Any question answered...

@fox Surly.

Was this in reply to @sirlarry ? Was thinking of finding some white decals to full-anti the caad9, so be interested to know.

What are the options for relatively cheap (c.£200) thru-axle disc wheelsets. They seem to be hard to come by, or am I doing it wrong?

These any good? Reviews seem decent...

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shimano-deore-t610-v-brake/rp-prod107375?gs=1&gclid=CMX1g-nJ9s4CFUsq0wodbjAIwA&gclsrc=aw.ds

Deore is the standard/lowest in the hierarchy I think? So it'll work fine but won't be anything exceptional. Considering the junk bikes I've borrowed that have had V's, if it works and it stops your wheel you're already doing better than 80% of the population.

What are the options for relatively cheap (c.£200) thru-axle disc wheelsets.

Road or MTB? What size? Which axle standard? DT R24DB or M1900 can both be had in the vicinity of your budget assuming they fit.

@pdlouche, Any better ones you'd recommend?

It would be for a cross bike which I haven't bought yet. I've been looking at the Focus Mares and apparently their 2017 range has switched to 12mm thru-axle.

I was just thinking about what options there would be for an alternative commuter wheelset.

@andy_k @Halcro

spotted this guys insta: https://www.instagram.com/kriswebb91/

ignoring his awful bike in general. they actually dont seem very similar to the Jones' at all. put me off, may get the real thing..

No idea who this dude is or if legit but good price if you don't mind the cut? Supposed to flex a little, more comfortable or something, bit of a PITA to mount a light though... guess it depends why/what you want loops for really...

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/jones-h-bars-2

Mmm not sure. My main experience with them has been how terrible the older V brakes can be. No experience of new ones, but did a quick research and maybe the Deore is the best value for modern stuff. I don't know enough about it to be honest, maybe someone else can pipe up with a crazy gold plated alternative.

The only reason I am asking is that there is a really nice frame I want to get, but due to a chronic knee injury, commuting on a fixed is not going to happen again anytime soon, if ever... And without drilling a hole on the frame (could be done for about £50 in a local bike shop), which I would rather not due to its value... the only option for this frame is to run either canti levers or mini Vs... The only experience I have with canti levers and mini Vs was my half decent polo bike and I remember how much I hated it, but it could have been due to I had no idea what I was doing + I got the chpeatest set available on the market at the time.

They're very good, better than tektro etc

You can get much cheaper, Deore is probably about as good as V's get these days. I set some up this week and they felt great.

PDlouche is talking...

How do they behave on rainy days? Just posted a reply, it's for a frame I want to build up as a commute bike and I want to be able to stop in front of a lorry if I ever have to avoid going under...

Correctly setup V brakes generally more powerful than road calipers but not as good as discs. I (and many others) used them for MTB for years. I'm sure you'll be fine.

12mm thru-axle

That narrows your options considerably. You probably can't hand build for under £200 with the available 12mm hubs, so DT R24db looks like the only option unless Shimano suddenly realises that 12×100 front is a thing.

thank you.

On a different subject, this is totally personal perference I think. I am only getting a new frame and the current plan is to transfer most of the parts from my current bike onto the new one, except the brakes. But on 2nd thought, wouldn't it make sense to get a new headset (at least replace the bearings), and bottom bracket since I am paying, or rather the shop is very generously giving me a very big discount for stripping the old and building the new. The age of the headset is about 3 years and no sign of any issue, BB is about 1.5 years and I think I am starting to hear some noise when pedalling but BC had a look and they said it doesn't look like it needs replacing yet. I do about 12 miles a day... so the BB would have seen a fair amount of miles already...

Is it just false economy if I repalce parts way before their time?

http://shop.vintagecannondale.com/

Don't know how "authentic" they are. I got some off eBay that look reasonably good.

The deore Vs on my MTB with koolstop pads are almost as good as the zee disc on my polo bike in the dry.

Thanks. I hope those decals would be removable.

Deore is standard, but I did give the caveat I've only used much older v's.

By what standard? If anything I would says tektro and promax are standard. By standard do you mean middle of the range Shimano? I'm not getting it.

Yes if they're hanging from a hook for a long time. Everyday usage and hanging up will be unlikely to always hang the bike from the same place. The full weight of a bike hanging from one concentrated point for a long time on a rim clearly does.

Doh. That makes total sense, thanks @Constable_Savage

@rive_gauche - I know right - not riding a Colnago for two years is terrible in itself. But in my defence building work meant I've not been able to get at it for the last 18 months, hence it not moving at all - and being covered in a LOT of dust!

@fox Surly.

Thanks, but silly me forget to specify threaded 1" road forks.

Best bet seems to be BLB:
https://www.bricklanebikes.co.uk/blb-classic-chrome-fork

I don't really like buying things from BLB, but these are the best combination of weight/price/looks I can find, unless anyone has any other suggestions?

Painful to say it but I fitted some flat crown BLB forks to Mrs TM's bike and they felt and looked very well made.