Do you want to make a matching kit, but aren't sure how to do it? We're here to help!
One of the things we enjoy most is helping our customers get the best parts kit for their bikes. Sometimes that means something as simple as making sure they get the right headset or bottom bracket for their bike, but other times that means helping them match-up parts from various manufacturers to create a cohesive group that will give them a beautiful and functional build! And remember also that just because these photos don't have wheels as part of them, we can also build complete wheels to fill-out your kit!
Paul has been synonymous with the best you can buy in rim brakes for over 20 years, but until the introduction of the Klamper, riders who used disc brakes were left out it in the cold if they wanted a high-quality, US-Made brake for their bike.
Since their introduction in 2015, Paul Klamper
disc brake calipers have set the standard for quality, US designed and
manufactured cable-actuated disc brakes, but until now they've only been
available to fit post or I.S. mounts. Given the increasing use of the flat mount standard, this has meant that more and more riders with gravel or road bikes, for whom the Klampers would be a perfect fit (not to mention a classy accent for their bike!), have either had to look for a frame and fork built around the I.S. or Post mount standards, or simply use a lower-quality brake.
But now the wait is over!
Available in a short-pull (for Sram/Shimano drop-bar and other short
pull levers) or Campagnolo-pull configuration, in the usual range of black and silver with either matching or orange accents, these easily adjustable, fully serviceable,
and rebuild-able brakes don't just look amazing: they've got great power
and modulation and are built to last!
We're really excited to be able to offer these,
so let us know if you have any questions about which will work best on
your bike! You can get yours here, and as always, just let us know if you need any help figuring out which configuration will work best with your bike!
It's become a bit of a tradition for the Grinduro to bring with it a good number of beautiful bikes, and this year is no different in that respect! We love seeing builders' bling creations, and have chosen a few our favorites from The Radavist's coverage of the event, so take a look, and if you like what you see, head on over the The Radavist to see more!
A few months back Chris King launched their long awaited DropSet 1, their first integrated headset and first headset with a ceramic bearing option. Like most people we were stoked about this new product, but it did have a relatively specific list of compatible frames from Santa Crus, IBIS, Alchemy plus a few others.
So we knew it wouldn't be long before the rest of the DropSet range would be here, offering a MUCH MUCH greater selection of compatible frames and forks. That time is now, and the DropSet 2 and 3 are now available in all 9 standard colors, plus 2 brand new colors for 2019 (Matte Turquiose and Matte Mango).
The DropSet range now comprises 3 products.
DropSet™ 1:IS41/28.6 45/45 degree Upper Bearing, IS52/40 45/45 degree Lower Bearing (fits many Santa Cruz, Yeti, Alchemy, IBIS).
DropSet™ 2: IS42/28.6 45/45 degree Upper Bearing, IS52/40 45/45 degree Lower Bearing (fits OPEN plus many Specialized, Trek, Cervelo and other major road and MTB brands).
DropSet™ 3:IS41/28.6 45/45 degree Upper Bearing, IS52/40 36/45 degree Lower Bearing (fits forks with a 36/45 degree crown race).
How To Work Out Which Size You Need.
1. Consult Your Bike Manufacturers Headset Spec.
Most major bike / frame manufacturers will list the headset spec on the relevant product page on their website, so this is the best place to start and compare the bearing size (ie 42/52) and contact angle (ie 36/45) with each of the DropSet sizes.
2. Remove Your Headset Bearings And Check Their Size.
We were curious this week building up a new staff bike, an OPEN UP to see which of the new DropSets would fit so we just popped out the stock Cane Creek bearings to check the sizes printed on them. You can see in these 2 photo's they have sizes marked on which correlates to the DropSet 2.
Cane Creek have put together this very useful Fit Finder app which lists over 17,000 different bike brands and models and their corresponding headset sizes. Just look up your bike, note the bearing size and compare to the DropSet sizes.
Shoot us an email, hit us up on Live Chat or phone and we'll be happy to help you figure out which size you need so you can get that integrated headset running sweetly for many years to come...
Here at AVT.Bike we sell a lot of Chris King components, and they are many people's go-to hubs for good reason! But did you know that there are also some great other alternatives if you're looking for a pair of high quality Made-In-USA hubs?
White Industries offers some excellent product that come in certain colors that are no longer available from Chris King like Pink, Purple and Gold. They also come in at a slightly lower price point for a pair of hubs without much of a compromise on quality,
reliability or serviceability.
The big difference when comparing White Industries & Chris King is that while Chris King manufacture all of their own bearings in house, White Industries spec a sealed cartridge bearing from Enduro on all of its hubs, headsets and BB's.
Photo: White Industries.
We're also big fans of the heavily laser etched White Industries logo that's featured on every hub and will be visible for many years to come. The other feature we love about White Industries hubs is the Titanium freehub body that comes as standard
on all versions (Shimano, XD and Campy) which helps to keep the weight down, especially on a lightweight pair of climbing wheels.
Here's a brief reminder on these 3 main hub types:
T11 is White Industries traditional road (ie caliper brake) hubset, they come in a QR version only and with either a Shimano or Campy Ti Freehub.
CLD is White Industries latest centerlock disc hubset. These can be used for both MTB and disc road / gravel / cx and come in a range of axle widths for QR and Thru Axle. CLD+ is the BOOST version of this hubset.
XMR is White Industries 6-Bolt disc hubset. Again these can be used for both MTB and disc road / gravel / cx and come in a range of axle widths for QR and Thru Axle. XMR+
is the BOOST version of this hubset which only comes in Black / Silver.
All of the above hubs are available in the following colors: Silver, Black, Purple, Gold, Pink, Blue, Red.
One of our customers recently sent us photos from a project that he had just completed, and we wanted to share it with the rest of you!
He told us that he started out with a Gazelle Champion Mondial frame (made with Reynolds famous 531 tubing) from 1985. He wanted to make the bike into something unique and special so he removed the cable guides and braze-ons that he wouldn’t need for the completed bike, and sanded it down for repainting. After painting the bike what he calls “bridge tablecloth green”, he cut out a 24 carat gold leaf head badge and accents to complete the look.
Parts-wise, we helped him get one of the last Paul Components cranksets and one of their chainrings to go with it, as well as a Phil Wood bottom bracket and hubset. The Paul Components chainring ties in with the bike’s theme nicely, and we’re happy to have been able to supply him with the pieces he needed to get his vision rolling.
Do you have a bike that you’d like to turn into something special? We love helping riders build their dream bikes no matter what form those dreams take, so let us know what you’re looking to build.
It’s also really rewarding for us to see the final results, so don’t hesitate to send us photos of your bikes once they’re finished!
You might have noticed that Chris King Matte finish hubs (Matte Jet, Punch & Slate) come fitted with all black external facing parts like axle, end caps which complement the matte finish perfectly. Thankfully now though, the black parts are all available individually which allows any color Chris King hub to be upgraded to a custom looking black finish which looks great with colors like Turquoise, Mango or Black.
Here's a taste of what a pair of Turquoise BOOST hubs looks like before & after.
Before:
After:
If you're looking to make this upgrade we've grouped together the individual parts required for the most common hub types (please note that the parts required are not available for every single Chris King hub) which you can check out here. We can also do the heavy lifting for you and have our AVTWorks tech team carry out the work for you (contact us for more info...).
Keeping design, engineering, and manufacturing all under one roof has many benefits, and agility is definitely one of them. Like the Chris King hubs mentioned in our last blog post, White Industries designs their hubs to be backwards compatible, so that as they respond to new standards, their older hubs don’t become just become obsolete.
This past week White Industries showed-off their new Shimano Micro Spline-compatible freehub body, which they were able to develop, test, and manufacture quickly so that riders who use their hubs, or who want to get a sweet US-Made hub for their new bike won’t be stuck without an option when the new Shimano XTR comes out.
Being able to respond quickly to changing industry standards means that they (and us a AVT!) are able to keep riders who use their products current and adaptable to changing standards without needing to replace an expensive hub. Like their other freehubs, this new one will be backwards compatible with many of the hubs they've made in the last 20 years, so you can rest-assured that your White Industries hub will probably* be compatible with whatever the next freehub standard might be.
This combination of the ability to make products quickly thanks to USA based manufacturing, without having to wait for prolonged research and development schedules (and the longer lead times with manufacturing in say Taiwan), plus the desire to make products that don’t go out-of-date every time a new drivetrain or axle standard comes out means that when you buy a White Industries hub (and really any of the other brands that we carry), you’re making an investment in a quality piece of equipment that will last and stay current for a long time to come.
We’re really happy to be able to ride that type of product, and also to provide it to you, so let us know if you need help figuring out what would work best for your riding style and bike!
* Disclaimer time.. while we certainly expect new freehubs such as this to be backwards compatible with the majority of existing White Industries hubs there is an element of speculation about this and we obviously can't guarantee they will be backwards compatible with 100% of existing hubs, but it's safe to say most of them!
With all of the different axle and driveshell standards available today, it can start to seem like a given hub will only work on one specific frameset, with one drivetrain, but thankfully, that isn’t necessarily true!
All of the hubs we sell are made to be backward and forward compatible because their designers don’t want you to have to buy something that will only work on your current bike. Your Chris King hubs are long term investments that will last through the years and across bikes and drivetrains, so they need to be able to be kept current!
Whether you have a front hub with a quick release axle that you’d like to convert to 12mm thru-axle, or a rear hub that needs a standard change, the swap is easy. We recently had to swap the axle in a Chris King rear hub, and wanted to show the simple steps involved. This applies directly to all Chris King ISO and R45 hubs. For Chris King Classic hubs, the steps are very similar, but involve different tools. Note: because of the different hubshells involved, boost and non-boost hubs are not interchangeable.
A note on Boost compatibility. Currently Chris King does not offer any replacement axles to upgrade non-Boost hubs to Boost standards. The only way to get Boost compatibility is to purchase a pair of Boost hubs.
Note: If you are looking to perform this upgrade on a hub other than the front QR one we have shown here, you can browse the parts required here, or please contact us and we can help you find the exact parts needed for the hub in question.
Step One
Insert the screwdriver into the small split in the end cap, gently twist and pull it off. The cap is shown below after removal for clarity.
Step Two
Use the 2.5mm allen to loosen the bolt on the axle adjusting clamp. Unscrew and set aside the axle clamp. Note: both bolt and axle clamp have standard threading, so they turn counterclockwise to loosen.
Step Three
Press out the axle from the non-driveside of the hub toward the driveside. Firm hand pressure should be enough to remove the axle. The driveshell (freehub) might stay in the hub or it might come out as well. It isn’t necessary to remove the driveshell from the hub, but if it comes out it’s not a problem, and you can simply reinstall it by gently pushing it into the hubshell while twisting clockwise. You will hear a click when it is fully seated.
Step Four
Put a few drops of lubricant on the new axle (just enough to wet the surfaces that will be touching bearings, as well as the threaded portion of the axle), and slip it into the driveshell, threaded side first.
Step Five
Now thread on the adjusting clamp until it touches the bearing. Check for binding and play, readjust if necessary, and if all is good tighten the 2.5mm allen bolt to 10 inch pounds.
At this point you’re all done, so go ride your bike! After making adjustments to your hubs, it’s a good idea to check them for play in the first couple of rides just in case something settles a bit.
This years Chris King Open House is coming up on October 13th and we'll be there... It's a big deal as its normally the first time that everyone (dealers, customers, frame builders) gets to see the 2019 colors from Chris King in person, fitted to some awesome custom built bikes.
We have a pretty good idea of the 2 new colors that are coming which were previewed earlier in the year at EuroBike. This year's builder line up looks better than ever including; Allied, Argonaut, Breadwinner, Co-Motion, DeSalvo, Sklar and more. If you're interested in attending in person it's open to all and takes place on October 13th at Chris King HQ in Portland (more info here).
To get you in the mood, here's a look back at some of the best builds from the last couple of years, starting with last year's Santa Cruz Matte Punch showcase. All images courtesy The Radavist.
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