If you've built a bike with quick release hubs lately, you probably noticed that elegant and lightweight quick releases are hard to find. I know, because that's a problem I've run into. I am embarrassed to admit it: My Rene Herse bikes for Paris-Brest-Paris, Oregon Outback and Unbound XL all...
When I asked which part of my bike for last summer’s Paris-Brest-Paris our readers wanted to hear more about, the answer was: “Everything.” So I'm writing a series of posts about the parts of the bike. I’ve already talked about the frame and the centerpull brakes. Today let’s look at...
SON has introduced a few useful products that have us quite excited. First, there is the 12 mm Thru-Axle Adapter. You may know the dilemma: As the days get shorter, you really want to equip your bike with generator lights, but you don't want to invest in a hub that soon...
We are excited to announce the latest SON generator hubs. The biggest news is the connector-less SL system for thru-axle hubs: Now you can remove your front wheel and its generator hub without having to disconnect any wires, even with a thru axle. The system consists of three parts: The heart is...
When building a bike, one important decision concerns the wheels. How do you get the best performance and still make your wheels strong enough to withstand 20,000+ miles of riding on rough roads without needing service? By now, most cyclists know that spokes don't break from overloading, but from fatigue as the...
Sometimes we get a call or an e-mail from a frustrated customer: "I have a brand-new set of your tires, and both wobble when I mount them on my rims." In most cases, it is not the tires' fault. Usually the problem stems from the difficulty of mounting tires on...
At Compass Bicycles, we are not obsessive gram counters, but none of us want to carry extra weight on our bikes. A few grams here and there add up quickly to a couple of pounds, and that can make a difference not only in how the bike performs, but also...
