Latest Custom Builds — TT and Triathlon

Jett is a little 11 year old who loves to run, surf and ride. As a result, he's pretty bloody quick in Triathlon, even riding his MTB! Keen for more speed, he came to us and asked what we could do. We found an old 650c road bike on the local classifieds, and stripped and rebuilt it with smarter and lighter parts (but nothing too special, as he will grow out of this bike pretty soon). Being in an age group where he's not yet allowed to use aero bars, fast wheels and tyres are his only real aero advantage....

A mate of Colin's (Joe, actually) suggested he talk to us about some new wheels to replace some Fulcrums he'd started to wear out. Colin's Fulcrums were starting to break spokes after about 15,000km. Not great mileage, but about what you would expect. Colin needed some wheels for an upcoming trip to climb the Cols of Europe, and reliability and weight (and some added aero) were important. He was also keen to ensure more mileage from this set of hoops. The XLR8 Rouleur Mk4 is the latest generation of alloy "all round" road rims from XLR8. Made in Taiwan from...

We’ve known Steve since the turn off the century when both he and XLR8 worked as bike messengers in Sydney. He’s a big unit and got in contact to discuss some new carbon hoops for his road bike, to service him on the rural roads of mid western New South Wales.Those roads are somewhere between awful and terrible, and Steve wanted a shallow depth carbon wheel that would still be stiff to accomodate his considerable power output. Having owned a retail bike store, and currently working as a mobile mechanic, he knows his stuff but appreciated our spec advice.Bigger guys...

Kurt found us via our website, as we carry lots of spares for Easton and Zipp wheels . He was keen to replace some bent spokes and broken nipples in his rear Zipp wheel, as a result of an accident. A local bike shop had attempted a repair, but had not had the appropriate parts on hand. As a result, the wheel was temporarily fixed with silver nipples and the affected spokes reused. We disassembled the wheel, and reassembled with Sapim Polyax brass nipples, in black of course. This wheel should be good to go for another few years (until...

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...