Originally Posted by
jdms mvp
how can you be worried about weight when you are lacing the hub to those H+son rims....
i call bulls.hit on this thread and will say go for dura ace because it'll be what you want... "bling"
+1 on everything said, but I'll bite and try to explain nicely why this is sounds like a bad plan.
Do not powdercoat hubs. It's a really bad idea and will probably render your hubs unusable. What you are after is anodized parts - that's what phil (and formula and iro - did you check these?) does with their colored hubs. Anyway, have fun with anodizing. It is going to require some work to break the hubs down and probably some $$ to get someone to anodize them the right color.
Also, avoid the exotic spoke work. I have built several 3L 3T wheels exactly like what is in that picture, and lots of regular for both myself and others. I know people have said that 3L 3T holds up well, and they might once built up, but it does bend the bejesus out of the spokes if you try to interlace (which I think is important), and they are much more of a pain to true during the build. These days, I am a huge fan of 2x front, 3x rear. Particularly with a high flange hub and deep profile rim (and therefore short spokes), interlacing a 3L 3T is going to kind of suck.