The weather has taken a turn for the autumnal in BikeRadar’s fashionable home of Bristol but the content furnaces remain aglow, stoked by a flow of fresh cycling goodies, scintillating news and exciting reviews.
This week’s highlights include an interesting news piece about e*thirteen’s kickback-killing hubs, our take on the six things we’d change about mountain biking and a test pitching hardcore versus lightweight hardtails.
We also learned about the Lauf Elja – the Icelandic brand’s first mountain bike – and Fox’s wireless suspension control system.
Finally, Warren Rossiter paid a fitting tribute to Bob Parlee, the eponymous founder of Parlee Cycles, who died this week aged 70.
Now it’s time for First Look Friday – the most best-est and most interesting-est round-up of the most fabulous cycling tech to land at BikeRadar HQ.
Stan’s Exo-Core tubeless valves
Released at Sea Otter 2024, Stan’s Exo-Core tubeless valves promise clog-free, high-airflow performance.
The core is housed within the valve stem in a conventional Presta valve. This is relatively narrow and restricts airflow, which can contribute to difficult tubeless tyre setups.
The Exo-Core system houses the core inside an external alloy cap that threads onto the Presta-sized valve stem.
When backed off, the brass plunger is free to move upward into a wider diameter segment, providing increased airflow compared to a conventional Presta valve. It’s a very clever design.
Further improving airflow, a pump head clamps onto an obelisk-shaped top section with cutouts on three sides. The included push-fit valve cap fits onto this (the valves are also compatible with standard valve caps).
If you’re after a bigger gas blast than Tom Marvin’s toots after eating a plate of beans, the core can be removed without tools for truly stubborn setups.
Stan’s isn’t the only brand to reinvent the humble tubeless valve – Muc-Off’s Big Bore Valves, Reserve’s Fillmore valves and others all promise improved airflow.
At £50, £40 and £34.99 respectively, Stan’s, Muc-Off and Reserve valves all have relatively high prices in common, too.
Is that a price you’re willing to pay for improved performance, or are you happy with your existing valves? Or are you a subversive Schrader sycophant? Let me know in the comments.
- £50 / $55
Frames and Gear Giant TCR direct-mount Shimano derailleur hanger
An often-seen upgrade on WorldTour bikes, a direct-mount derailleur hanger adds a pro whiff to any build.
Alongside light and computer mounts, Denmark-based Frames and Gear produces a wide range of replacement conventional and direct-mount derailleur hangers for bikes new and old.
Pictured is a hanger for my 2018-ish Giant TCR Advanced. The hanger was super-easy to fit, should improve shifting accuracy, speed up wheel changes… and it looks cool.
As Tadej Pogačar also uses a Frames and Gear hanger on his V4Rs, I now fully expect I’ll be as quick as him.
- £39 / $52 / €40
Fizik Tempo Beat
The Tempo Beat is an intriguing proposition, pairing two-bolt cleat fittings with a gravel-shoe like outsole, but Fizik markets them as a “casual” road cycling shoe.
Fizik rates the Tempo Beat as a four on its arbitrary stiffness scale (its top-flight road shoes top out at a 10). However, the footplate feels pretty stiff when subjected to an entirely unscientific bend-it-over-your-knee test. I’d put them on a parr with a stiff-ish XC shoe rather than typical flexible urban or gravel gutties.
The semi-transparent outsole kind of looks like a chewable dog toy. Despite their appealing munch-ability, I’ve resisted chomping down on the firm TPU outsole.
Riders who, like me, have disgusting bony feet will appreciate the malleable densely woven one-piece seamless mesh upper and “roomier” toe box. The colour-matched laces are a nice touch too.
So if they’re not gravel shoes, what are they? Is this the all-road cycling shoe we’ve all been waiting for with bated breath?!
Jesting aside, these look like a potentially nice option for those after stylish kicks that will handle double-duty for on and off-road riding.
- £179 / $179.99 / €179
Primus Lite Plus stove
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The Primus Lite Plus is a neat all-in-one stove system designed explicitly for backpackers and bikepackers.
Available in seven fetching colours, the stove kicks out 1,500 watts of heating power (don’t try to prove that by hooking up your power meter unless you want to eat a glob of silicone soup).
By way of comparison, my Primus Express Spider stove is rated for 2,000 watts.
However, I expect the Lite Plus will be significantly more efficient than the Express Spider when used with the included 500ml pot.
This can be locked into place straight onto the stove, with neat heat-transferring fins making the most of the laminar flow burner.
It’s reassuring to know that, should I give up cycling and join Alex Honnold on his next big wall exploit, I can bring along my stove and make use of the “included suspension kit while waiting out the weather in a portaledge.”
The stove can also be used with conventional camping pots. However, I’ll probably stick with the Express Spider when, hunched in my tent vestibule like Gollum protecting his precious pomodoro, I can justify the weight and hassle of a more elaborate dinner.
But for faster solo rides or #coffeeoutside expeditions, I expect the Lite Plus will become a regular companion.
- £130 / $129.95 / €135.95
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Tooo Cycling DVF100 light/camera
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The Tooo Cycling CVF100 is an integrated front-facing cycling camera/light combo designed to, in the words of the brand, “provide evidence of unfortunate events out on the road”.
The camera records in 4k at 30 fps with the 130-deg lens providing a wide field of view.
The system is said to be good for up to seven hours of continuous use and charges via a proprietary 8-pin cable. The same cable is used to transfer data to a computer, where it appears as a mass-storage device.
The camera can be mounted onto a standard quarter-turn Garmin out-front mount (as pictured). If you still want to use a computer, it can be mounted upside down onto a two-prong GoPro-style mount.
At £299.99 (international pricing N/A), the computer is priced in line with competitors such as the Cycliq Fly12.
- £299.99, international pricing N/A
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