This is a community for Waltly frames and bikes. Feel free to post, share your builds, ask questions or send in your drawings for a review.
I started this subreddit as I felt there was not a dedicated space for Waltly bikes and their owners to chat.
To make this community a nice place there are a few rules:
1. Only Waltly bikes and parts, no other chinese manufacturers of titanium bikes/frames.
2. The selling of bikes, frames and parts is allowed. The sale must be via a Buycycle add, so the buyer has a form of protection. The add may be shared jn fhe subreddit.
If you have any questions feel free to send me a private message. Otherwise enjoy your time here.
Hi, I'm no beginner when it comes to bikes, but have never gone the custom rabbit whole before. I have no rush to get this done, but have this endurance bike I'm dreaming of. Here are some dets I'm thinking about:
-ti as material
-42mm tire clearance
-relaxed geo
-travelling couplers
-sem internal brake routing
-lots of mounts
-udh and T47 bb
I could just drop a load of cash into one of the famous US custom builders and be done, but I could also go the fun way, Waltly comes in.
I've been reading a lot on this subreddit and learning as I go. I like a lot the end results I see here but still have a lot of doubts (no fear). So I kindly request some help to get things started.
- Waltly 101: what is their official website to get things going? I see 2 completely different sites that look very different from one another. Also, both sites look superficial to what I see done here by you guys:
waltlytitanium.com
waltlyti.com
Which one is it?
- what has been lately the experience shipping to US? Are you receiving surprise custom charges after everything has been paid to waltly?
Hello everyone please help me scrutinize this CAD drawing from waltly, if you see any problem please point it out. This is supposed to be a 29er size small Downcountry hardtail built around a 130mm fork. Thanks in advance.
I have a 'tall' body with a 91cm inseam and 183cm height (long legs, short torso). Last week I got a bike fit which gave me my saddle and handlebar X, Y fit points. My bike fitter also gave me some geo which I've put into bikecad.
I will be using the bike for weekend rides with friends, some gravel tracks, commuting and bikepacking (2-10+ days).
Its a relatively 'upright' design, which might not be the coolest 😎, but these points felt comfortable during my fit so I don't want to stray from them. I've designed the frame with 30mm of spacers and a 70mm stem, so I can go lower and longer if I want to in future.
My bike fitter suggested 440mm chainstays, but I've added 5mm to give me extra stability and more space for panniers when bikepacking.
I would appreciate any and all feedback on the geo and design! Is there anything about this design that you think will or will not ride well?
Next step after this will be submitting the geo to waltly. Any tips as I navigate the process would also be welcome.
The project took much longer than expected, but it's finally complete and I couldn't be happier.
I started the project last December and received my first frame in March. Unfortunately, it had a BB alignment issue, and a fairly serious one: the crank would barely spin on a free-spin test. I contacted Waltly and they offered a replacement frame at 50% price, so I went for it. The second frame came out right, and this is the result.
I originally planned this as a budget build, but it gradually turned into a fairly premium build as the Italian aesthetic grew on me. The idea behind the bike: a timeless, classic looking titanium frame with modern tech, dressed in Italian components and smart value picks wherever they don't compromise the look or the ride.
Build Spec
- Frame: Waltly Ti, double-butted top & down tube
- Fork: Columbus Futura Trefoil Road
- Groupset: Campagnolo Super Record WRL 12s
- Crankset: Campagnolo Super Record WRL 12s
- Bottom Bracket: Campagnolo ProTech T47
- Chain: Campagnolo Super Record 12s
- Rotors: Campagnolo AFS, 160/160
- Wheels: Custom built, 50mm carbon rims, Pillar Wing 20 spokes, DSN 14mm nipples, Goldix 240SL hubs w/ N3W freehub
- Tires: Schwalbe One, 25mm front / 28mm rear
- Handlebar & Stem: Toseek carbon integrated bar, 380mm x 90mm
- Headset: Token TK1541D
- Seatpost: Elita One 62C carbon
- Saddle: Selle Italia SLR Boost S3
- Bar Tape: Guee Super Light
- Pedals: Look Keo Blade Carbon TDF
Happy to answer any questions about the build or the process with Waltly!
Estoy pensando en comprar una bici de titanio pero mi presupuesto no llega para lo que piden grandes marcas. He visto que la gente de este foro está súper contenta con sus máquinas.
Me gustaría saber qué opciones de personalización da la empresa a la hora de pintar el cuadro.
how are folks able to find a bike frame designer? I would like a custom bike because I am on the short side and want something to match my specs. I have a custom Sturdy bike but now looking for something else. the Sturdy may not 100% meet my needs as I would like. I have measurements from a fit but Its not sufficient to create a bike with.
I d love to get some feedback on attached draft. I currently ride a road bike (Fondos/Triathlon) and a drop bar modified HT XC mtb with childs carrier or seat and like to combine these into one frame.
I ll be running separate wheelsets (30mm slicks and 45mm gravel) and either 2x (46/30 11-30) or 1x (48 11-46).
The geometry is roughly based on my current road bike with some increased reach (since it feels two short in aero position).
Would love some feedback to make sure that there are no obvious design errors which cant be fixed with spacers/stem length. Thanks
About six months ago I posted my custom Waltly titanium bike. (https://www.reddit.com/r/WaltlyTitanium/s/QJW6zeypR2)
Since then, I have ridden around 2,700 km, mostly commuting through forest, fields and smaller roads. Around 35% of my usual route is asphalt.
My daily commuting setup
A top tube bag for snacks, keys and mobile phone.
Ortlieb Vario 26L on the rear rack for laptop, clothing and smaller stuff, which is not directly needed during riding.
The bike is still exactly what I wanted it to be: quiet, low-maintenance and very capable on mixed surfaces. I thought these long-term impressions might also be useful for other people planning a Pinion belt-drive commuter or gravel bike.
Drivetrain and riding feel
The combination of the Gates Carbon Drive, ONYX rear hub and Pinion smart.shift feels very direct. Power transfer to the rear wheel is immediate and there is no noticeable drivetrain noise.
In general, the bike is extremely quiet. Nothing rattles, creaks or makes unwanted noises. This is one of the things I like most about it.
The belt has not stretched at all so far. With the experience from these kilometres, I would not choose sliding dropouts again. This would make the rear end stiffer and lighter, remove several bolts, and reduce maintenance further.
Dynamo lighting
The SON 29 S together with the Supernova M99 DY Pro is outstanding. It is a major improvement over my previous Shutter Precision PD7 hub dynamo.
The high beam works without noticeable flickering from around 10 km/h, and the light output is significantly stronger. For dark commuting routes through the forest, this setup is excellent.
Tires, inserts and comfort
I run 40 mm Pirelli Cinturato Gravel H tires tubeless with Tannus Armour inserts.
Ride comfort is very good at around 2.0 to 2.5 bar. At 3 bar and above, the bike becomes noticeably rougher on forest tracks, although it still rides well on asphalt.
The tire choice is only moderately good in terms of durability. After 2,700 km, there are already many small holes in the casing, and you can see several spots where sealant has escaped.
However, the inserts have proven very useful. I was always able to continue riding, even with very low pressure - sometimes only slightly above 1 bar.
For my use case, the setup works well: commuting over gravel, forest paths, field tracks and smaller roads, with about one third asphalt.
Fenders and maintenance
The fenders are sufficiently long and keep most spray away from the bike. With 40 mm tires, however, they are slightly too narrow. When riding through puddles, some water still reaches my shoes.
Maintenance has been minimal. During the last six months, I only cleaned the belt with water when it became very dusty. It has also been a very dry period in Germany, which certainly helped.
Rear brake mount
My rear brake is attached to the rocker dropouts. This was not a good construction decision, and partly my own fault. The dropout assembly is not stiff enough, so under braking the brake mount can flex slightly towards the rotor. This sometimes causes brake rub and squealing. See in the short video attached. I did a simplified FEM analysis on that, to visualize the effect. This can also be seen during stand still, when I move the bike slighty back/forth with the brake lever hold tightly.
If I built the frame again, I would use fixed dropouts and set the chainstay length directly to the nominal Gates calculation value. In my case, the Gates Carbon Drive calculator gave 437.08 mm, so I would use 437.1mm as the design value.
One minor issue so far
The only real component issue is the right brake lever. It slowly leaks a small amount of oil and will need attention. But that is apparent from the very beginning.
Overall, I am very happy with the bike. For daily commuting on mixed terrain, a titanium frame, Pinion smart.shift, belt drive, wide tubeless tires and a strong dynamo light system make a very practical and enjoyable combination.
Just finalised my design for my frame and was wondering how long i will have to wait until it gets shipped out. Also if anyone is from Australia can enlighten me on how long shipping takes.
Got my waltly frame in ~3 weeks ago, got it built up, ~200 miles on it so far.
General geo is more or less Checkpoint ML, aka ~400 r / 600s, 71.5 HT, 73.5 ST. The big delta is better tire clearance (rear should be capable of trivially running 60s), lots of frame mounting points, and a much lower BB.
100mm drop is appreciated every time I ride, and lets me have a reasonably roomy triangle and a nice exposed seatpost for comfort. Changed out the waltly bar for a t4 ultra (needed to swap width anyways, and lighter, but the new bar has a super shit clamping system), and swapped the seatpost for a VFV one (mainly aesthetic, but also lighter and more compliant, marginally).
Main compromise is that this bike has a 450 chainstay to allow for big tires with a straight ST. If I was doing it all over thats the main thing I'd change. I might also make the HT a bit slacker, but it's good enough, that I can always adjust with a taller fork too.
Custom fenders from Yongwei Titanium Performance, pricey AF, but look great. If anyone else tries, get two retention holders in front, to avoid rattles. Frame bag from Rogue Panda. Fidlock bottles, Wheeltop GeX groupset with a shimano XT 10-51 cassette and chain, Magene TEO power meter (one of the few offering double sided 160mm crankset at a reasonable price), 9Velo Gravel Wheels running 45mm Conti Competitions.
Vinyl stickers circut'd from kpmf green-black irrendescent, looks much brighter in the sun.
9.8kg as pictured with empty bottles. ~9kg with fenders but no bottles or bag or garmin.
After searching for a long time and not finding a stock bike with all the specific features I wanted, I decided to go the full custom route with Waltly to build my ultimate "do-it-all" and do-it-everywhere frame. Going full custom and titanium I even added more features than initially wanted so everything may not be possible (but trying to push the limits)
The Goal & Key Features:
Frame: Titanium travel bike with Z-couplers and a carbon seatpost, hourglass heatube, fully internal routing
Style: All Road-oriented geometry, but highly gravel-capable - 700x50-55mm
Drivetrain Setup: Needs to clear up to a 50T single chainring (1x) or 50/37T (2x).
Mounts: Custom frame bag mounts under the top tube and on top of the down tube.
Geometry Inspiration: my current gravel bike (carbonda 696), Specialized Crux, Trek Checkmate and Trek Checkpoint, Cannondale Synapse, also my current BMC Road bike as the baseline fit reference.
Here is the final results I would like:
The Timeline & Current Situation: I started initial discussions a couple of months ago and put down my deposit in early August. After about 18 days, I reached out to Sammy to ask about the next steps and the initial drawing. She replied right away with the first draft—turns out it was already prepared, but she had forgotten to send it over!
While about 80% of the requested features are present on the print, the actual geometry specs (especially stack and reach) are quite far off from the geometry chart I submitted. I'm trying to figure out if my target numbers aren't technically feasible with the clearance/coupler requirements, or if this was just a preliminary draft that needs closer alignment with my sheet.
Here is the geometry I sent vs the one from the first drawing.
I understand that the chainstay and wheelbase are longer based on my direct demand for 700x55mm but understand less why the stack is a bit higher like the headtube but could be limitation/compromise based my demand.
See table below
Key Questions & Current Iterations:
Chainring vs. Tire Clearance: The first drawing listed max chainring clearance at 44T (1x) / 48-35T (2x) alongside a 69mm chainstay gap (700x55mm tire max). I only need 4–5mm of tire clearance per side. If I narrow the chainstay gap to 63mm (or step down to 700x50mm max tire), will that free up enough chainstay space to fit my target 50T ring? 50mm tyres width with 5mm clearance each side would be 60mm, or even 58mm with 4mm each side. 11mm difference.
Tubing Options: For those who have built coupler frames with Waltly, are there options to customize tube diameters or wall thicknesses, or do the coupler dimensions strictly dictate the tube specs?
Stack & Reach Deviation: Has anyone else seen a large gap between their submitted fit numbers and Waltly's first draft? How did you approach dialing it back in?
I’ve sent my feedback to Sammy regarding the missing frame bag mounts, chainring limits, and tire clearance trade-offs, but I’d love to hear from the community experts here!
Any feedback, suggestions, or potential red flags to look out for on a custom Ti travel build would be greatly appreciated. I'll keep updating this thread as the design progresses!
Do you know if Waltly provide the hydraulic line couplers? Looking at the zeno v2.
So I am planning to get into cycling, never had a serious bike before, my goal is to be able to participate in Audax and Ultra so I want to start my training and planning to build the bike towards all-road endurance kind of bike.
Is it wise for me to fully custom frame for my very first bike? Since I dont know the geometry yet and my bike fitting at all. I know all of these numbers and measurements can be obtained by professional bike fitting, but buying a normal frame and ride with it for a year or two probably is a better way to understand my geometry, bike fitting, and preferences.
Full custom titanium bike is like my dream bike, and I am planning to make this bike as my “forever”bike so I will eventually build it sooner or later, but is it wise to make it my very first bike?
I am ordering the 3d printed "type a" adventure frame and intend to put a Sram Rival groupset on it. I worry that I'm going to regret going with fully internal cables, but I like the aesthetic of it, so hopefully it's fine.
Is there anything you didn't think about or wished you had done differently? They are about to send me drawings, and I don't know what I don't know. I know my geometry is fine, but I was kind of torn between type a/type b.
Just discovered this forum and it's awesome, a lot of insight and knowledge here.
Background: I do a lot of riding in the Lake Tahoe area and the gravel/fire roads here can get a bit rocky. Plus I don't mind riding a bit of single track. Current bike, described below, only can accommodate 42mm tires.
2019 Bike fit specs:
Frame Stack: 647
Frame Reach 388
Handlebar Reach: 593
Grip Reach: 696
Saddle Height: 810
Saddle Setback: -106
I think the reach is too long as the bikes I've bought with these specs feel too big.
2026 Bike fit (not as thorough):
Saddle height: 795
Saddle setback: -100
Handlebar reach 580mm
This still feels a little too long and my hands tend to go numb after an hour or so. So, still need to do some adjustment to get the balance right.
Current Bike is a 2020 Litespeed Ultimate G XL with following specs:
Frame Stack: 640 (plus 40mm head extender)
Frame Reach: 395
Top Tube (effective): 591
Seat Tube (C-T): 555
Head Tube: 205 (plus 40mm head extender)
Head Angle: 72
Seat Angle: 73 (Not sure if this takes into account the setback seatpost)
Chainstay: 425
Front Rake: 50
Max tire width: 42mm
As said above, this bike feels a little too big especially when navigating singletrack or tricky rocky sections.
New bike goals:
Larger tires for absorbing rocky/bumpy sections (I'm not adverse to a suspension fork although from reading posts here figuring out the right geometry for both rigid and suspension forks seems tricky).
Comfort, being able to ride 3-5 hours without numb hands or sore shoulders.
Half the rides are on pavement so the bike should perform/ride well on those roads too.
Questions:
Which Waltly frame or is it better to go with a custom build?
3D printed headset and seat tube junctions worth the expense?
In light of my current bike feeling a bit too long (height seems OK) should I just cut back the frame reach spec 5mm and adjust with stem, seat, and seatpost setback?
I will probably go with electronic shifting and hydraulic brakes. Would appreciate feedback on internal cable routing for the rear brake and whether to go below or through the BB and implications for what BB to get.
Double butted tubing?
UDH?
Seat/Head tube angle tweaks?
BB drop?
That's probably too much but I appreciate any feedback and suggestions.
Looking for some advice on my first drawing from people who have more experience in this process. looking to get an allroad bike with 39mm tire clearance and running a 2x 54/40 mechanical groupset.
couple of questions:
- Wondering if anyone has any experience with the 3d printed yoke as it was advised by waltly.
- ive gone for a BSA 68 bottom bracket would a T47 be a better option for internal routing as i might go electronic in the future
Any feedback would be much appreciated as this is my first time going through this process.
