Dynamo Lighting Systems

 DYNAMO LIGHTING SYSTEMS

The benefits of using a hub powered dynamo lighting system are well documented, but for some reason have never become very popular in the U.S. Its hard to understand why, when these systems offer better visibility, more theft resistence and freedom from batteries and cold weather battery failure.

To get started we're going to need a front wheel with a dynamo hub. Options for the dynamo hub itself are plentiful with a wide price range from around $40 to around $350 depending on what you are looking for. From there you pick your spokes and rim (or work with one of our wheel builders to find the best wheel components for your needs) and then its time to build a wheel. As a side note, there are also several options for prebuilt dynamo hub wheels which may suit your needs, but a custom build will offer a broader choice of components. We are also more than happy to build a wheel for you ($45-$60 labor per wheel). You will also have to choose your lights. Again, many brands and models are available depending on how much light you need and what types of features you want.

For this project we will be using the following components:

-Hub: 

Sanyo h27 hub. This is a great budget minded model for folks who dont have extreme demands on their lighting sytem.

-Spokes: 

DT Swiss champion spokes. DT ships their black spokes with aluminum nipples, which are okay, but I always encourage customers to spend a little extra on brass spoke nipples, they are less likely to round out or crack during service, they are naturally corrosion resistent and they have a much longer lifespan than alumimum at a small and exceptable weight penalty. Side note: DT silver spokes ship with brass nipples.

-Rim: 

We are re-using the customer's stock Alexrims ID-19rim since this bike was only about 1 month old when they decided to upgrade to a dynamo system and the rim is in new condition.

-Lights: 

This customer chose Busch&Muller for front and rear. The front light is the B&M IQ Fly RT and the taillight is the B&M Toplight Line Braketec Plus, both great choices for commuters, this headlight has daytime running lights and the taillight has a standlight which stay lit up when you are at a stoplight and also has a brake light which puts out a brighter light when your bike comes to a stop so that traffice around you knows what you are up to. Both add a lot of safety to urban commuting.

Using the Phil Wood spoke cutter

Preparing the spokes with a coating of Wheelsmith Spokeprep

Lacing the wheel

Finished wheel being installed in the fork

Wiring the light can be a bit time consuming if you have never done it before, so give yourself plenty of time, take it slow and pay close attention to how things are looking. Nothing is worse than spending a lot of time on a project and not liking how it looks at the end. You want to make sure that the wiring is secured along the frame, has strain relief where needed and doesn't interfere with any other components or moving parts.

The tools you will need are...

-wire stripper (preferably with metric crimps)

-Zipties

-Marker

-Shrink Tubing (1/16" and 1/8" optional, but very helpful)

-Heat Gun (a lighter will work just fine)

-Various Wrenches (depending on what type of fasteners your lights have)

Side note: We are always more than happy to wire or re-wire dynamo lights for you in our service department ($17 labor per light).

Mounting the front light

 

Installing the shrink tubing to protect the wires and plugs

The rear light gets wired into the system

Now its just a question of running the wiring from the hub to the front light and from the front light to the rear ligth. Keep the wire secured to the frame out of the way of any moving parts. Make sure to have strain relief spots near and junctions to avoid damage to the wires.

That ziptie on the frame acts as strain relief. It allows the part sof the wire connecting to the hub to stay loose and flexible so that no stress will be put on the electric components.

Now, its time to go outside and try it....

Even with all the ambient light this headlight still shows up really well to oncoming traffic. You'll also notice the light patch in front of the bike. This really helps illuminate potholes and road debris. This light is fairly average dynamo light, but its performance surpasses all but the high end battery lights.

And here is a picture of the taillight in action.

 

  And here is a better photo of the light patch.

Thanks for reading.

First in Flight: Hub Team Member and Aerospace Engineering Grad Student Loretta Trevino becomes the Powderhorn 24's first Female Overall Champion.

Photo By Eric Shoultz

The Powderhorn 24 has quickly become one of the premier local races since its inception in 2011, with a unique 24-hour endurance-focused format. Riders compete alone or in teams to complete as many 4.8 mile laps as they can within the time limit, circling Minneapolis’ picturesque neighborhood of Powderhorn.

Only the toughest cyclists dare to enter the race’s solo division, and the 2013 race marked the first time that a woman took first place in that category. That exemplary lady is Loretta Trevino, and she also happens to be a rider for The Hub’s cycling team. We caught up with her during her recovery period, which just so happened to include a grueling rowing practice earlier in the day.

Interview by Zach McCormick

The Hub: What do you do when you’re not on a bike?

Loretta Trevino: I’m a grad student at the University of Minnesota, I’m working on my PHD in Aerospace Engineering. I just moved here last year from Seattle, and I work at a small rocket company there. Jeff Bezos, the guy who owns Amazon, his side project is this rocket company because he wants to make space accessible to everybody. I work for them part time, but my full-time job is school right now. I just finished my 3rd year of what’s normally a 6 year program.

Are you involved with any athletics outside of cycling?

I’ve been rowing since college, and the rowing club here in Minneapolis is really good. The Masters crew wins nationals almost every year, and the ladies are amazing to row with. I hooked up with them when I moved here and have been rowing with them for a couple of seasons now.

Are you fairly active in competitive cycling locally?

I just started getting into the gravel races, my first gravel race was the Gentleman’s Ride last September. That was actually only the second century that I’d done ever, and I was a little intimidated by it. But my commute in Seattle was pretty far, so I got used to being on the bike a lot.  My goal this year was to ride a century every month, so I started in January. It started out as a joke between my friend and I, but by the 3rd week in January we decided we had to do it before the cold front came in. We kept doing it, and P24 ended up being my 11th century.

But I’ve only really just done alleycats and gravel races, I haven’t gone into the big scene in cycling because I wasn’t sure if I was fit enough yet. Or at least, I wasn’t confident enough yet [laughs].

When did you transition from being a commuter to a more avid cyclist?

Probably since I moved back to Minneapolis this past year, in Seattle I really transformed from someone who just cycles to someone who goes on longer rides. There’s so many places to ride in Seattle, with the islands out there. I would go bike camping by myself for 3 or 4 days, I would just disappear and go around the islands. That’s when I started getting a lot of endurance and miles in, because it’s just so much freedom out there and so much to see. Lots of hills, and lots of climbing.

Was this your first P24?

No, actually! Last year I had literally lived in Minneapolis for less than 24 hours and someone dropped out of The Hub Women’s Team last minute. They contacted to ask if I had a bike and would join their team. One of my bikes wasn’t even put together, but we ended up winning by half a lap! That’s when I met The Hub, and I’ve raced for their team ever since.

Did you do any other training regimens outside of the centuries?

I think the rowing really helped me a ton, because that sport is like 80% mental and 20% training. You have to be really focused in the boat, and you go to the point of pain but you can’t lose your discipline. I knew this race was going to be all about keeping focused and not letting my surroundings affect how I was riding, and that’s the same thing I do in the boat. It’s all about running your own race, and not letting people who are lapping you affect how you’re riding. Once you start to get that kind of competitive, that’s when you start to lose, at least in endurance races.

Did you have a support team for the race?

[Laughs] Yes, my boyfriend Paul was my support crew. We had initially bought walkie-talkies so we could signal each other because we knew our phones were going to die, but I didn’t even need that , because every lap he was there asking me with what I needed. Constantly stuffing my back pockets with food or Shot Blocks, filling up my water bottle, giving me drugs when I needed them. I think there was 3 laps where I didn’t see him, and those were towards the end when he decided he needed to rest his eyes. Having his support was essential to doing well in this race!

Did you have a winning strategy going into the race that paid off for you?

I honestly had no idea how to pace myself, I’d never trained for a 24 hour race before. The most miles I’d done previously was 120. So I got myself going to a good cadence that my legs felt like they could do for a long time, and I never tried to accelerate too fast. Through the checkpoints, I never got off my bike, I just worked with the volunteers so that I never had to clip out. The last 6 hours I kept thinking “when am I gonna kick it in?” but I just kept resisting that urge. Finally when I finished my last bonus I had 80 minutes left and could do about 4 more laps in that time, so then I started pushing myself and I was miserable. Just that slight increase of speed was painful, and I wasn’t even that much faster. Then I kept craving Dairy Queen because it was on the corner that I kept passing!

I definitely feel like the last 6 hours were my strongest, because that’s when I started catching up. I don’t think I was in the lead until that afternoon, but I just started slowly increasing my speed and feeling better and better, and I could just see everyone else burning out. I just saved my gas until then end.

Paul kept telling me I was the 4th place lady, and I felt like the three faster ladies could all be top contenders. But then I kept catching up to some of the other guys doing solo and they’d say “oh, I’m in 3rd,” but I had 50 miles on them, so I really thought that for a majority of the race all the girls were winning. I was getting really excited and that was motivating me, but then I caught up to Lee Penn and realized that we had biked the same amount of miles. Then I caught up to Alex Ones and he said “you’re only a lap behind me and I’m in 1st right now!” I just didn’t think it could be possible!

I ended up timing those last bonus stops to where I didn’t have to wait in line, and a lot of the people got stuck at bonus stops waiting for a half hour! I would keep swinging by those stops, and if there was a line, I’d just go another lap. Eventually, there wasn’t a line!

What was it like when you realized that you’d won?

Honestly, the last hour I wasn’t thinking about anyone else. Going into the last stop, everyone was screaming and cheering and I got off my bike and threw it at my boyfriend and just started walking away. I just wanted to get out of my jersey and find a shower, but I had to ask Paul how I did. He said “Yeah, you won” and at first I thought he meant just the women’s division, but then he said “No, you WON” and I realized I had beaten Alex! I didn’t even believe it first, I had to go ask Alex myself! I honestly believe any of the top 3 women could have taken it though, I just had the most discipline.

What bike did you ride for the event?

I rode my Trek Madone. I called it my “car” in Seattle because that’s the first bike I ever bought when I got a job where I could afford one, months before I ever bought a vehicle. It’s a carbon road bike, and I haven’t been riding it a lot around town, my default bike is my All-City Macho Man, but for some reason that week the Macho Man was just not fitting me perfectly. I knew the Madone fit me like a glove, and I knew it would be the most comfortable, because that’s the bike I did all my bike camping on in Seattle. I’ve had that bike for 6 years, and it’s my baby. I thought it might be a little aggressive, and it sort of was because my lower back is killing me, but I just kept taking painkillers and stretching a bunch.

Want to give any shout-outs to your fellow racers?

Alex Ones is just an incredible human being. The whole time we were riding, he’d go through checkpoints and he’d ask the volunteers if they needed anything like “do you need any water? “And he was the one that had been riding his bike! But he was just so encouraging to everybody, even well over 300 miles.

Jessica, who’s won the past two years is also fantastic. She’s my riding partner and my inspiration, and unfortunately she had to drop out early on because of some back problems, but she never gives up. She’s the one who gave me the idea to try and hold back, but never ever stop.

How’s your recovery been?

I was actually fine…okay, my lower back’s been on lockdown but that’s just from overuse. I’ve gone to my personal trainer and they were like “what did you do to your body?” I think I’m probably going to take about two weeks to recover fully, but I’m doing a lot better than I thought I was going to be!

What’s up next for you?

I’m doing 3 gravel races in September, the first one is the inspiration 100, and then the Gentleman’s Ride, followed by Heck of the North. My goal is always just to do a little bit faster than I did the last time, I’m not going to be CAT 1 or anything like that, but I can always get faster!

Bottineau Park Bike Rodeo

The Hub helped fix bikes and shared some basic maintenance tips at a great event last weekend, Bottineau Park's Bike Rodeo. Several groups pitched in to get kids on bikes by teaching them how to ride, be safe, and have fun. Check out the video:

Project Homeless Connect

Every year the Hub donates a portion of its profits to our community through our People and the Planet Fund. We participate in a variety of events and donate to some really great organizations. This week we sent three mechanics to help out at an event called Project Homeless Connect (http://www.homelessconnectminneapolis.org/). We worked together with a people from Bike Alliance MN, Spokes, Grease Rag and other volunteers to fix over 60 bikes! Most of the bikes had seen all kinds of weather conditions and were showing significant wear. We saw everything from flat tires to non-working brakes to messed up shifting. Our goal was to get the bikes as safe and rideable as possible!

We love riding our bikes and know how important it is to have reliable transportation. It was great to hear the feedback from participants who were using their bikes to get around. Having access to a functioning bike can help reduce barriers to education and employment.

Giant bicycles made a generous donation of 100 locks that was greatly appreciated by all the participants (especially those that didn’t bring their bikes because they had no way of keeping it safely locked up!). We also had a donation of helmets from QBP and trail maps from Hedberg Maps that were met with lots of enthusiasm.

We are always excited to help out in our community and Project Homeless Connect was a great way to share our love of bicycling!

Suspension Maintenance Matters

If it has been more than a year since you've serviced your suspension. keep this in mind...

   As robust as your suspension is, it is really quite sensitive to wear and tear from the abuse you dish out on the trail. Contaminated fork oil, damaged seals and worn bushings can all cause serious and expensive repairs or often necessitate replacement of your fork.
   The best way to avoid this costly situation? Regular maintenance. All suspension should be serviced on a regular basis. Manufacturer recommendations for oil bath lube changes can be as frequent as every 30 hours of riding and they want you to have a complete service every 100 hours.

 This may seem crazy, but keep in mind that this fork didn't feel too bad on the bike....

   What's the best plan of action? Check out your owners manual (find it online if you don't remember where the print copy is). The manufacturer will tell you exactly what's needed to keep your suspension happy. Here you will find a table of maintenance intervals. Follow this table to learn what you can do yourself (cleaning the upper tubes after every ride) and what you might want us to do (service damper every 100 hours). If you want to keep it simple just bring your fork in for service once a year (twice a year if you really want to be on top of your game). We'll clean and inspect your suspension components, replace wear and tear parts and re-lube to manufacturer specifications to help ensure you have a long and loving relationship with your suspension.

Let The Patterson Transmission Enhance Your Commute

Patterson Transmission cranks installed on a Raleigh ten speed re-purposed for all season commuting.

   Here at The Hub we love commuting and since commuting and internal gears go hand in hand, why not talk about FSA's new 2-speed internal crankset the Patterson Transmission? FSA is a relative newcomer to the world of internally geared cranksets, with both the Schlumpf drive and the Hammerschmidt having been on the market for some time. The difference, for myself anyway, lies in accessibility.

   I haven't been able to justify spending the money for internal cranksets in the past as both the Schlumpf and Hammerschmidt retail in the $700 range, so i was pretty excited when the patterson came on the scene at far more reasonable $300. I bought it, set it up and have been happily riding ever since.

   First off, i guess it makes sense to talk about what type of bike this belongs on. the important physical restrictions are simple, the bike must have a 68mm bottom shell and fixed chain stays. you need to have down tube cable routing, but if you don't you could always add a clamp on cable stop, so no need to worry about that. This crankset was designed by Sam Patterson (one of the founding members of Sram) for commuting, but could easily find a home on a touring bike, mountain bike, weekender recreation bike or cargo bike.

Bottom bracket shell faced to exactly 68mm with perfectly parallel faces for optimal bearing performance.

  A few things to remember when picking one up. Installation has many facets as you need to have your bottom bracket shell faced (to ensure 68mm which and to give the outboard cartridge bearings a good reference), you need to pick out what shifter you want to use and have that and a cable installed (not included) and you need a few specialty tools (we would be more than happy to install it for you, inquire about service rates at the shop).

   Now for the fun part; what's inside and how does it work?

    Anyone who is familiar with the Hammerschmidt will recognize the similarities right away, a simple planet gear system with a direct drive and an overdrive. The crank's direct drive functions just like any other crank (the Patterson comes with a 28t ring) and the overdrive increases the gear to the 1.6:1 ratio. This effectively gives you a 45t ring!! 

Initial diss-assembly of the crankset.

The function is simple: operate the shift lever to release cable tension and the pawl on the control plate sub-assembly engages a ratchet in the crank which in turn...

...rotates the sun gear, which then rotates the planet gears, and they, in turn, rotate the chainring section of the crankset faster than the crank is spinning. And...

...voila, simply 2 speed planetary gearing!

   Impressions of the crankset so far are very positive. The shifting is super quick and clean (i have mine set up to an old Sturmey Archer trigger shifter). The gear range is wide enough but the jump is reasonable so i don't end up with a lot of annoying recovery shifts (I have mine set up with an 8 speed Shimano nexus rear hub, f.y.i.). the bearing set up is FSA MegaExo, reliable and serviceable.

The cartridge bearings are easily replaced when worn or easily serviced on a regular schedule to maximize their lifespan.

I am one of those mechanics that really appreciates the value of a good overhaul so i clean out my cartridge bearings a bit more often than most, and i have to say, it does increase the lifespan. The non-drive side cup is your typical MegaExo setup. The drive side is another story

The bearing is connected to the crank via a small snap ring and the cup remains empty in the frame.

FSA uses completely serviceable cartridge bearings which can be easily broken down to the loose balls for thorough cleaning and bearing ball replacement.

The picture isn't great, but here we have clean races and fresh grease with brand new bearings.

Align the new bearing balls, re-install the retainer and seals and you are ready to ride!

The chainring is a bit different than the usual fare, as well.

The chainring is held in place by a splined interface

It is held in place by a spiral retaining ring

    Replacement chainrings are available at a reasonable cost, which is good news for winter riders who tear through drivetrains, and for those who prefer to ignore maintenance on their ride until it's pretty much destroyed (though, i would always still recommend regular maintenance to prevent parts from wearing prematurely). FSA also makes replacement parts available for most of the internals, which is good news as nothing lasts forever. And speaking of maintenance, the above photo gives a good illustration of the ports that allow easy access for flushing and lubing the internals with minimal diss-assembly! this keeps maintenance easy and hassle free.

   Final thoughts... The Patterson transmission is going to make the internal gear set pretty excited. With the most affordable 2- speed crank currently on the market there is no reason not to double the range of your internally geared commuting bike, so you can find better gears and ride more efficiently, which means having more fun. Reasonable cost, 165-170-175mm crank length options, 9 speed compatible chain, mountain bike approved... whats not to like?

Overhauls. A day at the spa for your bike!

New or old. Everyday riding or weekend recreation. Fair weather or right through the snow and mud. Someday soon your bike will be crying out for a complete overhaul. Here is the truth about maintenance; no matter how diligently you air up your tires and lube your chain, there is nothing you can do to prevent the break down and failure of lubrication. All the grease inside your bearing systems will eventually collect enough moisture from the air and grit from the road that it will just stop working how its supposed to. In fact you don't even have to take your bike out of the garage for lubrication to break down, it is simply the natural progression of things. All of your cable housing will eventually fail in much the same way, and lets not forget that your brake pads, tires, chain, cassette, rims, saddles and bar tape will all wear out and need to be replaced. But, it's really not so gloomy, because the solution is as close as the service department at your local Hub Bike Co-op. So, lets take care of all of this at once so you can get back out and ride! Here is how we do it.

We take a good look at your bike and make a list of all the parts that are worn out and in need of replacement, then we get to work stripping parts off your bike, recycling what is past its usable life and cleaning the rest with degreasers and solvents to uncover their original beauty.

                                       Here is the rear derailleur and freewheel before and after.

                                               And, here is the crank set before and after.

 Now, on to the bearings. this is where overhaul service really steps up and gives you more bang for your buck than a tune-up. For tune-ups we perform adjustments on bearing systems, but we don't get a chance to get inside and really clean them out to remove any contaminants that will hinder smoothness and cause premature wear and tear.

 Here is the hub when it came in. there is obviously a lot going on in here that we don't want. for starters, the grease is old and has started to harden and gel, feels more like peanut butter then lubricant. Secondly, this grease is filled with contaminants and all of that grit is wreaking havoc on the bearing race, which needs to stay smooth in order to function well.

                                              Here is the hub after a thorough cleaning.

And, here, the final step. New ball bearings and a healthy coating of grease. This is a Teflon-fortified grease which holds up well to moisture and pressure. This grease is fairly thin and "sticky" which leaves a good meniscus layer between contact points for optimal performance and protection.

          Along with your bearings, we give star treatment to the threads that hold your bike together.

                                    Before and after cleaning up the threads on the fork's steerer.

So, when do you know to get an overhaul? There's no easy answer, but some agreed upon "standards" may help. Most bearing systems (i.e. headset or hubs) should be overhauled every 3000 miles or so when riding in primarily good conditions and as frequently as every 1500 miles if riding in wet, muddy, very sandy or dusty and extreme conditions.  The trick is to do it often enough that you aren't caught always replacing parts due to wear when more frequent overhauls could keep those bearing systems alive for the long haul.

And for those of you with internally geared hubs, hydraulics or suspension systems, check with the manufacturer of the product, but generally get these items serviced once a year to keep them in good running order.