Rapide 25mm 29r SL wheelset

[Chris NewbyFraser]

I wanted 25mm width rims (to soften the ride on my hardtail) and looked around for something I could afford. Nothing (affordable) came up on the Hub so I scratched about in bike shops. Best price I could get was R3500 for a pair of Velocity 28mm rims. Comments found on the internet suggested these were a bit soft. So I swallowed hard, forgot to advise the missus and bought a set of the new 25mm Rapide 32 spoke wheels at under R4400. These came complete with tubeless tape and valve in place and the orange alloy spoke nipples I ordered..

 

Three rides later and here is a provisional report.

• Looks wise, the wheels look narrower than they are and have a very traditional shape for the hubs. Very simple design. 
• I chose standard round spokes - easier to source than bladed spokes if I break one.
• The wheels were noticeably lighter than the giant SXC2 set I replaced.
• Getting a used Spez Ground Control 2.1 grid to seal up on the front was a challenge until i used a small 12v car compressor and massaged the tyre into place. It sealed up and had no air loss overnight. Rode it at 1.3 bar.
• A brand new CST Patrol 2.2 went onto the back. Again, I had to use a bomb to get the tyre to seal. I then flushed the air out and re-inflated using the compressor. It too sealed up tight. Final ride pressure was about 1.4bar.
• The cassette needed the 1mm spacer ring that came with the wheels (the SXC2 had no spacer).
• The brake rotors lined up almost perfectly but need a slight adjust.
• First ride and a spoke pinged once and that was the last noise I heard from the wheels. 
• The 4 cassettes pawls buzz wildly and the sound takes a bit of getting used to, after the silent Giant hub.
• Pedaling was more sprightly due to the lower wheel mass, and the ride softer due to the lower tyre pressure.
• On harsh rocks on the Hobby Park red route, I felt the rear smack through to the rim. No burp and no rim damage. So far so good.
• The CST Patrol also shows no damage to its fairly thick sidewall.
• I don't do bad technical so I cannot say how strong the rims are. I did do a series of rough descents with 30cm vertical steps and the wheels have maintained their shape - good lacing is obvious.
• The tyres have held their pressure well so it seems the sidewall hooks hold tyres nicely.
• The rim paint finish is matt black. This surface seems to hold dust more than gloss paint surfaces on other bikes.

I am satisfied with the wheels so far. After the Kings Kloof race(October) I will give an update. If that harsh route doesn't break the rims then they are good.

[Knersboy]

I recently replaced my rear rim with a Rapide SL 25. So far so good but man was it a bugger to get the tyre on. Used a new spez fast trak grid 2.3. I had to use a tire lever just to get the first bead over the rim. Getting the tyre on completely involved much wailing and gnashing of teeth, did you have a similar experience?

 

I have used numerous tyres on numerous rims and never struggled like that.

[BenReaper]

@knersboy regarding your above post.

Thats not necessarily a bad thing, I'd rather prefer a tight tyre rim combo like yours as it will seat better than a loose fitting tyre and you have far less chance of a tyre burping upon hard impact or when under inflated.

Edited September 22, 2018 by BenReaper

[BenReaper]

I wanted 25mm width rims (to soften the ride on my hardtail) and looked around for something I could afford. Nothing (affordable) came up on the Hub so I scratched about in bike shops. Best price I could get was R3500 for a pair of Velocity 28mm rims. Comments found on the internet suggested these were a bit soft. So I swallowed hard, forgot to advise the missus and bought a set of the new 25mm Rapide 32 spoke wheels at under R4400. These came complete with tubeless tape and valve in place and the orange alloy spoke nipples I ordered..

 

Three rides later and here is a provisional report.

• Looks wise, the wheels look narrower than they are and have a very traditional shape for the hubs. Very simple design.
• I chose standard round spokes - easier to source than bladed spokes if I break one.
• The wheels were noticeably lighter than the giant SXC2 set I replaced.
• Getting a used Spez Ground Control 2.1 grid to seal up on the front was a challenge until i used a small 12v car compressor and massaged the tyre into place. It sealed up and had no air loss overnight. Rode it at 1.3 bar.
• A brand new CST Patrol 2.2 went onto the back. Again, I had to use a bomb to get the tyre to seal. I then flushed the air out and re-inflated using the compressor. It too sealed up tight. Final ride pressure was about 1.4bar.
• The cassette needed the 1mm spacer ring that came with the wheels (the SXC2 had no spacer).
• The brake rotors lined up almost perfectly but need a slight adjust.
• First ride and a spoke pinged once and that was the last noise I heard from the wheels.
• The 4 cassettes pawls buzz wildly and the sound takes a bit of getting used to, after the silent Giant hub.
• Pedaling was more sprightly due to the lower wheel mass, and the ride softer due to the lower tyre pressure.
• On harsh rocks on the Hobby Park red route, I felt the rear smack through to the rim. No burp and no rim damage. So far so good.
• The CST Patrol also shows no damage to its fairly thick sidewall.
• I don't do bad technical so I cannot say how strong the rims are. I did do a series of rough descents with 30cm vertical steps and the wheels have maintained their shape - good lacing is obvious.
• The tyres have held their pressure well so it seems the sidewall hooks hold tyres nicely.
• The rim paint finish is matt black. This surface seems to hold dust more than gloss paint surfaces on other bikes.

I am satisfied with the wheels so far. After the Kings Kloof race(October) I will give an update. If that harsh route doesn't break the rims then they are good.

I intend on doing the same you did by replacing both my rims on my hardtail with wider ones at some stage to soften up the ride. This will be hoops only though.

The two options I have in mind are either American Classic AM28's or the Rapide hoops if they have them available as hoops only options by then.

At some stage when my older Novatec rear hub gives in replacing it will probably be a toss up between another Novatec or one of the Rapide rear hubs.

I've had my eye on them for a while now and haven't heard any negative feedback on them. That says alot as here on Le Hub you'll hear negative feedback very quickly at the slightest hint of a problem with a product/service.

[Chris NewbyFraser]

I recently replaced my rear rim with a Rapide SL 25. So far so good but man was it a bugger to get the tyre on. Used a new spez fast trak grid 2.3. I had to use a tire lever just to get the first bead over the rim. Getting the tyre on completely involved much wailing and gnashing of teeth, did you have a similar experience?

 

I have used numerous tyres on numerous rims and never struggled like that.

Yeah! The CST was hard to get on. Broke a tyre lever when I tried to take it off to swap to the rear.

[gemmerbal]

reviving an old thread:

 

scratching around for opinions on rim widths as I am probably getting a set from Rapide in the next week or so, just waiting to see on a few things.

 

I did read that article on pinkbike, some valuable opinions on there.

 

thus my question: i ride a Merida Big Nine hard tail with the stock Big Nine Pro D wheels (i think they are 22mm ID), mostly gravel travel with the odd bit of single track, around Stellenbosch, so I guess that puts me in the XC cat.

 

now, i am undecided on the Rapide model, I keep leaning towards the 30mm ID wheels, tad more compliance on my fat arse as i could run slightly lower pressures? plus extra grip when I go down the single tracks is never a bad thing, right? more grip normally means more resistance - kind of counter intuitive for XC...

 

or is wider not better? stick to 25mm ID??? in my mind an extra 3mm wont make much difference in terms of extra grip??

 

I just dont want to order a set and when it arrives, think to myself i should have gone with the other one... 

 

https://www.rapide.c...30-sl-wheelset/

 

https://www.rapide.c...25-sl-wheelset/

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

30mm is great. Do it. Marked upgrade from 22mm, 25mm is less so. 

[RocknRolla]

 

reviving an old thread:

 

scratching around for opinions on rim widths as I am probably getting a set from Rapide in the next week or so, just waiting to see on a few things.

 

I did read that article on pinkbike, some valuable opinions on there.

 

thus my question: i ride a Merida Big Nine hard tail with the stock Big Nine Pro D wheels (i think they are 22mm ID), mostly gravel travel with the odd bit of single track, around Stellenbosch, so I guess that puts me in the XC cat.

 

now, i am undecided on the Rapide model, I keep leaning towards the 30mm ID wheels, tad more compliance on my fat arse as i could run slightly lower pressures? plus extra grip when I go down the single tracks is never a bad thing, right? more grip normally means more resistance - kind of counter intuitive for XC...

 

or is wider not better? stick to 25mm ID??? in my mind an extra 3mm wont make much difference in terms of extra grip??

 

I just dont want to order a set and when it arrives, think to myself i should have gone with the other one... 

 

https://www.rapide.c...30-sl-wheelset/

 

https://www.rapide.c...25-sl-wheelset/

 

 

A couple of things to keep in mind about me, while reading my reply:

 

1) I'm not concerned about a couple of grams of weight on tyres, when talking about extra grip.

2) same as above with rims/wheels

3) I dont race, I participate in events

4) I like to go down hills and around corners as fast as possible within my limited skill/experience set.

 

My Reply:

 

 

I bought a set of 30mm rapide wheels about two years ago.

My bike is a steel on-one hardtail with a 100mm fork (fox i think)

I had a set of hand-me-down giant pxc wheels, which I rode till they died. 

The 30mm rims was the single best upgrade I have ever done - bike related. The added stiffnes, cornering confidence, has made the world of difference.

 

I would say, go as wide as you can. I curently have 2.25 tyres on the rims, which has been doing great.

 

Unless you are a weight weenie, at the sharp end of the field, go for the wider rims, which will make the smile on your face wider as well.

[Hairy]

 

reviving an old thread:

 

scratching around for opinions on rim widths as I am probably getting a set from Rapide in the next week or so, just waiting to see on a few things.

 

I did read that article on pinkbike, some valuable opinions on there.

 

thus my question: i ride a Merida Big Nine hard tail with the stock Big Nine Pro D wheels (i think they are 22mm ID), mostly gravel travel with the odd bit of single track, around Stellenbosch, so I guess that puts me in the XC cat.

 

now, i am undecided on the Rapide model, I keep leaning towards the 30mm ID wheels, tad more compliance on my fat arse as i could run slightly lower pressures? plus extra grip when I go down the single tracks is never a bad thing, right? more grip normally means more resistance - kind of counter intuitive for XC...

 

or is wider not better? stick to 25mm ID??? in my mind an extra 3mm wont make much difference in terms of extra grip??

 

I just dont want to order a set and when it arrives, think to myself i should have gone with the other one... 

 

https://www.rapide.c...30-sl-wheelset/

 

https://www.rapide.c...25-sl-wheelset/

 

how does the tyre clearance look on your frame by the way?

[Dexter-morgan]

About a year or 2 ago I bought a Rapide 30 wheel-set from a Fellow hubber, replaced the bearings and it feels like they just roll better and better every time I go out, as mentioned best upgrade I have made to my bike.

[gemmerbal]

this is me also, thanks for your opinion!

A couple of things to keep in mind about me, while reading my reply:

 

1) I'm not concerned about a couple of grams of weight on tyres, when talking about extra grip.

2) same as above with rims/wheels

3) I dont race, I participate in events

4) I like to go down hills and around corners as fast as possible within my limited skill/experience set.

 

My Reply:

 

 

I bought a set of 30mm rapide wheels about two years ago.

My bike is a steel on-one hardtail with a 100mm fork (fox i think)

I had a set of hand-me-down giant pxc wheels, which I rode till they died. 

The 30mm rims was the single best upgrade I have ever done - bike related. The added stiffnes, cornering confidence, has made the world of difference.

 

I would say, go as wide as you can. I curently have 2.25 tyres on the rims, which has been doing great.

 

Unless you are a weight weenie, at the sharp end of the field, go for the wider rims, which will make the smile on your face wider as well.

[gemmerbal]

ill have to measure it to confirm, but ive run 2.3 tyres previously without any clearance issues. I will however come back with a number when I get home later.

how does the tyre clearance look on your frame by the way?

[gemmerbal]

lekker, thanks!

About a year or 2 ago I bought a Rapide 30 wheel-set from a Fellow hubber, replaced the bearings and it feels like they just roll better and better every time I go out, as mentioned best upgrade I have made to my bike.

[gemmerbal]

awesome, thanks for everyone's replies, i guess 30mm's it is! I will keep you posted! 

[Knersboy]

I was thinking about this thread yesterday.

 

I am doing a full service of my bike, so also took off the tires to clean out old sealant etc. I have a Rapide 25mm rear rim.

 

Getting the tire back on was a SOB, and seating the tire on this rim is a real bastard. My reservoir pump didn’t work, went through about 3 big CO2 canisters before I got it right. Now it is still not holding air, looks to be leaking around the bead.

 

I have had to get this rim re-taped after a few months, and the original taping was don’t by Nick the Wheelbuilder who knows his stuff. It started leaking through the spoke nipples which is why I re-taped it. It is a bastard to tape, I could not get it right myself and I haven’t struggled before with other rims.

 

I am seriously considering chucking this rim. I do not like things that are unnecessarily maintenance intensive, and I don’t want to not do my regular maintenance because I am scared I won’t get the tire to re-seat.

[Prince Albert Cycles]

I was thinking about this thread yesterday.

 

I am doing a full service of my bike, so also took off the tires to clean out old sealant etc. I have a Rapide 25mm rear rim.

 

Getting the tire back on was a SOB, and seating the tire on this rim is a real bastard. My reservoir pump didn’t work, went through about 3 big CO2 canisters before I got it right. Now it is still not holding air, looks to be leaking around the bead.

 

I have had to get this rim re-taped after a few months, and the original taping was don’t by Nick the Wheelbuilder who knows his stuff. It started leaking through the spoke nipples which is why I re-taped it. It is a bastard to tape, I could not get it right myself and I haven’t struggled before with other rims.

 

I am seriously considering chucking this rim. I do not like things that are unnecessarily maintenance intensive, and I don’t want to not do my regular maintenance because I am scared I won’t get the tire to re-seat.

Which is the culprit , tire or rim ?

I have found that the quality of the tire makes a huge huge difference in seating a new tubeless tire.