Author Archives: jon

"These wheels came from Just Riding Along, big fans of 650b, tubeless and anything slightly quirky!" say Singletrack World in their fresh good Friday page.
http://singletrackworld.com/2012/04/fresh-goods-friday-24/
wheelset here > DT Swiss 350 hubs laced to Pacenti TL-28 650b rims - £4

Ever wondered what our wheel workshop looks like? No? Well anyway, we set up the GoPro on timelapse mode and recorded an hour or so of workshop action (until the battery ran out).

April 21st 2012 is the date for this year's Steel City downhill. The track being used for the race has just been opened and it's a good one, pretty pedally but easy to carry speed, as long as you can hold your line. It's quite narrow and there are a lot of corners and jumps, plus some awkwardly placed rocks to keep you on your toes.

So I went up early on Saturday before work for a couple of runs, it was a bit damper than it's been recently but the track still rides fast. First a few sections:

Greno's Steel City mini downhill track from Jon Webb on Vimeo.

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We're midway through integrating the blog/news section with the rest of the website, so although all blog articles should be accessible, the layout might look a bit weird and not all the images are showing properly. We expect to have it back to normal by the end of the weekend (but you know how these things drag on).

Tall, heavier riders need stronger wheels than 10st race whippets, firstly just because they are heavier but also because they will put out a lot more power. Custom builds are ideal for heavier riders as we can build them stronger than factory wheelsets and, if necessary, easily repair them.

Q. I'm a road racer after a new set of lightweight fast road wheels. I'm slightly larger than your average road cyclist and I get through wheels quickly. Having knackered several pairs of Mavics in 12 months I moved onto Fulcrums and have used the Racing 3's regularly, with Racing 7's as winter wheels. However, recent spoke and hub damage have sent me down the route of custom builds. Don't know a great deal about custom wheels - advice appreciated.
A. Sounds like you're going to need something pretty tough, and definitely repairable (which most custom wheels would be of course). The main thing will be to have a good number of spokes (28h or 32h should do it) and a tough-but-lightish rim. For most racing wheels we recommend the NoTubes Alpha 340 rims which are light (340g each) and strong but you might be wanting something with a bit more metal in...[ continue reading >> ]

A couple of long-awaited treats turned up just in time for Bespoked, the UK handmade bicycle show in Bristol last weekend (23rd-25th March 2012).

We've been very impressed with Kirk Pacenti's TL28 rims so have been wanting to get our hands on the next rim from his lineup, the DL31. Weighing in at just over 500g for a 650b model (I think it was 505g but forgot to write it down and now we've built it up), it's got the same tubeless profile as its lightweight little brother and is impressively wide at 31mm. It's aimed at the hard-to-define AM - Enduro - light DH category and while I'm trying to avoid the comparison, it's probably a eyeletted, wider alternative to Stan's ZTR Flow.

Just to make a really special wheel we laced the DL31 up to a DT Swiss 240 Lefty hub which we've been waiting months for. The hub is made to the usual DT Swiss standards, weighing in about 15g lighter than the standard Cannondale Lefty Si when you include the custom aluminium Lefty bolt. At £150 it's 4 times the price of the Cannondale hub but the bearings should be better and it will match up if you...[ continue reading >> ]

Most people who ride a lot on road have a "winter bike" - tough, heavy, mudguards (and flap) with chunky wheels built to survive all conditions. But when summer comes round you can break out something a bit nicer for club runs, local races and the odd club time trial, and you'll need some wheels to match.

These customers were after some wheels which are durable, light, and wouldn't embarrass them in the local road race league. After a visit they settled on American Classic or DT Swiss 350 hubs as a good weight/price compromise. Prices were correct in January 2012 but eventually they're bound to change so see our shop for details:
"In these prices I have quoted for black DT Revolution spokes with silver brass or aluminium spoke nipples (aluminium are 10g per set, brass 32g per set but longer-lasting). Spoke count is assumed to be 28h front, 32h rear for strength. Lower spoke counts would be slightly cheaper, and lighter but the wheels would be less stiff.
First, the DT Swiss 350 hubs, the rear is virtually identical to their premium 240s hubs making the 350 hubs a bargain. With the Velocity A23 rims, the pair of wheels comes in...[ continue reading >> ]

Most days I ride in to work. Sometimes offroad through the woods, and sometimes on road if I need to be in more quickly (or just can't face washing the bike AGAIN). Like most people who ride to work I get aggravated by the dreadful driving by some motorists, of course it's only a minority and most of them don't do it deliberately but I count myself lucky if I manage to get to work without being carved up / pulled-out on / passed too close.
There is one group of drivers though that really seem to go out of their way to put my life at risk, no it's not 4x4 drivers, white van men, or people driving Honda Priuses, it's SUPERTRAM LINK BUS DRIVERS. For those who don't live in Sheffield, there's a tram system, and then there are some buses which link the trams in with surrounding towns and villages, and it's these drivers who seem to have been picked specifically for their inability to drive and deliberate aggression towards passengers and other road users. (Maybe that's not fair. There is at least one driver who is careful, professional and polite). To make matters worse they've recently swapped...[ continue reading >> ]