nmanhipot

I'm looking to upgrade the hoops on my road disc cyclocross commuter. It has 130 mm road hub spacing AND Avid BB7 mechanical disc brakes which I am completely in love with for a multitude of reasons. So far, I only have two candidates for replacement hubs: Joy Tech (been there, done that, got the broken spokes and rusty bearings) and Phil Wood ($459 rear ONLY). The frame vendor, Schwinn, said not to put a 135 mm rear hub in there since it's an alloy frame. Does anybody know of other, hopefully less-expensive road disc hubs out there. Sure, I'd like to spring for the Phil's but we're talking about a $900 wheelset on a $1000 commuter. A local mechanic said it might be possible to pull a spacer out of an XT hub and dish the wheel appropriately. Other details are that rig and rider together weigh 250-260 depending on commute luggage. I average up to 19 mph in heavy traffic with mostly good paved road with only a few sections of rough pavement here and there. No curb jumping, bmxing, sand or off-roading of any kind. I'm putting ~1000 miles per month on the commuter and I have broken every 32-spoke wheel set I have ever ridden, so it's time for 36's. Thoughts? Thanks in advance!

cavernmech

i don't think removing a spacer would work as this would have to come from the disc side of the hub and change the disc standards. This would likely make the rotor a hassle to get centered in the caliper.
Perhaps check the spec sheets on similar bikes and see if there are any other options hub wise.
A well built 32 spoke wheel, with the right components, should be up to the task. I weigh 220 sans gear and dont have 36's on any of my bikes. Whatever you end up using for components, have the wheel built by a reputable wheel-builder and I would also suggest using DT Alpine spokes. These are butted but extra beefy spokes designed for this type of use. The Phil would likely last forever, so the cost while high would give you a wheel that could be used on future bikes. Front hubs are pretty much universal so no need to splurge on a fancy front. This would bring down the cost of the set.

Greg Fox

You might want to check this site out. https://www.yellowjersey.org/velocity.html The velocity wheels are pretty solid and most of the rims are available in a variety of spoke counts. They are also a knowlegable bunch to work with. While not the cheapest place around they're quite good at telling you what will work well in your price range as well as letting you know about alternatives to accomplish what you want.

nmanhipot

Thanks for the suggestions. I looked at some disc cyclocross bikes today and it looks like they're using 135 spacing now. That would have been good on mine as well. I would have a lot more options. Oh, well.