SRAM Rail 40 27.5 inch Alloy UST Rear Wheel

SRAM Wheels

SRAM began life in Chicago in 1987, named after it's founders Scott, Ray And Sam, and is known primarily as a manufacturer of drivetrain and braking components. It's first revolutionary product was the twist action GripShift, which became available in 1988, with the MTB version released in 1991. In 1995, they launched their first ESP rear derailleur, which featured a 1 to 1 cable actuation ratio. The X.O drivetrain products were released in 2001, marking the introduction of the trigger shifter, and a year later, MTB Suspension pioneers RockShox was acquired. A year later Avid - a MTB Disc Brake company - was also acquired, giving SRAM more market share of the MTB industry. By 2006, a focus was shifted to producing road components in addition to their MTB stable, with the launch of Force and Rival groupsets. The following year, Doubletap was introduced, enabling users to switch gear in either direct using a single shifter. This steady growth was sustained, and over the years SRAM acquired several more cycling household brands, such as Truvativ (Chainsets and components), Quarq (power meters), Sachs (drivetrain components) and Zipp (carbon fibre goodies!).

For more details on the past and present of SRAM, please visit their website, or view their Wikipedia page.

Amazon UK

Amazon famously started off as a book shop operated from a garage in Bellevue, Washington. Founded by Jeff Bezos in 1995, the company rapidly expanded it's product ranges, from books to CDs and DVDs to eventually include pretty much everything under the sun. This is highlighted in the recognisable logo, where the orange arrow points from "A" to "Z". The low pricing and fast delivery (if you use their popular Prime membership) results in Amazon being a popular retailer for cycling products, both from Amazon directly and the 3rd party sellers as well.

So what does this mean for me as a bargain hunting cyclist?! The good news is that Amazon regularly have ridiculous discounts on individual items. Whereas most retailers will discount a product equally in all sizes and colours, Amazon have the unusual trait of reducing a single size at 70-80% off, whereas the rest of the sizes will be at full retail price. If you're prepared to hunt for deals, then you can grab some amazing bargains - I've bought £160 cycling jackets for £25 - and once the item has been purchased, the price has immediately returned to the original RRP again. There doesn't seem to be a great deal of logic to what is reduced, it's not just certain sizes or ugly colours, but if you're prepared to put a bit of work in, you can save hundreds.

Please note: With designer or expensive goods, it is worth only buying products directly from Amazon or third party sellers with excellent feedback, to ensure that they are genuine models and not cheap copies.

You can view Amazon's cycling department here.