Nail Straight Up Through Bike Rim Wins Best Flat Tire Prize

We see a bunch of broken, bent, taco'd, and twisted bike wheels at Wheelgirl. But Customer Mike wins the prize for the best flat tire story of late. Like others before him, he visited the Wheelgirl bike shop inquiring about a new set of hand-built wheels. Why? Because the  guy was out for a ride and ran over a giant nail that pierced completely through his rear tire, inner tube, and alloy 700c rear rim.

The nail exited the rim in a pretty straight line almost in alignment with the spokes.This is what makes this nail-induced flat noteworthy. It is hard to get a nail to go straight through your rim. Most people pick up nails that are angled. Mike did get knocked off his ride from the sudden loss of tire pressure, but he avoided all injury. The story has a happy ending: We built him up with a nice new wheel set of Shimano Ultegra hubs on black Mavic Open Pro Rims. Ride on Customer Mike.

   

Photos taken by Wheelgirl. Check out the alignment of the nail in the first photo.

Velocity Deep V ELVS Glow-In-The-Dark Fixed Gear Rims, Make Momma Smile

If you are riding your fixed gear at night, here is something that will make your Momma smile. Velocity ELVS Deep V glow-in-the-dark rims will help drivers to see you crazy cats riding your fixies around in the dark.The Deep V rims look black in the daylight and glow reflective white at night, so there is not a harsh visible style decision that you need to make in the name of safety.

Ehtan Laek of Laek House independently developed these ELVS glow-in-the-dark rims with Velocity. Ethan wrote about these on his site in September of last year. Manni from Portland emailed me about some Nitto bars and directed me to the post. (Thanks, Manni.) We will have some Laek House reflective clothing in the shop this spring. So keep that in mind if you want your threads to match your rims.

According to Velocity, the rims have a reflective vinyl coating on them similar to that used by emergency vehicles. The coating can't tolerate brake shoes rubbing on it, so all of the ELVS rims are Deep V rims with a non-machined braking surface. This makes the rims suitable for building fixed gear wheels. Velocity states that the ELVS rims hold up in nice weather as well as the rains and winter slop, and the rims when wet retain 90 percent of their reflective qualities. The ELVS coating is designed to resist road mild acids, mild alkalies, and salts, as well as "occasional fuel spills".  You want to avoid scratching the surface of the rim or using harsh detergents to clean the rim, since you can damage the coating. So be mindful when you lock up your ride. However, Velocity does say you can sparingly use rubbing alcohol (keyword: "sparingly") to clean grease and grime from the street from the rim surface.

We have some ELVS rims on order, and they will be online in the Wheelgirl Fun & Fixed Gear shop. Email us if you want to reserve of these glow-in-the-dark Deep Vs and make your Momma smile.

First photo lifted from the Velocity site. Next two photos lifted from the Laek House site. Rims are black in the daylight and turn reflective white when it is dark.

Robert's 32H Paul FHub & Word Disc Hubs on Salsa 29er Race Delgado Rims

We built these for customer Robert's custom Independent Fabrication Single-Speed 29er.

Paul black 32H FHub disc 100 front hub

Paul black 32H Word Disc 135mm rear hub

Salsa Race Delgado 29er black disc rims

3 cross pattern

DTSwiss stainless steel black spokes and black (brass) nipples.

• Spokes for the rear drive side (no disc) = 16 x 293 mm



• Spokes for the rear non-drive side (disc) = 16 x 293 mm



• Spokes for the front (non disc)  = 16 x 293mm



• Spokes for the front (disc)  = 16 x 292mm

* Remember: If you are used to building non-disc front bike wheels, disc front wheels use different spokes lengths for each side. If you build road bike wheels or mountain bike wheels with rims that accept caliper, cantilever, or V brakes, you can usually assume the 100mm front hub measurements will allow you to use the same length of spoke for both sides of the wheel. (The front hub has the same left and right center-to-flange measurements, and there is no dish to the front wheel, since there are is no cassette or freewheel.) So, check all your hub measurements when you are building front disc hubs.

Photo taken by Wheelgirl

Bicycle When It is Quiet, AEG's Giant Decibels Meter Billboards

OK, these giant decibel (dB) meter billboards were not made to support urban bicycle commuting. They are part of a marketing campaign to encourage consumers to buy quiet household appliances made by the company AEG-Electrolux. But if you are bicycle commuting or running errands via bike and passing by these meters in Berlin, Brussels, London, Milano, or Madrid, you can try to ride during the quieter times by looking on the web. All of the dB stats recorded by the dB meters are graphed by time and date. The site, Noise Awareness site in the United Kingdom, lets you view the noise data from the cities where these giant decibel meters are listed.

And if you are one of the many gifted children who lives on two wheels in Berkeley, and you have time on your hands this summer, here's a project.  Why not put a discrete decibel meter somewhere, like at Spruce and Rose or up by Tilden Park or on Grizzly Peak, so the recreational and competitive cyclists can avoid the scenic and narrow roads during the peak times for car travel. Make sure there is a way to wirelessly convey the monitoring data to a web app. You special talented San Franciso bike riding engineers, get to work on one for Market Street and the Embarcadero.

(Jump to read a bit about the history of the noise measuring unit, the decibel.)

   

Photo lifted from the Noise Awareness site.

via notcot

Lifted from Wikipedia on decibel:

"A decibel is one tenth of a bel (B)."

"The bel was originally devised by engineers of the Bell Telephone Laboratories to quantify the reduction in audio level over a 1 mile (approximately 1.6 km) length of standard telephone cable. It was originally called the transmission unit or TU, but was renamed in 1923 or 1924 in honor of the Bell System's founder and telecommunications pioneer Alexander Graham Bell. In many situations, however, the bel proved inconveniently large, so the decibel has become more common."

Get Ready for BBQ Grill Season with Park Tools BBQ-3 Tool Set

If you love to cycle, and you work on your bike, the Park Tools BBQ-3 is the barbque grilling tool set you need this spring and summer. The Park Tool BBQ-3 set contains a stainless steel pedal wrench spatula, complete with a spoke wrench hanging loop. And if you need more than flipping capabilities, you can reposition your after-ride grilled treats with the included BBQ tongs made from two stainless steel cone wrenches. Both tools are a good weight and feel right in the hand of an experienced BBQ chef and / or bike mechanic.

The stainless steel implements are easy to keep clean and sport the comfortable and recognizable Park Tool blue rubber-coated handles. The spatula spoke wrench hanger is printed with "BBQ1". But the set is called the BBQ-3.

I know one of you curious cats is going to grill up some corn on the cob and then try to remove your pedals from your bike with the spatula. Strong suggestion: You ride through all kinds of stuff that you and your dinner guest would not want to eat. Use a dedicated steel pedal wrench that is not designed for cooking. Save the Park BBQ-3 grill tools for your barbecued food delights. (You can pick up a set for 25 clamshells in the Wheelgirl Fun and Fixed Gear online store, which is growing slowly.)

If you have any great grill recipes or BBQ sauces for after ride meals, make sure to post them.

(Photos taken by Wheelgirl.)

Michelin Pro Race 3 Folding Clincher Road Tires Have Arrived

Pro Race 3 Service Course road tires from Michelin have arrived for the rest of us. Michelin Pro Race 3 tires were available to the pro peleton during last summer's Tour de France. But now black and gray Pro 3 Race tires are available in the shop. The other colors will be released during the bike season. The black stripe in the middle is fatter than the Pro Race 2 tires.

Michelin states that the Pro Race 3 replaces Pro Race 2 and offers high-performance and good looks for those who love smooth-rolling road race tires. (Michelin doesn't have the tire specs up on their site yet.) According to Michelin, the new tread delivers 20% more straight line grip than the Pro² Race, while the new shoulder rubber offers a huge 40% improvement. Michelin says the Moto GP compounds are also more readily deformable than before to help maintain grip on coarser pavement and reduce rolling resistance. For added security, the Pro³ Race casing gains a new High Density Puncture Protector (HDPP) nylon belt.

If you have put some miles on these tires since their release, put up a post and let us know how they roll. (Jump to read the specs on the new Pro Race 3 Michelin road race tires.)

(Photos by Wheelgirl)

ooksHere are the Pro Race 3 or Pro 3 Race, as some say, road tire specs:

Type: Folding clincher
Bead: Kevlar with High Protect Rim System protects tire from rim bead friction
Tires Pressure: 120 PSI
Tire Weigh Per Tire: 215-220 gms 700x23c
Tire Composition: 100% Silica Energy rubber mix. Dual compound co-extrusion for low rolling resistance in the center and extra grip on the shoulders
Tire Casing: 127 thread per inch (TPI) cross-ply fibers provide flexibility, responsiveness, high performance and light weight
Puncture Resistant: Yes. High Density Puncture Protector under the center tread, minimizing the effect of tread cuts.

Face to Face or Back to Back, You Don't Have to Look at Someone's Neck Hairs

Chen Yugang of Taiwan designed and built a tandem bike prototype that allows two cyclists to ride the bike by positioning themselves face to face or back to back. The idea, according to Chen, is that you can enjoy a different and unique view while riding on his tandem bike. The bike isn't yet in production. But according to Chen, you can change the seating configuration quickly and easily without tools.

Of course, for those sitting face to face, there is also the thrill (and potential danger) of the unknown, since you can't really see where you are going. The same thrill of the unknown is partly true for those sitting back to back, since the captain (person in the front) still faces forward and can see where he or she is going. But the stoker (person sitting in the back) is now facing backward. So the stoker doesn't have to count the hairs on the captain's neck, but the stoker also cannot see for love or money without the use of a mirror where the bike is pointed. Check out the video of two riders booking on a different tandem set up back to back.

(First photo lifted from the DailyTimes . Second photo lifted from Geekologie via video from Metacafe.)

daily times to geekologie to dvice to giz

Walking Bike Takes 8 Pairs of Sneakers and Patience to Ride

Max Knight created the Walking Bike from 8 pairs of sneakers and some fancy wheel modifications. You can check out the YouTube to see how it rides. It is not exactly a smooth spinning machine, but I have a sweet spot in my heart for anyone who builds bike wheels. If you look closely, it appears Max has included the thoughtful touch of a black ankle sock for each sneaker. If you are a wheel builder, you know that the devil is in the details.

(Photos of Max Knight's Walking Bike taken by Thomas Brown and lifted from the arkitip site.)

arkitip to newlaunch to giz

Gran Compe White SS Tires and Schwalbe Black and White Stelvio Tires, Beauty Isn't Cheap

Spring is officially here. Dia Compe's Gran Compe SS all white road tires let you dress up your bike with vintage touch that borders on minimal cool.  These folding clincher 700x23c, 100 PSI road tires are only available in all white. Dia Compe calls them "Open Tubulars" on the box. They are what we call "clinchers". So they will fit a conventional clincher rim. If you need a bit of contract on your hoops, Schwalbe offers up the Stelvio, a 700x23 folding 120 PSI clincher in classy black and white for your springtime riding enjoyment. (The Stelvio road tires also are offered in with other color accents.)

Beauty isn't cheap. A set of the Gran Compe light-weight tires with Kevlar beads cost around $120 in the Wheelgirl on line store. (See the top-right corner of this page.) Head mechanic, Daniel, ordered in some a few weeks ago. Schwalbe Stelvio road race tires are $80 a set in our on line store. We've put the Stelvio tires in different colors on many bikes. They roll really nicely. But if you need completely white tires, the Gran Compe tires are the answer. (Vittoria makes an all white Zaffiro Pro. So, if you are riding that model please put up a post, and let us know what you think of them.)

The Gran Compe road tires run at 100 PSI, not 120 PSI, like most high-performance road racing tires. And they do not sport a triple casing or some such method of letting wicked and daring cats on fixed wheels repeatedly skid down the steep roads of San Francisco and Berkeley. So put them on a single speed, a well-loved road bike you are giving a makeover, or get a handle on the number of skid spots on your fixie's rear wheel. (Check out the skid spot calculator to figure this out.) If you do opt to put a set on your fixie, make sure that you rotate your rear wheel skid spot(s), so you don't make your own self cry for your mama by unnecessarily shredding it.

(Photos by Wheelgirl. First two are of the Dia Compe Gran Compe SS all white tires. Third photo is close up of a black and white Schwalbe Stelvio. And the last photo is of a Vitus 979 that we gave a make over.)

Campagnolo Record Red Ergopower Shifters Available To Non Pro Cyclists

You might have remembered a post a while back about "Campagnolo Red". Campy released ErgoPower shifters with red logos for professional bike riders who wanted stronger spring action. The pros wanted to feel immediate shifting action during critical race shifts. Campy said they were making these Record red levers for the pros only, since the general cycling population usually opted for smooth shifting and light shifting action. But now, after I am sure some Academy-Award-winning whining and crying for these new toys from amateur cyclists, Campy has changed its mind and plans to release about 600 pairs of the red Record levers. It is unclear as to whether all 600 are going to be released in the USA in April or if they are making a total of 600 pairs for release in Italy, where they are already available, and the USA.

(Photo lifted from the Velonews site.)

Velonews

Wheelgirl is Hiring: Wanted Bike Mechanic with Shop Experience

It is that time of year again. We are looking for bike mechanics with at least 4 years of shop experience.

If you are interested, please click here, and email your bike mechanic resume in the body of your email. (No attachments will be opened, so please do not attach your resume to your email. We don't want to get virus spammed.) In this plain email, list your experience and education and/or bike mechanic school certificates.

The pay depends on experience, but we pay between $14.00 and $17.00 per hour. You are expected to perform services and tune-ups as well as build custom high-quality road, mountain, and track bikes from the frame up as well as custom wheel sets. We are a dealer for custom Independent Fabrication and custom titanium Lynskey Performance frames. We have over 30 specialty vendors, so we can spec and build just about any type of bike a customer can imagine. If you are reading this and have checked out the website, you have a clue as to our sensibilities.

All resumes will be read and considered. We are primarily considering those mechanics with current bike shop experience or industry experience, such as working as a race team mechanic. If you in the process of relocating from another part of the country, this could be a great opportunity.

The coffee and the atmosphere on 4th Street, an open-air shopping district with lovely restaurants, is sweet. Our customers are appreciative and polite. We are 1 mile from the North Berkeley Bart station. (Our cross street is Virginia.) so you can easily ride your bike from the Bart station if you are planning on commuting via Bart. We keep sane hours, 11 am to 6 pm, so you can usually get in some great riding before or after work, if you are training and/or racing. We offer sponsorship opportunities for those who can race and wrench responsibly.

   

Interview with Matt Bracken, President of Independent Fabrication

If you know of and love Independent Fabrication (IF) custom bike frames, you will want to check out this interview with Matt Bracken, the President of IF by Marcus Farley of Bike Radar.

Matt talks about the history, logo, and philosophy of IF as well as the Fat City Cycles connection. Here are a few tasty photo treats from the 2008 Independent Fabrication Catalog. I left out the Crown Jewel road bike, so you are encouraged to click on the catalog link and drool. We have a bunch of the new IF catalogs at the shop. We are very pleased with the way the frames look, build, and ride.

Also, in response to the 29er single-speed bike comments, we are waiting to finish the build on a lovely Independent Fabrication single-speed 29er according the the requests and design considerations of customer Robert. Trendy for a fleeting fashion moment it is not. Gorgeous and able to gracefully withstand the test of time and a thrashing on the trails and asphalt, it most certainly will be. (Check back soon for the photo of the ride Robert designed.)

Photos lifted from the IFbikes.com site. Crown Jewel track bike, Independence touring bike, Deluxe hard tail mountain bike.

Shimano SLX Mountain Bike Groupset, Baby of LX and XT with Compact Mountain Double Crankset

Shimano has come out with a new mid-priced groupset, SLX, which combines the durability of LX with some of the more performance-oriented features of XT and a compact double mountain crankset.

SLX offers you the choice of a new compact 36T/22T double crankset with a bash guard, as well as the option of a middle chain ring that goes to 36T. You can also opt to have the steel-composite middle chain ring currently offered in the 2008 XT groupset. If you want the traditional triple chain ring set up, you can choose a big ring of either 44T or 48T. The 48T comes with an outer chain ring guard. In addition, the crank arm pedal inserts are made of steel, so you are less likely to cross-thread or strip your cranks. Make sure you pick the correct derailleurs for your crank set choice. Just like road bikes, you will have to make sure that the front and rear derailleurs have cages that specifically suit the number of teeth and jumps between ring sizes of your chosen crank set's chain rings. The Hollowtech II design is designed to fit both 68mm and 73mm bottom brackets. (Hollowtech II cranks require external bottom bracket cups.)

You have six front derailleur options from which to choose, so just about any bike frame should be able to accommodate this group set. The SLX Rapid Fire Shifting pod option appears to be the same functioning quality level as XT. The rear derailleur uses the Shimano Shadow profile (which was release in XTR September of 2007). "Shadow" basically means the profile of the derailleur is slimmer; thus, it sits closer to the bike frame, so you are less likely to smack and damage your rear derailleur on a rock or a log. SLX brakes consist of the Shimano Servo Wave system, which is cam assisted. You can opt for a 20mm front axle. (But there is not of yet a 15mm axle option offered with XT and XTR.) The Deore LX group set is now being groomed to be more of a dependable commuter or enthusiast group set.

The SLX group set was not on the Shimano site when I searched. But the word is that Shimano has given attention to improving the performance as well as the look and feel of the SLX group set. (If you ride on this group set this season, put up a post and let us know what you think.)

Photos lifted from Bikeradar. Most currently info taken from bikeradar.

Hydrogen Fuel Cell Powered Bikes

Deutsch Telecom, the German-based telecommunications company, is commercially testing bikes with hydrogen-powered fuel cell motors in Berlin. Two German companies, Masterflex and Hawk Bicycles, have collaborated on these bikes, which are intended for eventual use for transporting  mail, refrigerated goods, or other types of products that lend themselves to delivery by bike in urban areas.

Hydrogen-powered bikes already exist in England. In 2007, Valeswood distributed the Pearl Hydrogen Cycle. But the Pearl Cycles are used primarily as industry examples of hydrogen-powered fuel cell transportation, not working delivery bikes. Also, there is not a current delivery service for hydrogen gas, so Pearl Cycle owners need to "access their own hydrogen gas container to use for refueling," as stated by Valeswood's Managing Director John Turner during his interview with Bike Radar.

Hydrogen-powered fuel cell technology, as applied to bicycle transportation, is in the beginning stages. The 250-watt motors on the Masterflex/Hawk bikes are exempt from motor vehicle laws, just like regular bikes. In addition, hydrogen is believed to deliver up to three times the power of a battery, and the by-product of the hydrogen reaction is water, not carbon emissions. However, as you well may know, creating a system by which to extract, store, and process hydrogen in environmentally friendly fuel cells at a competitive price is the challenge. (You can read more about fuel cells by clicking here and here.)

(Photos lifted from the bikeradar site and the Valeswood site)

via bikeradar.com

Basil Brings Bike Bags and Panniers into the Land of Fashion

We just go in some Basil bike-specific panniers, baskets, and Postman bags . Basil is a Dutch bicycle accessory company. These bags attach to your rear rack and look good on and off your bike. When you arrive at your destination, detach the bags, and bring them into the your workplace or local store, they read as fashionable carry bags. You don't appear as a dressed up bicycle tour leader who is lost. Your carry-all is not hanging awkwardly from a too-short black web handle embedding its metal hooks into your leg. Instead, these bags look and feel like other non-bike specific trendy book bags, purses, and totes.

All of the bags have rack hooks that fit on the rails of the rear rack, but there is a zipped flap that covers the hooks, so only you know they are there. They also have reflective material on the outside, zipped compartments, and shoulder straps or wide handles for ease of carrying. The baskets have an internal frame with hooks attached and a carry handles. The Basil items are attractive and different from most of the other baskets and panniers I've seen. I don't know how they hold up, so put up a post, and let us know how they wear.

The patterns currently in the shop are probably more appealing to the female of the species than the male of the species, in terms of actually carrying around the bags. The guys at the shop have commented that they think the bags are appealing gifts for the women, but they don't feel as if rose and fern patterns really fulfill their own personal carry-bag needs. However, tons of guys come into the shop in search of parts and accessories for project bikes they are making for the special women in their lives. These bags are a nice way to personalize that commuter bike project gift.

Basil does have designs that are a bit less fancy, and these designs, as well as the checked basket designs, may appeal to male and female cyclists who want fewer floral patterns and more solid colors in their lives. The totes and Postman bags aren't what you are going to want to take if you are cycling touring through the Himalayans, but for local shopping and commuting to work via bicycle, it is refreshing to see another option for an alternative and stylish way to carry items on your bike.

 

  Photos taken by Wheelgirl. (The white foam in the last photo is covering the hooks that you use to attach the bag to your rear rack.)

One Stolen Bike Recovered on the Way to the Bike Shop

I was riding to work last Saturday, taking a different way, enjoying the sunshine. I looked to my right, and I was just about to pass two guys, one on a skateboard pushing a white GT mountain bike and the other on an black single-speed IRO Highlander.

I smiled and nodded to the guy on the black IRO Highlander. I like IRO frames. They are practical and don't cost an arm and a leg. He smiled back. I noticed the Wheelgirl sticker on the top tube. Cool. Thanks for the support, I thought. Then my brain remembered that I had helped to build that bike, and it was for a girl who had told me several weeks ago it was stolen while locked up at the BART!

In that I have been watching a bunch of action adventure movies, while I wait for the time to change and the days to get longer, I pulled in front of the guys, took out my cellphone, and let them know, with a smile, that they could start walking, or we could all have a conversation with the police. "How do you know it is stolen?" they asked. I pointed to the Wheelgirl work t-shirt I was wearing and the sticker on the bike. "We built that bike for a girl, and she told us it was stolen at the BART" "But we bought it from a guy at the BART," they answered. Lesson learned: Don't buy bikes at the BART from people you don't know. If you want to gamble with your money, go to Las Vegas.

They both knew the jig was up. And to their credit, they gave up the bike without a fight or a harsh word. One guy was in his twenties, and one guy was at least in his thirties. The bike was pretty trashed, but after a tune up, some new cables, housing, brake pads, pedals, and a polish she is looking like a sweet single-speed ride again. (Read after the jump, urban cyclists, to see if you can answer the U lock riddle.)

Photos taken by Wheelgirl. This is the bike right after it was recovered from an adventure as stolen property.

The girl who owns the bike told me that she had locked the bike with a new Kryptonite lock, and the lock was still there after the bike was stolen. The lock was closed, both pieces were locked together, and it was fully functioning. It wasn't cut, mangled, or broken? If you have had this wacky lock thing happen with a newer U lock that was made after 2006, put up a post, and let me know how bike thieves are performing this trick. (This was not an older U lock that you could open with a pen.) This is the second time I have heard of a bike being stolen without the Kryptonite U lock being damaged in any way.

This Valentine's Day, Show Your Love With The 1045-Piece Lego Batmobile Ultimate Collectors' Edition

If they already have bikes, make a 1045-piece Lego Batmobile Ultimate Collectors' Edition (No. 7784) to give to your lovely elementary-school aged niece and nephew for Valentine's Day.

The Batmobile has a transmission attached to the wheels, a hood that lifts via a turn of the tilt steering wheels to expose the turbo engines, a flip-up cockpit roof, and spinning orange faux flames coming out of the exhaust. The Batmobile is big ride at 17.5 inches long by 6 inches wide. (Make sure to send the Lego instruction books, so the kids can take it apart and put it back together again when they feel like it.)

A gift card for the Lego site will let them pick out an existing Lego project, or go to the Lego Factory to design their own customized Lego models. Lego will make the bricks, put them in a box, and deliver to you whatever you design. I've spent hours playing with the Lego web-based software designing the inside of the bike shop. If you want to see a cool giant Lego project, check out the time-lapse video of Joel of BoingBoing building the giant 5000-plus piece Lego Millennium Falcon ( No. 10179), which is 33 inches x 22 inches x 8 inches. And what was that yellow box 27 seconds into the video?

(More photos after the jump.)

Here are more photos of the building process: