Ascent Bolt Mini Velo: Geometry Comparison + Ride Review

In the first part of the Ascent Bolt mini velo introduction, the general specifications and key features of the frameset was shown. In this second post, I will compare the geometry of the Ascent Bolt mini velo, and to see how it rides! Whether it rides well or not is very important, as a bicycle not just needs to look good, it should also ride well.

As the Ascent Bolt mini velo is a custom frameset (not by me, by Ascent Bikes), the bike geometry could be decided by the bike frame designer. Therefore, let's compare the geometry to see how it differs from other similar bikes.

I chose the Dahon MuEX to represent Dahon folding bikes, as I no longer have other mini velos. In a way, I like to use the Dahon MuEX as a benchmark for other small wheeled bikes. As both have a flat handlebar setup, and are small wheeled bikes (although different wheel size), they are similar enough to make a fair comparison.

As always, I align the bottom brackets of the bikes to each other, using it to set a datum for comparing other areas, such as chainstay length, wheelbase, handlebar and saddle position, etc.

The bottom bracket height of the Ascent Bolt is very slightly higher than the Dahon MuEX. It will also depend on your choice of wheels (406 vs 451) and choice of tire (narrow vs wide).

Ascent Bolt has a longer chainstay length. The Dahon MuEX chainstay length is 400mm, so the Ascent Bolt chainstay length looks to be about 420mm.

Distance from bottom bracket to front axle is shorter on the Ascent Bolt. Difference is about 30mm as estimated by eye, as I forgot to take measurements.

Frame and wheelbase comparison. Overall length is about the same, just that the front and rear axle positions are slightly offset.

Overall height of the tire from the ground is about the same. The Ascent Bolt is using 451 wheels with 28-451 tires, while the Dahon MuEX is using 406 wheels with wider 35-406 Kojak tires.

After comparing with the Dahon MuEX, I decided to compare it with the Canyon Endurace road bike as well. Since this mini velo is also designed to be a fast bike, the geometry might be closer to that of a full size road bike.

Using bottom bracket as datum, the Canyon road bike chainstay length is also shorter than the Ascent Bolt by about 20mm.

Saddle height is the same as set to my preference.

The flat handlebar of the Ascent Bolt is just a bit higher than the drop bar on the Canyon, but with a much shorter reach compared to the road shifter hoods on the Canyon. If you change to drop bars, the reach would become the same.

As a side note: I took off the pedals and kickstand from the demo bike, as I wanted to weigh the bike without all these accessories. This also gave me a chance to weigh the accessories on its own.

Very nice and smooth sealed bearing pedals, with a very nice weight too, especially given the large platform. Just 229 grams for the pair.

The length-adjustable kickstand is also surprisingly light weight at just 163 grams. This kickstand is attached to the rear quick release axle.

Seatpost with a saddle clamp that supports a wide area on the saddle rails. This means that you can safely use a carbon saddle rail on this seatpost.

This saddle is interesting, as it is wide and short. The padding is generous but not overly soft. Let's see how it feels when I test it on extended rides.

As I was able to borrow and use this bike over a week, I wanted to install some accessories to make it more practical for commuting. This means adding spares such as a tool bottle (with tools and inner tube, tire lever, etc), a portable pump, and front + rear lights.

Also, I changed the pedals to my favourite PD-A530 pedals which have SPD clips for better pedaling efficiency. This will allow me to use the Scott MTB Elite Boa shoes when riding this bike. In order to ensure a fair comparison and review, I want to keep other factors the same, such as using the same cycling shoes, pedals, cycling attire, cycling route, etc.

Ascent Bolt mini velo with accessories installed! Now it is ready for longer distance travel.

2 x D-Light front lights, which are small, lightweight, easy to install, and yet powerful.

With a Topeak RedLite Aero rear light and a Cycliq Fly6 CE rear light + camera. I like the dropped seatstays as it creates space on the seat tube to mount another rear light as shown here.

Out for a ride on a beautiful day!

Speed:
This mini velo can go fast! With a good geometry and a relatively aggressive setup, it is easy to ride fast. The gearing (front 50T, rear 11-32T) is also good for fast riding if you want. Personally, I prefer a 46T for 451 wheels as the gearing is high enough for me, but you can customize the chainring size on the Ascent crankset if you want. If I were to use this mini velo regularly, I would change to a drop bar setup for more speed.

Riding Geometry:
The reach is just nice for me (1.7m tall), based on the setup. Initially I pushed the saddle all the way forward, as my previous mini velos needed the saddle all the way forward to position the knee over the pedal correctly. However, I found that it was not necessary on this bike, as there was no setback on this seatpost. I could position the saddle rails right in the middle of the saddle fore/aft adjustment range.

In other words, I fit right in the middle of this frame's size range. If you are shorter or taller, you can still adjust the saddle and stem reach to get your preferred riding posture.

I find that the flat handlebar riding posture is too upright, but that is probably because I am used to the more aggressive posture of drop bars. As you may know, both my regular commuting bikes (Canyon Endurace and Fabike C3) have drop bars, so I am very used to that. For recreational and occasional riders, flat handlebars may be easier to handle.

Saddle:
This saddle is a delightful surprise for me as I did not expect it to fit me so well. Although it is wide, it does not get in the way of pedaling. The cushioning is just nice for me, even if I am not wearing padded cycling shorts. The short saddle nose is a bonus, as it gives me more space to straddle the bike when I put my feet down at a stop.

Stability:
With the relatively wide 600mm flat handlebar (I am used to narrower 400mm drop bars), riding stability is no issue. Even when I stand up to pedal, there is no noticeable flex in the crankset, frame or fork. Having lightweight wheels with low profile rims also minimizes the effects of crosswinds on bike stability.

Sometimes, on mini velos or folding bikes with tall head tubes and long steerer tubes, you can detect some flex when you pull hard on the handlebars. No issue with this bike, as the carbon steerer tube spacer and stiff carbon handlebar makes the front end stiff and stable.

Brake Performance:
This is my first time riding with hydraulic disc brakes on a mini velo, so I was quite surprised at the braking power on this bike. A small wheeled bike will have more braking power than a big wheeled bike, if the rotor size is the same. Here is an example.

700c road bike (28" wheel), with 160mm rotor. Assume that the brake power on this full size road bike is 100%.

If we use the same brake setup and rotor (160mm) on a 451 wheeled bike (22"), the braking power will be higher.

Braking Power = 28" / 22" x 100% = 127%

In other words, the small wheeled bike will have a braking power that is 27% more than an equivalent setup on a road bike! That is a big difference which I felt.

In fact, the braking performance is so good that I felt it was a bit too strong. Considering that these are basic hydraulic brakes and rotors, it works really well. You should not use stronger brakes on a small wheeled mini velo as it might be too powerful.

On the other hand, this also means that you can use cable actuated mechanical disc brakes, and still have sufficient braking performance on a mini velo.

Possible Improvements:
1) Additional bottle cage mount on the seat tube
Actually this is the only item I can think of, as it seems to be able to do everything else already, with multiple brake mounting choices and even option to install rear rack or mudguards.

Overall:
The Ascent Bolt mini velo is a very versatile frameset that you can customize to your exact needs. I have seen pictures of it with a drop bar road setup and high profile carbon rims, and it looks really good.

Note that I did not comment on the performance of the bike components, as it is totally dependent on what you specify in your build. If you choose to use high end components, naturally they will work better and feel better. Generally, regardless of what components you use, the Ascent Bolt mini velo should exhibit all the features which I have described in these two blog posts.

Ascent Bolt Mini Velo: Introduction

Out of all the types of bikes that I have ridden, two of my favourites are E-bikes and mini velos. E-bikes are very popular in Europe, as they allow people of different fitness levels to cycle together, while making climbing slopes lots of fun instead of being something to dread.

As for mini velos, they are also fun to ride, as the small wheels provide a nimble ride which is what you cannot find on a bike with larger wheels such as road bikes or mountain bikes. For city riding, a mini velo is very suitable as it is easy to ride even at slow speeds, while the shorter length (due to smaller wheels with same wheelbase) makes it easy to store, transport in cars, or go into elevators.

Folding bikes can also provide the same fun ride, but they are heavier and need more maintenance due to the folding joints. If you don't need the folding feature, mini velos are your best choice for city riding.

I have previously built the Wheelsport Fantasy Mini Velo, as well as the very lightweight Java Freccia Carbon Mini Velo. Regardless of a flat handlebar setup or a drop bar setup, a mini velo is fun to ride.

Recently, Ascent Bikes have a lightweight mini velo that looks very good, with a high quality lightweight aluminium frame and a reasonable price. Compared to a Tyrell, it is both cheaper and lighter, which is fantastic.

I was offered a chance to borrow a mini velo from Ascent Bikes, and I took the chance to try it out and see how it differs from my other mini velos. It has a different setup which I have not tried before, which is hydraulic disc brakes on a mini velo. I am a fan of hydraulic disc brakes, as they provide good stopping power in all weather conditions, effortlessly. This can be seen most clearly on the Canyon Endurace road bike and the Fabike C3 commuting bike, which are my two main bikes nowadays.

The demo bike for the Bolt mini velo from Ascent Bikes, which looks really good with the 451 wheels and black components.

External routing on this aluminium frame, for easy setup and servicing.

Tall head tube on the frame, which is also a good place to strap on a set of front lights.

The welding on the frame is excellent, as the welds are polished to achieve the joint smoothness which makes it look really premium.

Excellent welds at all the joints, plus the very smooth paint and clear coat, as you can see from the reflections.

Bottom bracket area. The smooth finishing on the frame makes it super easy to wipe off any grease or dirt, unlike the matte finishing on some carbon frames.

The highlight of this Ascent Bolt mini velo is no doubt the frame, as the paint job is of very high quality, plus it is also quite lightweight (1380 grams) for an aluminium mini velo frame, according to Ascent Bikes. This is already considered lightweight for an aluminium mini velo frame, as the Wheelsport Fantasy aluminium mini velo frame is quite a lot heavier at 1759 grams.

Carbon front fork for the Ascent Bolt mini velo!

The front wheel looks pretty lightweight, with an attractive spoke pattern and low profile wheels. You can also opt for high profile carbon wheels if you prefer that look.

This carbon front fork (100m OLD) can also accept road caliper brakes instead of hydraulic disc brakes, if you prefer it that way.

I was told that this carbon front fork was specially designed to accommodate both 406 or 451 wheels. If you use 406 wheels, you can use wide tires, while 451 wheels will use narrower tires but still with plenty of clearance. There is also a choice of road caliper brakes or disc brakes. If you choose 406 wheels, you have to use disc brakes as caliper brakes cannot reach the rim or go around the wide tire. For 451 wheels, either caliper brakes or disc brakes will work. Front fork weighs about 390 grams according to Ascent Bikes.

Post Mount disc brake mounting on the front fork, with a default rotor size of 160mm. Also note the mounting point for a front mudguard if you want to install one.

Rear OLD is 135mm, with Post Mount disc brake mounting and the same default rotor size of 160mm.

Note the two mounting points for a rear rack and rear mudguard if you want to install them. This frameset is very versatile as it can accommodate all these add-ons if necessary.

The design of the 6 bolt rotor is nice, with a black aluminium spider and stainless steel braking surface.

Same as the front, the rear can also use a road caliper brake which is mounted on the bridge between the seatstays.

In-house crankset by Ascent Bikes, which uses a Hollowtech II type of spindle with forged crankarms. The narrow-wide chainrings are of direct mount type and the size can be changed as necessary.

A standard 68mm wide road bottom bracket is used, which is really good for serviceability. Left side crankarm is installed in a similar way to a Shimano crankset.

1x10 speed drivetrain, which is pretty much all you need for city riding.

Deore M6000 rear derailleur, plus a 11-32T 10 speed cassette gives you good range and gear step for city riding.

Carbon handlebar, plus aluminium stem and ergonomic grips.

Deore 10 speed shifter, paired with Shimano BL-MT200 hydraulic brakes. Affordable yet works well.

View of the full bike again! Clean lines, good looking frame and an affordable price makes this mini velo a good choice.

This mini velo weighs 7.8 kg without pedals or other accessories, which is what you see in the picture above. This is a very good weight, considering that these are mostly average components without any weight weenie parts. A folding bike with an equivalent setup, such as the Dahon MuEX, will weigh about 1 kg more and also cost more. As mentioned earlier, if you don't need the folding feature, a mini velo is a better choice than a folding bike, if you want a small wheeled bike.

If you have the budget, you can save quite a lot of weight by upgrading to even lighter components. The best thing about Ascent Bikes is that they allow full customization of the components that you want, and they will build the bike for you. This means that you can specify exactly what you want, to meet your specific needs.

Want wide tires for light off road? Go for 406 wheels plus disc brakes.
Want to ride fast? Use a drop bar with aerodynamic high profile carbon wheels.
Want to use it as a commuting bike? Attach a rear rack and mudguards for more practicality.
and so on...

In the next post, I will compare the Ascent Bolt mini velo to the Dahon MuEX, and also do a ride review. I was able to borrow this bike for a couple of weeks and thus I was able to customize it slightly and also use it for extended rides for a better feel of the bike.

Quad Lock Phone Mount - Galaxy S8 Bike Kit

When I go on bike rides, my mobile phone is usually mounted onto the bike. If I put the phone into my pockets, I always worry that it will drop out during cycling. The alternative is to place the phone into my backpack, but I don't always use a backpack, and I might miss important calls or messages as I can't hear my phone when it is in the backpack.

In order to protect the phone from rain, the phone is always placed inside a Topeak Smartphone Drybag, which is sealed and is rainproof. It has worked well for me for many years.

One downside of this is that if I need to operate the screen on the phone, it is difficult to use it properly through the transparent plastic cover. Also, if I want to take a quick picture, it is also troublesome to remove the phone from the pouch before I can take a picture.

Recently I came across this new mounting from Quad Lock. I think it has been available for a few years already, but I have not come across it before. The feature that interested me is the mounting method. It is similar to how a Garmin is mounted, just twist and it is locked in place!

After testing it with my friend's Quad Lock sample, I was sold on the idea of using this mounting kit. Let's take a closer look at this.

Quad Lock bike kit for Samsung Galaxy S8 phone. It has a phone casing that is specific to your phone model. In this case it is the S8.

It comes with a phone casing that you attach to your phone. Your phone will now be compatible to the mount.

The bike mount can be fixed to many places, using either the rubber bands or cable ties. In this case, it is mounted to the stem.

It is advertised to be super secure, as it has an additional spring latch, on top of the usual Garmin-type twist lock design. Once your phone has this Quad Lock casing, you can also attach it to other Quad Lock mounts.

This is the hard rubber casing that you attach to your phone

Quad Lock mounting profile at the back of the casing

Quad Lock mount, comes with rubber bands and cable ties for mounting.

4 tabs which is used to lock the phone casing to the mount

When you push down on the phone casing, the blue part (which is spring loaded) will move down, allowing you to twist the casing into place.

Before the 4 black tabs of the mount is engaged with the phone casing...

...after twisting the casing into place, the blue part will lock into place and prevent the casing from twisting free!

It is practically impossible to remove the phone accidentally, as you need to push down the blue part, while simultaneously twisting and lifting the casing off the mount. Unless you have big hands, you will need both hands to remove the phone from the mount.

Mount weighs 23 grams, including two rubber bands. For weight weenie info.

As mounted on the Java Freccia mini velo. The mount just manages to fit on the 80mm stem. If the stem is any shorter, the mount cannot fit.

The mount protrudes quite a bit, not the best looking mount.

From this view, it seems that the Quad Lock profile on the back of the casing is really slim and does not protrude much.

However, this view shows that the casing itself is really thick, which is meant to hide the depth of the Quad Lock mechanism.

This casing is thicker than normal casings, which means that the phone is a bit bulkier than usual. This extra bulk is not a problem. However, the increased thickness means that inductive charging does not work when this casing is used! This is a downside for me, as I like the inductive charging feature of the S8 phone. When this casing is on the phone, I will have to charge the phone by plugging in a USB cable.

Landscape orientation, probably useful for navigation?

Portrait orientation, for normal usage, and also to avoid interfering with the holding of the drop bar at the top area.

As I plan to use this phone casing and mounting across more than one bike, I also got the additional bike mount to install onto a second bike. This was a free gift which a friend passed to me, which is really nice.

Additional bike mount kit

Phone casing not included in this kit

The other bike that I wanted to mount this Quad Lock kit on was the Canyon Endurace road bike. However, the blue coloured mount does not match the red frame at all! It looks too out of place. Therefore, some DIY work was required, to improve the appearance of the Quad Lock mount on the Canyon Endurace.

First, the mount was disassembled, so that the blue part can be sent for spray painting. This is the post-painting picture, where the blue part (centre) has already been painted black.

Assembling the whole unit back together was a bit tricky, due to the spring force and the alignment required. However, it looks much better and stealthier in this all black edition!

As you can see, the black mount matches the black handlebar and stem well. It still sticks out quite a bit, but I can live with that.

Advantages of Quad Lock:
1) No additional phone pouch required for attaching the phone to your bike.
2) Quad Lock casing is strong and durable for everyday use, even when not attaching it to the bike.
3) Super secure mounting, no worry of it flying off accidentally.
4) Relatively easy to remove the phone from the mount, for taking quick pictures or answering phone calls.
5) Easy to use the phone even when it is mounted, as the phone screen can be touched directly.
6) Versatile mounting options available, you can use Quad Lock for your running armband or in your car if you want.

Disadvantages of Quad Lock:
1) Unable to use inductive charging for your phone as the casing is too thick.
2) Unable to use your favourite phone casing or cover.
3) Bike mount sticks out too much from the stem, which does not look nice.
4) No waterproofing compared to using a sealed phone pouch.

One big downside of using this Quad Lock as compared to a phone pouch is the loss of waterproofing ability. However, as the S8 is already waterproof, this is not a concern for me. If your phone is not waterproof, and you are worried about rain damaging your phone, you have to use a sealed phone pouch.

Depending on your phone usage and whether you use a phone cover, this Quad Lock may or may not work for you. For me, it works well as there are many advantages, which outweighs the disadvantage of not being able to use inductive charging.