Jump to content

AM Wheel on a budget


Claudio

Recommended Posts

I have a new bike in the works, but am stuck on wheels. I thought that the all knowing forum might be of help, or at least give me some insights. 

 

I'm looking to get a solid, but not rock hard wheelset and have narrowed it to three options, but not opposed to suggestions. 

 

I'm down to DT Swiss Spline E1900, DT Swiss Spline Two E1700 or a custom pair with Hope hubs and Nukeproof Generator AM rims. They're all around the 22-23mm inner width for hubs. The only thing stopping me from the Hope wheels are the sound, and the 1700's are on the expensive side.

 

I've also looked at Superstar wheels, but seeing as I'm based in Beijing at the moment, shipping is killer. Any suggestions?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hahaha! yes, well..... Maybe if I could go to the factory. You know, give it the critical eye and all that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Find one of the prominentfactories from the Chinese carbon thread and do a hub interview on them.....come on man, pull up your socks

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What's the price range you're looking at and is it AM/DH or AM/Trail that you're really looking to do as there are some great rims out there at the moment? 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

light-bicycle.com is your best bet. Strong wheels, they have a good rep and they can build them up to your spec on the hubs and spokes. That's where my next set of rims is coming from

Thanks, they look awesome. A little out of my price range... But then again, they're carbon. And if I can fly down for the weekend, who knows what can be arranged. Everything is negotiable in China! 

 

Find one of the prominentfactories from the Chinese carbon thread and do a hub interview on them.....come on man, pull up your socks

Yes yes. Trust me, socks fully pulled up. And many projects under way and in development. Including something along the custom frame and bamboo lines. But I say no more until later!

 

What's the price range you're looking at and is it AM/DH or AM/Trail that you're really looking to do as there are some great rims out there at the moment? 

Price range is about R6000 plus minus. There's a lot, but especially hard to choose from. I'm also looking at the Spank Oozy. Spent some time on them before and really enjoyed them. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Spank Oozy or WTB i23 paired with Hope. Both slightly over your budget though.

It's not noise, it's music

Hope = bombproof

and I love the noise :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Price range is about R6000 plus minus. There's a lot, but especially hard to choose from. I'm also looking at the Spank Oozy. Spent some time on them before and really enjoyed them. 

 

I'm running Spank Spike Race 28s over the Oozys as they are super strong and slight extra weight is hardly noticeable. There is a guy that did a great review on the Oozys here on the hub and found them quite easy to ding, not sure how you found them. 

 

Flow EX are always a fav for many (blah, blah) but I reckon I'm heading for the WTB Frequency I-25 (R800 at Chain reaction - Can't get them here yet, unfortunately). 

 

American Classic Hubs are really nice and well worth a look as well as the Hopes. Prebuilt Spanks on their own hubs are a very good price and back up service is great (if a little slow).

 

Other than that, I'd deffo go and see Droo @ Stoke Suspension he's been building some really, really solid wheels recently.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I see you mentioned Nukeproof, Have a look at the sun ringle inferno 29 or 25( abit narrower) They are nice and strong. Bibi should still have some

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks guys

 

Looking hard at the Light Bicycle carbon wheels. I could even go down and check out the factory and write a little article one it, seeing as I'm living in China right now. Spank is easy to come by too, and so are some DT Swiss variants. Nothing mentioned about those.... Not very popular in SA it seems. 

 

Hope and WTB i23 is pretty much ideal with weight and strength, though I have to admit that my girlfriend won't ride with me if I get another Hope. She hates the sound.... :/ So I have to find something softer. Any idea about Novatec hubs? I know there's a huge range of them, but in terms of reliability for the middle to upper range?

 

Those Light Bicycle wheels are in the upper range of my budget, but still in it, but only with Novatec hubs. And carbon rims.... don't know if I can turn that down. 

 

Spank Spikes don't come in the 135x10 QR I'm looking at, but they would be a great option.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Novatec Hubs, Sapim spokes and Wtb i25's. Awesome wheel set for not too much dollar! Should come in under the 5k mark.

 

Don't go narrower than 25mm rim width as it's becoming the new standard. Schwalbe pro-core will require a min inner rim width of 24.5mm and you don't want to miss out on that!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Settings My Forum Content My Followed Content Forum Settings Ad Messages My Ads My Favourites My Saved Alerts My Pay Deals Help Logout