Fans of Noble Wheels were likely disappointed to hear that the one-man operation out of London was sitting down last November. Noble was originally a wheel builder who transitioned to making some impressive tools for building wheels, rebuilding hubs, and more. The tools were so impressive that Jason from Abbey Bike Tools took notice, and offered to acquire Noble’s entire catalog of tool designs after Jonny announced that he was closing.
Now, you’ll see many of Noble’s designs find their way into Abbey-made tools, stamped with the Noble name where it’s possible. One of the first new Abbey/Noble tools is the Wheel Lacing Stand. According to Jason, the stand is roughly 20% faster and more ergonomic when building wheels, and it’s especially good for building wheels with heavy hubs like IGH or ebike hubs.
Designed to work with almost any wheel size, the arms are adjustable in and out, and the center stand swaps out with an m5 thread to fit 12, 15, and QR hubs for now. The Stand will sell for $350 and is available for preorder now which will ship in 2-3 weeks.
Another Noble design, the bearing extractors use an expanding wedge system to pull bearings from hubs, suspension components, and more. Sold in a 10pc set, the kit will include 4 extractors to fit 12-20mm ID bearings, and 6 external cups to fit 24-37mm OD. The set will sell for $300, and should be shipping now.
Spoke Wrench Prototype
While Abbey is now making Noble’s tools, they’re still making their own designs as well – evidenced by their spoke wrench prototype. This one is made from 7075 aluminum, though there are plans to offer some with tool steel inserts for the nipple. Jason said a lot of details were still in the works like whether it would be 3-sided or 4-sided, but the tool will be compatible with the DT-Swiss bladed spoke holder.
No timeline on these yet. Stay tuned.
