Is Someone Waking The Sleeping Giant?

SRAM has Rock Shox, Shimano...?

"Let sleeping dogs lie", as the saying goes, and it means that you should leave well enough alone. However; I think it is too late for that. It would appear that the "giant" has been roused.

What am I talking about? Shimano, of course, and I think we're all about to see the component "giant", ( and I mean that literally and figuratively), jump in with a flurry of technology and componentry the likes of which has not been seen since the mid 1990's.

It was back then that the "CNC machine craze" took mountain biking by storm. New components were being cranked out with an almost weekly regularity in the early part of that decade and Shimano's grip on the mountain biking component world was slipping. In fact, some cheeky riders were going so far as to say that an "all American", or at least a "non-Shimano" build was the way to go on your mountain bike. Shimano was "The Man", and that didn't cotton to well with the industry, and with the riders.

Well, with one fell swoop, Shimano dramatically deep-sixed all of that with the introduction of the XTR component group. It was so well designed that even today the group is revered by mountain bikers old enough to remember it. But Shimano didn't stop there. They introduced "linear pull", or "V" brakes, revolutionizing braking for mountain bikes, and then introduced another newer XTR that set the bar so high that they nearly extinguished all competition for mountain bike parts by the year 2000.

However, this little company that wouldn't go away started to amass companies into its fold and became a force to be reckoned with. The name was SRAM, and even Rock Shox, the venerable fork manufacturer, fell into the fold. Now SRAM nearly had a complete build kit avaialable to manufacturers of frames. Everything but wheels, but as you all know, even that they have now.

SRAM Rise wheels

If SRAM made headsets and a few other components for the cockpit, they could have a complete build kit for a bike. Shimano sees the OEM spec going away to SRAM in many areas, so this didn't sit well with the Osaka Japan based company. It seems that the early rumblings of an "XTR-like" revolution are in the works all across the board at Shimano.

According to the latest "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News", Shimano has filed several suspension patents of late for forks and hydraulically adjustable seat posts. Not only that, but they are chasing an electronic component to all of this as well. The patents apparently show plans for an electronically controlled damper for suspension, and a electronically controlled height adjustable seat post. (Can you say "no cables"?)

Then yesterday news broke of a slew of components, including a Di2 Alfine 8 and 11 speed internally geared hub, lighter weight mechanical road brake calipers, and new "29"er specific parts" including a double XT and XTR level 38/24T crank set, and a new XT level UST wheel set.

So Shimano is obviously up to some dramatic things. If they do a suspension fork, it would be an earth shaking move that "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News" says could drive some independent fork and suspension manufacturers out of business by squeezing them out of their lucrative OEM business.

Whatever happens, Shimano is sure to shake things up in a big way real soon. Look out! The giant stirs.......

Is Someone Waking The Sleeping Giant?

SRAM has Rock Shox, Shimano...?

"Let sleeping dogs lie", as the saying goes, and it means that you should leave well enough alone. However; I think it is too late for that. It would appear that the "giant" has been roused.

What am I talking about? Shimano, of course, and I think we're all about to see the component "giant", ( and I mean that literally and figuratively), jump in with a flurry of technology and componentry the likes of which has not been seen since the mid 1990's.

It was back then that the "CNC machine craze" took mountain biking by storm. New components were being cranked out with an almost weekly regularity in the early part of that decade and Shimano's grip on the mountain biking component world was slipping. In fact, some cheeky riders were going so far as to say that an "all American", or at least a "non-Shimano" build was the way to go on your mountain bike. Shimano was "The Man", and that didn't cotton to well with the industry, and with the riders.

Well, with one fell swoop, Shimano dramatically deep-sixed all of that with the introduction of the XTR component group. It was so well designed that even today the group is revered by mountain bikers old enough to remember it. But Shimano didn't stop there. They introduced "linear pull", or "V" brakes, revolutionizing braking for mountain bikes, and then introduced another newer XTR that set the bar so high that they nearly extinguished all competition for mountain bike parts by the year 2000.

However, this little company that wouldn't go away started to amass companies into its fold and became a force to be reckoned with. The name was SRAM, and even Rock Shox, the venerable fork manufacturer, fell into the fold. Now SRAM nearly had a complete build kit avaialable to manufacturers of frames. Everything but wheels, but as you all know, even that they have now.

SRAM Rise wheels

If SRAM made headsets and a few other components for the cockpit, they could have a complete build kit for a bike. Shimano sees the OEM spec going away to SRAM in many areas, so this didn't sit well with the Osaka Japan based company. It seems that the early rumblings of an "XTR-like" revolution are in the works all across the board at Shimano.

According to the latest "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News", Shimano has filed several suspension patents of late for forks and hydraulically adjustable seat posts. Not only that, but they are chasing an electronic component to all of this as well. The patents apparently show plans for an electronically controlled damper for suspension, and a electronically controlled height adjustable seat post. (Can you say "no cables"?)

Then yesterday news broke of a slew of components, including a Di2 Alfine 8 and 11 speed internally geared hub, lighter weight mechanical road brake calipers, and new "29"er specific parts" including a double XT and XTR level 38/24T crank set, and a new XT level UST wheel set.

So Shimano is obviously up to some dramatic things. If they do a suspension fork, it would be an earth shaking move that "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News" says could drive some independent fork and suspension manufacturers out of business by squeezing them out of their lucrative OEM business.

Whatever happens, Shimano is sure to shake things up in a big way real soon. Look out! The giant stirs.......

Wednesday News And Views

Klunkerz Project Update: Well a major hurdle in the Klunker project was cleared when a co-worker of mine called in a favor owed to him and got me this 410mm seat mast machined out of solid aluminum billet for free! (Thanks Mark P.!)

Yeah, pretty much like a late 70's era klunker, as far as I can tell. There are still some big hurdles to leap over yet though. I need to source a crankset, possibly a tubular BMX style cruiser fork, and decide if I want to braze on some canti studs, or get some Sturmey-Archer drum brakes, (which could influence whether I keep the flat blade fork or not). I actually have some gold ano Ukai wheels for it that are laced to a Sturmey-Archer 3spd rear hub and a SunTour high flange front hub. I found some BMX levers from back in the day with white plastic covers too, which I could use for the brakes. Oh! And I can not forget that the frame needs some brazing work, as well.

This Hub Goes To Eleven! Yeah, I know! Old cliche'! But anyway, the Alfine hub is changing for 2011. It will be a 11 speed hub with a wider gear range and will go to an oil bath lubrication for the internals. I've always thought a winter commuter/gravel rig set up this way would be the bees knees.  I'll be keeping an eye on the availability of this. I almost popped for the Alfine 8spd version, but the lack of a really low gear kept me off it. Now Shimano claims this Alfine variation will dip into a lower range than the current 8spd. one does.

Salsa Cycles Announces The Titanium La Cruz: I have already posted a blurb about this on Gravel Grinder News, so I won't go all into the tech stuff. I'll just give you all my two cents on this deal.

Salsa Cycles came out with the steel La Cruz with disc brakes awhile ago. I have almost been tempted several times by that bike, but in my mind, the disc part was overkill and unnecessary for how I would have used the bike, which was for gravel road riding and paved road riding. To my mind, if you want disc brakes, tons of clearance, fatter tires than a typical cross rig, (read above 34mm), and the versatility of being able to go off road all dressed up in a drop bar specific package, you go to the Fargo. Then the Vaya hit the scene recently, and to my mind, it was too much Fargo and not enough of a lightweight road influenced gravel flyer. I guess the Vaya is to the Fargo what Miller Lite is to a good IPA. But that's just me.

Now when I saw Joe Meiser go to the front on that titanium cross bike in T.I.V5, and I realized what I was looking at was a titanium Salsa proto, I figured someday we'd see the rig bow as a La Cruz or Chille Con Crosso titanium rig. I'm glad Salsa chose the La Cruz moniker and the tire clearance that the name is known for. This is the gravel weapon I was thinking of. Light, titanium ride quality, plenty of room for 38's, and it doesn't appear to have a dinky head tube. Cantilever brakes work just fine on gravel, and are in keeping with the light theme set out by the gray-ish metal the frame is worked up in. Not to mention, I have become enamoured of the way titanium can ride of late, no thanks to Lynskey!

Get me some carbon clinchers, a tubeless set up, and some nice SRAM Rival group action and I would have "near perfection" for gravelly goodness here. Near perfection? Yes. It is missing single speed-ability and the price! Well........what do I expect? It is titanium after all!

Wednesday News And Views

Klunkerz Project Update: Well a major hurdle in the Klunker project was cleared when a co-worker of mine called in a favor owed to him and got me this 410mm seat mast machined out of solid aluminum billet for free! (Thanks Mark P.!)

Yeah, pretty much like a late 70's era klunker, as far as I can tell. There are still some big hurdles to leap over yet though. I need to source a crankset, possibly a tubular BMX style cruiser fork, and decide if I want to braze on some canti studs, or get some Sturmey-Archer drum brakes, (which could influence whether I keep the flat blade fork or not). I actually have some gold ano Ukai wheels for it that are laced to a Sturmey-Archer 3spd rear hub and a SunTour high flange front hub. I found some BMX levers from back in the day with white plastic covers too, which I could use for the brakes. Oh! And I can not forget that the frame needs some brazing work, as well.

This Hub Goes To Eleven! Yeah, I know! Old cliche'! But anyway, the Alfine hub is changing for 2011. It will be a 11 speed hub with a wider gear range and will go to an oil bath lubrication for the internals. I've always thought a winter commuter/gravel rig set up this way would be the bees knees.  I'll be keeping an eye on the availability of this. I almost popped for the Alfine 8spd version, but the lack of a really low gear kept me off it. Now Shimano claims this Alfine variation will dip into a lower range than the current 8spd. one does.

Salsa Cycles Announces The Titanium La Cruz: I have already posted a blurb about this on Gravel Grinder News, so I won't go all into the tech stuff. I'll just give you all my two cents on this deal.

Salsa Cycles came out with the steel La Cruz with disc brakes awhile ago. I have almost been tempted several times by that bike, but in my mind, the disc part was overkill and unnecessary for how I would have used the bike, which was for gravel road riding and paved road riding. To my mind, if you want disc brakes, tons of clearance, fatter tires than a typical cross rig, (read above 34mm), and the versatility of being able to go off road all dressed up in a drop bar specific package, you go to the Fargo. Then the Vaya hit the scene recently, and to my mind, it was too much Fargo and not enough of a lightweight road influenced gravel flyer. I guess the Vaya is to the Fargo what Miller Lite is to a good IPA. But that's just me.

Now when I saw Joe Meiser go to the front on that titanium cross bike in T.I.V5, and I realized what I was looking at was a titanium Salsa proto, I figured someday we'd see the rig bow as a La Cruz or Chille Con Crosso titanium rig. I'm glad Salsa chose the La Cruz moniker and the tire clearance that the name is known for. This is the gravel weapon I was thinking of. Light, titanium ride quality, plenty of room for 38's, and it doesn't appear to have a dinky head tube. Cantilever brakes work just fine on gravel, and are in keeping with the light theme set out by the gray-ish metal the frame is worked up in. Not to mention, I have become enamoured of the way titanium can ride of late, no thanks to Lynskey!

Get me some carbon clinchers, a tubeless set up, and some nice SRAM Rival group action and I would have "near perfection" for gravelly goodness here. Near perfection? Yes. It is missing single speed-ability and the price! Well........what do I expect? It is titanium after all!