Alternative front hub for a Brompton?

We received the following email from Tal Katzir, and since it may be of interest to some Brompton (and possibly other folder) owners, we are posting his message here. The Folding Society isn't involved itself, so any queries etc should be sent to Tal.

"I was wondering if this would be on interest to you, to publish in your news section, or something.

My Brompton has a standard front hub, and I'm interested in new, a better than standard, hub.

I've got a quote from Phil Wood (one of the best, if not THE best) to specially produce a front hub that would fit the standard Brompton fork and rim.

The hub would be 74mm OLD (Over-Locknut-Dimension, should fit the Moulton NS as well?) 28 holes (standard Brompton 349 rims), and sealed cartridge bearings.

It comes with a lifetime warranty on hub shell and axle.

This would be the last front hub the buyer would ever buy for their bike!

The quote is 140 USD per hub, plus a charge of 250 USD for the programming/setup. This means each hub would cost:
$140 + ($250 / NumberOfBuyers)

For me, $390 (to be the lone buyer) is a bit expensive, but am willing to pay a lower price even with just a few other buyers.

If anyone would be interested in sharing the cost (no profit for me), please contact me at talkat@hotmail.com."
[The picture below shows how the hub may appear - it is not a photograph of the actual proposed hub.]