Review: Spank Oozy Trail295 Bead Bite Rims

[Mada3400]

So I was due for a new set of wheels, and since I'm not one to just follow the status quo, i decided, against many people's advice, to not get ZTR Flows.

 

 

Instead I got a set of Spank's new Oozy Trail295 Bead Bite Rims, for the purpose of keyboard longevity I'm just going to call them Oozys, not to get mixed up with normal Spank Oozys, which are apparently different (the trails are slightly heavier and have little grooves to hold the tyre from burping, but most importantly, they have a wider inner width)

 

To make things clear, I laced the rims to Hope Pro 2 EVOs, now we all know that those are brilliant hubs so im not going to really talk about them, only that I love how loud the rear hub is (its the 40 point engagement). I ride a 2013 GT Force and I weigh around 85kg, riding style wise I am not particularly smooth, more often than not I'll steamroll a rockgarden rather than hop it.

 

Now for the rims, I bought them off crc but if you lean on your lbs I've heard that you might be able to get them to order you them, but only if they deal with international trade.

 

The rims themselves weigh 420g each (26in) and have an inner width of 24.5mm, they make use of spanks oobah rim technology, which is essentially a corrugation of the rim to increase stiffness while not really increasing weight. Their name (Bead Bite) comes from the small ridges inside the rim where the tyre is seated, these ridges help grip the tyre like a gambling addict to a slot machine.

 

I the rims are extremely stiff for how little they weigh and despite their light weight they shrug off rocks that would usually end in a flat spot with ease. Changing to these rims completely changed my bike (the change can also be down to going tubeless), before the change i never realized how vague my bike was, the change was massive, like looking at yourself in murky puddle vs a crystal clear mirror. The wheels communicated trail chatter and grip on a level I've never felt before and thus catapulted my riding, especially cornering, up to a standard that is on par with the rest of my (limited) riding abilities.

 

 

But.

 

It's not all sunshine, unicorn farts and free ice-cream. These rims aren't perfect, I'm not going to comment on the way they look because that is all opinion, mine are bright sky blue and they do not suit my bike at all, but that was kind of what i was going for, they make my bike look slightly obnoxious. Even if you do get a good colour like plain black they still have that silly writing on them which makes them stick out like a sore thumb.

 

they also like to get dents... i put quite a nasty dent in the side of my rear rim on just my first ride with them,I'll post pics of that below, these dents don't seem to be anything to worry about, but they do not look very good at all, and they are the perfect place for the potential second hand buyer to save some money on.

 

 

Price, stiffness, weight, durability.

 

pick 3. From what I've seen Spank has got the first 3 down, which is great and all, but who wants to blow their budget on a great performing set of rims that then fold in half after 6 months, thats like buying an electric razor and then throwing it away after a week because thats how long a disposable one lasts.

 

So I planned on doing a very conclusive conclusion... but then i realized that i dont really know what to say, so instead I'm going talk about what situations these rims would be great.

 

 

if you are one of the billions of people who bought a 27.5 giant trance and now you want a wheel upgrade, the Spank Oozy Trail295 would be something seriously worth considering.

 

If your name is Greg Minnaar and you want new rims for you Santa Cruz V10 (or any dh bike) then there are 2 reasons why you probably shouldnt buy these rims.

1. you will completely and utterly destroy them

2. I'm like 60% sure youre sponsored by ENVE... and they make carbon rims, thats cool, get those instead.

 

 

seriously though, I am really enjoying my time on these rims, however, I am building up another rear wheel to use when training, something i wouldnt have done if i had complete faith in this rim to last me the next 5 years.

 

if you have a 140mm-ish travel trailbike and you want a wheel upgrade, the Spank Oozy 295 trails are a good offering but if you have something a little more burly, I'd suggest getting a rim a bit more substantial... a bit like a Flow EX, but i would rather get WTB i-25s.

 

 

 

Links:

If you want reviews from people who actually know what they are talking about:

http://www.vitalmtb.com/product/guide/Wheelsets,44/Spank/Oozy-Trail295-Bead-Bite,14455

http://www.pinkbike.com/news/spank-oozy-trail-295-26-wheelset-review-2014.html

 

http://spank-ind.com/products/rim/oozy-trail295-bead-bite-rim

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/za/en/spank-oozy-trail-295-bead-bite-mtb-rim-2014/rp-prod114974

[CAAD4]

Ha ha ha!

[trail - er - park]

Dig the down-to-earth review!

 

What you buying next ...? ... post another, I'll read it. ????

[T-Bob]

Great review. Am at a similar cross roads with Spanks (Oozy / Spike Race28) vs Flow vs WTB (I-25 frequency / KOM). 

Heard great things about all of them but I'd deffo be annoyed if I'd build up a rim and had it ping like that on the first ride. 

Great to hear a real world review on affordable wheels.... and mine are going on a 26in Trance for trail and more trail. 

[Eddy Gordo]

I was also considering all of those and settled for Inferno 29

[T-Bob]

I was also considering all of those and settled for Inferno 29

 

How do they go for you? 

[T-Bob]

ha, ha! Looks like someone didn't like the rims.... 

 

[Mada3400]

Dig the down-to-earth review!

 

What you buying next ...? ... post another, I'll read it.

 

gimme something to review and ill review it (you know... if you have a yt capra or something laying around)

[Eddy Gordo]

How do they go for you? 

Hopefully they will be built this week, and I can run them the weekend. Also using hopes

[Eddy Gordo]

My mind was pretty much made up to take the inferno 27 but i changed my mind last minute for the inferno 29 as they are slightly wider

• Outside Width: 29mm
• Inner bead width: 23.4mm
• Section Height: 21mm
• Weight: 520g
• Type: Welded
• Brake Compatibility: Disc Only

[trail - er - park]

My mind was pretty much made up to take the inferno 27 but i changed my mind last minute for the inferno 29 as they are slightly wider

• Outside Width: 29mm
• Inner bead width: 23.4mm
• Section Height: 21mm
• Weight: 520g
• Type: Welded
• Brake Compatibility: Disc Only

Have been running Inferno 29's on my 26er Meta AM for a few months. I weigh 90kgs and before kit and frequently run "interesting" lines through rock gardens - verdict = tough as nails.

 

Good width, light enough, take high levels of abuse ... I would definitely recommend.

 

BiBi @ Zion Bikes builds a mean set of wheels.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Funnily enough my Subrosa's (which are 30mm wide, external) don't seem to be as prone to dings as the rest of the spank rims. Don't know if it's the extra material or something (they are heavy) but yeah...

[Mada3400]

Funnily enough my Subrosa's (which are 30mm wide, external) don't seem to be as prone to dings as the rest of the spank rims. Don't know if it's the extra material or something (they are heavy) but yeah...

 

well they are 0.5mm wider externally than the oozys, have the same amount of holes and are the same diameter, only they weigh 100g more, all that material has to go somewhere

[Eddy Gordo]

With the spank products, there are certain ones that are alot tougher than the rest. Lighter is not always the best solution

[Mada3400]

these are what would have gotten with the information i now have

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/za/en/wtb-kom-i-25-tcs-rim-2015/rp-prod128445

[Yo-Yo]

these are what would have gotten with the information i now have

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/za/en/wtb-kom-i-25-tcs-rim-2015/rp-prod128445

What's the difference between this and the i-25 frequency?