Latest Custom Builds — Aero

Bob needed a new set of wheels for Ultra Endurance riding. They needed to be light, strong and not too expensive. These days, the hubs are the most expensive part of most builds, so the XLR8 MD hubs fit the bill nicely. They are made in Taiwan by one of the world's largest hub manufacturers, feature ABEC 5 grade Enduro bearings, an alloy freehub, and readily available parts (not that they are often required). For rims, the Nextie classic series offer great value. The 45mm version is very aero, yet still rather light. Tubeless ready, toroidal aero shape, quality high Tg...

John needed some aero wheels in order to keep up with the youngsters he's been riding with. He felt his Dura Ace C24s were just not aero enough. We discussed the many options, and his thinking was that these new wheels might end up as race wheels if they provided enough speed (spoiler: they do!) so he wanted them stiff with a capital "S". The Nextie Classic carbon road rims are the chassis on which to build his hopes; the 45mm and 58mm rims (NXT45RC and 58RC) made sense - great warranty and finish, at a very reasonable price. Super aero...

John has been riding these Mercury carbon wheels for a while. They have seen some use, and need a little love, so he decided to have XLR8 fix a few problems that had emerged. The front hub bearings were loose in the hubshell, and would not stay put. Plus, the rear wheel had started to break spokes. The general rule here is that if a wheel breaks a couple of spokes, it's worth investing in a full rebuild. John's on a budget, and saving up for an XLR8 custom build. To help him out, we used an inexpensive but perfectly functional Shimano...

Brock was having some woes with his Easton EA70 rear wheel. He'd pulled a spoke through the rim. We find the Kinlin XC279 is an excellent replacement rim for this kind of wheel - super robust, not heavy and wide at 23mm external. Being a few years old, and having some some miles on them, the spokes and nipples were seized. We rebuilt the fine Easton EA70 hub onto the Kinlin using Sapim Race double butted spokes on the non drive side, and Sapim Leader plain gauge spokes on the driveside. The heavier gauge spoke acts to somewhat equalise lateral...

Ricky asked what would be a good all alloy round rim to use his DT Swiss 240s hubs on - considering he weighs 95kgs. The hubs were 20h front and 24h rear, so in order to preserve stiffness and reliability, a sturdier deeper section rim is required. The Kinlin XC279 was an obvious choice. It's 23mm wide, 28mm deep, and tough as nails.