Opinions on "On-One Pompetamine Alfine 11 Speed" please.

quenching

Anyone care to offer an opinion on this On-One Pompetamine Alfine 11 Speed as a commuter bike. I know nothing of on-one so any advice appreciated, I like the idea of the Alfine 11 hub gears but have never actually tried one!

Lumen

The 11sp Alfine is supposedly a more refined, better engineered product than the cheaper 8sp. The gearing gaps are much the same (so it's still quite gappy) but the range is wider - probably unnecessarily wide unless you have a very hilly commute.

I am considering the Versa version with drop bars, but it's not yet available with the 11sp hub (although 11sp Versa shifters are now available). There's a similar offering from Genesis - the Day 01 Alfine.

The Avid BB7 are a well regarded mechanical disc brake. They're apparently fairly straightforward to set up although heavier than rim brakes.

IMO the main advantage of discs on a drop bar road bike is that you can run big tyres with drop bar shifters without the compromises of v-brakes or cantis. The same advantages don't apply if you're using flat bars, as flat bar brake levers work fine with rim brakes.

Hub gears will tend to be lower maintainance (until they go wrong), and if you can live with the gappiness and the small extra drivetrain resistance. They do make the wheel part of your drivetrain though, so if you have a problem with your wheel you're a bit screwed - you're unlikely to have a spare hub geared wheel lying around, and they're not cheap.

The other advantage of a hub gear is that you can fit a chain guard and cycle without trouser clips (if you're a trousery sort of cyclist) and without the risk of frediculous chainring tattoos.

Ideally I'd spec the bike with mudguards, a front dynamo hub and dynamo-driven LED lights. It should then be completely fuss-free all year round.

High Nellie

That hub looks great. I want one - but it looks around 500E.

quenching

Lumen wrote: »

The 11sp Alfine is supposedly a more refined, better engineered product than the cheaper 8sp. The gearing gaps are much the same (so it's still quite gappy) but the range is wider - probably unnecessarily wide unless you have a very hilly commute.

I am considering the Versa version with drop bars, but it's not yet available with the 11sp hub (although 11sp Versa shifters are now available). There's a similar offering from Genesis - the Day 01 Alfine.

The Avid BB7 are a well regarded mechanical disc brake. They're apparently fairly straightforward to set up although heavier than rim brakes.

IMO the main advantage of discs on a drop bar road bike is that you can run big tyres with drop bar shifters without the compromises of v-brakes or cantis. The same advantages don't apply if you're using flat bars, as flat bar brake levers work fine with rim brakes.

Hub gears will tend to be lower maintainance (until they go wrong), and if you can live with the gappiness and the small extra drivetrain resistance. They do make the wheel part of your drivetrain though, so if you have a problem with your wheel you're a bit screwed - you're unlikely to have a spare hub geared wheel lying around, and they're not cheap.

The other advantage of a hub gear is that you can fit a chain guard and cycle without trouser clips (if you're a trousery sort of cyclist) and without the risk of frediculous chainring tattoos.

Ideally I'd spec the bike with mudguards, a front dynamo hub and dynamo-driven LED lights. It should then be completely fuss-free all year round.

Thanks for the reply Lumen, can I assume from the fact that you're considering an On-One bike at all that they're a decent brand? The Genesis bike looks good too but I'm not keen on drop bars and they don't seem to do a flat bar version. I'm quite happy with the V brakes on my current Giant CRS Alliance so can do without discs, in fact I think I'd prefer NOT to have them, I have a Giant Terrago Disc mountain bike and I'm not that impressed with the brakes at all. My commute is uphill all the way home, the last bit up Stocking Lane which is hilly enough for me at the end of the day, so the wide range of the 11sp appeals, I'd have a Rohloff hub if paying the price would let me sleep at night afterwards!

Have to say the "glow in the dark" paint option on the Pompetamine sounds a bit odd though.

Planet X

I've got a Charge Mixer, 8 speed Alfine, discs etc. for commuting and love it. Wiggle last Jan. for about €650.
32mm tyres, straight bar.

http://s.wiggle.co.uk/images/charge-mixer-10-zoom.jpg


Put mudguards and a Tubus Cosmo rack on mine.

It's a sweet rack! SS.

Lumen

Some time ago I decided I wanted a disc braked, hub geared, drop bar, dynamo lit road bike with clearance for big tyres and mudguards, to use as my main all-season commuter and non-racing bike.

Disc brakes can in principle provide good braking performance without any rim clearance issues, so you can run big tyres and still have good braking. Additionally, with the braking moved to the wheel centres there should be no issues with wet weather performance and winter grit/slime.

With the rim freed of braking duties, you can use a nice light 29er rim, which should compensate a little for the rotating mass of the larger tyres.

For the drivetrain, a hub gear provides several advantages: the drivetrain can be better enclosed because there is no derailleur, and there no jockey wheels to get fouled up. I did a lot of reading on hub gears, and liked what I read about the Shimano Alfine 11. It has good range, nice gaps (11%) and better operating characteristics than the 8sp version.

Drop bars and integrated brakes/shifters are ergonomically superior to flat bars, so that's a given. Eventually Versa released an 11sp version of their drop bar shifters, which I believe are a modified version of a Microshift shifter design. Game on.

I wanted to buy a complete bike, but none of the usual suspects (Genesis and On One, specifically) were saying when they'd have an 11sp version out, so I decided to build my own based on an On One Pompetamine frameset.

The build has taken me so long that On One have now released a complete build very like mine, the On-One Pompetamine Versa 11 Speed Pro.

http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/CBOOPOMPETVERSA11/on-one-pompetamine-versa-11-speed-pro

Mine is better.

Part of the delay in my build was down to problems with the disc brakes. I ordered 140mm/160mm rotors, but I just couldn't get the 140 to fit at the rear, and I also had problems getting the brakes working well. I fixed this by moving to 180mm rotors front and rear and using non-compressible brake housing. Cable operated disc brakes need extremely careful setup, particularly with drop bar shifters.

Anyway, the result is quite pleasing.

The only downsides over my summer commuter (7.3kg titanium racer) are:

- It weighs 13.6kg :eek:. This is precisely double the UCI minimum weight (ironically).
- There is a lot of toe overlap.

...and that's it. There is no feeling of drag from the hub gear or dynamo (on or off), the shifting works surprisingly well (although upshifting in the drops is difficult due to the small lever and my short fingers). The brakes work very well now that I've set them up and bedded them in properly.

I've done one commute on it so far. The ride quality is excellent and the drivetrain is exceptionally smooth and quiet. The weight made it harder work and a little less accelerative than a 7kg race bike, but I'm happy enough with the result.

I have a lot of room to play with on the steerer. The head tube is short, and I could achieve the same position as my road bike, but it's currently set up with an accessory bar, maybe for more lights.

It's very heavy. Did I mention that? The wheels alone are something like 3.5kg, without tyres and tubes, and the frameset is 3.2kg claimed. I could probably drop 2.5kg with a custom frame and different finishing kit, but I'm not sure there's much point since the result would be more fragile and nickable.

There is still some work to do. I want to double wrap the bars, as the bars are quite thin, the Brooks tape is quite hard and I ride without gloves. And I need to secure the wheels (with Pitlocks, probably) since they're the most expensive bits.

Build list:

Frame: OnOne Pompetamine Urban Frame 2011
Fork: OnOne Pompetamine Steel Fork
Shifters: Versa VRS11 STI
Brakes: Avid BB7 Road Disc, Shimano Deore RT62 Centrelock 180mm Rotor
Front hub: Shimano LX T665 6v 30w Dynamo Front Disc
Rear hub: Shimano Alfine 11
Rims: Stans ZTR Crest 32h
Spokes: DT Competition 290mm/288mm, silver brass nips
Tyres: Schwalbe Kojak Asphalt 35mm
Tubes: Schwalbe Extralight Tube SV18
Front light: Busch + Müller Lumotec IQ Cyo Senso Plus
Rear light: Busch & Muller 4D-Lite Plus
Chain guard: SKS Chainboard
Mud buards: SKS Chromoplastics
Chainset: Shimano FC-S500 Alfine 2-Piece Chainset 170mm
Chain: KMC S1 Singlespeed Chain
Headset: FSA Orbit Xtreme, Hope Head Doctor
Seatpost: Brand-X Alloy Micro Adjust, Thomson Seat Collar
Bars: 3TTT Ergo Power MEX, plus Thorn accessory bar
Stem: 3TTT Forge Ahead Stem
Saddle: Charge Spoon
Bar tape: Brooks leather
Pedals: Speedplay FROG Chromoly

Many thanks to Keep_Her_Lit for the drilling/tapping kit I used to fit the front light to the fork, and Holyboy at Bee Cycles for the excellent wheel build.



More photos (with an without chainguard) here:

http://s856.photobucket.com/albums/ab129/lumen_boards_ie/On%20One%20Pompetamine%20Alfine%2011/

kenmc

Looks great Lumen. I presume the rear wheel is non-q/r? Bit of a pita in the event of a puncture, what do you use to remove it?
K
edit:nice job wrapping the front fork - I presumed it was some sort of shrink wrap till I looked closely!

G rock

looks great.

i have a plain pompino. jealous now...

tomasrojo

Looks really fine. (Though perhaps coming from me, that might give you pause.)

Lumen wrote: »

it's currently set up with an accessory bar, maybe for more lights

That's the T-bar extending forward from the steering tube?

enas

Wow, that's pretty much my dream bike. Except I would be unable, both technically and from a time availability point of view, to build the same.

One question, how happy are you with the light setup? In particular, the amount of light you're getting with the front one? Apologies if you've already answered this in another thread, I haven't been very regular lately.

Lumen

kenmc wrote: »

I presume the rear wheel is non-q/r? Bit of a pita in the event of a puncture, what do you use to remove it?

Normal track nuts, just the same as a fixer/singlespeed. For now I carry a cone spanner. When I get a chance I'll order a little track nut spanner. The cable nut just pops out from the gear housing. HolyBoy reckons those Kojaks are puncture magnets, so I guess I'll find out soon enough.

kenmc wrote: »

nice job wrapping the front fork - I presumed it was some sort of shrink wrap till I looked closely!

Thanks, it's plain black electrical tape. I used heatshrink on the dynamo cable crimps - the wiring was one of the least frustrating parts of the build.

tomasrojo wrote:

Looks really fine. (Though perhaps coming from me, that might give you pause.)

Thanks, it's the closest I can bring myself to a utility bike. I even thought of putting a rack and flat pedals on it, but that was a step too far.

tomasrojo wrote: »

That's the T-bar extending forward from the steering tube?

Yes. I might replace it with a steeper angled one to get more clearance so I can drop the bars further down the stack.

Lumen

enas wrote: »

Wow, that's pretty much my dream bike. Except I would be unable, both technically and from a time availability point of view, to build the same.

It did take a very, very long time to build, though much of that was due to ordering the wrong parts, getting the wheels together, and drilling/tapping the fork. Shimano aren't great with publishing hub dimensions.

enas wrote: »

One question, how happy are you with the light setup? In particular, the amount of light you're getting with the front one? Apologies if you've already answered this in another thread, I haven't been very regular lately.

I haven't been out at night, but the front light is specced at 60 lux @ 10m, which is only 20 lux less than the twin B&M battery lights I used last winter. I can light up my dark kitchen by spinning the front wheel, and the standlight function seems to work well.

enas

Lumen wrote: »

the standlight function seems to work well.

How much time can you get out of it? I'm getting more and more interested in such a setup (if it wasn't for the custom wheel build...).

Lumen

enas wrote: »

How much time can you get out of it? I'm getting more and more interested in such a setup (if it wasn't for the custom wheel build...).

According to this it's four minutes:

http://www.ecovelo.info/2009/08/16/busch-ller-iq-cyo-r-n-plus/

It seems to charge up again in a few seconds. The standlight is dimmer than the cycling-along beam, and isn't very bright off-axis.

I'll probably use a front white blinkie. They don't seem to be available as dynamo lights. Maybe they're illegal.

You can buy built dynamo wheels.

c0rk3r

On-One Pompetamine Alfine 11 Speed

Is the name some insiders joke ? "1-1 amphetamine all fine speed" was what i thought when i first saw the name.

kenmc

Lumen wrote: »

Yes. I might replace it with a steeper angled one to get more clearance so I can drop the bars further down the stack.

I have one that mounts on the handlebars rather than being on the steerer tube, it'd give you an even lower stack height. think I got it on wiggle

Lumen

c0rk3r wrote: »

Is the name some insiders joke ? "1-1 amphetamine all fine speed" was what i thought when i first saw the name.

I think it sort of means "BJ on speed".

penexpers

Lumen wrote: »

I'll probably use a front white blinkie. They don't seem to be available as dynamo lights. Maybe they're illegal.

Blinkies are illegal in Germany and most (all?) dynamo lights come from Germany.

Diarmuid

Love it!

Holyboy

It's like a tank!!!

But a lovely tank:D

I'm impressed with the whole build, have been saying to myself I'll build something similar, but if I ever get round to it, it will be a bit more old skool, I probably never will though.

Congrats though it's an awesome build.

rogue.goofball

quenching wrote: »

Anyone care to offer an opinion on this On-One Pompetamine Alfine 11 Speed as a commuter bike.
...

howdy, is this the colour of the 'glow in the dark' white ? It doesnt look very white to me, has anyone seen one in real life (in day time).
On the website, the normal white one looks pink to me, or maybe it is just very late

rogue.goofball

Lumen wrote: »

...

***********************
03-09-2011 13:41 tomasrojo
What's the T-bar extending forward from the steering tube?
***********************

Yes. I might replace it with a steeper angled one to get more clearance so I can drop the bars further down the stack.

Hi Lumen,
I still don't know what the T-Bar does, could you explain it's purpose?

Any more feedback on the gear range and the bike in general.
I tried a CUBE Hooper/Editor the other day, and while I was only on it for a few minutes the steps in gear seemed fine (in fact maybe not enough of a step?).
I worry that I will get stuck on a decent sized hill, as it would appear that my current bike (which has only 18 gears), and without using the small cog at the front (now down to 12 and only ~9 effective) still has a lower range than the alfine.
Cheers.

Raam

It's for attaching lights n stuff too.

rogue.goofball

ta.

rp

Holyboy wrote: »

It's like a tank!!!

Shouldn't be too tankish : my bike is essentially an ungeared version of that bike, and weighs in at 8.5kg, so with the Alfine11 that should make it about 10kg?

But a lovely tank:D

Looks even better in real life (Lumen used those 11 gears to beat me away from the lights - no fair!)

Lumen

rogue.goofball wrote: »

I still don't know what the T-Bar does, could you explain it's purpose?

Currently hosting a bell (see below).

rogue.goofball wrote: »

Any more feedback on the gear range and the bike in general...I worry that I will get stuck on a decent sized hill, as it would appear that my current bike (which has only 18 gears), and without using the small cog at the front (now down to 12 and only ~9 effective) still has a lower range than the alfine

The Alfine gears are non-overlapping. The range is 409%. I did read that the gaps were 11%, but I'm questioning that now, maths would suggest an average jump of 15%.

Anyway, a road triple (30-39-53) with a 12-25 cassette has a range of about 370%, so there ought to be more range than you would ever need.

rp wrote: »

Shouldn't be too tankish : my bike is essentially an ungeared version of that bike, and weighs in at 8.5kg, so with the Alfine11 that should make it about 10kg?

I weighed it at 13.6kg when first built. The Quarg crankset and SRAM Red BB might have shaved off a bit. :pac:

On that subject, I had to ditch the chainguard when I put on the power meter as the BB mount doesn't work with the SRAM bottom bracket. The chainline is also off a couple of mm so I need to work out a way to offset the chainring.

Lumen

Found a gear chart here...

You can move the range to the left or right using a different sized chainring.

AstraMonti

It's great Lumen! A job really well done.

Raam

I wouldn't want to get run over by it, that's for sure.

petethedrummer

Is it the first bike with a power meter and a bell?

Idleater

Lumen wrote: »

I even thought of putting a rack ... on it, but that was a step too far.

Lovely bike, and congrats on persevering getting it built. Just wondering about your consideration for the above. My lovely Soma is now adorned with mudguards etc. so the obvious next step for me was to remove the (albeit light) bag from my back. I only take my lunch and wallet/glasses etc most days, but I still notice the bag on my back.

I mean, I know they are uncool, but shunned on winter training spins for having a pannier rack? It's not possible right?

Lumen

Idleater wrote: »

My lovely Soma is now adorned with mudguards etc. so the obvious next step for me was to remove the (albeit light) bag from my back. I only take my lunch and wallet/glasses etc most days, but I still notice the bag on my back.

I mean, I know they are uncool, but shunned on winter training spins for having a pannier rack? It's not possible right?

I can fit a rack but I only need to carry stuff when commuting and I can't use a pannier for fear of destroying my laptop.

I used to hate carrying weight on my back but it's a necessary "skill" for club racing season so I decided this year to HTFU and get used to it.

Idleater

erm, your first reason I can understand, but as for the "skill" of carrying weight on your back for club racing???

Wasn't it Antequil that removed the bottles from the cages and put them in his pockets to lighten the bike for the Alps. Yes the total weight is the same, but the bike is lighter.

I'm going to go for the "bricks in the pannier" to HTFU.

Lumen

Idleater wrote: »

erm, your first reason I can understand, but as for the "skill" of carrying weight on your back for club racing???

The weight is only on my back getting to the race, because my race bike has no rack. Then it goes in someone's car.

If I'm not used to the weight I arrive at the race hurty and grouchy.

DePurpereWolf

That's a lovely bike Lumen.

I have a Cube Hooper for 1.5 year now and I'm very happy with it. For commuting the 8-speed Alfine is perfect. I do take it on longer runs involving some steep hills sometimes. Going up the hill, the 1st gear is just barely enough. Going down hill at high speed, the 8th gear is not enough, you would want a 9th or 10th. That said, in the 8th gear flat out you would probably already go 50 to 60 km/h.

I would expect the 11-speed to be almost on par with normal gearing. You get very used to the gappyness. Who really needs 27 intervals anyway.

The beauty is that it hardly needs any maintenance and always shifts good.

I find it very enjoyable accelarating at the traffic lights. I normally start at gear 3 and go right up to gear 7 without any pause in my cadence.

AstraMonti

You gave me an idea with that rear hub now. Would a wheel built on it fit the Tricross singlecross or it needs normal clearance in the rear triangle?

Lumen

AstraMonti wrote: »

You gave me an idea with that rear hub now. Would a wheel built on it fit the Tricross singlecross or it needs normal clearance in the rear triangle?

My Alfine hub is the disc brake version. I'm not sure how it would work without a rotor attached. Also, the frame spacing is 135mm, which is unusual for a cross bike.

You'd also need to look at the chainline.

rogue.goofball

DePurpereWolf wrote: »

...
I have a Cube Hooper for 1.5 year now and I'm very happy with it. For commuting the 8-speed Alfine is perfect.
...

Do you know if the brakes on the CUBE Hooper have stayed the same all the way through production?
The one I tested the other day (may be a bit wrecked as a shop tester) seemed a bit 'rubbery' when I pulled the brakes, there was a definite lag from pullling them (the lever had to travel a fair distance) to the bike really slowing, so I didn't get that wow factor I had been expecting (I never used disk brakes before).

Other minor question, how do you find the handlebar grips, again they seemed a bit loose on the one I was on.


Now back on topic, does anyone stock ON-ONE in Ireland, or does it have to come from the UK?

Lumen

rogue.goofball wrote: »

Do you know if the brakes on the CUBE Hooper have stayed the same all the way through production?
The one I tested the other day (may be a bit wrecked as a shop tester) seemed a bit 'rubbery' when I pulled the brakes, there was a definite lag from pullling them (the lever had to travel a fair distance) to the bike really slowing, so I didn't get that wow factor I had been expecting (I never used disk brakes before).

Disc brakes set up properly, with flat bar levers, should throw you over the handlebars easily.

Cable-actuated (as opposed to hydraulic) disc brakes need compressionless cable housing to work really well, otherwise flex in the cable outer robs some of the effective lever travel.

I've seen a Cube with Alfine 11 in Cyclesuperstore (I assumed it was a Hyde rather than a Hooper, not sure what the difference is) and it looked fantastic. It had hydraulic brakes and a very trick looking eccentric bottom bracket, which should make brake setup much easier.

Ryath

rogue.goofball wrote: »

Now back on topic, does anyone stock ON-ONE in Ireland, or does it have to come from the UK?

The guys who do Planet X's in Athlone can get them
http://planetxireland.com/

DePurpereWolf

rogue.goofball wrote: »

Do you know if the brakes on the CUBE Hooper have stayed the same all the way through production?
The one I tested the other day (may be a bit wrecked as a shop tester) seemed a bit 'rubbery' when I pulled the brakes, there was a definite lag from pullling them (the lever had to travel a fair distance) to the bike really slowing, so I didn't get that wow factor I had been expecting (I never used disk brakes before).

Other minor question, how do you find the handlebar grips, again they seemed a bit loose on the one I was on.


Now back on topic, does anyone stock ON-ONE in Ireland, or does it have to come from the UK?

The brakes work fine and are just your average shimano hydraulic disc brakes. As of the 'wow' factor. You do have to squeeze it but that's a feature rather than a short coming, this way you can dose your braking. I've never had a situation in which I needed better brakes, The tyres will slip before the disc will.
After 1,5 years I now start to feel a tiny bit of wiggle with the handle bar grips. So I would say very good for standard grips, you can always replace them with better ones.

The Cube hyde is with V-brakes and nexus hub I believe but it varies by year.
They would all have eccentric BB's and setting up the brakes is really easy, they self level and you just have to adjust the lever a bit.
If there is grease on the brake pads it would feel rubbery I think, that might be the problem with the bike in the shop.

bobinski

Hya,
lovely build!

i have the pompi versa pro 11 speed and the same dynamo light. How did you attach yours? did you have to drill the front fork?
cheers
Bob

CramCycle

Not to worry you in any way Lumen but someone, possibly using an online monicker like "CramCycle", is going to steal that bike, he will leave you a ****ty 2nd hand bike but one way or the other, I he will have that bike :pac:

canhascheez

AstraMonti wrote: »

You gave me an idea with that rear hub now. Would a wheel built on it fit the Tricross singlecross or it needs normal clearance in the rear triangle?

Same idea in mind here, same frame infact. Check out the sturmey archer hubs, they seem better suited to 120mm spacing.

Lumen

bobinski wrote: »

i have the pompi versa pro 11 speed and the same dynamo light. How did you attach yours? did you have to drill the front fork?

Yes, I drilled and tapped it. It was very difficult. The drilling was taking ages even with a titanium somethingorother coated bit. Then in frustration I snapped the drill bit, and that worked much better.

Tapping was fine except that I hadn't drilled it straight, so I had to re-drill it and tap at 6mm.

With a 6mm thread the M6 bolt is a bit wobbly, no idea why, but once it's all bolted together it's fine.

I probably should have listened to Holyboy and bought an under-crown clamp, like this or this or this.

rp

Lumen wrote: »

I probably should have listened to Holyboy and bought an under-crown clamp, like this or this or this.

I use a Hope mounting bracket, that replaces the stem face-plate, as a tidy solution. Another option is a bar mount, from, e.g., Reise & Mueller

Keep_Her_Lit

Lumen wrote: »

Tank bike

That's a really superb build and a very distinctive result. Looks like an absolute Rolls Royce for the winter commute. Well wear!

- It weighs 13.6kg :eek:. This is precisely double the UCI minimum weight (ironically).

That made me wonder what my own monstrosity weighs. I checked and it's a mere whippet at 13.1kg! [incl. rack, mudguards & lights]

The weight made it harder work and a little less accelerative than a 7kg race bike, but I'm happy enough with the result.

Seems like a reasonable trade-off, considering all that extra weight is pure quality. Once you've got used to it, unless you're really hammering along or tackling a proper climb, I think you won't even notice its portliness. That said, it will be a very pleasant surprise to hop back onto a 7.3kg racer come springtime. Until then, enjoy the creamy smooth, maintenance-free ride!

droidus

Lumen wrote: »

Currently hosting a bell (see below).



The Alfine gears are non-overlapping. The range is 409%. I did read that the gaps were 11%, but I'm questioning that now, maths would suggest an average jump of 15%.

Anyway, a road triple (30-39-53) with a 12-25 cassette has a range of about 370%, so there ought to be more range than you would ever need.



I weighed it at 13.6kg when first built. The Quarg crankset and SRAM Red BB might have shaved off a bit. :pac:

On that subject, I had to ditch the chainguard when I put on the power meter as the BB mount doesn't work with the SRAM bottom bracket. The chainline is also off a couple of mm so I need to work out a way to offset the chainring.

Beautiful work. Looks like the perfect commuter.

droidus

Sorry to bump this agin, but this is my new dream bike.



Dont think I could even think to attempt to build one myself - but how difficult would it be to get a 2nd set of break levers fitted for the flats - or is it one or the other?

penexpers

droidus wrote: »

Dont think I could even think to attempt to build one myself - but how difficult would it be to get a 2nd set of break levers fitted for the flats - or is it one or the other?

In my (limited) experience, for normal brakes (read: v-brakes or cantis) it's very easy. For road calipers and road disk brakes, I'm not too sure.

Lumen

droidus wrote: »

but how difficult would it be to get a 2nd set of break levers fitted for the flats - or is it one or the other?

You can add interruptor levers, but (a) they're not really necessary, and (b) mechanical disc brakes are quite sensitive to compression of the cable outer, so having additional crap (ferrules etc) inline isn't going to make brake setup any easier.