Joshua’s FGC

Joshua asked me to build him a ride-anywhere road/gravel travel bike that would also be suitable for the occasional ‘cross race. The resulting FGC (Folding Gravel Concept) takes the packing system from the FRC, but adds clearance for 35mm tires. The oversize headtube holds an Enve ‘cross fork, with internal cable routing through the downtube keeping everything tidy. The rear dropouts are Paragon’s Polydrops, set up for a 12mm thru-axle to match the front fork.

The rest of the build is completed with NoTubes wheels, SRAM Force single ring drivetrain, TRP brakes and FSA cockpit. Final weight as shown is 19.5lbs. The bike packs down into a 26″x26″x10″ case for easy airline travel. The powder finish with painted graphics is by Custom Powderworks.

From Joshua in Japan:

I finally got a chance to take the bike out for a decent ride yesterday.

Magical.

We did 110km with around 2100m gain through about every imaginable combination of terrain, incline, and decline. Every sprocket in the cassette was given a hard workout and it is just phenomenal how the bike performs. Given the gearing and the frame geometry I expected the bike to be at home in the messier and steeper conditions. What was a bit of a surprise was the ability to cruise along in the mid 40s km/hr in a pace line. I wrongfully assumed that the wheel/tire combo would be a bit sluggish on the fast, flat road. I now know to not underestimate the bike.

Nobody believes that the machine came out of and folds back into a normal suitcase. Luckily the pictures provide the proof. So, the last challenge will be to get it back into the case. I might need to go back to Southeast Asia next and I am considering taking it with me. Let’s see. 

Responsive + quick + sturdy + agile + comfortable + attractive + powerful +++ = magical.

Thinking ‘the bike’ needs a name so that I can stop calling it ‘the bike’. 

• Tweet