Fnhon Gust: Frame

A new bike project offers the opportunity to learn new things. In this case, building a 16 inch bike up from scratch is new to me, as I have only assembled 20 inch 406 and 451 bikes previously.

As this 16 inch frameset is new to me, there will be inevitable mistakes made during the assembly, such as finding out that some parts don't match, or a wrong specification is used. Nevertheless, I am confident of solving these problems using the experience that I have from building up many different bikes previously. 

What we have here is a 16 inch Fnhon Gust frameset, which is an interesting frame. First of all, it has a unique geometry, with a large chainstay and no distinct seatstay. Instead, it has a couple of braces in place to reinforce the joint between the chainstay and the seat tube.

This is a steel frame, which means that it is likely to be heavier than an equivalent aluminium frameset, but of course also tougher. My one and only steel frame was the Dahon Boardwalk, which started me on the bike modification route. It is not ideal to make a lightweight bike using a steel frameset, as it is usually heavier than an aluminium frameset. However, for this project the priority is not to minimize the weight.

Let's take a closer look at the frame and see what makes it so special.

Black frame with gold accents! Reminds me of the Dahon Boardwalk with lots of gold bling.

Frameset comes with seatpost clamp and seatpost shim included.

Steel head tube. Looks pretty round to me, unlike the Crius AEV20 which I worked on previously.

Uses a standard Litepro headset. Black is the chosen colour here, although gold would work well too.

Headset bearing cups pressed in with a proper headset press. No difficulty here.

There are metallic flakes mixed into the paint, which looks amazing! Looks similar to the metallic look seen on the Cervelo Aspero frameset.

Fnhon logo embossed on the headtube in an attractive gold colour.

The model name is also painted onto the frame in a shiny gold font.

More details about the frame painted at the back of the seat tube. This gives the frame a really attractive classic look.

Gold plated folding lever? Not sure if it is real gold plating or not.

Gold bands painted on the chainstays as well.

Rear derailleur dropout is welded to the frame, instead of being a separate piece. As it is made of steel, it can be bent back to straight without cracking.

Lots of cable guides at the bottom of the frame, which is good for cable routing flexibility.

More cable guides!

Frame (inclusive of headset bearing races) is 2417 grams.

A pair of the headset bearing races that are pressed into the headtube weighs 16 grams.

The frame weight, excluding any headset parts, but inclusive of seat post clamp and seat post shim is 2401 grams, which is the same as the larger 20 inch Dahon MuEX aluminium frame. I think it is a good weight for a steel folding frame, since it is equivalent to that of an aluminium frame.

I was really impressed with the gold accents on this Fnhon Gust frame, as it really stands out from the black paint. This bike is not for my use, but I am helping to build it up for a friend. I think this is a really attractive 16 inch frameset!