Suspension HUB?  What the…?  Upon seeing the Pantour Hub web site (www.pantourhub.com) a few months ago, my first thought was, “That will never work.”  I’m glad I wasn’t speaking out loud.
        You can’t blame me.  It’s one of those ideas that just seemed too simple to be practical.  Building suspension into a hub had never really been done before to my knowledge, but it looked like something that someone had to have tried and failed at previously. 
        However, due to popular demand and the encouraging reports of a few riders who had tried the Pantour, I called the company and ordered a 406mm wheel and hub for testing.  The company seemed very cordial and enthusiastic during these first few e-mails and phone calls.  The wheel actually even arrived ahead of schedule (a rare occurrence these days).  Maybe these guys were for real after all?
        When I first unpacked the wheel, its high quality finish pleasantly surprised me.  This is one well-made bicycle part, on par with just about anything else I’ve seen (including Chris King Hubs/Headsets and Campagnolo Record components).  In short, this hub is not going to “cheapen” and recumbent it’s used on.
        The beautifully machined black hub was accented by a black Bontrager Maverick rim and 24 radial-laced black DT spokes.  Pantour has told me that they will most likely be switching to the excellent Velocity Aeroheat 406mm rim in the near future as the Maverick may be discontinued.
        The bike we used to test the Pantour hub was our 2002 Lightning Phantom test bike.  Installation wasn’t too tricky.  I was most surprised that the Pantour wheel actually weighed quite a bit less than the Deore hub and Sun rim that I removed.  The most difficult part of the installation is the adjustment of the brakes.  To properly adjust the brake, you must have someone sit on the bike while you’re adjusting so that the suspension is compressed. 
        If you don’t purchase the Pantour as a complete wheel and choose to build one yourself, make sure that you use a rim with at least a 12mm braking surface.  The folks at Pantour can recommend a few.
        Once I got the brakes adjusted and got the Phantom rolling, one thought immediately entered my head and kept scrolling across the marquee in my brain over and over again.  That one sentence notion was, “I’ll be damned.”
        This little puppy actually works!  Its meager 12mm of travel won’t suck up many New York potholes, but it does an excellent job of smoothing out the coarse pavement that plagues my area.  The Pantour was also a lifesaver on fast descents.  It gave me just that little extra bit of confidence to go one or two miles per hour faster than I would without any suspension at all.  That little suspension boost also increased roll out slightly on the same coarsely paved roads.
        I’ve always felt that maybe the 2.5 inches of travel common in most 20” suspension forks was probably a bit too much for use on what are essentially road bikes.  Some riders that ride on very rough or dirt roads can certainly appreciate the silky smooth ride of a RANS Vivo or Angletech Altitude.  However, most of us would get just as much benefit out of a much shorter travel suspension system.  The Pantour’s 12mm of travel may seem astoundingly small, but in the real world, I found it to be just right.
        Additionally, I learned long ago in my mountain biking days that it’s not just length of the travel, it’s also the quality of the suspension that matters.  (Insert “motion of the ocean” joke here) Most recumbents are running on what is essentially four-five year old suspension technology (elastomer only, no damping controls, heavy chromoly steer tubes, etc…).  While the Pantour still relies on elastomers, it does travel on a different trajectory than is the norm.  This basically makes the hub work like a high tech trailing link suspension fork.  This design eliminates the “stiction” that encumbers most suspension forks and ensures that every bit of the hubs travel is available to you all the time.  This is a big boost on high frequency bumps.
        The Pantour probably won’t slow you down on the flats or while climbing as much as more conventional fork.  We didn’t experience much, if any, noticeable power loss while using the Pantour hub.  It’s also about two pounds lighter than even the lightest suspension fork out there so it won’t weigh you down on the climbs.  There are three different elastomers that come with the Pantour hub.  These allow you to adjust the firmness to your weight and really help you dial in a smooth ride without sacrificing to power-robbing pogo.
        If you want more adjustment than three elastomers can provide you, Pantour gives you more options.  The hubs trajectory is adjustable and it can be locked out completely.  All of these adjustments do require disassembly but it’s not that hard and the hub really doesn’t have too many moving parts.
        For those that desire more travel, Pantour is working on a 1-inch disk brake equipped version of the hub.  There is also a cassette hub version in the prototype stage now so that you can suspend both ends of your bike.  (Yes, we’ll be testing one)
        Like anything, the Pantour isn’t perfect.  It is a bit expensive.  Our test wheel retails for $299.  That’s probably more than you’ll pay for an RST or Ballistic suspension fork.  However, the hub is very well made and it works so you shouldn’t feel like you were ripped off.
        Lastly, I haven’t seen it yet, but I am sure that some fork/brake combinations won’t adjust to Pantour’s requirements.  Our Phantom and its Odyssey A-Brakes just barely made it.
        To sum up…  If you like to bomb around on dirt roads or ride on pothole-ridden streets, this may not be the suspension solution for you.  If you are a high performance rider that wants to smooth out a few sections of your daily training ride without adding two pounds to your bike, you should really try this product.
 

Pantour Suspension Hub
Highs – Lightweight, Damn thing actually works
Lows – Not enough travel for some, Limited rim choices, Pricey
MSRP - $299 for complete wheel as tested $229 for hub only.
More Info – www.pantourhub.com