what do they mean by self build.
Any body got a 456 carbon self build from them looking at them and was hoping to pick one up from there place and do the build my self.
1. do they come with head set and bottom bracket fitted.?
2. do the brakes come with hoses connected and fluid in them.?

This is what I understand it to be
Self build on the website means you choose the parts from the options they offer you and they then put them together for you and send you the finished built bike (or part built bike perhaps, depending on what you choose). If you want to do the build yourself, just buy a frame and whatever parts you need (either from them or somewhere else). new frames are coming in on the 20th.

ok thanks

I’ve pre ordered a 456 carbon raw @£299. I’ll probably end up buying an one one headset as well , for convenience of being sure it will be the right fit. Everything else is coming off another bike. I think it’s the On One smoothie mixer tapered headset @£49.99 if you’re fitting standard 1 1/8 steerer forks.

On One smoothie mixer tapered headset @£49.99

I’d recommend the Hope Pick N Mix…got mine from my LBS but it’s only £6 more than the On-One headset on CRC.

cheers nuke, I’d rather have a split crown race which Hope do on all their headsets I think.

Not sure I’d pay £50 for a Smoothie headset tbh, the bottom bearing on mine has gone slightly rough in a ridiculously short time, not very impressed.

same as above bottom bearing died really quick. went to local bearing place and they could not get anything the same size as its manufacturer specific.

You can get the headset half price so £25 http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/HSOOSMTAPER/on_one_smoothie_mixer_tapered_headset the checkout code is UKCOLDSNAP my headset has been fine now for a year.

I wouldn’t recommend the On- One headset simply because it can’t be drifted out of the 456C.

Yes it can- or at least, it can out of 2nd gen medium C456s.

How could the headset not be able to be knocked out, even with a headset removal tool?

what sort of lifetime could you expect from the 456C?

van cough, read this http://www.singletraction.co.uk/?fn_mode=fullnews&fn_id=105 I wouldn’t worry too much. Just to add to that write up, Sam has recently bought a NEW 2009 MagicLink Kona Coilair (their super tough 35lb AM bike) and managed to break the chainstay within a few months. His very early generation carbon bike lasted nearly 20 years.

The only concern I have with carbon is if it takes a hard hit from something like a sharp pointy rock. With alloy it would most likely just put an unsightly dent in the frame, with carbon, it might punch a hole in the frame.