i was thinking of getting a fixie together. i saw nashbar had, up until last week, some house brand flip-flop hubs. anyone know anything about these? i might try and nab one when i get a chance.

I assume you are referring to the silver road track hubs not the black mountain ones. I have bought two pairs over the past year. They are really nice quality, solid, and look good. Don't know who makes them. They have sealed bearings, can be fixed on both sides, comes with lock rings and decent nuts - a big plus. They are also sized to be compatible with Shimano axles (9x1 and 10x1) - not a big deal, but I can interchange the nuts between wheel sets.

I can only compare them with my Suzue Pro Max (with loose bearings) hubs. Not as nice finish as the Suzue, but I can't tell the difference in ride. Anyway, I use the nashbar on training wheels with cheap rims. I got them on sale and with a 20% off coupon, making them dirt cheap. You can't go wrong. I just don't know when they will have them again.

Good luck!

Nashbar often runs sales on them- and at $30- they don't cost much more than buying the two lock rings that are included... and the nuts... so they are a great deal and a solid hub- much better than a Suzue basic.

They are great bang for the buck for a street fixie.

I picked up one of these about 2 months ago. I think I must have got the last one in stock, because I went back 2 days later to get a matching front hub, and they has mysteriously disappeared. I had to source my front hub elsewhere.

I have been riding the rear hub for about a month and it seems to be a fantastic deal. The sealed bearing are super smooth and it was a snap to build. As mentioned, it's a nice bonus to be able to run track cogs on both side and have the lock rings included.

hh