The European Bike Project: 5 Exciting Products from Small European Manufacturers - September 2022

Sep 29, 2022
by TEBP  
The European Bike Project is one of our favorite Instagram accounts and his feed is constantly updated with everything from interesting curios from tiny manufacturers to inside looks at European manufacturing. Even though Alex is currently travelling in New Zealand, he wrote a new article on exciting products from small European manufacturers. Stay tuned for a special series on New Zealand manufacturers that will be online soon!


Starling Cycles Twist

Starling Twist build by Bike Sanctuary Singapore
Custom Starling Twist build by Bike Sanctuary from Singapore // Photos by @khaithewrecklessreckless

This full custom Starling Twist was built by Tung, the owner and founder of Bike Sanctuary in Singapore. Bike Sanctuary is a custom bike paint shop in Singapore that specializes in "wild colour schemes, radical restorations and dream (re)builds." Their motto is "spray and play", as Tung and his wife Kitty want to make the process of building a bike as much fun as actually riding it, while supporting independent makers who are bold enough to make the bike industry more colourful.

It took Tung almost a full year to build this bike, but he says it was a labour of love and well worth the long wait. The result is a stunning build with a lot of European boutique parts, including a Bright Racing Shocks F929 Next upside-down fork, a Lilienthal X Nonplus wheelset, Formula Cura 4 brakes, Ingrid Components cranks and a Rideworks bottom bracket and headset.

These parts were chosen because Tung believes each of these components contain their makers' knowledge, heart and soul. "At the end of the day, supporting more independent makers encourages others to try new things, even if there are mistakes along the way, they are constantly learning." he says. Examples include Bright Racing Shocks' low static sag and Lilienthal rims waste-minimising carbon production technology. "I'd like to see more of these people with a 'craftsman's mindset' so the bike industry finds joy in making things again."

The Starling Cycles Twist is a mullet enduro bike with 160 mm travel in the front and rear. While the front triangle is made in Bristol, UK, using Reynolds 853 heat-treated tubing, the rear triangle is made in Taiwan, using heat-treated chromoly. The tyre clearance is up to 2.6" and you can use up to 200 mm rotors. All frames come with boost rear axle spacing, integrated seat clamps, stainless and numbered dropper ports and a Starling headtube gusset. Custom colour options are available from Starling. Bike Sanctuary is the Asia Dealer for Starling and will provide a custom paintjob for every frame.

The suspension design is a fairly simple single pivot design, which - according to Starling - eliminates complexity and is a breeze to maintain. A size L frame will come with a reach of 485 mm and a stack of 645 mm. The head angle is 64.6° and the seat angle is 76.6°. Chainstays are 435 mm for all frames sizes, however the seat tube and head tube will be longer on larger sizes. As on many steel bikes, you will find a straight headtube, which needs a ZS44/28.6 upper headset and a EC44/40 lower headset. The 230x65 mm shock mount is a common standard today, as is the 31.6 mm seat post diameter.

Starling Twist build by Bike Sanctuary Singapore
Starling Twist build by Bike Sanctuary Singapore

Starling Twist build by Bike Sanctuary Singapore
Starling Twist build by Bike Sanctuary Singapore

Details
- Front triangle made in UK, rear triangle made in Taiwan
- Price: from 1880 £ (frame without shock)
- Custom colours available
- 29" front, 27.5 " rear wheel
- 160 mm travel front and rear
- Website Starling Cycles: https://www.starlingcycles.com/bikes/twist-enduro/
- Instagram Starling Cycles: @starlingcycles
- Website Bike Sanctuary: https://bikesanctuary.com/
- Instagram Bike Sanctuary: @bike.sanctuary



Garbaruk XC crankset

Garbaruk crankset
The new Garbaruk cranks are as light as 370 g

As with all Garbaruk products, their first crankset comes at an impressive weight to price to locally made ratio. The made-in-Poland crankset weighs in at 370 to 380 g (including the spindle) and costs 420 USD. From the top of my head I can't recall any other crank which is that light and costs roughly the same.

The Garbaruk crankset is hollow and according to Garbaruk it was designed to be as light as carbon cranks, while retaining the reliability and stiffness of heavier aluminium cranks.

The crank arms are made from 7075 aluminium and are connected with a 30 mm aluminium spindle. Currently, they are available in 170 and 175 mm lengths and are compatible with Cannondale direct mount chainrings.

ISO testing procedures require the cranks to endure 50,000 cycles with a load of 180 kg. To be sure that the cranks are safe, Garbaruk put the cranks through 100,000 test cycles and also gave them to Dawid Godziek, who did some hard real-world testing.

With a Q-Factor of 170 mm and a chainline of 52 mm (136 mm spindle), they tick all the boxes. As with all Garbaruk products, the cranks are available in a variety of anodized colours: black, blue, gold, green, orange, red, silver, and purple. You can also choose a specific colour for the nut. Together with anodized chainrings, you get literally endless customization options.


Garbaruk crankset


Details
- Made in Poland
- Price: 420 USD
- Weight: 370 - 380 g
- Chainring mount: Cannondale direct mount
- Spindle: 30 mm
- Website: https://www.garbaruk.com/garbaruk-xc-crankset.html
- Instagram: @garbaruk_components



KOM Xeno Hubs

KOM Xeno hubs with Infinity drive
A real innovation in hub design - the freewheel system is placed on the disc side of the hub, which comes with several advantages

At first sight you might think "oh, hubs with a proprietary disc mount, I'll pass." But look closer and you'll see that the new KOM Xeno hubs come with an array of unique features that make it easy to forget the disc mount.

The Xeno hubs were designed as a response to broken hubs, which the founders saw way too often during the last couple of years, especially on e-bikes. To make them stronger and stiffer, they moved the pawls to the disc side of the hub - from what I know this is the first time that a hub manufacturer has done this. This "Infinity drive" design allows KOM to use a 32 mm drive shaft (which goes from one end of the hub to the other) and a concentric 19 mm inner axle. Large bearings on both sides of the hub make sure that the loads are evenly distributed, which - together with the 32 mm drive shaft - should result in greater stiffness, less wheel twisting and better bearing alignment.

Moving the pawls to the disc side allows KOM to use a larger ratchet, which has 120 points of engagement in total (two banks of three pawls). The larger ratchet should result in less tooth loading and increased strength. The ratchet can easily be removed and serviced. According to KOM, every part of the hub is fully user replaceable and upgradeable.

On top of that, the hubs have two separate pairs of bearings: drive and freewheel. They seamlessly switch from active to rest as you transition between pedalling and freewheeling. Having only two active bearings at any time means less drag, according to KOM.

In case this all sounds a bit difficult, have a look at this KOM YouTube video where the details are explained.

The hubs are available with Microspline, HG and XD cassettes and there is a matching front hub available too. The weight for the rear hub starts at 260 g and you can choose from several coloured caps to customize the look.

It could be assumed that the proprietary disc is purely used to make space for the ratchet. However, the disc is also designed to work together with and provide extra support and strength to the ratchet. The material removed from the centre of the disc to make a larger hole for the large diameter ratchet does save a bit of weight in the brake disc too. The KOM team says that the disc is made from a far tougher material than other discs. Most riders occasionally suffer from knocking discs and find that they have, very annoyingly, bent or warped out of true. They say that the KOM brake discs are very hard to knock out of true.

KOM Xeno hubs with Infinity drive
KOM Xeno hubs with Infinity drive


KOM Xeno hubs with Infinity drive

KOM Xeno hub cut-away


Details
- Made in the UK
- Price: from 499 £ (rear hub) / 249 £ (front hub)
- Weight: from 260 g (rear hub) / 140 g (front hub)
- Straightpull spokes (28 or 32)
- 148 mm Boost or 142 mm dropout width
- Hub shell colours: black, blue, gold, purple, red, silver, blue
- Website: https://www.k-o-m.co.uk/
- Instagram: @ridekom



Agazzini Soft Stem

Agazzini Bike Soft Ride Stem
This stem from Italy uses elastomers to reduce vibrations

The Agazzini Soft stem may have a familiar-sounding name, but it's very different from other shock-absorbing stems. Contrary to other options, it does not really move up and down - the elastomers are there to minimize vibrations, rather than offering "travel".

So how does this patent-pending stem work? As basically any other stem, it mounts to 1 1/8" fork steerers. The handlebar is clamped with two shells (no. 40 and 41 in the patent drawing below, four screws in total). These two halves are attached to the main body of the stem at two points: Firstly, there are small ball bearings in the main body (no. 31). Between the upper and the lower shell, there is a pin (no. 33, 43) which is pushed through the ball bearings, so the upper and lower shell can rotate without friction. Secondly, the upper shell is attached to the main body (no. 32, 42) with screws. Between the main body and the upper shell, there are two elastomers (5) which limit the movement of the handlebar and reduce vibrations.

To understand how it works, I recommend that you watch this Reel on Instagram.

According to Agazzinin Bike, the stem is designed in such a way that the damping only works in the direction of the forces which come from the fork, and you shouldn't lose any momentum when pumping the bike with this stem. They say that the stem improves the performance, speed and comfort, as the reduced vibrations result in improved traction. The Agazzini team says that using the Soft stem feels similar to riding a very low-pressure front tire, without the downsides such as poor steering precision and increased rolling resistance.


Agazzini Bike Soft Ride Stem
The patent drawing
Agazzini Bike Soft Ride Stem Downhill version
A DH version is in the works too

Agazzini Bike Soft Ride Stem
Agazzini Bike Soft Ride Stem


Agazzini Bike Soft Ride Stem
Agazzini Bike Soft Ride Stem



Details
- Made in Italy
- Price: 340 Euro (stainless screws) / 380 Euro (titanium screws)
- Available from end of October 2022
- Angle: 5°
- Height: 40 mm
- Length: 42,5 mmm
- Weight: 280 g
- Comes with two sets of elastomers (60 and 55 shore)
- Movement: 3 to 5 mm, depending on elastomers used
- Website: https://www.agazzinibike.it/soft-stem/
- Instagram: @agazzinibike



Stashed Products SpaceRail

Stashed Products Space Rail
Bike Storage made easy

The SpaceRail is a new approach to bike storage for your home, office or bike shop that reduces volume by up to 50% by overlapping your bikes and storing them closer together. According to Stashed Products, traditional systems are limited to bike spacings of 350 to 400mm to allow access, whereas the SpaceRail allows spacings down to 150mm. You get great access still, as each bike can individually slide out into free space for retrieval.

When loaded, the hook is free to slide and rotate 360° and when it's unloaded, the hook locks for easy and safe bike hanging. The polymer hook should protect even the most delicate rims and work with all different kinds of rim shapes (fits tires up to 3"). The SpaceRail system is available for 4, 8 and 12 bikes. In case your family (of bikes) or business grows, the SpaceRail system is infinitely expandable with add-on rails and hooks to be totally future-proof.

Local manufacturing is very important to Stashed Products, so everything is made within a 50-mile radius including the injection moulding and laser-cut components. The only part not made in the 50-mile radius is the extrusion which is made to their design by Hydro Norsk in Cheltenham. Some of the material used is recycled material.

Stashed Products Space Rail
Stashed Products Space Rail

Stashed Products Space Rail
Stashed Products Space Rail


Details
- Made in Wales / UK
- Price: from £ 160 including UK delivery
- Universal polymer hook fits any rim and tires up to 3"
- Up to 30kg/hook
- Auto-lock ball joint mechanism for simple and safe use
- Made from 304 stainless steel and 6063 T6 aluminium, individually serial numbered
- Includes everything required to install to any ceiling structure with just 4 screws
- Website: https://www.stashedproducts.co.uk/
- Instagram: @stashedproducts


Author Info:
TEBP avatar

Member since May 15, 2020
38 articles

153 Comments
  • 92 0
 That space rail thing is badass, but I know exactly what would happen in my garage...
- Hang all the bikes up nice and snug together, looks great, garage is clean!
- Gotta move something in the garage, hey there's a nice open space by the bikes! (repeat 5x)
- Shit, now I can't get bikes out... move the pile of stuff, get the bike, go ride
- Finish ride, look at the pile of stuff... lean the bikes wherever, garage is a mess again
  • 13 0
 Same here! Those sterile/empty garage pics in the article crack me up. As much as I’d love to have ONLY (clean/well-maintained) bikes in my garage, that ain’t happenin’. And I consider myself a minimalist!
  • 4 1
 I built my own with Superstrut and it works pretty well. It's in front of some storage shelves with just enough space to scoot between, or shift the bikes around when I need more access.

I still can't get myself to hang bikes from a suspension fork though - is that just me being paranoid?
  • 5 0
 @number44: I hang all my bikes from the front wheel. Definitely not enough force to damage anything, and it keeps the wiper seals and foam rings wet. Much easier to get them on/off the hooks by the front wheel too IMO.

I just have fixed hooks in the wall at staggered heights, alternating between road bikes & mtbs. Probably costs me an extra 8-10" width per bike vs a movable hook system, but overall I feel like it's pretty compact.
  • 4 0
 There's a DIY version of this that was posted on youtube. The most expensive part is the rail. But all in all a pretty genius solution.

youtu.be/_deob4L4AEY
  • 1 0
 @number44: Any pics? What did you use for a roller in the strut?
  • 2 0
 I made mine out of salvaged security gates from an abandoned business.

youtube.com/shorts/E9OvMjc1PR4?feature=share
  • 6 0
 Of all the stuff in this article, the only thing I want is a garage that empty of all the crap that is in mine. I can live with the bikes, tools and snowboards, but kiddy pools, gardening stuff and picnic baskets can suck it.
  • 1 0
 @mattmatthew: I built one based off this and it works great. 6 bikes in about 7’ of space. Easy to get to any bike and so much cheaper than anything else available.
  • 1 0
 It's a great value too. I just finished building my own similar system, it cost more to make, and doesn't look nearly as polished.
  • 1 1
 @st-lupo: Want more space? Go singular bike,tool,snowboard, kiddy pool and picnic basket - LOL.
Having said that I am the master of multiplicity so I don't care how much stuff I have as long as it will come in handy one day!
  • 1 0
 @Sethimus: dammit, they don't ship outside of Swiss... Even to France :'(
  • 1 0
 @mattmatthew: I saw that and built something very similar in my garage. Slight issue that a sloping roof that was a touch too high meant I had to hang the rail on dropped pipes of increasing lengths to keep the rail flat. Took a while to sort but very happy with it now.
  • 1 0
 @davemays: The quoted price is for a 1 bike system. I have 5 on mine and the price for five is £420, which is far more than my DIY one cost (maybe £150ish?).
  • 2 0
 @pdxkid: I'm just using the unistrut trolleys like here: www.unistrut.us/products/1-5-8-metal-framing/trolleys - a couple different kinds because I hang a few things off the strut. Currently the bikes hang from the saddles so I have an eye bolt in the trolley and a spectra cord loop for the saddle. I think I'm going to grab some threaded hooks like a.co/d/9DxwKMQ and try the wheel hang.
  • 1 0
 @st-lupo: same, but we’ve got a gym in there as well. The solution was to buy a bigger house with a double garage. Now what’s the betting we just fill it with more crap? Lol
  • 68 0
 I can't decide what that stem looks like, but it's not a stem.
  • 52 1
 A very surprised Teddy Bear.
  • 9 0
 Probably aging myself here but, it looks like Krum, from a cartoon called "Aaahh!!! real monsters."
  • 7 0
 Hammerhead shark?
  • 8 0
 Frog roadkill?
  • 4 0
 Mantis shrimp
  • 5 0
 Some type of Star Wars droid
  • 2 0
 Looks like a Foreman grill
  • 1 0
 @Vudu74: haha yes!
  • 4 0
 It's Sid from Ice Age.
  • 1 0
 The Alien from Rick and Morty with elbowb00bs.
  • 1 0
 Popeil's pocket fisherman! (yeah, aging myself).
  • 1 0
 @Tykebike: HaHa, I read singular as get a divorce…
But seriously, bikes are both for fun(the full squish) and commuting (shitty hybrid and shitty fatbike), snowboards pack pretty flat. Picnic baskets, gardening implements, and half used paint buckets, and kiddy pools are a bitch and almost never in use.
  • 47 1
 Upgrading my Lyrik to a Zeb for extra precision, but pairing it to an Agazzini stem to take the edge off
  • 30 0
 Industry tells us we need stiffer 35mm bars. Soft stem and rev grips tell us they can solve the problems of all the vibrations transferred to our hands. Can’t we just stop making 35 bars and go back to 31?
  • 2 0
 @speed10: those 31,75 motorcycle handlebars fits just right
  • 25 0
 I don't understand why anyone would put fork guards on the uppers of upside down forks. They will just stick down below the axle every time the fork is compressed. Put them on the lugs like every mx bike out there.
  • 4 1
 Maybe the goal of lowest unsprung weight took priority. Intend solves this by removing the guards altogether, which is a solution too. I'm not sure whether them extending below the axle is that much of an issue. My (upside up) forks also extend a bit below the axle (so that the stanchions have somewhere to go as the fork compresses) and it hasn't given my any issues. Having your fork fully compressed close to obstacles that reach up to the axle seems so scary that I wouldn't dare to go there anyway Wink .
  • 22 1
 Totally digging the hub! Seriously, having the driver shell full length through the hub is brilliant. I don't care which side the pawls are on, but keep that driver shell...
  • 8 0
 The one that struck me the most is the bearings placement. It's just right!
  • 8 0
 Yep, clever hub. I always thought hub manufacturers should use much more of the room inside the hub shell for the freewheel mechanism instead of squeeze it into the body. Especially as these diameters (XC and Microspline) are getting smaller.
  • 6 1
 The KOM rear hub seems smart AF. First genuinely innovative mountain bike thing I've seen in ages.
  • 1 0
 there have been hubs with pawls on both sides of the hub both driveside and non driveside before
  • 2 0
 I want to like this, but proprietary anything can suck it in this economy!
  • 2 1
 @st-lupo: It is just the brake rotor mount which is off-standard, isn't it? I'd accept that. Rohloff also needs a different brake mount simply because what they have to offer just isn't compatible with conventional standards (which weren't even that standard back when Rohloff jumped in). Seems to me that it is the same with this hub.
  • 15 0
 I want someone to build a mountain bike up with all the vibration dampening products possible (beyond suspension). RevGrips, Fasst Flexx handlebars, that stem, Spank Vibrocore bars, Berd spokes, PNW Coaster dropper (I am sure I am forgetting a few) and tell us how it rides.
  • 6 0
 @93EXCivic: probably like a pogo stick.
  • 9 0
 Mount all those vibration dampening things on a full RIGID bike!

Spank Vibrocore rims, Berd spokes, RevGrips, FasstFlexx handlebar, Agazzinni soft stem, 2.8 tires, CushCore front and back, O-Chain (why not?) on a steel rigid bike!
  • 4 1
 I have the Fasst Flexx bars, revgrips, Vibrocore 350 rims, cushcore, ochain, STFU bike, 2.5 inch tires on my DH bike. I LOVE my DH bike. Weighs 43 pounds
  • 2 0
 I also have Berd Spokes too
  • 4 0
 @93EXCivic so you would be using two handlebars?
  • 4 0
 Bikyoke Sagma saddle too!
  • 11 1
 That garbaruk crank is insanely light. Seems about 100g lighter than XTR
  • 6 1
 ya, and not astronomically expensive! I'm super tempted
  • 7 0
 But is it ok for enduro riding ? It says XC . I have a cassette for 3 years now and still good so I do love their products.
  • 2 1
 Yeah not sure I'd use than on an enduro bike. My buddy tried the cassette and it worked OK but he broke some teeth pretty quickly. Their stuff works and is light but doesn't seem to be too durable for bigger guys in the long run....
  • 2 0
 @Marky771: Yea, I have one bike that I use for everything from trail to bike park, so I wouldn't consider running this crank for my purposes. I've been running SLX cranks with an alloy ring and that's pretty cheap and low weight.

If I were building up a light xc/trail rig, this would be an interesting option.
  • 1 0
 weight is without spindle afaik
  • 1 0
 Those cranks looks super nice. My frames are BSA threaded and can"t take those cranks.
  • 1 0
 Think it's without a chainring, system cranks usually come with one and include it in the weight.
  • 1 0
 @abtcup: There are bsa bb cups to 30mm spindle available. Though not ideal in terms of material allowance. In case you were wondering it can be done
  • 1 0
 I've had two of their cassettes, neither of them lasted a full season. Smaller sprockets started slipping when i changed a damaged chain to a new one. So light but not very durable in my experience.
  • 9 4
 Straight pull spoked, proprietary hub that literally no one will have spares for, this isn't the best thing to bring to market when we are all suffering with bills and living costs. I bet someone big like trek buys them out and makes it a new standard for us all to enjoy the minor gains.

I've never broken an axle or hub in my life, and will be surprised if it ever happens but I will just ask the LBS if they have one or can get one and the answer will likely be sure, in stock or can get in a few days. This always works for me.

In addition, I can't run the same brand rotors/brakes either. Yeah..no.
  • 4 0
 I've broken enough spokes that not having to remove the cassette etc would be a big bonus. If I owned these then I'd buy a load of spare spokes before I needed them.
  • 3 0
 I appreciate the innovation even if it’s a tough buy. I usually break a hub axle once a year and have eaten up drive mechs, stripped drive rings out of the hubshell, broken Dt ratchets, along with toasting bearings at least once a year. So I think there’s a market, but like you, it’s pretty easy to keep going back to dt swiss. Even when stuff breaks, it’s easy to fix
  • 1 0
 @korev: I think that's what this hub will need, someone that will make the effort to keep spares in the inventory. Makes sense then, but finding any straight pull spoke abroad in the right size is a pain. I guess you won't need to remove cassette every time but you will still need to remove tyre, sealant and tape if the nipple breaks etc. Definitely some advantages for straight pull of course.
  • 3 0
 @andrewfif: Would be interesting to see what bearings they put in the shells too, because I just won't be able to take it if they have the most unusual bearing choices for their hubs.
  • 4 5
 For me, it's that none of the marketting makes any sense. "We moved it to disc side so it could be larger." You can just make it larger and still on the drive side. "This is to prevent broken axles." Then why are you making a drive axle and putting force on it that doesn't need to be there.

It fixes no problems while introducing a couple. This product is preying on idiots.
  • 2 1
 While I agree that running proprietary brake rotors and a special hub is risky from a downtime perspective, I love the engineering behind this new system. I'd be comfortable buying this for my next wheel build and then keeping my old traditional hub/rotor around as a spare just in case (as used medium-grade MTB wheels are basically worth dirt anyways and not worth selling)
  • 2 0
 @korev: Removing the cassette isn't that much of a deal is it? Unless your freehub body gets notched, then it gets annoying. Steel freehubs are the best.
  • 3 0
 @korev: use a Hope hub or DT Swiss and you can just pull the freehub off by hand and the cassette comes with it, easy-peasy spoke replacement without using cassette tools.
  • 1 0
 @chrod: Hope freehubs do not just slide back on though, can be difficult to get the seal to install correctly with a cassette in the way. Hydras and 1/1s are hyper easy though, even have notches to spin the freehub pawls against so everything slips right in.
  • 2 0
 @chrod: Hope and DT Swiss have steel freehubs too (if you choose the right hub) so notching them is not an issue and removing the cassette with lockring tool and chain whip is a breeze.
  • 1 0
 @vinay: I carry two spokes with me in my pack on almost every ride. But I don't want to carry a chain whip when riding and spokes do not often break in the garage. This is why I think easily removable freehub shells are good. I like it on my Newmen wheels, and have had to use it too. Another good thing:same size spokes for both sides of both wheels.
  • 5 0
 @sherbet:

"Then why are you making a drive axle and putting force on it that doesn't need to be there. "

Axles break because they need to be tiny to fit through the cassette body etc, and because the drive side bearing is practically right in the centre of the axle which is the worst place it can be from a load-bearing perspective.

By extending the driver body right through the hub and using it as a load path, they've essentially given their hub a very stiff, strong axle that's supported at the ends where it should be. For people who break hub axles, this solves the problem entirely. Assuming it's well designed, with this layout you could make a hub that's probably an order of magnitude less likely to break axles.
  • 1 0
 @vinay: Removing the freehub body isn't hard, but changing the toothed ring in the shell can be a nightmare. With this you just unbolt the toothed ring with the four disc bolts.
  • 1 0
 @AgrAde: Their axle also needs to fit into cassette body. How is it really different here?
  • 6 0
 @bek998: The cassette body is also acting like an axle. It's moving the load from the drive side bearing in the shell, through the cassette body, into the bearing between the cassette body and axle.

The bearing between the cassette body and the axle is much closer to the end of the axle, so it greatly reduces the bending moment on the axle.


Imagine putting a broomstick between two chairs a metre apart, and standing in the middle of it. You're the drive side bearing in the hub shell, and the broomstick is the axle in a conventional hub. You've just broken your broomstick, and your hub.

Now, get a 0.9m length of steel tube and slide it over the broomstick. It's not long enough to touch either of the chairs, but it's close. Now stand on the middle of the steel tube. The steel tube is the cassette body in this hub, and it is now supporting your weight with no issue. Only the very ends of the broomstick are seeing bending forces, and those bending forces result in a much lower bending moment, so there's no way you'll break the ends off.
  • 1 0
 @ak-77: Ah, I see. I rarely if ever break spokes so didn't even think of the obvious fact that they break when riding Wink . I have seen spokes break near the elbow but nearly all wheels I build I use DT Alpine III spokes. These are like DT Competition but 2.3mm near the hub (instead of 2mm). The weight increase is minimal and close to the hub. For emergency spokes, I've often used a longer spoke, cut off the head and then bent it into a zig-zag. You can install these without removing the cassette (or brake rotor) and they'll bring you home. On my commuter bike I use an emergency spoke which is basically a wire with a hook on one end and a thread on the other. Close to the thread it is hexagonal so you can hold it with pliers as obviously just twisting the nipple will twist the entire spoke.

I think other spokes can be good too but I stick with butted spokes. I think the ends of the spokes should always be thicker than the middle.
  • 1 0
 @AgrAde: Yea, I see it now. I wish they had parts breakdown on one picture. Basically, they screwed the cassette holder to the ratchet driver shaft to make a second axle. This is what I was missing. I thought cassette holder was "loose" in there, because on youtube it shows cassette holder being easily swapped from XD to microspline. But sounds like it is screwed in to create a second stiff axle shaft that sits on inner axle. Inner axle is common among all hubs. But this hub has the second shaft axle that sits on top of inner axle. This allowed them to have a better bearing placement.
  • 3 0
 You guys change spokes on the trail? What a headache. I just ride home with a broken spoke. I’ve never had a wheel totally fail. It’s not like straight pull spokes are anything new or obscure either. I love this KoM hub, but £499 is too rich for me.
  • 1 0
 @EarIysport: When I was commenting I was thinking more about weekends away when you're limited by which tools you can take.
  • 1 0
 @korev: Indeed. There are many types of rides that I want to keep the spokes handy. Multi day epics, outings where I ride with someone else and bike to their place first, really good descents where you don't want to hold back, etc.
Of course, there are also many rides where I could easily continue with one spoke less. But I don't take them out of the pack because they are light and they're not in the way and for sure I will forget to put them back when I really need them.
  • 6 0
 As someone who's been breaking hub internals, I'm really interested in seeing a review of these Xenos! Kinda curious about the non-vented disc, not something you see much on performance discs in any genre these days.
  • 2 0
 I would be curious about the performance differences between vented and slotted discs as well
  • 8 1
 That stem reminds me of the suspension gravel biking seatpost/seat. wtf are we doing people...
  • 6 0
 And with elastomers too boot! So 1994 Softride or Proflex. We'll just pair it with some XTR v-brakes, a Tioga disc-drive and a Hite-rite and we'll be ready for early 90's teeth rattling.
  • 8 0
 imagine releasing a crankset that doesnt go below 170mm nowadays smh
  • 4 0
 No 155? Already out of date. Pass
  • 3 0
 @speed10: this but unironically
  • 6 0
 Girvin FlexStems live again! They just need the fluorescent yellow colour to complete the look...
  • 3 0
 f*ck… I have PTSD from that product. 14 year old me broke 3 of them in one summer!
  • 1 0
 @islandforlife: Softride stems were much better. When I was a young kid in Victoria, steel Ritchey’s with Softride stems were all the rage. Girvin Flexstems were purely a comfort item by comparison.
  • 4 0
 A European bike project bike from Singapore seems to absurdly miss the point of buying local. But I guess Asian bike project would be too easy…
  • 2 0
 If we were to buy locally (from Singapore), we'll all end up running in our trails barefoot. Singapore does not manufacture bike parts.
  • 1 0
 @dancedancedanny: Just thought that there is so much (most) good bike stuff being produced in Asia. But most of that is still 3,000km from Singapore. Not exactly local, you’re right Smile Still closer than 10,000km to Europe…
  • 1 0
 @jostaudt: yeah sadly, even though most of the parts are produced in Taiwan, China, and if I remember correctly Malaysia, it flows straight towards the warehouses in Europe / US and to a lesser degree, Japan. All of which aren't local or incur enough carbon that at that point it makes no difference where we buy from.
  • 4 1
 Digging that Starling with that fork. Not a fan of proprietary, so no KOM hub for me; curious as to any special tools required as well. And that SpaceRail is dreamy. I would name mine HAL.
  • 2 1
 Beautiful bike.
  • 1 0
 I had a rail system in my old garage. I used the rails and runners from an old curtain side hgv trailer and welded hooks on the rollers and coated them with hose pipe. Worked OK until the garage filled up with shit. As long as you can keep an area clear to access the rack its ok.
  • 1 0
 Aren't there already hubs with pretty big drive rings? Something like a RaceFace Vault swells massively on the driveside to fit a big ol' pawl system.

The independent sets of bearings is slick, but they ignore that when talking about the "uneven load distribution" of competitors. They only show one mode, pedaling, when comparing the loading. When coasting, the bearing loading is no better than a conventional system.

"together with the 32 mm drive shaft - should result in greater stiffness, less wheel twisting and better bearing alignment"

Again, ignoring their own independent bearing sets: if they're truly independent, then that 32mm shaft isn't a structural member when pedaling: it's not going to do much for stiffness when only the 2 bearings on the 19mm axle are taking the load.

"super low pedaling drag"

OK, but doesn't a large diameter drive ring actually increase coasting drag? The pawls are further from the axle _and_have to drag/skip over a longer distance of drive ring surface: that's going to be an increase in friction, both in the raw force (longer lever, like a bigger brake rotor) and the total work (force time distance traveled).

Seems cool, but the selective presentation of benefits vs deficits, while sort of typical of any new product, has me skeptical.
  • 1 0
 The Vault is oversize but that comes with a weight penalty 330g vs 260 for the Xeno and the Xeno is still working at a bigger diameter.

Yes the Xeno has two bearings supporting the load when freewheeling same as any other hub. But those two bearings are further outboard and more evenly loaded, they are also likely to maintain better alignment as the axle they are on is much stiffer.

When pedalling yes, only the two bearings between the drive-shaft and the inner axle are moving but again, the load on the 19mm axle (19mm note not the 17 or even 15 of most hubs) is moved right out next to the dropouts, massively reducing the bending moment on it.

Yes. for a given pawl drag load, putting the pawls further out will increase the resistive torque and therefore the loss from the pawls. But this is a tiny amount of drag and only occurs when coasting which is when most of us are braking anyway, far more important to minimise drag when pedalling which is when you will really appreciate it.

Worth mentioning that the guy making these did so because he personally kept breaking hubs. He came at it from a "need" point of view and set up to make them himself as the best way of getting what HE wanted for HIS bike. I can assure you that there is no "marketing department" pushing for a new product for the sake of profit, just one guy in an old mill with a fancy CNC.
  • 1 0
 @G-Sport: If you are pedaling every time you're not braking, then you should be winning everything everywhere. Why haven't we heard of you?

I much more appreciate less drag when coasting (when my current hubs only engage two bearings). When I'm on the power I can always add a little more (to an extent, or course) if I need it to make something happen in a hurry, but the transistion from coasting to pedaling takes a bit, so when coasting I'd rather be feathering the brakes for a speed check than putting in a emergency crank.

If it works for them, sick. I've broken a decent amount of shit, but it's been a while since I broke a well made pawl hub with a 15mm axle. Long enough that I'm not down with proprietary brake rotors, which are an actual wear part and I do still break sometimes (damn rocks).
  • 1 0
 @justinfoil: I don't think braking wins races. I guess it's the difference in where you ride. It's steep here so you are usually either pedalling UP or braking on the way down. Certainly an extra 0.00000000001 Watts of pawl drag isn't an issue. If you are happy with your current hubs and discs then that's great, pretty sure purchasing these isn't compulsory.
  • 1 0
 @G-Sport: If you don't think braking wins races, you're not going to win any. Yes, of course we all have that ideal picture in our heads of ripping down something without ever touching the anchors, just slashing berms to check speed, but that's not a reality. Even something fast af like Hardline requires powerful and precise braking.
  • 1 1
 maybe I am confused, but does that kom hub not mean that the rear wheel can rotate backwards, even when fully braked? I'm sure not an issue for most riding cases, but still I would want my brakes to fully stop the wheel, regardless of direction
  • 1 0
 and another thought if this is the case, if you lock your rear brake, and rotate you pedals back to get a better position, will this not drive the rear wheel backwards also? seems awkward...
  • 7 0
 No. It works just like a regular hub. Brakes go on, hub stops spinning.
  • 1 0
 @tomhoward379: my bad, I see my mistake now, I thought the disc was not solidly connected to the hub
  • 5 1
 Watch the YouTube video. Or just look at the photos. Disc is still 100% bolted to the hub shell. Essentially instead of putting the hub shell on one half of the axle and the cassette on the other, this hub puts the cassette on the entire middle axle and then the shell on the entire cassette-axle. Stiffens everything up enormously.
  • 4 0
 @tomhoward379: Do you have these? Is there a boutique bike part you don't have (am totally jealous of your bike collection)
  • 1 0
 @tyuikm: The guy making them is a friend, I've been test riding them for about two years. The stiffness improvement and fast engagement are great, discs are way better than anything else I've ever had too.
  • 1 0
 @G-Sport: How loud are the hubs? Could you compare them to some well known brands?
  • 1 0
 @tyuikm: yeah, on the Rå. Happy with them so far!
  • 1 0
 @tomhoward379: possibly the most lustworthy of your fleet. Will have to go back and reread the article. Hope we don't meet on the trails, I might have to resort crime
  • 1 0
 @bek998: Pretty loud, though not as loud as they sound on that insta. I like a quiet hub so put a tiny bit of grease on mine to about halve the noise. However they are also working on a virtually silent version which I have been on as a tester for a while and is super nice for me. Also very convenient that I could switch everything over to the new version without even disassembling the wheel.
  • 1 0
 @tyuikm: thanks man. It’ll be at the Bespoked show if you’re planning on going. Screwed down ;-)
  • 3 0
 those cranks look sweet. I love garbaruk, there stuff is very quality and reliable for a good price
  • 3 0
 Love the first few products, reminds me of the 90s when there was wild attempts at innovation and anodized everything
  • 1 0
 Those were the days…
  • 4 0
 What,no Soft Stem puns?
Whats happening to pinbike...
  • 2 0
 So expensive you even can´t afford to joke about
  • 6 0
 Yah, what a flop...
  • 1 0
 I made a DIY version with a steel pipe bolted with 2 T-shaped fixations. 6mm Steel hooks with some tube protection for the wheels, and some roller skate bearings for the rolls.
  • 1 0
 Interesting stem mated with a Ti bar and Revgrips would be an interesting if not peculiar at first experience.

Though being Italian of course it is roughly £310 + lol
  • 1 0
 I mean if you are going to go all the way get some of those Fasst Flexx handlebars and some Spank Vibrocore wheels.
  • 4 1
 I love innovation but 499quid for a hub is a bit steep.
  • 1 0
 Currently you get discs as well.
  • 1 0
 What we’re gonna need soon is some cool stems for 1.5 steer tubes they’re coming soon to a fork near you
  • 2 0
 The dropper hose on that Starling is shredded!
  • 1 1
 Not a fault of the Starling, it has a rubber bung in the dropper port to stop such things happening!!
  • 3 1
 Congratulations, you have invented channeled strut and hooks.
  • 2 0
 umm..so who makes 4 bolt rotors? anyone? didn’t think so.
  • 2 0
 The hubs require proprietary discs www.k-o-m.co.uk/proprietary-discs
  • 1 0
 I guess you would have to get their proprietary rotors, they have 4 and 6-bolt.

Also looks like it is sandwiched in there, maybe something similar to the center-lock rotor adapter from Shimano?
  • 3 0
 Can't really see why you would want another brand's rotor. These are the best discs I've ever had, every other disc has warped pretty much on day one, including so called "floating" ones. But these are still dead straight after 2 years hard use. When I go on other bikes the sound of rubbing rotors is a stark reminder of how things used to be.
  • 2 0
 no idea if this is the same size, but there is already 4 bolt rotors: www.rohloff.de/en/shop/speedhub-500/14/brake-disc-4-hole
  • 2 0
 @G-Sport: what are you doing?
  • 1 0
 @owl-X: Eh? drinking tea and looking at Pinkbike just now... do you mean to warp rotors? Just braking hard I guess. Just bought another bike and warped the stock rotors in the first two rides.
  • 1 1
 "..costs 420 USD. From the top of my head I can't recall any other crank which is that light and costs roughly the same." Is there a green reason you cant remember?
  • 2 0
 That starling made me groan.
  • 1 0
 I’ve got a Bright fork almost just like that one. I had it built at 148mm to go on my Optic. It freaking rails!
  • 2 0
 Yo Dawg I heard you liked single-pivots so we put a pivot on your stem.
  • 2 0
 Agazinni or buttercups?
  • 1 0
 Does stashed products offer a discount on frame saver decals?
  • 3 3
 His wife "Kitty"..............Has anyone fed Kitty today? Make sure she has some biscuits
  • 1 0
 Straight-Pull only...NO THANKS!!!
  • 2 5
 I am surprised there are not more Brits complaining that they are being displayed as European.
  • 11 0
 Still European thanks, just not in the EU thanks to f*ckwits and Putin. Dragging the landmass off the continental plate was never "on the bus" luckily.
  • 3 0
 @G-Sport: I am definitely European, and I agree. UK is part of Europe to me. But even before Brexit was even a thing I spoke to multiple Brits who argued that Europe was the continent and didn't include Great Britain. Apparently, that gets me downvoted on Pinkbike.
  • 1 0
 @ak-77: Downvoting facts is the new reality. Pretty sure we are on the same continental plate as our mainland brothers and sisters, f*ck the xenophobes.
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