Latest Custom Builds — Classic

We've built a pair of wheels for Paul in the past, and he came to us to help with his latest project. He's rebuilding a beautiful old steel Paconi in the "restomod" style - classic frame, with mostly modern (read far better to use and more reliable) components. In this case he has selected a lovely silver Campagnolo Centaur 11s group. He had found a pair of late 80s Mavic Open rims, laced to beautiful Suntour Superbe Pro hubs. Whilst the rims were absolutely perfect for the aesthetic he was looking for, 30 year old hubs just weren't going to...

A customer dropped by the workshop to see us in the middle of this Mavic Aksium Race wheel rebuild. He asked why we would spend all this time on an older mid level factory wheelset?Like much older Mavic, these wheels were 11s capable from before 11s was a thing. The hubs are very reliable (though not super light). This particular set of rims had seen very little use, but the spokes had become rusty (whilst sitting in storage) and started breaking.We replaced the basic rusty flat bladed spokes with lovely new Sapim Sprint straight pull spokes (a bit thicker Race on...

Luke got in contact, and claimed that he'd been "breaking wheels for ten years now". His most recent purchase had been an Italian mid level factory wheelset, and he came to us after these had broken quite quickly. He's a bigger guy, and uses his wheels for both commuting and weekend rides. He needed 100% reliability, but was on a bit of a budget. We worked with him to come to a spec based on a Bitex lightweight front hub, and a Shimano 105 11s rear hub. We love Shimano hubs. The cup and cone system works really well and...

Bob came to use with a need to replace his carbon Reynolds wheels. He was unhappy with their lateral stiffness, and unsure of their longevity on the rough roads he rides around Armidale.  He knew that an Archetype build would be just the ticket, having read our musings on these rims. A pair of White Industries T11 hubs also seemed to make sense - tough, light, and super reliable. We had a couple of conversations with him to ascertain the best solution for his 95kgs weight. As a result, we specified 24 light weight Sapim D-Light spokes on the front...

Ben is another ex bicycle courier (messenger) who XLR8 worked with in a past life. We remember he was always a big fan of Paul Components hubs, and when he ordered a new Singlespeed frame, they were a given. He came to use for advice on a solid carbon 27.5" wheel build. Light, but not too light. Wide, but not too wide (he wanted to keep the bike spritely), at reasonable price and with good warranty. We suggested Nextie Classic XC rims with a 25mm internal width. These work well with narrower tyres, and are super light and stiff. They'll bag...