Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Review :: Xero XR1 Wheelset

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Cost varies but the wheelset runs around $300. Hubs are very nice and come with sealed bearings (Not bad for only a $300 wheelset) the spokes are 14/15 gauge,double butted. Front wheel contains 16 spokes in a 1x lace pattern. Rear wheel is 20 spokes with a 2x lace pattern. The rims are aluminum,black with silver braking surface,they have a wear indicator,and are 30mm deep.

Depending on where you look,the listed weight may be different. I originally was led to believe the set was 1525 grams but discovered the weight was around 1749 grams. Still much better however than the old 2100 gram,32 spoke,22mm wheelset i previously used.

The Xero wheelset comes with either Shimano or Campy freehubs. I believe the Campy version is slightly more expensive but can't remember for certain.

My experience with the wheelset has been great. They are much quicker at accelerating than my old wheels and they climb a lot better. The hubs spin really smooth and the low spoke count combined with the 30mm rims makes for a pretty aero wheelset (For the price)

I have never broken a spoke despite having my headlight get into the front wheel,aswell as getting run off the road and into a grate (Wish i could have thanked the driver for that...) plus a 23mph crash while taking a hard turn.

I would not recommend these however for heavier riders. I have heard of people weighing 180lbs on them but i have done a couple commutes where i was carrying easily 20-30lbs in a backpack (I weight 130lbs) and i could hear spokes creaking on my rear wheel when seated. Maybe i was being a little paranoid but i just would not trust them with much weight.

Overall i would definately recommend them if you're a fairly lightweight rider. I've put over 2,000 miles on this set so far and they have performed exceptional.

Monday, August 29, 2011

The bikeshop dictionary

For anyone who has ever been in or worked in a shop,you've heard all the crazy names non cyclists have for bikes and bike parts. I've decided to slowly compile all the strange names i've heard and what they actually mean. Enjoy.

Truck - Cruiser style bike
Gearbox/Transmission - Shifter or derailleur
Rim - Wheel (Why they don't call it a WHEEL,i'll never know)
Wop - Warp (Example: My wheel has a wop in it)
Seat pole - Seat post
Bladder - Innertube
Rubber - Innertube or brake pads
Gooseneck - Stem
Pedal - Crank arm
Ram horns - Drop bars
Butterflies - Wing nuts
Knock offs - Quick release skewers
Baskets - Toe clips or Bottle cages
Handlebar elbow - Stem
Bearing ball beads - Ball bearings
Pedal arm - Crank arm
Rim lever - Quick release
Gear selector/Gear changer - Shifter
Crank bearing/Pedal bearing - Bottom bracket
Neck - Stem
Handles - Grips
U bars - Road drop bar
Throttle - Grip shifters
Plastics - The "plastic" part of a toe clip
Bells and whistles - Literally bells and WHISTLES.
Horn - Bells
Wire - Spokes
Tires - Wheels/Rims/Actual tires/Tubes.
Levers - Cranks
Star - Freewheel
Frame - Rim
Hang down - Rear derailleur

P.S.
Thanks to the people who helped contribute: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/764234-For-the-bikeshop-employees

Review :: Origin 8 - Speedwing 2 carbon bottle cage

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Origin 8 - Speedwing 2

Price-wise the cage is a pretty decent deal. I believe they retail for maybe $30 tops? The cage is part carbon fiber and part aluminum. The only part that's carbon is the "hoop" piece that your bottle slides into. The rest is aluminum.
As far as looks go,i personally think they look pretty decent. The carbon portion of the cage is pretty nice but the problem is the rubber pieces and the aluminum portion.

The rubber pieces end of tearing and falling off after a while and in my case the tab (Which is aluminum) that the bottom of the bottle rests on kept slowly bending down until one day i went to put my bottle in and the tab broke off. Needless to say,i was NOT happy.

Now i will be fair,the cage on my downtube is doing ok. The tab actually has a groove worn into it from the bottom of the bottle (How does plastic win against aluminum?!) but otherwise works.

I have rigged a temporary tab for the seat-tube bottle cage and no issues besides it looks a little fugly. Until they change the aluminum portion of the cage i would not recommend this cage to anyone except maybe for use on the downtube.
Save you're money and check out the serfas cages.