Hiya. Sorry for the weird question, but I am putting together a cross bike for general purpose riding, mostly road but some minor trail stuff, based on a Surly crosscheck frameset. I am kind of a loser in that I really want all black wheels -- hubs, spokes, nipples, rims, etc. A basic, sturdy and not too heavy set is fine, nothing too fancy necessary, will be running 700c x 28 tires probably, maybe 32. Are there any good sources on the web for pre-built wheels that may fit the bill here? I'm reluctant to go to the trouble of getting a custom wheel built when I'm not that picky about the specific components, but it does seem a bit tricky to get the full-black treatment in the prebuilt packages I've seen. I am kind of going for a post-industrial mad max type thing, if that doesn't seem too ridiculous. I have a pretty nice Serotta and this will be the ugly urban stepchild.

Thanks in advance for any tips, I know I'm being shallow ;-)

Will

I have all black Velocity wheels, except for the nipples. They don't sell to the general public, so you have to go through a dealer.

https://velocityusa.com

Here's something:

https://tinyurl.com/kb5cw

I wouldn't want them unless the garish graphics are stickers that can be peeled off.

From the thread title I thought you wanted "African-American" built wheels. Oops. If this is going to be some kind of Frankenbike you could just paint it yourself. Think twice before painting the area where the brake pads touch the rims. Powdercoating might survive there. Too nice a job might make you a target for theft.

I'm not 100% sure this is for you, but Peter White Cycles (https://www.peterwhitecycles.com/index.html) used to sell a "stealth" all-black wheelset, with Velocity rims. I can't find it on their website anymore though, so you'd have to contact him.

Show us pics when you're done, I like all-black bikes

Could be the "All Blacks" NZ Rugby team. Pretty white looking for a team with that name. Why not build them up from scratch?

If you're using rim brakes I wouldn't bet on the brakeing surfaces staying black for very long.

I hate pre-built (or factory wheels) seems like the spokes never stay tight.

Like they never put on anything on the threads when they, (or a machine) builds it.

I am replacing a rear wheel for this very same reason, gonna build my own, I learned the hard way, trying to take the easy way out. Grrrrrrrrrrr

At least I will be able to re-use the rear hub.

Good Luck to ya

I just built a set of all blacks for myself (nipples and all) - so I approve of your color choice. I'd suggest supporting your local bike shop, by calling them and asking them if they have anyone who builds wheels in staff, and just ordering a pair. The parts you need for an all black wheel are readily available to anyone. At least where I live just about every shop has a fanatic wheel builder, and would be happy for the buisness.

Likewise you can probably find an independant wheel builder on line I'd guess.

www.gaansari.com

black should be no problem. There was a set of lime-green ones in the shop too when I popped in this past weekend. Gary's currently running a pretty good sale as he packs up to move as well

I have a set of Velocity Thracian disc-specific wheels on my lowracer. They're all black, including the sidewalls. The disc rotor, unfortunately, is silver. They are two years old, about 8000 miles, and have never needed adjustments in spite of the low spoke count. I highly recommend Velocity. They're handbuilt, they roll smoothly, they're durable, and they are not outlandishly expensive.

Thanks for all the tips folks, I think I'm going to get them built by my LBS finally. Velocity Fusion rims and still picking the hubs. I'll post some pics when done ;-)