Wheels.

I did attend a professional bicycle mechanics' school - two of them, in fact - but the core truth is that, had I gotten nothing else out of those several weeks of my life, emerging with the knowledge necessary to build spoked bicycle wheels would have been enough to ensure happiness. There is not a regular bike shop task that I enjoy more than building wheels.

Almost always, after I fabricate a custom frameset, I build it up into a complete bike with the necessary inventory of components, including wheels built right here in the same shop that birthed the frame and fork. My wheels are most definitely NOT afterthoughts, or inexpensive standard equipment tossed on to allow the bike to roll... no other component on a bike has as much contribution to ride quality as does the wheel, so for me, nothing else seems right to mount to a handmade frame and fork but a pair of handmade wheels.

These wheels will last a long time, provided they are not subjected to acts of injurious irresistible force, and will be trued and maintained for free throughout their useful lives by the shop rat(s) at Wildebeest.

Wheelbuilding prices will always include the standard Wildebeest shop labor rate of $61 per hour; after that, component parts' costs are additional and quite varied, so the final wheel prices vary significantly.

To know more, one should inquire about superior, handbuilt Wildebeest wheels.