Wheelworks.co.nz, Handbuilt wheels by Tristan Thomas

There are a lot of cool bikes out there, and during my week of ‘work related’ internet surfing some of them leave a lasting impression on me. There some great websites dedicated to sharing them – my intention isn’t to add to these sites but rather to each week share a bike which inspires me.

First up is this lovely Hampsten. The company is run by a guy named Steve Hampsten who also runs an olive oil press, and organizes tours around Tuscany where you can ride your bike with his brother Andy (apparently he won some race in this area a few years ago?) by day and eat fantastic Italian food by night.  Hampsten Cycles started by out-sourcing the frame building to high-end American companies such as Moots, IF, and  Parlee, but overtime Steve has brought all of the framebuilding experience in-house by hiring talented builders.  They’re based in Seattle, Washington, USA and each frame is made to order, by hand.

Hampsten’s have a habit of looking incredibly well proportioned and this green machine is no different.  I love the colour-matched Wound Up fork with it’s silver crown, and the small asymmetric strip of crema on the left leg.  Even the mashup of Campag, SRAM and Shimano parts doesn’t detract from the clean lines of this dirt-road bike.

I built a pair of tubulars a few weeks ago which are destined for a MAX-tubed Hampsten in Auckland…hopefully next time I’m up that way the bike will be finished and I’ll be able to admire one in the flesh and take it for a quick lap of the block.  Until then these pictures will have to do.

I’m back in the workshop after a weekend away.

Saturday was spent driving the Falcon between Taupo and Napier for the annual 140km race.  I was really looking forward to being able to compete in this race but a cold last week meant I was no where near 100% so I drove the car and fed the boys while Mike Naylor took my place in the peleton.  The Wheelworks Racing boys went well and it was great following the final 30kms of the race behind the 9-man break:  Nick and Ian from Subway and our very own Andy Hagan were working well together to chase down Gudsell and Torkler but all three got pumped at the finish by the Pure Black boys who had been sitting on since Torkler’s incredible solo effort from ~70km.

I flew to Auckland Saturday evening and spent Sunday riding around the Waikato region in the drizzle with the 135km Race of Six Friends.  This edition was much harder than the last one -probably due to the fresh metal being applied to a long gravel descent and the wet roads.  The gravel descent was carnage with literally every corner causing riders to puncture.

RoSF v2 from thewholecyclist on Vimeo.

Monday was spent downtown Auckland at the Cloud with a quick trip to North Harbour BMX track in the afternoon.  To say I’m rusty on a BMX would be an understatement but a couple of laps on Finn’s bike reminded me how much I enjoy 20″ wheels.

I’m  now back in the workshop and making my way through the emails and phone messages…if you got in contact over the weekend you should hear from me shortly if you haven’t already.

Cheers,

Tristan

Ken approached me to build some wheels for him after suffering from a couple of broken spokes and a spoke pulling through the rim of his current wheelsets. He wanted a durable, confidence-inspiring wheelset which would stand up to his weight and the training he’s doing.

I selected a pair of White Ind H3 hubs. The stiff axle, 5 bearings, and titanium freehub body are perfect for heavier, more powerful riders.

I matched these to a pair of Hed C2 rims. The C2 is a 23mm wide rim similar to the Velocity A23 – the advantages are lower tyre pressure, better cornering and better ride comfort without giving up any speed.

A combination of DT Swiss Revolution and Competition spokes and brass and aluminium nipples round off an awesome wheelset.

This is a stiff, durable training wheel for local rider Brian.

The PowerTap Pro+ hub is matched with a Kinlin XR-270 rim. I used 28 DT Swiss Competition spokes and brass nipples to keep the wheel’s stiffness high – the PowerTap doesn’t have the best flange geometry so stiffness needs to be added by the rim and spokes.

This front wheel is half of a pair for Steve in Auckland.

A 24 hole DT Swiss 240s front hub is laced with bladed Aerolite spokes and aluminium nipples to an XR-270 rim. The rear wheel will be a match with a 240s rear hub.

These wheels are off to Niner bikes and then on to Canada with their new owner.

Stan’s 3.30 hubs are the new name for the ZTR hubset. This pair has a QR15 kit fitted.

A combination of DT Swiss Revolution and Competition spokes matches up to red aluminium nipples. A good looking wheelset!

Peter wanted to upgrade his current mountain bike wheels to something lighter but with great durability. Stan’s Crest rims have proven themselves to be remarkably durable for such a light rim, and their ability to run with or without innertubes makes them my favorite suggestion for lighter riders.

I laced Peters pair to ZTR hubs with a 15mm front axle, using a combination of DT Swiss Revolution and Competition spokes. Spoke nipples are aluminium on the front and rear non-driveside, and brass on the driveside.

All-up these are a great pair of no-fuss wheels which will make a great improvement to Peters bike.

Martin van Barneveld is currently in Beijing getting ready for the ITU World Triathlon Champs on Sunday .  After finishing that event he’s decided to ride across Africa.

This bike was a last minute request in conjunction with his sponsor Specialized. I had 48 hours to order whatever parts were necessary, build the wheels, and assemble the bike ready to go to Beijing with Martin’s dad. Anyone who has built a frame from scratch knows the huge number of small problems which can unexpectedly occur – the front derailleur mount isn’t the same as what’s published, the headset doesn’t include a pre-load bolt, seatpost size is wrong etc – normally these problems are easily solved: You order the frame, measure everything, and order whatever bits are needed, however with such tight timeframes I didn’t have the luxury of being able to do this so I talked with Specialized and made them pull the frame out of the box to answer a long list of compatibility questions.

The next morning I started building the wheels and by the time I’d finished the groupset and brakes had arrived from Shimano. All the parts fit correctly and the build went together without too many hiccups.

I didn’t know what colour the frame was going to be so I was pleasantly surprised when the black – white – silver theme for parts and components I’d chosen matched the white and black TriCross frame.  Martin had given me carte-blanche to choose the groupset and parts so I selected a 105 drivetrain, Shimano R550 canti brakes, Velocity A23 rims, and a PLT seatpost, stem and handlebar from PRO.  Kenda Smallblock tyres should roll well on gravel roads and have enough grip to deal with whatever comes Martin’s way.

The bike is finished and on it’s way. Enjoy your trip Martin.

Race 5 of the BP series is tomorrow – starting in Eastbourne, over the Wainui hill, down the coast and back to Wainui.  With the sun shining it should be a great race!  Wheelworks Racing will of course be there in full force (but without any team tactics!)

I’m sponsoring this years Balfour Pennington and giving away an awesome pair of $1600 Flite01 wheels.

The riding-bus leaves Thorndon at 11:30am – see you there!

Ray from QuikKiwi coaching asked me to build a PowerTap rear wheel for him.

The wheel will be used for general training so a sensible 28 hole spoke count and the awesome A23 rim will give great durability and excellent ride quality.

DT Swiss Competition spokes and brass nipple tie it all together.