Last winter I relaced a wheel for my Dew Deluxe around a Shimano nexus dynamo hub. Since that's a disc specific wheel (no brake track), I was considering building a wheel for use with conventional rim brakes.

Anyhow, jensonusa, harriscyclery - are all out of stock. These aren't that common of an item to begin with. Is there some weird back story as to why there's no inventory, or is this just a coincidence?

did you check peter white cycles as well?

also, supposedly p.white gets his from SVC in redmond: http://www.sammamishcycle.com/

i hope SON hubs are in stock, i'm gonna pick one up soon.

I've heard SON hubs are the best. I researched a bit, and my gut feeling was the SON was better quality and rolled a bit smoother than the Shimano, but cost more than 3 times the price. I also needed a disc compatible wheel for the bike it was destined for.

There are a lot of SON variations: http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/schmidt.asp

Any favorite Schmidt model among the rando crowd?

SON 28 for 700c wheels, it's pretty much the only way to go.
I've read about people using the smaller versions SON 20 and SON XS on 700c, that works as well but they're just not designed for this, and the resulting wheel is not going to be as efficient nor as strong as with a SON 28.

I roll on a SON 28, but I know a couple of folks who do brevets with the Shimano hub and they seem to do ok. Nobody's DNF'ed because they were on a Shimano instead of a SON.

I do have to say, though, after seeing so many hefty SON28s, those new, svelte SON20R's look pretty h0tt; though I can understand the concerns about those hubs not being built to accomodate 700c rims.

as far as theories as to why there's a local shortage of inventory ... I'd suspect that it's partially related to the uptick in sophisticated bike commuters. folks like Peter and Harris were probably used to only getting a few orders for generator hubs in a given month from randonneurs and the occasionally ambitious tourist or commuter, but it will probably be a few months at least before they adjust to new demand.

i ride a shimano dyno, but i want to get a SON too, if only for the weight savings..

so anyone have horror stories about a SON20R blowing up on a 700c wheel? i'm about 155 lbs, wonder if it would work for me (no front load).

I saw a bicycle of Peter Weigle's back in June. He had mounted on a Schmidt hub that was designed for recumbents. He had a rectifier installed also, and said that this offered the lowest rolling resistance of any of the the dyno hubs he was aware of. It looked quite sharp also.

what's a rectifier?

The issue (as I understand it) with the 20R vs. the SON28 doesn't have to do with the strength of the build, but rather the electronics. The 20R is designed for a 16" rim, and a higher rotational speed for any given forward speed. When you put it on a 700c rim, it's going to spin much slower than expected for any given forward speed.
While an LED light may reach full brightness, a halogen light will still be dim even at a moderate speed.

That being said, I recently built a SON28 on a DT Swiss RR1.1 rim, and I'm driving a Supernova E3 light with it. I don't notice the drag at all when I'm riding. What I do notice (when I'm on super smooth pavement) is a very faint "humming" in the handlebar if I have the light on and I'm above 18mph. I haven't ridden a Shimano hub to compare, but the SON is every bit as smooth as the non-generator (Deore) it replaced on my Cross Check. It was easy to build on, the allen bolted skewer it stocks with is a clean looking touch, and the connectors are simple: Crimp the ends onto the wires, and slide them onto the prongs. (I've seen the Shimano connectors, and they look like they can be difficult. Mattm, any opinions on ease of connection with the Shimano?)

what's a rectifier?

Converts AC to DC power.

I don't see the benefit to running one, unless the guy was smoothing the output current and driving a DC (battery driven) light.

Perhaps the new LED lights have made the dynamos more attractive?
Regarding wheel size I think the dynamos for the small wheels have less poles, so they make the same power even though the wheel spins faster.
The new shimano 3N80 just might be as good as the schmidt, if you can find one (edit: dont think they do a disc model yet though).

my shimano hub also has that humming feeling, at about 30 km/h or so. i was hoping the SON wouldn't have that at all, but still sounds like its less.

the shimano connector isn't bad, but it has two plastic parts that could easily break or get lost. so i carry a spare one. but it keeps water out well.

sounds like the SON's connectors are a bit cleaner, not having to deal w/ exposed wires (for shimano you have to thread them through the connector-housing thingy.

edit: a note about what clifton mentioned in regards to the 20R: you're right, i've read that the 20r only reaches full brightness at 7.5 mph.. unfortunately many of my steep climbs are at speeds closer to 5.. so that one won't work for me.

Regarding riding slow - I've got a Lumotech Oval Plus with the optical sensor and standlight. It's pretty good all rounder for commuting, as it's wide at the bottom and narrow at towards the top of the beam. At stop lights the LED kicks on and lasts for 3-5 minutes.

Part of my commute has an 8% avg climb for a mile or so. During the winter when I've got full gear in the panniers, I rarely go much faster than 6mph and the light's been fine w/ my Shimano DH-3N71. That said I believe my light reaches full brightness around 10mph. It's plenty bright for me to see the pot holes and cars notice me while climbing at slow speeds.

edit: a note about what clifton mentioned in regards to the 20R: you're right, i've read that the 20r only reaches full brightness at 7.5 mph.. unfortunately many of my steep climbs are at speeds closer to 5.. so that one won't work for me.

The SON28/Supernova E3 combo is full bright at just over 4mph. I climb Novelty Hill on my commute home every day, and if I've got the panniers loaded with groceries, I'm not doing any more than 5mph coming up that hill.

On the flip side, to promote the limiting capacity of the combo: I sustain 40mph and I've hit 50mph coming down Novelty Hill and haven't obliterated any components either.

if you can find one (edit: dont think they do a disc model yet though).

They are available in Germany, check ebay.de and search for nabendynamo. I'm currently waiting for a disc version of 3N80.

factors influencing products being out of stock?

lts' see, it's august, 2008 stock has been selling since sept 2007 and 2009 products from shimano mostly haven't shipped yet.

I suspect shimano tools up once a year for dynohubs and doesnt try to resupply due to increased demand, compared to a supplemental mid year production run of cassettes or chains...

2008 is turning into a banner year for cycle commuting in america - racks and panniers are also in short supply. try to get a jannd expedition rack right now.....

anyone know the weights of the SON28 and the Shimano 3N71? or 3N80 for that matter?

I think the 71 is approx 650gm and the 80 500gms.

The SON28 is 610g (without skewer)
The 3N71 is 655g, and the 3N80 is 490g according to Shimano's press release. (http://cycle.shimano-eu.com/publish/content/cycle/seh/nl/en/news___info/news/shimano_develops_world.html)

The interesting thing with the 3N80 is the release of a 2.4V model for use without a wired tail-light.

The SON28 is 610g (without skewer)
The 3N71 is 655g, and the 3N80 is 490g according to Shimano's press release. (http://cycle.shimano-eu.com/publish/content/cycle/seh/nl/en/news___info/news/shimano_develops_world.html)

The interesting thing with the 3N80 is the release of a 2.4V model for use without a wired tail-light.

When I ordered a Lumotech Oval Plus from Harris Cyclery, it came stock with a 3v bulb, but as an accessory they sold 2.4v bulbs to mate with a .6 volt rear light. I opted out of the rear, since 2 AAA batteries on "blink" seem to last quite a long time (9 months+), and I didn't want to monkey around with routing wires and spending more $$$ for a new rear blinker.

Seems goofy for Shimano to tweak the dynamos output when you consider someone could swap a bulb. Perhaps they're thinking of LED users who can't change bulbs as halogens?

The SON28 is 610g (without skewer)
The 3N71 is 655g, and the 3N80 is 490g according to Shimano's press release. (http://cycle.shimano-eu.com/publish/content/cycle/seh/nl/en/news___info/news/shimano_develops_world.html)

The interesting thing with the 3N80 is the release of a 2.4V model for use without a wired tail-light.

hmm, if the 3n80 is actually lighter than the SON, i might just upgrade my current shimano dyno to the new one.. thx for the info!