Wheelworks.co.nz, Handbuilt wheels by Tristan Thomas

Tim sent me a pair of XTR hubs to be built up. The front is a 20mm thru-axle and the rear is one of the new 142x12mm thru-axle designs.

I laced these hubs to a pair of Stan’s Flow rims. At 28mm the Flow is the widest of the Stan’s range and well suited to supporting wider tyres, but is still very light at only 460 grams.

DT Swiss Competition spokes and a combination of aluminium and brass nipples hold everything together.

There are some other photos as Tim is a bit of a weight-weenie :-)

Dave sent his standard quick release DT Swiss 240s hub to me to be converted to QR15.

The internal diameter of the 240s bearings is 15mm so this conversion is possible, however a few parts need to be made. I machined a new pre-load spacer to prevent the bearings being crushed when the thru-axle is tightened. The large diameter center section has 0.5mm clearance inside the hub shell and keeps the pre-load spacer in place when the axle is removed.

Two new endcaps were also machined. Because this hub was never designed to work with QR15 there is no way for the endcaps to be held in place – normally hubs will have a small o-ring or similar so that when the axle is removed the adapters don’t just fall out. The disc side is held in place by the lockring, however the non-disc side is free to fall out.  This is the only downside to this sort of modification.

I made no modifications to the hub shell or original parts so it’s easy for Dave to go back to 9mm if he should want to.

This sort of modification can be done on most hubs so get in contact if you need something similar.

Scott wanted a pair of stealth Enve clinchers for everyday riding.

Scott is a big guy so we went with a 24 hole front wheel and a 28 hole rear to ensure stiffness and durability will be good.  The molded spoke hole in the Enve rims mean the fibers are not damaged by drilling and there is a carbon ‘pad’ for the nipple to sit on which almost eliminates the chance of cracking around the spoke hole.

Chris King R45 road hubs are not the lightest option out there but their high quality and great flange dimensions means they’re well suited for this use.  All King products are made in a ‘green’ factory in Portland, Oregon.

DT Swiss Aerolite spokes and internal nipples tie the wheels together.  The front wheel is laced radially, and the rear is two-cross on both sides.

The black decals are a custom upgrade which I offer at Wheelworks and can be done in any colour under the sun. Personally I think the black-on-black decals look great.

Garth’s original DT Swiss RR1.1 rim had cracked at the eyelets and he cut out the hub and sent it to me to rebuild.

The RR1.1 is now called the 465 which is a double-eyeletted rim with CNC sidewalls and a welded seam – a very nice, high quality rim.

To match the front wheel I used DT Swiss Competition spokes and black brass nipples.

The rebuilt wheel should be ready for many more kms on Auckland’s roads.

Paddy was looking for a pair of year-round training wheels which would stand up to bad roads and inclement weather.

I suggested the DT Swiss 240s hubs as they’re the lowest-maintenance hubset I’ve come across and they’re a great center for a wheelset.

Paddy wanted a high spoke count,’traditional’ wheelset, so we used the Mavic Open Pro rims. No rim lasts forever, especially with the extra wear and tear of wet-weather braking so the Open Pros were chosen for their affordability and ease of replacement in the future.

I used DT Swiss Competition spokes. The front spoke nipples are aluminium to save weight, and the rear are black brass.  The front wheel uses 28 spokes which are laced two-cross, and the rear uses 32 spokes laced three-cross on both sides.

These are a great-looking pair of wheels which should last a loooong time.

A damaged rear rim was a good opportunity for Ben to drop some weight and run a tubeless setup on his Giant 29er.

I rebuilt the rear wheel with a Crest rim. I use Revolution spokes on the non-driveside, and stiffer Competition spokes on the driveside. Blue spokes nipples on both sides tie the rear to it’s matching front.

Aaron sent down his 28 hole PowerTap Pro+ hub to be built up. After talking about his weight, riding style, and what this wheel was going to be used for we settled on bladed DT Swiss Aerolite spokes and a Kinlin XR-270 rim.

Brass nipples on the driveside add some durability and aluminium on the non-driveside will cut some weight.

At 1063 grams this a weight-conscious way of adding power to a bike.

Another Pro2 wheelbuild – it’s funny how a random series of wheels gets built using similar parts.

This rear wheel is to be a durable, long-lasting tubeless-ready training wheel for Mike’s 29er. The Flow rim is very stiff and has a proven track record.

All the spokes are double-butted DT Swiss Competitions with black brass nipples.

Lachlan wanted a pair of light and durable cross country wheels which would be tubeless-ready. The Stan’s Crest rims fit the bill perfectly.

I suggested Hope Pro2 hubs as Lachlan’s current bike / fork use quick-release axles, however if he upgrades in the future these hubs have the ability to be converted to whatever axle standards are current at the time.

Red Pro2 hubs are matched to alternating black and red spoke nipples – a personal favorite of mine.

Spokes are a combination of DT Swiss double butted Revolutions and Competition to ensure the right balance of stiffness and light weight for Lachlan.

As with all the Stan’s wheels I build these are fitted with tubeless tape and valves and will arrive in Auckland ready for use with either standard tubes or tubeless.

This 14 speed Rohloff hub is off to New Zealand importer PureSports for one of their lucky customers.

The new Stan’s Arch EX rim takes the outer dimensions of the excellent Crest rim and adds an internal brace to stiffen the rim. This version is lighter than the old Arch, and a slightly wider.

DT Swiss Competition spokes and brass nipples build a durable, long-lasting wheel.