Groovy Cycle Works Hot Rod Cranks in Stock!

After nearly a year of waiting, we finally received our first batch of Groovy Cycle Works Hot Rod cranks. These tubular chromoly steel cranks are hand made in Wooster, OH and weigh 712g. A 24mm diameter axle is attached to the drive side arm and the non-drive side arm is secured to the axle using two 5mm Allen-head pinch bolts. A three-lobed polygon interface is used between the non-drive arm and the axle for high torque transfer capability. The 24mm axle is compatible with external bearing bottom brackets from Chris King, Hope, Acros, Enduro, Race Face, Shimano, and others.

A precision machined spider is attached to the drive side arm using three small screws around the axle and one large bolt that anchors into the crank arm. The spider will accept a chainring or a Gates Carbon Drive belt pulley. The crank arms have a durable ceramic coating that eliminates chipping or heel-rub concerns common with other finishes.

Rody at Groovy Cycle Works makes a very limited number of these cranksets each year and we were lucky to get a small batch of them. Neil has been riding a prototype version of the cranks since 2008 and an early production pair since 2011 and has been very impressed with them. While these are not the lightest cranks on the market, they are certainly not heavy. They are ultra stiff and offer a unique addition to any bike build.

We currently have 4 pairs of Hot Rods available in 175mm length with a dark grey finish and 4-bolt, 104mm BCD spider. These are all custom made for the 54mm chainline of the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14. Price is $440. Chainrings, Gates Carbon Drive belt pulleys, and external bearing bottom brackets can also be supplied. Please contact us to let us know what you need.

Rohloff-Equipped, Motorized Surly Big Dummy Cargo Bike

This custom painted Surly Big Dummy hybrid was done for a customer in San Francisco, CA who was looking for an alternative to using his car for day to day activities. The Big Dummy offered the cargo space that he needed and the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 offered wide gear range and a maintenance-free drivetrain, but getting up and over the steep hills in San Francisco was a challenge, especially with heavy loads. The Stoke Monkey electric assist motor from Clever Cycles offered the extra boost that was needed to make car-free errands a reality.

For the wheels on this bike, we laced up the Rohloff rear hub and a Phil Wood front disc hub into Alex DX32 rims using Sapim Race double butted spokes and brass nipples. The DX32 rim is very wide at 39.1mm but relatively shallow at 15.7mm. This is one of our favorite rims for cargo bikes as the wide profile opens the tire up to spread the load better and the thick spoke bed and sidewalls provide the strength and durability to handle heavy loads.

Stolen Bike - Custom Bilenky Rohloff-Equipped Longtail Fat Bike

One of our customers had this bike stolen in downtown San Francisco last week while on his way to visit NAHBS. This has stranded him in Northern California in the middle of his tour. The bike is very distinctive - basically a cross-breed of a Surly Big Dummy and a Pugsley - and was made by Bilenky. It has a Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 on the back and huge Surly tires. The frame fits a small or extra small rider. Please help spread the word on this bike by posting this photo to bike boards and social media sites. If anyone notices this bike, please call your local police to report is stolen and notify Matt by email at thesandystretch@yahoo.com.

*** Update ***
Matt recovered his bike after a month of searching: http://cyclemonkeylab.blogspot.com/2012/04/recovered-bike.html.