ETAs and Pre-Orders
We’ve been waiting for a few big shipments that will fill holes on our shelves. One of them just arrived; the others are scheduled in early November. We’re taking pre-orders now, so you’ll be among the first to get your long-awaited parts.
Why were so many parts out of stock? Rando, bikepacking and cyclotouring bikes have experienced a resurgence—as you can see by the huge interest in events like Bespoked and Made. So there’s been more demand for our handlebars, cranks, fenders and other components than we anticipated.
We ordered many of these parts over a year ago, but they are only now arriving in Seattle. Since we placed these orders, many things have changed. This means we’ll have to re-calculate our prices. We’ll try to keep any price increases to a minimum and, for now, you can still pre-order at the old prices.
What’s incoming?
Our Rene Herse cranks are ultralight and ultra-strong: They are the only ‘classic’ cranks to pass the highest EN fatigue test for road bikes—the ‘Racing Bike’ test. When we first worked on these cranks, our friends from Race Face—makers of the best mountain bike cranks at the time—told us that it wasn’t possible to pass the ‘Racing Bike’ test with a slender, ‘classic’ crank, much less a superlight one. (Their input was very helpful in many other ways.)
Well, we did it anyhow: We passed the ‘Racing Bike’ test not just once, but several times. (We wanted to make sure that all our cranks pass, not just a lucky outlier.)
One of the secrets is ‘net-shape forging,’ which means that the forging die is exactly the shape of the finished crank. Since we don’t machine the crank shape, the grain of the metal is perfectly aligned everywhere, even in the highly-stressed areas of the pedal eye. (Most forged cranks use a single forging die for all lengths, and the area around the pedal eye is machined to length, which weakens the grain structure. CNC-machined cranks are carved out of a big block of aluminum, so the grain structure is interrupted everywhere.)
‘Net-shape forging’ means we need a separate forging die for each crank length—and we have to forge each length separately. With the recent trend toward shorter cranks, we sold more 165 mm cranks, and they’ve been out of stock for a while. We just received another shipment. All cranks and chainrings are now in stock.
These are the cranks we ride in Unbound XL, the Oregon Outback (above) and other big adventures. We have so much confidence in our cranks that we back them with a 10-year warranty—more than twice as long as any other crank.
Our Rene Herse fenders have more coverage than other fenders, plus they come with our custom hardware that’s designed with the same care as all our Rene Herse components. Our fenders don’t rattle or resonate—they are silent even when riding across rough terrain. Rene Herse fenders are among the lightest you’ll find anywhere. If you choose the optional tubular stays, you save another 35 g with no loss in strength.
We offer fenders in many sizes to match wheel and tire sizes. Our various models for wide 700C tires have been out of stock, but more are on the way. The shipment also includes all hardware and spare fender blades. (Unlike other makers, we offer the blades separately. If you damage a fender, there’s no need to buy a complete fender set with hardware.) The boat with the fenders is scheduled to arrive next week, and we should have our shipment shortly thereafter.
Handlebars with generous curves and truly ergonomic shapes can make a big difference in comfort—especially for long rides and moderate power outputs. (If you’ve got Pogacar’s power, handlebar shapes aren’t a big concern, but that’s not most of us.)
Some models have been out of stock in certain widths. Several are incoming. A few others are in production now and will ship later. The models that will arrive next week are available for pre-order.
The new SON Ladelux headlights have been extremely popular. The layered low beam is like a car headlight: It evenly illuminates the road surface without distracting bright spots. And like a car headlight, it has a high beam, too—ideal for fast riding on twisty descents. The Ladelux also features a charging port—and sophisticated electronics that maximize the charging current from your generator hub, while protecting your electronics from constant on/off cycles that would damage the batteries. The Ladelux is the result of several years of R&D—it’s really without equal among bicycle lights.
Our first two shipments sold out quickly. Another shipment is scheduled to arrive in November, and you can pre-order your Ladelux now, as well as generator hubs that are also incoming.
MKS makes the world’s nicest non-clipless pedals. We only sell their top-of-the-line models, with silky-smooth cartridge bearings and beautifully polished bodies. MKS toeclips and straps are also the nicest you’ll find anywhere. Once the new shipment arrives next week, all models will be back in stock.
Our racks provide a stiff platform to support a classic handlebar bag. As you’d expect from Rene Herse, the racks are superlight—in fact, they were the lightest racks in bikepacking.com’s big rack test.
All racks are incoming, but stocks of some models are very limited. If you need one of our innovative UD racks, don’t wait! These racks are available with struts in different lengths, for bikes with canti (above) or disc brakes. ETA is early November.
We’re also getting more of our popular Handlebar Roll Bags. The come in three sizes—above is the Medium. Simple and lightweight, yet waterproof and ultra-strong, these are the bags we use on all bikes that don’t have racks.
Our TPU tubes remain in high demand. Customers love the performance and—just as importantly—the wonderful ride feel with these tubes. We see many return customers: They start with tubes for one bike, then they come back and order tubes for all their other bikes, too.
Most models are in stock, but some are running low. We’ll get more in early November. Sealant and our ultralight NUDA carbon pump are in stock now.
And if you’ve been waiting for out-of-stock tires, we got a big shipment last week. That includes all casings of our new 700×48 Poteau Mtn semi-slicks and its 44 mm-wide cousin, the Corkscrew Climb. The Corkscrew is Brennan Wertz’ favorite (above)—designed to transmit his prodigious power without losses, while hooking up perfectly when the trail turns rowdy. All Rene Herse tires are in stock.
Click on the images above for more information or to order.
Photo credits: Nicolas Joly (Photos 1, 4); Rugile Kaladyte (Photo 2); Marc Arjol Rodriguez (Photo 10)
