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TECH NEWS
5 sexy products 15 stylish designs from Taipei Cycle
We've spent the day scouring the halls of Taipei Cycle and here are some of the coolest looking products that we've spotted so far...
Equinox MiRacle wheels
These stunning-looking wheels (main pic), made from aerospace-grade carbon fibre, are a one piece design, the spokes blending directly into the rims.
We know what you’re thinking: if you crash and do some damage, it’s not going to be a question of simply screwing a couple of new spokes in there. That’s true, but although these wheels lose a few points for practicality, then gain a lot for their super-cool style.
TranzX YSP06 wireless dropper seatpost
Even if you’re a diehard roadie, chances are that you’ve heard of a dropper seatpost that allows a mountain biker to adjust the saddle height via a remote switch on the handlebar. Most existing dropper seatposts are cable-operated but it looks like the next generation will be wireless.
There are a couple of different wireless systems on display here at Taipei Cycle. This one is from JD Components and it will be sold under their TranzX brand.
It’s an inline alloy post with 80mm of travel, using a micro motor controlled by a 2.3GHz wireless transmitter. JD Components are hoping to reduce the size. The YSP06 post will be in the TranzX 2015 lineup.
We don't really see much of a road application, although some road riders have used dropper posts.
Hubsmith R023 hubs
These new hubs make use of Hubsmith’s new ‘one way adjustable gap system’. Do what? If you remove the cap on the end of the hub you can access a grub screw that tightens an adjustment ring to remove any play in the bearings. It’s a really neat design and the hubs themselves look great.
Beto Engineering Easy Hand Pump
This pump doesn’t just look cool, it’s actually very clever. The EZ head engages with a valve easily with one hand thanks to the ‘eight-fingered clamps’ – look carefully and you’ll see what this means. These lock onto the valve stem and squeeze the rubber inside the head to form an airtight seal.
The Easy Hand Pump has a dual valve system for use with both Presta and Schrader.
ControlTech Ti-Mania handlebar
ControlTech offer a whole range of titanium components in the Ti-Mania range, the handlebar actually being a combination of Ti and unidirectional carbon fibre. We’re not entirely sure about the benefit of doing things this way but you’ll get a full-titanium look once you have your bar tape fitted.
The Ti-Mania bar has a drop of 130mm, a reach of 75mm, and it’s available in 40cm and 42cm widths. ControlTech claim a 235g weight for the 42cm model.
Mat has been in cycling media since 1996, on titles including BikeRadar, Total Bike, Total Mountain Bike, What Mountain Bike and Mountain Biking UK, and he has been editor of 220 Triathlon and Cycling Plus. Mat has been road.cc technical editor for over a decade, testing bikes, fettling the latest kit, and trying out the most up-to-the-minute clothing. He has won his category in Ironman UK 70.3 and finished on the podium in both marathons he has run. Mat is a Cambridge graduate who did a post-grad in magazine journalism, and he is a winner of the Cycling Media Award for Specialist Online Writer. Now over 50, he's riding road and gravel bikes most days for fun and fitness rather than training for competitions.
Latest Comments
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Best to have a lifetime ban with a very long prison sentence for getting caught driving while banned.
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Don't come round 'ere with your "why not fix it so that everyone can use it" nonsense!...
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I agree with you. Just enjoy riding a bike. Easy to forget that one simple thing.
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Electromagnetic pedals you say? Call the witch finder general!
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9 comments
Dropper posts on MTBs make a lot of sense, you generally descend out of the saddle and dropping it means you can move your weight about more without snagging it, also drops your CoG if you do sit down. Can't really see the point on road bikes though, I know some pro teams tested them last year but never understood why myself, a suspension seatpost would make more sense in the cobbled classics than a dropper.
Those handlebars are pretty weird, only advantage I can see is they're probably clampable for clip-on tri-bars which a lot of full carbon bars aren't
fairly sure i saw them at the tate last weekend!
Don't care if there's any practical benefit to the handlebars, they're cool
The pump incorporating the push fit connector is clever. It's been lifted directly from plumbing and hydraulic engineering that design has, fingers crossed they are not sued for patent infringement by Hepworth who manufacture flexible hoses for car manufacturers.
It's just a collet, I doubt they have any patent on them.
Are the hubs straight pull?
One thing I learned from going on the wheelbuilding course was that straight pull spokes are really difficult to get hold of.
Does road.cc have any indication as to whether that will change? We're seeing more hubs using straight pull spokes and serviceability may be compromised by that system as opposed to the traditional J-bend spoke, which are readily available in the UK.
Any occasion you feel you could do with the saddle slightly lower, maybe on particularly bumpy roads maybe? mostly tho roadies pick them up for cyclocross.
About dropper posts for road use... Hmm, could you get a more aero position for descending? Could that possibly offset weight??
Never heard of dropper seatposts before so I don't know what that makes me.
Now that I have, can someone explain why ? I can just about guess that a MTBer might want different heights in-ride when trail riding to going downhill, maybe. But for a roadbike ?