Since I didn’t have a 50 mm tire on hand, I taped a 50 mm PVC pipe to the rim for clearance testing. The pipe has an outer diameter of 50.8 mm, and the maximum height, measured from the rim to the topmost point of the pipe where it was taped, was 47.5 mm.

I tried checking clearance with hex keys. A 4 mm hex key wouldn’t fit at either the chainstay or seatstay. A 3 mm hex key fit without rubbing, so real tire clearance would be quite tight at full volume.

As for the seatpost:
The minimum insert is marked at 10 cm, measured on the rear side of the post.

With the seatpost inserted to that point, the maximum saddle height (from the top of the top tube to the saddle rails) is about 23 cm.

Without cutting the seatpost, the minimum saddle height is around 15.5 cm (rails to top tube).
If you cut the seatpost, you could reduce the minimum height further to about 13 cm from the top tube to the saddle rails.

Hoep that helps.


Regarding the cranks:
I tested the FC-R8100 with a 46/36T chainring setup. There was less than 1 mm of clearance between the 36T ring and the chainstay, and while I could fits in a 4 mm hex key, between bb and crank.
There's definitely no way to fit the road cranks safely with a T47 external bottom bracket.



Also ordered a Shimano FC-RX610 2x12 crankset in 165 mm length and a GRX FD-RX825 front derailleur today. Hoping this setup will work with the wider chainline and save me from any more experiments.

I had already been looking at some alternative Ali cranksets, but with the RX610 at €105 and the front derailleur at €100, I’d rather keep things moving and avoid waiting around for other parts.

Was there any noticible improvement in the app since the new release end of July 31? (iOS 1.1.8, Android 1.9.41)

Also I saw this review, while covering quite a bit of stuff, it seems this tour was a realistic and quite hard test for the groupset:


I really considered the groupset, but after this video, i now have some doubts.
Especially not being able to adjust the groupset without an internet connections, seems quite concering especially in the Gravel use case.


But it seems that rotor will be launching something at Sea Otter europe (Sept 19.)

https://www.bikeradar.com/news/rotor-to-release-uno-electronic-groupset

Hey everyone,

There’s been an interesting update on the Quick Pro website regarding the GR:ONE.
The product photos now show a front derailleur mount:

https://www.quick-bikes.com.cn/product/32.html
They’ve also added a few new color options.

I checked the geometry against my notes — it looks unchanged.

In my opinion, adding the front derailleur mount is a smart move. It still appeals to the 1x / SRAM crowd but also opens up the frame for use as a wide-tire allroad bike with a 2x setup.

Also, my missing parts have finally arrived, so I hope I’ll be able to start the build soon, however will need to live with somewhat of a compromise.

Hey everyone,

While I’m still waiting for the handlebar parts like spacers, bolts, and so on, I decided to use the weekend to figure out how to shim the frame for a front derailleur.

At first I tried measuring everything and building it in CAD, but the shapes are way too complex for that.

Then I remembered photogrammetry, the method of turning photos into 3D models. I looked into it, tested a few tools, and after a few hours I actually managed to get a pretty decent 3D scan of the bottom bracket and seat tube area.

Because of the reflective carbon surface, I lightly dusted the frame with flour to improve the scan quality. That worked surprisingly well. see below.

The tricky part was scaling the mesh correctly, but I got it accurate to about 0.1 mm across the bottom bracket area. That should be more than enough. Worst case, the 3D print will have some play or I’ll just sand it slightly to get a perfect fit.

Used software was, Photocatch, Meshlab, Freecad, and recorded the video for the scan on my phone, was way easier and quicker than using pictures. 

Let me know what you think.

I’m also thinking about getting the Wheeltop GEX groupset as a second setup. I would move the Ultegra / GRX Di2 from my Cube Cross Race and pass that frame on to someone in the family.

The GR:ONE will stay as the 2x experiment and the Cube could run 1x, which should be totally fine for most rides.

The Wheeltop set is already in my AliExpress cart. I’m waiting for some new coupon codes, but at the moment it would cost around 430 euros. I already have enough cranks at home, so I would probably get a XD or XDS freehub with a 10–46T cassette in the back and maybe reuse the Ultegra crank with a 46T chainring, or even go up to 50T.

I’ll share more once the parts arrive.

Hey everyone,

Thanks for the interest and messages!

Yes, the 18K weave is real. I’ll get a few more detailed shots uploaded by tomorrow at the latest.

Admittedly, I’m feeling a bit guilty about storing the frame in my car in some random Frankfurt parking lot.

As for the paint job: contrary to what the Quick website says (they call it “iced/frosted”), the finish looks more like the dark color was applied via ceran wrap technique over the lighter base.

Price on the website is retail price ¥ 13600 ≈ $1900 US
https://www.quick-bikes.com.cn/product/32.html

I also picked up their integrated handlebar. They had both the gravel and road versions on display—mine is likely the Quick Zephyr SL, not the SSL.
https://www.pandapodium.cc/product/quick-zephyrssl-integrated-handlebar/



Now the big question:
What’s your take on fitting a round aftermarket front derailleur clamp, like this one:


My idea: mount it with some sort of 3D-printed insert to fill the missing portion of the clamp interface, plus add frame protection under it to preserve the finish. The frame has plenty of tyre clearance, at least on the website.

Would love to hear if anyone has done something similar—or reasons why it might be a bad idea.

I didn’t plan to buy a bike at Eurobike. 

In fact, I was in Frankfurt for work and figured I’d swing by the show on Saturday. But as these stories tend to go—things escalated.

Wandering the halls, I came across the Carbonda booth (Carbonda Sports Equipment Co., Ltd.). Initially, I was drawn to their carbon road wheelset—the woven finish looked nice. While chatting with the team, they mentioned that everything at the booth was on sale. Apparently, they didn’t want to haul it back to China.

Their showpiece was a new AF 01 Gravel frame. But coming off a Cannondale CAAD12 (54) and more recently a Cube Cross Race C:62 (53), I was leaning toward something more race-oriented. The Cube has served me well but with limited tire clearance and a notably high bottom bracket, I was thinking about something with more clearance but still universal.

That’s when I noticed a Quick Pro GR:ONE frameset quietly sitting on a back shelf. I wasn’t too familiar with Carbonda at the time, but the Quick Pro branding rang a bell, and the frame’s finish caught my eye.

They also had a set of their Canwin GC50 carbon wheels on display (the GC60s had already been sold). The price of the wheelset? Surprisingly competitive.  I took a walk and gave myself some time to think.
A few quick geometry checks later, it looked like the Medium GR:ONE would fit me almost perfectly.

So I went for it. I justified the leap by telling myself I’d be one of the first to ride and report on the GR:ONE—and honestly, the price was still very competitive compared to retail. One quick PayPal transfer later, the Carbonda team began wrapping up the frame and wheels.


Frame, handlebar, wheelset and they even threw in the mounted tires, which I only realized later were already set up tubeless, sealant and valves included.

It all came together so quickly that just two hours after vaguely entertaining the idea of “maybe a new gravel frame”, I was walking through the halls grinning, with a new Gravel frame somewhat wrapped in bubblerwap an a lot of tape.


Now comes the fun part: the build.
I’m planning to transfer the Ultegra / GRX Di2 mix from my Cube. The catch? The GR:ONE is 1x only, and I’ve always preferred a 2x setup.
The Shimano team at the booth strongly advised against retrofitting a front derailleur… which of course just made me want to try it even more. So we’ll see how that unfolds.

If anyone’s curious about the geometry, I’ve already uploaded the GR:ONE to GeometryGeeks and added a comparison to my other bikes for reference. Their website and overall presence is just not good enough for their premium prices, but maybe that's something they can improve upon.

https://geometrygeeks.bike/compare/quick-pro-gr-one-2025-m,cube-cross-race-c62-slx-2025-53-cm,cannondale-caad12-2017-54/

At the moment, the frame and wheels are still sitting in my car—no tools, no scale, no real way to check weight or inspect build quality in detail. That’ll have to wait until the weekend. First impressions are solid, but I’m curious to see how the carbon finish, tolerances, and internal routing hold up under closer scrutiny.

As for the Cube: I’m planning to rebuild it for a friend. Ideally, I’d like to go with a more budget-friendly groupset, possibly something non-Shimano.

So if anyone has recommendations, be it Sensah, Wheeltop, L-Twoo or something less mainstream, I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Feel free to drop me a message or comment.