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Yah but for really strong beater AM wheels it's a great deal. Found a pair NIB OEM Cannondale hubs for $50 on ebay. DT competitions for maybe $45. I'll be at maybe $300 for the set all in and they'll be indestructible.
Have you tried some 30mm ID wheels yet? I just mounted up some 2.35 Ikon's to my carbon wheels for my hightower. The big volume casing ikon's are awesome on the wider wheels. I'd be tempted to go with the AM version of those wheels over the XC ones. 30 gram hit each for a nice width.
Not enough room in the 429. With 24mm internal, I can only run about a 2.2 tire. So it's clear, I don't train on the 429 much and I never race it. It's maybe a once every two months thing so I don't need to invest in anything light/expensive/fragile.
The key operator here is $79 a rim. Not touching that unless you go alloy and they are not half as strong or light.
uhhh expensive carbon rims are shitty and i see them break all the time (I am talking about ENVE and Roval and other expensive stuff). I don't think $99 carbon rims could ever be described as 'indestructable' or even safe.
I'd buy some reasonably priced aluminum wheels/rims- Stan's Flow MKIII are a good option for a 30mm wide durable wheel.
uhhh expensive carbon rims are shitty and i see them break all the time (I am talking about ENVE and Roval and other expensive stuff). I don't think $99 carbon rims could ever be described as 'indestructable' or even safe.
I'd buy some reasonably priced aluminum wheels/rims- Stan's Flow MKIII are a good option for a 30mm wide durable wheel.
All of the spokes I have ever broken on any wheel were OEM pre-built or aftermarket wheels. Never had a carbon rim fail and I have been racing/training on them for 20 years. The only rim related QC issues I have ever experienced were on Zipps. Maybe 30 China carbon wheels and never an issue.
The Kevlar carbon rims on sale I linked were $260 two years ago when they were released. That they are on closeout/discontinued is indicative of just how fast the bike wheel industry is evolving.
We have run a few Kevlar carbon components on our race cars with great success so I am a fan of that particular composite and am familiar with its properties.
So based on direct personal experience I would offer the counter argument that properly built China carbon wheels present no reliability issues.
All of the spokes I have ever broken on any wheel were OEM pre-built or aftermarket wheels. Never had a carbon rim fail and I have been racing/training on them for 20 years. The only rim related QC issues I have ever experienced were on Zipps. Maybe 30 China carbon wheels and never an issue.
The Kevlar carbon rims on sale I linked were $260 two years ago when they were released. That they are on closeout/discontinued is indicative of just how fast the bike wheel industry is evolving.
We have run a few Kevlar carbon components on our race cars with great success so I am a fan of that particular composite and am familiar with its properties.
So based on direct personal experience I would offer the counter argument that properly built China carbon wheels present no reliability issues.
lol- i fly in a carbon fiber plane (787) so all carbon bike parts must be safe?
Have you ridden mtb on carbon rims? I am testing a carbon wheelset (a nice one). The originally mounted tire is worn out and now the rear rim has 6 cracks in it. I'd never waste the time on carbon rims for MTB unless they were free and pre-built for me.
All I'm saying is I see a LOT of broken carbon wheels and I don't really think they are worth the time or risk when aluminum rims are nearly as light and cheaper and safer and more durable.
I'd never waste the time on carbon rims for MTB unless they were free and pre-built for me.
I have the same stipulation for carbon wheels that you have. I'm on a set of speedtuned exile carbon wheels that were essentially thrown in with a no questions asked replacement warranty to rep them in the CA Enduro Series. I have a backup wheelset of flow mk3's for the inevitable moment that I asspload them.
lol- i fly in a carbon fiber plane (787) so all carbon bike parts must be safe?
Have you ridden mtb on carbon rims? I am testing a carbon wheelset (a nice one). The originally mounted tire is worn out and now the rear rim has 6 cracks in it. I'd never waste the time on carbon rims for MTB unless they were free and pre-built for me.
No need to be a dick about it dude.
I made no blanket assertion that every carbon rim ever made is guaranteed safe. Properly built, a high quality carbon rim is as good as the best alloy rims.
And yes, I race XC short course every week on a set of asymmetric hookless bead carbon rims I sourced from Light Bicycle (China) that I built. I race at the elite level and occasionally win so I not, soft pedaling around. Clanged them a bunch of times, zero issues.
Raced gravel the last few years on wheels built with China rims I built, again at the pointy end of the field. Set a few descending KOM's so I'm not taking it easy there. Again, zero issues.
My assertion remains. Done right, there is no need to fear the carbon. Source the wrong rim for your application, build it worng, make a mistake riding and you run the same level of risk WRT to rim failure as you would with alloy.
I made no blanket assertion that every carbon rim ever made is guaranteed safe. Properly built, a high quality carbon rim is as good as the best alloy rims.
And yes, I race XC short course every week on a set of asymmetric hookless bead carbon rims I sourced from Light Bicycle (China) that I built. I race at the elite level and occasionally win so I not, soft pedaling around. Clanged them a bunch of times, zero issues.
Raced gravel the last few years on wheels built with China rims I built, again at the pointy end of the field. Set a few descending KOM's so I'm not taking it easy there. Again, zero issues.
My assertion remains. Done right, there is no need to fear the carbon. Source the wrong rim for your application, build it worng, make a mistake riding and you run the same level of risk WRT to rim failure as you would with alloy.
Sorry- but that's the exact opposite of my experience. Slam an aluminum rim into a sharp rock and it will dent, maybe you flat or have a wobbly rim. Slam a carbon rim (even a 'good' american made one) into the same rock and it catastrophically explodes, tire comes off etc. Not safe.
Sorry- but that's the exact opposite of my experience. Slam an aluminum rim into a sharp rock and it will dent, maybe you flat or have a wobbly rim. Slam a carbon rim (even a 'good' american made one) into the same rock and it catastrophically explodes, tire comes off etc. Not safe.
I fear the carbon
I think we are discussing apples and oranges.
Me: General durability under normal use, precision, defects
You: Failure mode under conditions that damages all known bicycle wheel types
Yeah, carbon shatters, aluminum bends. If you want bend and not shatter, stay away from carbon. The enduro mindset is unique in that the cutting edge equipment is freakishly light considering how much punishment it sees under an elite level rider. Stuff that would have been
a world cup DH course 20 years ago is no run of the mill on a 30 minute Enduro stage mixed in with some XC like pedaling sections.
agree. i set my Dad up with light-bicycle wheels FYI. He is old and rides XC. For that carbon wheels are dialed.
This is what set my BS meter off:
Originally Posted by emilio700
Yah but for really strong beater AM wheels it's a great deal. Found a pair NIB OEM Cannondale hubs for $50 on ebay. DT competitions for maybe $45. I'll be at maybe $300 for the set all in and they'll be indestructible.
I guess our definition of All Mountain riding is very different.
Pretty sure my creaking/clicking noise is the headset, so cleaning that now. I've been through three BB R&Rs, jacked with hubs a ton, jacked with seat-post stuff, jacked with the crank hardware, RD hardware, it goes on and on, pretty sure it's a dirty lower bearing. It only took me two months to get here. If it still makes noise, I'm lost.