elcyc

I see "Sunlite" brand bike parts commonly on Amazon, eBay, etc. Their prices seem to be less than Shimano/Sram, and they seem to get decent reviews on Amazon.
Who is this company?
And your experience with their products?

Example of Sunlite brake (Amazon / ebay):



Example of Shimano brake (Amazon / ebay):

dedhed

Heavier, lower quality, fit, and finish

veganbikes

They are owned by JBI.bike and are low quality parts. Amazon is not a good place to look for bike parts or reviews. I see a lot of reviews like "I haven't used the product yet but it looks nice and shipped well" or "the product shipped was different then what they showed" or some nonsense like that.

If you need replacement parts for a throwaway bike Sunlite is something good to look for. If you want quality parts that will last, Shimano, SRAM... are better options. Saving a small bit of money to get significantly lower quality is not worth it in my eyes. Life's too short for crappy parts.

canklecat

Cheap, functional within limits. I got some Sunlite brake cable and housing a couple of years ago. The cable stretched and housing compressed, so I had to keep tweaking the cable tension until everything settled. It's worked fine for more than a year and a few thousand miles since. But I won't cheap out on cables and housing next time.

indyfabz

Yeah. I always rely on Amazon reviews.

dedhed

Amazon is fine if.....

You know exactly what you want, and are just checking more prices.

elcyc

Yeah ... it's like reading the NY Times, watching CNN or even getting your news from "highly reputable" resources like NPR or the BBC... all are far from ideal. Knowing how and when to trust these sources takes care, awareness and experience .
Ditto for learning to recognize robotic reviews and paid-for reviews on Amazon. Yelp, etc.
Also, be aware that most customers DON'T write reviews.

Eric S.

I have some Sunlite parts, but nothing "critical" - a seat post, some seat binder bolts, probably something else, too. I did try out a 14-28 freewheel that made clunking noises while pedaling. That was too bad because the chromed cogs looked great on the old Bianchi; had to ditch it and go with a similar Shimano that doesn't look nearly as good.

hybridbkrdr

I think the same company also owns Origin8. I have a Origin8 sealed-bearing threadless heaset and seatpost clamp on my mountain bike I built piece by piece (even my touring bike). I also have a Sunlite seatpost on my flat-bar road bike (also built). Also, on my (almost completed) touring bike, I have a Sunlite Goldtech HD tourer back rack and Sunlite (5mm allen-key type) of skewers. The spacers I've used are also Sunlite (even though I had ordered Origin8).

I have no complaints, really. Some other brands I've used commonly seen on sites like Niagaracycles are Dimension and Avenir. (Niagaracycles may have changed their name but don't see any issues with their parts.)

I've posed a lot of real paranoid questions on here regarding these brand names before building my 3 bike projects. But I suspect if anyone has complaints about names like Sunlite, it might be those that have moving parts like brakes (even though my Origin8 headset works great). As a matter of fact, with those parts I've ordered more than once like the back rack and skewers, I even found Sunlite IMPROVED their designs over time. (I have an Avenir bottle cage on my touring bike as well as Dimension drop bars and stem. And I have Origin8 handlebars on my flat-bar road bike.)
EDIT: I've also used Sunlite grips and bottle cages.

fietsbob

Its a brand carried by J&B imports our LBS has an account..

seems they continued on with a copy of a part Shimano discontinued...

jefnvk

I use a lot of their stuff on my C&V bikes, in many cases they are the only ones that have what I need. Good bang for the buck in the cases I've used them.

Canti brakes are cast metal. Pretty hard to screw up, and fit and finish and weight is no different than any lower end Shimano part at a similar price bracket.

southpier

I had a quick release bracket which I incorporated into a bike carrier in my van (fendered bikes are a pain in the patootie to carry without a wheel bye the bye) and it worked fine. but it was an aluminum extrusion, quick release skewer, and 14$. so if it failed I wasn't in jeopardy of any danger.

hybridbkrdr

I went ahead and made a video on Sunlite, Origin8, Dimension and Avenir bicycle parts.

greatscott

I bought a simple SunLite thorn resistant tube for my wife's bike; they dripped melted rubber down the presta valve stem to seal the stem to the tube...my example failed upon it's first pumping, it leaked at that point on the stem, plus while pumping it up outside the tire it only took a couple of pumps for a thin spot on the tube to review itself when a area about 3 inches long expanding 4 times larger than the rest of the tube, piece of crap of a tube. I took it back to the store and went to a different store and got a Bontrager thorn resistant tube, day and night difference in quality of the stem junction. I can only imagine from my example that all their products suffer from poor quality control and inferior materials.

elcyc

It's hard to find corporate info on "Sunlite". (Are they Japanese?)
"Sun" is popular symbol in Japan. As in "SunTour".
FWIW, "Sunlite" components are carried by many "reputable"/major shops and distributors like Nashbar and Performance.

Gresp15C

Agreed, and I'd elaborate a bit. "Finish" sounds like just a cosmetic thing, but I've messed around with a lot of cheap bikes, and things like the quality of threads and the smoothness of mating surfaces has a noticeable effect on being able to adjust and keep in adjustment. Cheaper parts can be installed and adjusted with effort, and will work, but will require more frequent attention. Really cheap wheel bearings will simply never exhibit the "feel" of a really well adjusted bearing. And so forth. With experience, you can maintain a cheap bike, but for a beginner, it can be frustrating when you do things as per the online tutorials, and it never seems quite right.

deadlocked

Honestly they seem like a good choice

mstateglfr 

As mentioned, its a brand from a US based components distributor.

mstateglfr 

Obviously there is truth in this, but there is also a healty dose of elite/snob/bike shop protection. Sure, Amazon isnt the best for deep long term test reviews, but that isnt just for the bike industry, its for anything on Amazon. I disagree that it isnt a good place to look for bike parts- I often find components I am looking for on Amazon and use it as just one of many options to compare prices. Sometimes Amazon is the best cost and sometimes its any number of other sites.
In the last 6 or 7 years, from Amazon Ive bought tubes, a wide range 11sp SRAM cassette, multiple high quality tires, a few different bar tapes, a saddle, a couple seatposts, some chainring bolts, and i wedge bags that were both brand name and off-brand.
Absolutely everything was delivered as advertised and has been exactly what I expected.
There is a ton more that I didnt buy from there because of cost or stock availability.

It may not be a good place to look for reviews, but its a good place to look for parts. If you want an 11-28 cassette, why wouldnt you consider the same one from Amazon that you can buy at any number of other retailers?

Deal4Fuji

It's also a brand my LBS carries, quite a bit of their products. I remember my crank puller from them was Sunlight as is this mirror. Back package photo with some company info FYI

elcyc

No relation to another "Sun" (I assume):

SunRace: SunRace | Bicycle Drivetrain and Brake Components
aka: Sun Race Sturmey-Archer Inc. ("SunRace originated in Taiwan in 1972, ...")

mightymax

I have only used their inner tubes in the past. They were fine.
Max Bryant

elcyc

I just replaced the orig. Shimano Alivio's on my 1993 Gar Fisher, which were in okay cond., with the Sunlite canti's (see top post). paid about $11 from eBay, free S/H, delivered from US address.
I did not use the stock Sunlite pads (opting for Kool Stop Eagle Claw, same as I've used for decades).
The Sunlite's do seem to be better built than OEM Shimano's on my Gary Fisher *.
Nevertheless, I noted very little improvement in actual braking with new Sunlite's.

*( The GF bike was purch'd from a local, reputable bike shop, back in 1993. The GF "Advance" was around $420 USD. Many Shimano components on this bike are "cheaper-grade", non-standard Shimano OEM. As one may encounter in dept. store name brands like Schwinn, Giant, etc. )

Phil_gretz

SunLite branding represents a line of cheaply made Chinese components. The simpler the component, the more likely that its performance would be at least satisfactory for a repair or a flip. Start with a brake block. Then move to a brake cable/housing. Then try a shift cable/compressionless housing. And so on...

Would I use any of it on my own personal rider? Unlikely.

If I were in a rush, out on tour, needing to quickly fix a neighbor's big-box bike, then sure, I would grab one and use it. Especially for brake blocks.

If I had time and could choose between 3-day delivery for SunLite cable housing from eBay or Jagwire-branded housing from AliExpress at the same price? I'd order overseas and wait...