Ask any single speeder and they’ve probably at least heard of Endless Bike Company. When it came time to outfit our Sun Ringle DJ Single wheelset with a single cog, we weren’t sure if the company’s Kick Ass Cogs were up to the dirt jumping task. After reaching out to Shanna about their use, she did one better and invited us to check out Endless Bike’s little world near West Asheville. The industry is pretty small, but sometimes it’s amazing just how interconnected everything really is.
Gear up on Endless Bike Company after the break!
No, we haven’t gotten our photos out of order – Endless Bike Company is actually based out of Industry Nine’s headquarters. This works out nicely since Industry Nine is right next to Turnamics Machining company which is owned by Harvey Spiegel, which produces the Endless Bikes Kick Ass Cogs, as well as parts for Industry Nine which was co-founded by Clint Spiegel. Started by Marshall Hance and Adam Winton, Endless Bike Company was sold to Shanna Powell in 2008 though Marshall is still involved as a product designer. At the time, the cogs were being made in Florida instead of Asheville due to the company’s outstanding debt, but Shanna was determined to get things back up and running smoothly. Paying off the debt little by little, eventually Endless was paid up and Turnamics was once again manufacturing every Kick Ass cog.
After Shanna paid off the debt, Clint was so impressed, that he hired Shanna to come work for I9. Shanna’s position at I9 is her “full time” gig, but in her spare time at the office she runs a small store front for all Endless Bikes has to offer. If that wasn’t enough to keep her busy, Shanna is also the owner of Mountain Air Roasting, a micro-roaster of specialty coffees in Asheville. Remember the coffee I mentioned in my holiday wish list? Mountain Air coffee would be at the top of that list – Shanna gave me some to try, which then promptly ruined me on most of the coffee I’m able to get locally around here.
Growing the product line, anodized cogs in a number of colors were new for 2013. The Ring, which have pretty clever packaging, are technically a 2014 product that are slowly making their way out the door. As one of the latest anti-drop chainrings on the market, Endless’ ring is machined from 7075-T6 aluminum at Turnamics along with their cogs. Shanna states that the circumferential I-beam like rib around the outer edge of the chainring boosts the stiffness of the ring for better performance. Currently offered in 32t and in a slew of colors, the Ring retails for $100 which is a little less than first stated.
We’ve had an Endless Bike Kick Ass Cog in before, but this time we’ll be trying it out on a dirt jumper rather than a singlespeed 29er. The cog did require a bit of filing to get it on the freehub body, but once it was installed it clearly illustrated why Endless doesn’t just make the inner splines bigger. The cog was extremely difficult to fit over the end of the Sun Ringle Single freehub body – but once over the end, it got quite loose towards the center of the freehub highlighting the inconsistency in the machining of the freehub body. If there is that much inconsistency on a single freehub, imagine how much there is throughout the industry. By making the cog as small as possible, it helps ensure the best possible fit even though it might take a little work. The 14t cog coincidentally weighs in at 14g. We’ll be giving it a thorough beat down to see how it handles the stress of dirt jump/Ray’s MTB soon. Kick Ass Cogs retail for $50, and are available in a number of anodized colors and from 14-25t.
