Weighing only 3.5 kgs, is it the lightest bicycle in the world?

The entire bike weighs just 3.6kg, a full 3.2kg lighter than the UCI’s minimum race weight limit.

So, let’s take a look at how it manages to make a bike so lightweight.

Bicycle Frame

The heart of the bike is the alpha frame from German lightweight brand AX Lightness, a very light chassis with a surprising frame size of 58cm.

This bike follows the lightweight trend of using the smallest possible frame to shed some extra weight.

While the frame is admittedly very light at 705g, is it the lightest on the market?

The fork that goes with the frame comes from another German brand, THM, also known for its state-of-the-art carbon fiber parts.

The THM comes with a slight slope, which brings the total weight of the frame and fork to 955 grams. Currently,our factory also developed new ultralight carbon aero frames,M size (510mm) is only 750g. please see details by click this link.

Hybrid kit saves every gram

The shifters and groupset used on this bike are somewhat of a fusion of lightweight parts from multiple brands.

The shifters themselves come from SRAM’s 10-speed mechanical version of the Red groupset, as this is still the lightest groupset to date.

But that's not all, to take things a step further, the original rubber covers have been removed and replaced with heat shrink plastic.

The original carbon fiber handlebar was replaced with a lighter version, which was then made lighter by using a milling cutter to remove all unnecessary material.

For a bit of a retro feel, the front derailleur shifter has been removed from the brake lever and instead placed on the down tube.

The levers were extensively modified, including using heat shrink on the hood and removing all unnecessary lever material.

Brakes are also from AX Lightness, which is a simple carbon fiber rim brake.

Furthering the lightweight theme, the brakes feature ultra-light cork pads and retaining grub screws are omitted from the construction.

Even the cables have been lightweighted, with the Alligator I-link mini case housing narrower gauge cables.

This size reduction is just part of an effort to save every gram of non-essential items.

The cassette is a one piece 10 speed 11-25 cassette from Recon, they are famous for the anodized cassettes they offer,

But this cassette weighs only 90 grams, less than half as much as Dura-ace or Red products.

While the rear derailleur may have originally been a SRAM Red 10-speed model, it has now been heavily "tweaked" by Fair Wheel Bikes to remove all unnecessary material from it.

All bolts have been replaced with titanium or nylon fasteners, and the pulleys and cages are made from carbon fiber.

The drivetrain is a combination of lightweight and modified components. The front derailleur is not from SRAM, but from Campagnolo.

Record derailleurs chose it because it offers the greatest "tuning" potential and allows for more weight savings than other derailleurs.

The drivetrain is completed by the signature THM crankset that can be found throughout ultra-lightweight bike construction.

The complete crankset weighs just 280 grams, which is nearly half a kilogram lighter than other top-end cranksets.

The crankset is completed by a set of Fibre-Lyte carbon rings, which themselves add only 50 grams to the weight.

Schmolke/Mcfk one-piece handlebar

The handlebars and stem are from more German lightweight carbon fiber brands like Schmolke and Mcfk.

While on the bike it looks like a one-piece handlebar and stem, it's actually two separate components that Fair Wheel Bikes modified themselves.

By gluing the two parts together, clamps and bolts are no longer needed.

The handlebars and stem were originally separate components from different manufacturers, but they were glued together to save weight.

The pole is then wrapped in cotton stem tape that weighs only 14 grams total.

This is a cheap and effective way to save weight compared to traditional handlebar tape which can easily weigh over 100 grams.

The total weight of the handlebars including the straps is just 242 grams.

Ultra lightweight wheels

The bike rolls on a set of tubular wheels from AX Lightness that weigh in at a staggering 688 grams.

A premium carbon fiber front wheel will often exceed this weight on its own, while entry-level wheelsets can weigh over two kilograms.

The wheels are hubs from Tune, including a prototype Mag 90 rear hub.

A set of Tufo tubular tires are glued to the rims of the wheelset and measure a very slim 19mm.

Weighing just 120 grams each, they're half the weight of a standard road tire, but there's no getting away from it that 19mm tires aren't the most comfortable to drive on the road.

The final piece of the rear wheel was a prototype Tune Mag 90 hub that never made it into production.

Rather than using the typical spring and pawl or ratchet ring found on nearly all freehub bodies, the Mag 90 uses a series of magnets to engage and disengage the driver in the freehub body.

Integrated seatpost and saddle

Completing this build is a seatpost and saddle unit made by Berk Composites.

Rather than using a traditional clamp that attaches to the saddle rail, Berk eliminates the need for this by simply holding the saddle in place on top of the seatpost.

While this does save some grams, it does eliminate the ability to make the bike fit the rider better.

Bicycle pedal

To complete the bike, a set of AeroLite pedals are fitted, weighing just 58 grams per pair.

Although these pedals are very light, they are also harder to get used to and require a change in technique for getting in and out of them.

Instead of the familiar twisting motion we've become accustomed to, these pedals require sliding the shoe over the pedal to get stuck on it.

There's no denying the lightweight advantage of the AeroLite pedals, but they really seem to miss the mark in terms of functionality.

The bike also uses ceramic bearings in the bottom bracket, not to improve performance in terms of rolling resistance, but because ceramic bearings are lighter than steel.

How is the riding experience?

Of course, some may say that such a light bike is actually not very comfortable to ride.

Sure, it feels great on steep climbs, but on more typical terrain it's too light to feel planted and controlled.

Interestingly, they seem to think the sweet spot between climbing performance and stability is around 4.6kg, which is about 2.2kg below the UCI’s minimum weight limit.