Got my New Ican AC059 Thru Axle version today

The spirit of Grav-lo-cross. No but seriously, cyclocross and gravel go here!

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ajh
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by ajh

I have been working with Ican to get a Thru Axle version of my current AC059 and they finally delivered this week. It is the same fit and design of my current commuting, gravel, CX and just about everything else bike. I love the ride of the normal QR version so I figured that a Thru Axle would be even better.

The regular bike has been great for over 5000 miles this year in its first season. I find that its D shaped semi-aero shaped tubes, which are much like those on a Foil, are at least better than a round tube and are stiff as well. The headtube is nice and short and also has a semi-aero shape which allows me to get low without any weird stems or ultralow headset spacers. The hourglass shaped seatstays have kept my back comfortable on long 100mile gravel rides. The reverse bend fork looks odd but I see it moving backwards when I hit some bigger obstacles which makes perfect sense to design a fork to move the direction the wheel wants to go rather than a normal fork which wants to flex forwards and up which are contradictory. The massive clearance for the tires lets me run 38-40 mm tires on wide rims without issues. The full fender mounts have kept me nice and dry and clean over some pretty nasty conditions. Overall it is a great bike but it has two flaws. One was a little brake rub when on rutted trails, especially when sprinting or cornering and the other is a Chainstay bridge shelf which does collect some mud. For the price I pay for this frame compared to its competition I was willing to live with both flaws.

With the new Thru axle I am hoping to get rid of the first one but I had to trade off the full fender mounts at the dropouts but had them keep the main mounts on the fork crown, the chainstay bridge and the seastay bridge so I can still run PDW soda pop fenders.

The build will be a mix of Force CX1 and SRAM Red 22. I will be running a single front ring as I spend about 99.9 of my trail rides in my 50 front and my 21-20-19-18-17 in the back. I calculated that a 40 with 11-28 in the rear covers most of the range I actually use on my current 34-50 and 11-23.

by Weenie


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ajh
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by ajh


Multebear
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by Multebear

Is thru axle custom at Ican? Or did you just click and buy it?

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ajh
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by ajh

You cannot click and buy but you can contact them for a quote and invoice.

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ms6073
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by ms6073


Nice bike. Confused why manufacturers of disc brake frames continue to include a 'mud' catcher/shelf where the stays merge to the bottom bracket shell.

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- Michael
"People should stop expecting normal from me... seriously, we all know it's never going to happen"

siklis
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by siklis

wow lovely indeed
Bianchi Infinito CV + campag SR + F6R DT240s 6.66kg
Bianchi Methanol SX 29er + XX1 + ztr crest + hope pro2 9.30kg
Giant TCR Advanced 3 + ultegra 10s + campy shamal ultra 7.40 kg

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ajh
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by ajh

I imagine it is hard to get the long stays stiff enough when you use a 68mm BB so the catcher is a bridge to stiffen the chainstays.

I have seen this on much more expensive bikes as well. If I was to design my perfect/ideal bike it would have BB 386 so that the stays would be able to be wider and not need the bridge.

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ajh
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by ajh

here is the final build after waiting for a lot of parts and building my own wheels..

SRAM Red 22 Hydro disc right shirter. SRAM CX1 left brake
Zipp SC 70 Aero bars and Zipp SL carbon seat post
SRAM Red 22 cranks 130mm bolts with Praxis 1X 40 tooth ring
SRAM red Ceramic BB
SRAM CX1 rear derail
Wheels are LightBike 45mm Wide rims 28 hole laced with Sapim CXray spokes to American Classic 225 Disc Rear and AC 120 Front disc hubs. Hubs are converted to 15mm front and 12mm rear.
Rear Cassette is Ultegra 11-28
Chain is Dura ace
pedals are Speedplay Zero Ti

Weight is 16.5 lbs with Kenda Happy Medium tires.


[img]http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/13213978/[/img]

Jengaback
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Joined: Thu Jan 29, 2015 9:17 pm

by Jengaback

Really nice build.
What are your impressions of the lightbike rims?

fromtrektocolnago
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Joined: Sat Dec 07, 2013 10:15 pm

by fromtrektocolnago

I just got thru-axle on a Firefly myself. picked it up yesterday. i went mavic wheels and ultegra. it's a gravel bike spec as well.
What kind of system did you get for the thru-axle. hex key activated or lever?
Colnago C-59 (Dura Ace)
Firefly(Ultegra)
Colnago C-64 disc(ultegra) with Bora 35 wheels

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ajh
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by ajh

Lever activated but I will most likely switch to hex as I run tubeless.

spud
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by spud

do you have any more detail pics of the thru axle setup on the rear? I'm interested in putting together a basher road bike with fat tires and this looks like a possibility. But I'm leery of the set-ups that use one sided fittings that do not clamp the carbon and instead rely on two small bolts to hold the hardware to the chain stay. The single side set-up seems like asking for trouble, especially for the big guys.

TIA

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ajh
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by ajh

I will get some more pics but the axle goes though a carbon dropout and the screws into the derailleur mount which is attached to the frame with a bolt as well. It is solid.

I also did not want a bike with just a few small bolts holding the dropouts which is why I waited for this one.

spud
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by spud

AJH - I got pics, don't knock yourself out.

Thanks.

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bikerjulio
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Location: Welland, Ontario

by bikerjulio

I was looking at the Ribble website recently. Is their CR3 frame the same one?
Last edited by bikerjulio on Fri Apr 22, 2016 12:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
There's sometimes a buggy.
How many drivers does a buggy have?

One.

So let's just say I'm drivin' this buggy...
and if you fix your attitude you can ride along with me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GekiIMh4ZkM

by Weenie


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

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