Announcing the new KH gear for June 2012

[danger_uni]

Hey All,

I'm happy to announce the improvements on KH gear for June 2012! More info and photos are posted at krisholm.com, with some photos attached here. The highlights:

All KH unicycles (except the KH20) are compatible with disk brakes.
See the new Spirit cranks, below.

New: Spirit Cranks
Disk Brake Version (road and muni). These cranks allow installation of a standard disk brake rotor on the right hand crank. Placing the disk rotor on the crank allows disk brake compatibility with a full strength wheel and an efficient pedalling stance. I'm really happy with these – they're beautiful and have worked really well in testing over the past year.
Lightweight. Over 25% lighter than Moment cranks (up to 34% lighter depending on the crank length and model year). Some weights: 110/137 (396 g), 127/150 (424 g)
Strong. We used stress modelling to maximize strength to weight ratio. The cranks are 7050 Aluminum – almost twice the yield strength of 6000 series Al. and tougher than 7075 Al.
Low profile. disk-mount (spider) is hardly noticeable if you choose not to use disk brakes
Compatible with standard disk rotors and most hydraulic disk brakes
No pedal inserts = no problems with loose inserts, with hard 7050 aluminum to resist pedal stripping
Outside face of the crank is optimized for shifting on the KH/Schlumpf hub.
Lengths: 110/127, 110/137 (new), 127/150, 137/165 (all double hole)

Non-Disk Version (trials, street, and flatland)
Lightweight yet strong – they feel like Moment cranks but noticeably lighter. Weight (137 mm): 406 g
Comfortable outer shape for avoiding bashed ankle bones
Rollo disk compatible
Lengths: 110 mm, 127 mm, 137 mm

Updates to Frames:
KH24, KH26, KH29, KH36 frames have International Standard (IS) disk caliper mounts (right side)
All frames have 2 mm narrower bearing housings, for disk brake compatibility. The reduction in width also slightly increases foot space for crank rolls.

New: Starfighter brake lever extension.
Strong, comfortable, and fits most brake levers
Shaped to be easy to grab without getting in the way
The Spooner is still the recommended choice for Magura HS-33 and HS-11 brakes

Improved: Brake attachment bracket.
Bracket is now angled at 6 degrees to move the brake lever slightly closer to the handle.

Updated: Rollo disks
Re-shaped to fit the Spirit Cranks. Old Rollo Disks do fit, but not as well.

Improved: Saddle covers (photo attached). The drawstring has been replaced with a simple velcro tab underneath the seatpost plate, sandwiched under the seatpost when installed. This eliminates the hanging drawstring and bulk of the knot under the rear bumper, and makes installation easier. The pattern has also been adjusted around the front 4 bolts to help keep fabric away from the bolt holes. For June 2012 I've returned to having the covers with smooth synthetic leather for main top panel.

A few people I'd like to thank:
Carl Hoyer for his work at krisholm.com
Terry MacLachlan and Rob Moore (former Raceface cranks engineer) for detailed design on the cranks
Jeff Putnam of MountainUni. I've been thinking about crank-mount disk brakes for 10 years, but I'd like to acknowledge that Jeff was the first to commercially release this type of system. It's hard to be first, and I want to acknowledge his efforts.

Let me know what you think...=)

Kris

[bouin-bouin]

Well done again Kris !

[MadFurai]

I love the look of the new spirit cranks. Does it have the same q-factor as the moments? I didn't see that mentioned anywhere.

[Feisty]

The cranks look very nice but I think there maybe some unhappiness about the lack of longer non disk cranks (I was hoping for a 150mm non disc) also all the disc cranks being double hole is a shame aesthetically. I understand that with our small market you can't afford to make every permutation.

I am also glad I bought a frame before the disc mount was added as running an internal disc I would have redundant magura and disc mounts Can you do me one with a left mount

It all looks fantastic as your products always do but for me as an Internal disc user this product refresh doesn't offer me much (although it will for many I am sure).

Time to buy that KH29" without a disc mount and pop it in the cupboard and maybe a spare kh26 frame

Thanks as ever though

[danger_uni]

They have 12 mm Q-Factor (similar to Profile Cranks). Moment Cranks had 10 mm Q-Factor. The additional 2 mm is needed to clear the brake caliper. There is 20 mm clearance between the rotor and cranks. If it appears that they have more, it's because the back face is cut away more than Moment Cranks.

In practice, they are effectively the same - you don't notice any difference when riding.

Attached are assembly instructions for the disk cranks, where you can see further details on how it all fits together.

A major amount of work was put into the tight tolerances required to efficiently fit the caliper between the spokes and the inside face of the crank. A lot of detail work was also put into the rotor-mount (spider), for aesthetics (e.g. to blend the rotor into the crank) and to maintain strength. I wanted to keep it low profile so that the cranks are a worthy upgrade irrespective of whether you care about disk brakes.

As far as the external rotor goes, it works incredibly well. Early in testing, I was concerned about hitting my ankle on it, but even when "trying" to hit the rotor, I can't do it. It just works. One of those rare times when you get to have both light weight and strength at the same time.

The aesthetics of the double hole look good in real life. I think that a lot of riders may like the new 110/137 size.

[bouin-bouin]

Kris, in order to avoid buying a new frame, is it feasible to modify a current frame for bolt disc clearance and use a Nimbus D-Brake to fit the caliper as done by Roger Davies on a Penny Farthing ?

[MJS]

The new lineup looks great, Kris.

Any idea as to when these items will start showing up in various shops?

I think the 110/ 137 dual-hole cranks are going to be awesome for 36ers, one set of cranks for road and muni!

Thanks for the work that you put in to constantly develop better gear!

[danger_uni]

A D'brake should work. It's possible you might need to grind the outside face of the bearing housing a little bit, if the rotor bolts hit the frame.
Grinding the frame is definitely required if you want to retrofit to a KH/Schlumpf hub, because the cranks sit about 2 mm closer to the frame.
Please note the important warning about using the disk-compatible setup with the KH/Schlumpf hub (scroll down to red warning).

[danger_uni]

Originally Posted by MJS

The new lineup looks great, Kris.

Any idea as to when these items will start showing up in various shops?

It depends on the country. Most places should have it online in 1-2 weeks.

Kris

[steveyo]

Kris - this stuff looks great, and has me trying to decide which unis to sell, which to keep, maybe move the Schlumpf to another wheel. Ugh.

Any idea of the MSRPs of this new gear, e.g. cranks, frames, whole unis?

[MuniOrBust]

Am I the only one who feels a need to buy a Starfighter just to play with it?

Nice looking stuff.

[uniShark]

Kris, the cranks are gorgeous!

[uniShark]

Originally Posted by MuniOrBust

Am I the only one who feels a need to buy a Starfighter just to play with it?

Nice looking stuff.

I wasn't sure whether it would it would be appropriate to comment on the desire to play with a new extension in that location.

[dmacuni]

I concur; the new cranks look sweet. Looking fwd to getting my paws on a set of the 110/137's for my guni. Any photos around of the disc mount frame?

As per usual, outstanding work on the development of this new gear, and for keeping everyone in suspense (well at least me) awaiting the product release.

Cheers,

Dan

[danger_uni]

Attached are a couple of photos installed with a KH/Schlumpf hub.

One is a closeup of the shifter button. Note how the angled edge on the outside face of the crank lines up with the button profile. This helps avoid catching your heel on the crank when heel shifting. Like the Moment cranks, hiding the button within the outwards flare of the crank helps prevent accidental shifts.