last edited by dsveddy on Wed Mar 29, 2023 5:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.

by Weenie


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apolloFER
Posts: 27
Joined: Thu Nov 03, 2022 12:39 pm
Location: Croatia

by apolloFER

As many have said, flat mounts are really poorly faced. I took my to a LBS to have it faced since setting up brakes was imposible. They mentioned that there's a big difference in height on the rear flat mount (too big to face it down) but it isn't affecting pad to rotor allignment.
It's better now, although not ideal. It's no longer the issue of angled caliper but more around the Shimano calipers (too much fluid, my bleed ended up with too much pressure, I don't know). But I was able to align it (barely) and can finally take it out for a test ride.

skinnybex
Posts: 256
Joined: Wed Oct 20, 2021 4:07 pm

by skinnybex

I emailed C100 back on March 14 about refunding my money for a preorder on the Naked RDC M frame and have heard nothing back. All the negative talk had me backing out of the transaction and for good reason. This is truly a horrible company that doesn't deserve to do bussiness in any capacity. I'll deal with Seka directly when they get their distribution online.
23’ Cervelo Soloist / 6.88kg - 1x Crit Bike
22' Cervelo R5 / 6.35kg - Climbing Bike
22' Cervelo Caledonia 5 / 7.55kg - Travel Bike
21' Cervelo Aspero / 8.06kg - Gravel Travel Bike
23' Cervelo Aspero 5 / 8.25kg - Gravel Race Bike

dsveddy
Posts: 63
Joined: Tue Jan 17, 2023 8:56 pm

by dsveddy

Now that I’ve got the bike fully built up and kitted out, I declare it’s new bike day for me.

Weight is 16.6lb. I have purchased a pair of zrace brake calipers and and ultegra front mech, so the weight should be coming down soon Image
Full build accounting here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... KfrCU/edit

I’ve taken it out for a couple of rides—on both I’ve had some issues. Mainly related to front shifting, the LTWOO front derailleur is really difficult to set, and the chainrings on the Magene QED crankset are not true, so it’s very difficult to get them adjusted to not rub. My other issue (as many have reported) has been seatpost slippage. I’ve applied some scotchguard to the clamping area, fingers crossed that gives the plastic compression plug something to bite on.


Overall as long as I can fix those issues, I’m going to say this is a great bike, and I’m very excited for the great miles ahead. And it sure is a looker Image

Update on crankset/FD issues: looks like I goofed and set up the crankset incorretly, such that the chainline was too far outboard. Fixing the chainline has fixed everything. Hopefully someone can learn from my mistakes. In the beginning, I blindly followed SRAM's T47 DUB BB install chart, which indicates that the included 3mm spacer on the drive side is necessay for 85.5mm-wide T47 bottom brackets. Now, the Magene QED crankset is obviously not a SRAM crankset, so I shouldn't have taken for granted that the spindle length and/or chainring spacing would automatically match. The first sign that something was wrong was that the crankset would only fit when I removed the preload adjuster. After a couple of crappy rides, I decided to troubleshoot the chainline. I measured a center-to big ring distance of ~50mm (implies a ~47.5mm chainline). After reading Lennard Zinn's Technical FAQ on Velonews, it appears the chainline should be no more than 45mm for Shimano groupsets. After I took off the 3mm spacer on the bottom bracket and replaced the preload ring on the crankset, viola, front shifting is fixed.

Now, I will say my shifting setup, whether because of my chainrings and cassette, because of the LTWOO derailleurs, or because it needs to "wear in" a little, is harsh and rude compared to every SRAM and Shimano groupset I have used before. It does not wait for pickup points. It does not ask permission. You shift and it will dump.

Image


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Last edited by dsveddy on Tue Mar 28, 2023 2:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.

DeathClassic
Posts: 42
Joined: Thu Nov 10, 2022 7:47 am

by DeathClassic

dsveddy wrote:
Sun Mar 26, 2023 7:44 pm
Now that I’ve got the bike fully built up and kitted out, I declare it’s new bike day for me.
I’ve taken it out for a couple of rides—on both I’ve had some issues. Mainly related to front shifting, the LTWOO front derailleur is really difficult to set, and the chainrings on the Magene QED crankset are not true, so it’s very difficult to get them adjusted to not rub. My other issue (as many have reported) has been seatpost slippage. I’ve applied some scotchguard to the clamping area, fingers crossed that gives the plastic compression plug something to bite on.

Looks great! 100% get some grippy/gritty carbon paste like the Mucoff Carbon Grip, grease the grub screw for the wedge and make sure the post is clean. Mine slipped until I did this and now holds perfectly at 6nm.

DeathClassic
Posts: 42
Joined: Thu Nov 10, 2022 7:47 am

by DeathClassic

Who says you can't aero bike and aeropack?? :D
IMG_3263.jpg
IMG_3265.jpg

dsveddy
Posts: 63
Joined: Tue Jan 17, 2023 8:56 pm

by dsveddy

DeathClassic wrote:Who says you can't aero bike and aeropack?? :D
IMG_3263.jpg
IMG_3265.jpg
Now THAT is a dream commuter bike


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dvq
Posts: 181
Joined: Mon Sep 25, 2017 1:36 pm

by dvq

skinnybex wrote:
Sat Mar 25, 2023 10:20 am
I emailed C100 back on March 14 about refunding my money for a preorder on the Naked RDC M frame and have heard nothing back. All the negative talk had me backing out of the transaction and for good reason. This is truly a horrible company that doesn't deserve to do bussiness in any capacity. I'll deal with Seka directly when they get their distribution online.
They haven't responded to 3 emails from me either, sounds like I'll just try and hope for a charge back?

mrlobber
Posts: 1928
Joined: Sat Oct 23, 2010 9:36 am
Location: Where the permanent autumn is

by mrlobber

DeathClassic wrote:
Wed Mar 29, 2023 12:19 am
Who says you can't aero bike and aeropack?? :D
What's that aeropack? A custom or ready-made solution? I need such one too!
Minimum bike categories required in the stable:
Aero bike | GC bike | GC rim bike | Climbing bike | Climbing rim bike | Classics bike | Gravel bike | TT bike | Indoors bike

jayjay
Posts: 395
Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2021 8:07 am
Location: Germany
Contact:

by jayjay

mrlobber wrote:
Thu Mar 30, 2023 2:10 pm
DeathClassic wrote:
Wed Mar 29, 2023 12:19 am
Who says you can't aero bike and aeropack?? :D
What's that aeropack? A custom or ready-made solution? I need such one too!
https://www.tailfin.cc/

Chapps
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Feb 14, 2023 11:38 pm

by Chapps

I've just got a refund via PP day 180!
My order was a Naked small
120mm x 400mm
W T47 BB
Ordered 6 months ago
30/9/22 !

It's a shame the frame looks awesome, but C-100 are terrible. It's borderline fraud. It was only with PP intervention I received my money back. C-100 went complete radio silence.

Deihlos91
Posts: 54
Joined: Fri Nov 26, 2021 4:39 pm

by Deihlos91

murawzky wrote:
Sun Dec 18, 2022 1:20 pm
Exactly after 13 weeks I received my frame. It's very well made and looks better than I expected. There's nothing to complain about, painting is even and very well done, weights exactly as in the specification. Ink black looks superb. I am very happy with my decision at this point but time will tell.

With regard to the order itself I had no problems at all although in fact I didn't know anything about its status until an email after 10 weeks about full balance payment. So patience came in handy. I did not contact cycling100 at all, only the ordering itself through the website, where I immediately specified the size of the handlebars and additionally bought the bottom bracket and derailleur hangers. It was premeditated as I didn't want to leave any room for miscommunication so I tried to specify everything as accurately as possible from the very beginning, I know this shouldn’t be the standard, but I knew it was hard to contact them later.

Frameset: Exceed, Size M, Ink Black, 1055g
Handlebar: 400x90, 331g
Seatpost: 119g uncut
Fork: 389g uncut

Image
Could you tell me please your height and your inseam length?
Would be great. thank you.
Allround:
Elilee Blize XXE 24 Carbon Raw L Custom-6340g
Sunday:
Colnago V3Rs 22 (RCRD) 54s Custom-6890g
BW/Travel:
Cannondale Synapse 20 Hi Mod 56 Custom-7200g
Old:
Specialized SWorks Aethos Jet Fuel 56 Custom-6060g

User avatar
wheelsONfire
Posts: 6283
Joined: Mon Jul 07, 2014 8:15 am
Location: NorthEU

by wheelsONfire

Chapps wrote:
Thu Mar 30, 2023 3:19 pm
I've just got a refund via PP day 180!
My order was a Naked small
120mm x 400mm
W T47 BB
Ordered 6 months ago
30/9/22 !

It's a shame the frame looks awesome, but C-100 are terrible. It's borderline fraud. It was only with PP intervention I received my money back. C-100 went complete radio silence.
I just wonder how this company would handle anything that has to do with warranty or repair.
Bikes:

Ax Lightness Vial EVO Race (2019.01.03)
Open *UP* (2016.04.14)
Paduano Racing Fidia (kind of shelved)


Ex bike; Vial EVO D, Vial EVO Ultra, Scott Foil, Paduano ti bike.

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



dsveddy
Posts: 63
Joined: Tue Jan 17, 2023 8:56 pm

by dsveddy

wheelsONfire wrote:
Chapps wrote:
Thu Mar 30, 2023 3:19 pm
I've just got a refund via PP day 180!
My order was a Naked small
120mm x 400mm
W T47 BB
Ordered 6 months ago
30/9/22 !

It's a shame the frame looks awesome, but C-100 are terrible. It's borderline fraud. It was only with PP intervention I received my money back. C-100 went complete radio silence.
I just wonder how this company would handle anything that has to do with warranty or repair.
I’m operating under the assumption that I wouldn’t, at this point


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