While the custom bike that I am having Stijl Cycles build for me is still in the early stages of pre-production design I have found time to start getting parts together for the build.
This bike is going to be the ultimate high speed, all weather, road adventure machine so disc brakes were a must. In my mind there was only going to be one choice for the rear hub. I have always loved the distinct sound that Chris King hubs make when you coast. Some describe the high frequency note of the ratchet mechanism as an “angry bee” and I would say that’s a pretty good description. The proven durability and beautiful finish quality make King hubs my all time favorites.
For rims I need something light, strong, and a bit wider than your average road rim. I was lucky enough to test out some of the early prototypes of the H+Son TB14 rim and their creator, Tzusing, was nice enough to give me a couple finished sets with a special limited edition badge at the valve stem hole. I have been sitting on these for months now waiting for the right project.
The TB14 combines the retro looks of the classic box section rim with modern technologies and alloys to create a really top notch product.
When it comes to high quality custom wheel builds there is really only one choice for spokes in my opinion. Sapim CX-ray. There is a reason that companies like Zipp use these spokes on their wheels. While aerodynamics are not exactly important for a bike that will often have fenders on it there are some other advantages of bladed spokes. For wheels with crossed spokes the flat aero section allows touching spokes to have more contact area and less bend which creates a slightly stronger wheel… plus it looks cool.
For the front wheel I went with the new version of Schmidt’s SON28 dynamo hub. This beauty can power a high output headlight with energy collect as the wheel turns. They have noticeably less drag than your average dynohub and after having used a the previous generation version of this hub with the matching e-delux headlight I could not think of a better option for early morning, or night rides. The weight penalty is worth it if you want to have a powerful headlight on your bike without ever having to worry about charging batteries.
All built up they come in at about 2000 grams. Certainly not light-weight by road racing wheel standards but not much heavier than some of the cheaper training wheels out there. With all the extra weight at the hub rather than the rim these wheels will still accelerate quickly and with the 700x28c Continental GP-4season tires I mounted, will ride as smooth as can be.
Too bad they will have to wait until the spring to hit the road.
