Wheelgirl

Phil Wood "Cheese Shredder" High-Flange Hubs for Fixed Gear

While visiting the Phil Wood booth at Interbike, I came across these hubs, which the people at Phil Wood refer to as the "cheese shredder" hubs. Since, well, the hub flanges look like they could shred cheese. They have giant  high-polish flanges, and they were originally made for a customer who was putting together a hand-made bike show bicycle that was a copy of a 1940s French bike. The hubs are available in limited quantities, and they can be made with fixed/fixed or fixed/free threading. I love the way they look. (And yes, they are weighty babies.)

   

Photos by Wheelgirl at Interbike 2008 in Vegas

The Surly Rat Ride Single Speed and Doughnuts

OK, this Surly Rat Ride single-speed bike caught my attention at Interbike 2008 in Vegas because, well watch the video. How can you ignore its presence?  This fat single-speed with discs, Large Marge rims, and Hoggy-G 24 x 3.45 slicks makes you want to eat a few doughnuts before before your morning commute. Heck, it makes me want to string a bunch of doughnuts together on a necklace and have a giant doughnut breakfast during the ride and wash it all down via a hydration pack filled with coffee.

It looks a bit more like a hippo than a rat. Its shape makes me grin. And I am sure those unleashing its girth on the streets or trails are laughing themselves silly every time then catch a glimpse of their wide reflection in a storefront window or a pond.

Traitor Bikes Commuters and Fixed Gear Bikes (3 of 3)

Traitor brought a few of their geared commuter bikes to Interbike. One has an oil well on it the frame. The other has a dragon. You can also check out the two other videos featuring the Traitor fixed gear bike videos, the Ringleader and the Pabst Blue Ribbon limited edition fixie. (This is video 3 of 3.)

Traitor Bike Pabst Blue Ribbon Fixed Gear Interbike (2 of 3)

Traitor Bikes had a limited edition Pabst Blue Ribbon fixed gear in their booth at Interbike. The PBR label is decorating the Traitor Ringleader fixed gear frame. And the PBR fixie special edition has the same parts and frame spec as the Ringleader.

Traitor Bikes Ringleader Fixed Gear at Interbike (1 of 3)

The Ringleader is a production fixed gear available from Traitor bikes. The Traitor bunch have run Transition Mountain bikes up in Washington State for the past 5 years. They are looking to offer some new graphic design possibilities to value-based basic commuter, fixed gear, and urban transportation bikes. (This is 1 of 3 Traitor bike videos.)

New KHS Flite 100 Fixed Gear / Single Speed at Interbike

The good news, the KHS Flite 100 is going to be available in white and matte black. Things that I am not sure about, for example, the top tube now has a braze on for cable routing if you want to use the bike as a single speed. Those who ride fixed for simplicity may not dig that. However, I live in an urban area that lends itself to fixed gear riding. Those who decide on this bike and who live in hillier geographies may like the braze on detail. Also, the cog that comes with the bike for next year is alloy.(Jump to read more.)

Lynskey Houseblend Road Frames 1 of 2

I could wear the new Lynskey Performance CNC'd ti clover rear dropout on a chain around my neck and feel pretty. You can see them on this Houseblend R430 road bike frame. The geometry of this bike is more race-oriented. The top tube is longer, and the head tube is shorter. Also, the tubeset is 6 Al/4 V titanium with a bit of Helix tubing thrown in for the seatstays.  The tube set is diamond-shaped, and you can dry your tears and stop crying about how ti isn't inelastic enough for your riding style. Undoubtedly, the aero geometry is going to help you to ride fast. The ti compliance won't make you feel like someone beat you with a stick when you get off of this race bike. If you are a powerful race rider who needs to ride a bike that is responsive, won't beat you up, and is not going to noodle all over the place, Lynskey has replied to your request.(Check out the other Lynskey videos from Interbike on this site.)

Nitto Mandle Handlebars at Euro Asia Import Booth at Interbike

OK, these are shiny candy bars. The Nitto Mandle handle bar in the Euro Asia Imports booth at Interbike were just waiting to be held and admired. They are chromed steel with a clamping diameter of 25.4. You can get them in a riser or a straight bar. I took a quick measurement, since you can't really cut them down, or you will cut off the end caps, which are their entire identity. My thumb-to-pink full spread is pretty  close to 8 inches. So these are a bit less than 8 inches. (Super useful stupid human trick for measuring wood, fabric, paper, handle bars.)

The bar ends are completely capped in steel. The bars, in both styles, are clean looking and made of steel to withstand urban abuse. Of course, if you are not what I call a Beta tester for bike components, you can always look at the lighter alloy Nitto riser in anodized colors. (Heather and Julius this post is for you.) (Jump for more photos.)

Photos by Wheelgirl at Interbike 2008 in Vegas

New Surly Steam Roller Fixed Gear/ Single Speed at Interbike

I visited the Surly booth. The new Surly Steamroller comes with a brake and lever, sealed bearing hubs, and the chromo steel frame is comfortable for urban riding. The rear brake bridge is drilled for a rear brake, so you can utilize the flip /flop rear wheel and run it as a single speed if you move to the mountains.

We have put a few pro-athlete team-sport sized guys, 6' 4" weighing 215-240 lb guys on this bike. They haven't broken the frame yet.  So that is a good sign. The frame has brazeons for a water bottle cage. And you can fit up to 700c x 32 tires on it. The rear stays have a wider clearance. This is good news for those who have to commute on busted up pavement, since you can run a wider tire for a bit more shock absorption. You can then spend less time wondering when your ride over that giant crack in the asphalt if your body is going to be jolted really bad or just a little.

The color is kind of a vanilla cream (kind of the old SE color, actually) and the componentry is mostly black. It comes spec'd with a 3/32nd 47T chain ring and 3/32nd 19T. So that is a gear ratio of 66.8, which is a nice cruising gear, and the bike won't throw you off when you try to stop it. You aren't going to ever beat anyone in a sprint, but you should be able to ride the same terrain you can ride on a geared road bike if you put the bike in the smaller ring (on a double crank set) and in the middle of your cassette. Go here to figure out what gear ratio feels comfortable for your style of riding.  I forgot to check to see if you could scrape off the decals or if the clear coated over them and are there to stay. If someone knows about the decals, put up a post for us. (Jump for more ratio picking info.)