Paul Component Korea | Handmade Bicycle Parts from Chico, California

Parts made by people
who chose
the hard way.

Paul Component Engineering is a bicycle parts maker that engineer Paul Price started in 1989 in Chico, a small city in Northern California. After a year and a half as an engineer in San Francisco, he quit, moved to Chico and bought a run-down house, chosen above all for a garage big enough for his machines.

His first machines were a mill and a lathe, and the only employee was Paul himself. The company began when an Austrian businessman saw a prototype of his first product, a seatpost quick release, and placed an order. Today, on the site of an old Texaco depot on the edge of Chico, every part is machined in-house on CNC machines and old hand-operated tools.

No hydraulics.
All the power.

The Klamper is a mechanical disc brake Paul designed from a clean slate. The goal was a brake that is reliable with just a cable and no fluid, easy to adjust and serviceable on the road. After three years of development the first run of 300 was made in Chico in 2015, and today it is Paul's signature part on gravel and touring bikes.

It uses the proven ball-and-ramp principle. Paul added bigger balls and hardened steel contact faces for smoother action and more pad travel. A light start to the lever stroke that firms up and bites hard at the end, with power that is easy to modulate, is the Klamper's character.

Classic shapes,
machined anew.

Since the Stoplight Brakes made in Paul's first Chico machine shop in 1992, brakes have always been what Paul makes most. Even in the disc brake era, Paul has not let go of cantilevers and centerpulls, because steel touring bikes, classic road bikes and 650B randonneurs still look and work best with them.

The Neo-Retro and Racer rework the classic shapes of France's Mafac with modern materials and adjustability. T-section arms resist flex under load, while sealed pivots and adjustable springs keep them smooth and centred for years. All come with salmon Kool Stop Thinline pads.

Half of every brake
starts at your fingertips.

A lever and brake only stop properly when the amount of cable they pull, the pull, matches. Cantilevers, centerpulls, the MiniMoto and the short-pull Klamper take short-pull levers; V brakes, the Motolite and the long-pull Klamper take long-pull levers.

Every Paul lever is machined from 6061 aluminum in Chico. Sealed cartridge bearings or stainless pivots make them solid with no play, and large barrel adjusters let you set cable tension by hand.

Holding bar and saddle
firmly in place.

The Boxcar stem is machined from 2024 aerospace aluminum. As the name suggests, its rounded box section resists twisting, and the bolts are stainless T25 Torx. Torx was chosen because it is harder to overtighten than a hex key, which protects carbon bars and steerers.

The Tall and Handsome and Tall and Elegant seatposts hold the saddle with two bolts and spherical stainless washers. One screw fine-tunes the angle, and loosening both moves the saddle fore and aft. Tilt range is about 15°, and oval carbon rails are welcome.

The hub first made
for single speed mountain bikes.

The Word is a rear hub descended from the first single speed MTB hub Paul made in 1996. Back when there were almost no hubs for people riding mountains without gears, Paul made one with wide flange spacing that allows a dishless wheel build.

The hub body is 6061 and the axle 7075 aluminum. The sealed cartridge bearings are user-adjustable with an adjuster ring, and the Disk Word swaps between quick release, bolt-on and 12mm thru-axle. A hub to ride, service and rebuild for the long haul.

Before choosing a brake,
check your lever's pull.

When choosing a Paul brake, first check your frame's brake mount (post or flat mount, canti bosses, centerpull bosses) and the cable pull of the levers you will use. Figures are from Paul Component's official technical information.

From one lathe in a garage
to a benchmark for American parts.

From a single seatpost quick release to a fundraiser bike built with framebuilders for the 2026 Made Bike Show. While many parts makers moved production overseas, Paul has spent 37 years in Chico designing, machining and riding everything himself.