New Hoops

Katie is getting these super- pimp wheels to race on this season as sort of a belated Valentines' present. How spoiled am I that I can get away with giving bike parts as gifts? I've pretty much got it made... but let's get back to the wheels.

Let me break them down for you:

Hubs: American Classic Road rear 32 Hole

American Classic MTB front 32 Hole (had to do MTB to get 32 hole, read on..)

Rims: Velocity Aerohead, Off- Center rear, *Custom hot pink color courtesy Velocitys' poor application of paint*

Spokes: Sapim Laser 14/17 gauge, black- 2X front, 3X rear

Nipples: Sapim brass, black

Weight: 710g (front)

820g (rear)

This project started because Matt ordered some red 32 hole Velocitys for himself, but when they came in they were this bitchin' hot pink color. Since that was not really what he was hoping for, Velocity sent him a new pair, and this time they were actually red. Which left us with a pair of not red, red rims. That's when I remembered; I have a fiance who, it just so happens, needs a set of wheels and likes the color pink! I refuse to let Katie have carbon race wheels (I'd have to switch her brake pads every time she decided to switch wheels) so I thought this might be the next best thing. Originally, I had ordered a set of Mavic R- Sys, but since the recall, I don't think we'll be getting them in time, and I kind of doubted that they would be the best thing for racing in this area anyway. There are almost no hills, and most races are crits, so a light and not very aero wheel was probably not going to be a great choice. These work out to be a little heavier than that wheelset, but quite a bit cheaper, especially when you factor in the nil cost of the rims.

I used to really dislike American Classic hubs, but they have improved the bearings and tweaked the design over the years to the point where I was willing to give them another try. The weight vs. cost issue is what made me consider them again, but it's nice to see that Bill Shook is apparently still improving his original design. They even have this steel- faced spline on the freehub that is supposed to prevent the cassette from becoming a permanent part of the freehub body like they all used to. These could easily become a favorite, if all goes as expected, and they are still super- easy to service if anything goes awry.

Velocitys' rims are not one of my favorite things, but the price was right, and I've used them many times before. Let's face it though, this project came about due to their poor quality finish. I don't care for the fact that these rims don't have any eyelets to carry stress from the spokes away from the spoke hole, even though they are lighter because of that. (I considered using nipple washers for this build, but decided not to) I also don't like rims without a welded seam- it makes for an uneven build in that area, and the brake pulse can be annoying, or even difficult to control the bike during heavy braking situations. Positives about these rims are relatively low cost and low weight- exactly the theme of this build. Bonus points for the off- center rear rim that evens out spoke tension and length, so I only had to order one size of spoke for the rear. They also seem to be quite durable, in spite of appearances: I can recall several Mavic rim failures, but not one from Velocity. They also have them in lots of colors, (some that they don't even make) if you're someone who can't live with silver or black.

This was my first time building with Sapim spokes, and I have to say I'll probably use them again. Sapims' C-X ray bladed spokes are the companies most well known product, and they are really great, but the Laser double- butted spokes that I used here were very nice as well. And less than half the cost. My only complaint was that the finish looked like it was coming off a little while I was lacing them up, but I think all spokes should be silver anyway. I only agreed to build with the black ones because Katie wanted them, although they probably do look better with black spokes. So that's the new wheelset: Did I mention that they are HOT PINK?