Strong / Light 650b DH rims

johnbryanpeters · Jan 25, 2016

Vueltas.

ianjenn · Jan 25, 2016

The FLOW EX hoops seem fairly dent resistant. I was running 25-29 PSI and weigh 215 LBS. I think I may try the Easton ARC next time...

http://www.artscyclery.com/Easton_ARC_Alloy_Rim_275/descpage-EAARC27.html?crumb=MTMCOMP

Jm_ · Jan 25, 2016

I would try 15psi

StiHacka · Jan 25, 2016

Flow Ex rims dent resistance? :think:

ianjenn · Jan 25, 2016

Well they are better then Tioga, E13, and some other butter based metals....

dump · Jan 25, 2016

What do you weigh?

wiscodh · Jan 25, 2016

ex471. Done and Done.

Sandwich · Jan 25, 2016

I have the Flow EXs, they've been OK for me so far, but I have to run shedloads of pressure to keep my continentals from flatting. I plan on swapping over my Bontragers this year for a little more low pressure resistance, but I haven't noticed any dings yet.

nh dude · Jan 25, 2016

Spank Rims are extra sturdy -pick one that meets needs , $ and a solid wheelbuilder should be all you need.

kickstand · Jan 25, 2016

Udi said:
Looking for something strong and fairly dent resistant at <600g.
Options seem to be the DT FR570 @ 590g or Supra 35 @ 570g. Anyone tried both?
Would a Flow EX work for the front? How's the dent resistance?

Ideally mention pressures too.
I run ~21/26psi F/R so experiences from people running 30-35 will be less relevant.

I have two sets of wheels built with the fr570, and two sets built with flow EX. I prefer the fr570 because it's easier to mount/dismount tires. I am running both sets tubeless.

Wife and I are running i9/flow ex combo as our primary wheels, fr570 (stock hubs/wheelsets that came on our v-10's) as our back up wheels, when the flows get too beat up I will replace them with fr570 again.

I am not a weight weenie, so I don't know which set is lighter.

Wife runs about 130-135lbs, probably close to 140 suited up. She runs low pressures, probably as low as 20psi in the rear, and possibly lower in the front. She's a pretty quick rider but isn't going to give Jill Kintner or Rachel Atherton a run for their money anytime soon. She doesn't usually dent up too many wheels.

I weigh anywhere around 180-190 suited up. I typically run my tire's around 25psi - ish. Maybe a little more in the rear.

I put one good dent in my fr570 before building the flow wheelset. It still held a tire tubless and I straightened it out a little, hasn't posed any problems. I did this at Massanutten which has a lot of jagged small rocks/square edges.

Outside of that both wheelsets have held up well for me. No major complaints.

FR570's are nice and cheap, flow ex is more $$ and harder for me to get tires on. I am running maxxis tires, DHF, DHR, HighRoller II and shorty for reference.

jstuhlman · Jan 25, 2016

my ex500s have held up to a lot of hacky stuff from me on rocky crap for a good 3-4 years now. the one big dent that i got i bent gently back. no prob w/tubeless. i'm 160 or so. I'd recommend whatever current dtswizz is the 650 equivalent (mine are 26).

mtg · Jan 25, 2016

Flow EX's are officially only recommended for up to all-mountain/enduro, and after using a set on my DH bike last year, I would agree with that. I've also run EX471's for DH, which work pretty well, but the rear has a dent in it now such that it won't set up tubeless anymore. Those are also not officially recommended for DH. The FR570 is likely something I'll try, hopefully it's basically the same thing as the EX471 with a little more metal all around \m/. If it is, it should be awesome.

92SE-R · Jan 26, 2016

Do you run 21/26 psi with dh 2 ply tires? Tubeless or with tubes?

kickstand · Jan 26, 2016

92SE-R said:
Do you run 21/26 psi with dh 2 ply tires? Tubeless or with tubes?

I know you are asking udi, but that's probably not far off from what I run at 180-190 with dh 2 ply, tubeless (previously would run similar set up with DH or Freeride tubes).

MSA Rider · Jan 26, 2016

I'm using DT FR570 on my V10 and I like them. They stay true and tight.
My previous wheelset were Flow ex and I think that they are a bit too soft for rough DH. I had to check spoke tension every 2 or 3 run because they were always getting loose. It was not too bad on the front but not good enough for the rear. I guess Flow ex can be ok if your lightweight or riding a flowy bike park but they won't stay true for long in the rough stuff....

ianjenn · Jan 26, 2016

GRAVY laced the FLOW EX wheel we had on our Following. I rode the bike 5 months. Had some very fast guys on it during that period. We actually never had the spokes re tightened. That was on a 29" hoop using 14 guage straight spokes. They weighed 2100 grams....

GET A GOOD WHEEL BUILDER TO LACE THE WHEELS NO MATTER WHAT HOOPS YOU USE.

kickstand · Jan 26, 2016

I've not had any problems with spoke tension on the flow EX hoops. They are developing a small wobble on my bike but nothing worse than most other rims. Not even worth mentioning. I rode them starting in July to the end of the season.

I will replace the flow's with fr570 hoops when it's time to replace them though.

ianjenn · Jan 26, 2016

I am gonna go with the Easton in 30mm variant for my next wheel build.

Tim300wsm · Jan 26, 2016

Anyone tried the hope DH rims???

Flo33 · Jan 27, 2016

Tim300wsm said:
Anyone tried the hope DH rims???

Can you buy them separately?

Edit: CRC has the 26 and wagon wheel ndurpo ones plus all XC, but no DH love
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/at/de/felgen?f=4294966842

saruti · Jan 27, 2016

21 -26 PSI?... do you run procore inside?......

no skid marks · Jan 27, 2016

Isn't tyre pressure relative to body weight to some extent? I'm light and find wider helps. I can't run as low as you with normal rims as there's too much squirm and inconsistent feel below 23pSI max.
Have you thought of a 35mm Carbon front? That's what I'm running. Just put one on the back too. But don't think it'll survive, we'll see.
Flow EX dent easy on the back, but seem to last okay otherwise and still hold tubeless air okay dented. Dents pull out okay also. Not as tough as a 823. What do Alex Supras weigh? And are the wide Syntace rims any good?
I'm a fan of wide rims and I'm a feather weight too. Maxxis have new wide trail tires made for wider rims. I'm yet to try them though.
I don't doubt a carbon front can be destroyed, but suspect i'll get the same life out of it as a Flow EX.

kickstand · Jan 28, 2016

I ran my fr570's with tubes in the beginning. I had hoped to keep all my 26" DH tubes since maxxis wasn't offering a 27.5 DH tube last year. But the freeride ended up being the ticket.

the 26" tube wouldn't allow enough room to get the tire mounted to the rim, it just wouldn't.

With regular 27.5 tubes both I and the wife were flatting pretty consistently. Which we had not had problems with on our 26" bikes with DH tubes.

Once we moved to the freeride tubes we had better luck, but did have to run a little firmer tire than we preferred compared to the 26/DH Tube combos we both rode previously. The thicker tube also made it a lot harder to get the tires mounted. My wife likes a very soft tire. (insert bad joke here).

I still occasionally would get a flat with the free ride tubes. I decided to switch to tubeless because it was still difficult (for me) to get tires on and off the rims quickly if I wanted to change tires. This was my first foray into tubeless on the DH bike. Once I switched and got it dialed in I didn't have any issues with the FR570. I can now mount the tires much easier and haven't had to worry about pinch flatting. I am still running about the same tire pressures. I don't really measure though, I put them up to 30, do a run, let some air out, do another run, find the sweet spot, and then just ride for the day. If I hear my rim hitting a lot I add a few psi, etc.

I would not consider trying to run the flow ex tubed. I also won't keep those hoops once they get dinged up enough to replace, I'll relace some more fr570's.

jstuhlman · Jan 28, 2016

@Udi not sure if it's the exact same profile as my ex500s - looking at cutaway images on teh innerwebz it looks like it is, or very close.

I've been running singly ply maxxis tires on the rear with a dh tube for the past 6 months, probably around 28-32 psi unless i get lazy and forget to check, and have been pleasantly surprised with zero pinch flats.

vinny4130 · Jan 28, 2016

I have seen customers flog multiple spank rims on 26, 29, and 650b with great success. I have searched this recently and what I have found to be disappointing is the carbon rim world is where I have seen the rim profile/characteristics I want. That being wider but not silly wide, asymmetric, off set drillings, and strong. Wtb makes the Asym alloy rim like that but I don't have much love for wtb and I have never seen one. The one Easton arc rim I've seen dented up pretty fast.

Nick · Jan 28, 2016

jstuhlman said:
I've been running singly ply maxxis tires on the rear with a dh tube for the past 6 months, probably around 28-32 psi unless i get lazy and forget to check, and have been pleasantly surprised with zero pinch flats

Jinx!

SDet · Jan 28, 2016

vinny4130 said:
I have seen customers flog multiple spank rims on 26, 29, and 650b with great success. I have searched this recently and what I have found to be disappointing is the carbon rim world is where I have seen the rim profile/characteristics I want. That being wider but not silly wide, asymmetric, off set drillings, and strong. Wtb makes the Asym alloy rim like that but I don't have much love for wtb and I have never seen one. The one Easton arc rim I've seen dented up pretty fast.

We have a demo bike with Asym. It's on a plus size bike, so rim strength hasn't been tested too hard, outside of the few (Many) stair hucks that have a rim tap or too. Holding up well, just really confusing to build.

On the original question, I've been running spank subrosa's and they've been great, I think I tensioned them once after the christening 3 day weekend, and haven't touched them all summer, I'm a fairly light guy 170-175lb geared up, Maxxis DH tires in the mid to upper 20 psi.

Another guy at the shop a bit bigger (220lb) has been running the spank spoons for a few season holding up great, but they don't seem to make them in 27.5.

But I reccomend the ex471, fr570, or subrosa, in order from light to beefy.

slyfink · Jan 28, 2016

FWIW re Spank. I'm 220 right now. I run the Oozy 295 (26") on the back of my trail bike. It replaced a WTB i23 and Stans. I think it is stiffer than the WTB and Stans, yet dents a little easier. Though I've been able to pull the dents out. It still holds air despite to dents that I've pulled out. It's still round (no flat spots) and spoke tension is even. I've found the profile of the rim makes it a little tricky to mount tires on, but nothing too bad.

My biggest beef with them is their name. What a stupid name. I'd take the damn stickers off, but they are applied under the clear coat so you can't. You're stuck with them. :think:

6thElement · Jan 28, 2016

I don't like the inner profile on Spanks with regards to mounting tyres. I managed to snap Pedro's levers trying to mount wire bead maxxis DH tyres to their race 28 wheels.

Still need to try and set them up tubeless...

vinny4130 · Jan 28, 2016

They set up tubeless great! The name sucks, however pb had an interview with the guy that started spank and I dig his jive so after reading it I am more inclined to ignore the name.

6thElement · Jan 28, 2016

Single or double wrap of their fratelli tape?

The one wheel I tried a single wrap didn't hold air for long with wire bead dhf so I stuck a tube in.

vinny4130 · Jan 29, 2016

I think American Classic uses that tape and...

I don't know many wire beads that are tr ready, and I don't remember a tr wire bead from maxxis. That maybe the first problem. I have seen Getto tubeless (split 20" tube) work with non tubeless tires with much success, though my experance was 50-50 at best. My method with tr tires is to use two wraps of tape in most cases including gorilla and stans a third wrap happens but I don't like it seems wrong. Then air up with compresser without sealant bead should ping into seat with an uncomfortable sound it should hold 30-35psi for at least a little while, 10-20 minuets even if it's a little soft when sealant is added it will be reliable. FYI orange seal is worth the cost.

kickstand · Jan 29, 2016

slyfink said:
FWIW re Spank. I'm 220 right now. I run the Oozy 295 (26") on the back of my trail bike. It replaced a WTB i23 and Stans. I think it is stiffer than the WTB and Stans, yet dents a little easier. Though I've been able to pull the dents out.

I've not owned a pair, but I have heard from a few friends with spank wheels that they dent easily as well.

kickstand · Jan 29, 2016

vinny4130 said:
I think American Classic uses that tape and...
View attachment 121440 I don't know many wire beads that are tr ready, and I don't remember a tr wire bead from maxxis. That maybe the first problem. I have seen Getto tubeless (split 20" tube) work with non tubeless tires with much success, though my experance was 50-50 at best. My method with tr tires is to use two wraps of tape in most cases including gorilla and stans a third wrap happens but I don't like it seems wrong. Then air up with compresser without sealant bead should ping into seat with an uncomfortable sound it should hold 30-35psi for at least a little while, 10-20 minuets even if it's a little soft when sealant is added it will be reliable. FYI orange seal is worth the cost.

I have tried a number of different tapes and I like Stans or Gorilla's clear tape the best. Stans seems to be a little more durable when mounting fiesty tires and hitting it with the levers. Gorilla is cheaper and easier to apply in a quick fix situation.

I disagree 100% with the orange seal comment. I watched a friend pour piles of that stuff out of a tiny hole in his tire as it simultaneously went flat. Stans or home brew for me. I used the Antifreeze, liquid latex, green slime combo and made my own. I've got a video of myself puncturing an old as hell dry rotted out minion with an awl and my homebrew sealing it right up on my phone, but I don't know how to upload it to here. My home brew works a touch slower than stans, so I plan to figure out how to get it to coagulate a touch faster like the stans, but it costs a bunch less.

StiHacka · Jan 29, 2016

kickstand said:
I have tried a number of different tapes and I like Stans or Gorilla's clear tape the best. Stans seems to be a little more durable when mounting fiesty tires and hitting it with the levers. Gorilla is cheaper and easier to apply in a quick fix situation.

I disagree 100% with the orange seal comment. I watched a friend pour piles of that stuff out of a tiny hole in his tire as it simultaneously went flat. Stans or home brew for me. I used the Antifreeze, liquid latex, green slime combo and made my own. I've got a video of myself puncturing an old as hell dry rotted out minion with an awl and my homebrew sealing it right up on my phone, but I don't know how to upload it to here. My home brew works a touch slower than stans, so I plan to figure out how to get it to coagulate a touch faster like the stans, but it costs a bunch less.

Homebrew (RV AF, liquid latex & slime) FTW. For rim tape, I've tried many and this one is by far the bestest: http://www.amazon.com/Mil-Kapton-Tape-Polyimide-Yds/dp/B006ZFQNT6

Gorilla works OK but is a total bitch to remove / clean the goo.

slyfink · Jan 29, 2016

6thElement said:
Single or double wrap of their fratelli tape?

The one wheel I tried a single wrap didn't hold air for long with wire bead dhf so I stuck a tube in.

I used one layer of stans tape. It does seem to lose air at a slightly quicker rate than the i23 in the front. Maybe 2-3 psi/week in the summer. I check my pressure every ride, so no biggie, as I'll be adjusting pressure every ride anyways.

kickstand · Jan 29, 2016

StiHacka said:
Homebrew (RV AF, liquid latex & slime) FTW. For rim tape, I've tried many and this one is by far the bestest: http://www.amazon.com/Mil-Kapton-Tape-Polyimide-Yds/dp/B006ZFQNT6

Gorilla works OK but is a total bitch to remove / clean the goo.

I'll have to check that tape out. Stan's is pricey and I have a rim or two I am going to need to redo this year. **wait, am I reading that right? 1/2" wide? **

The black Gorilla in my opinion sucks, it turns totally into a goo that was pretty time consuming to remove. The clear works well, a little goo gone and a rag and it cleaned up nicely for me, then again it wasn't on the rim for years.

Nick · Jan 29, 2016

I'd had good results after trying the orange goop. Hmm.

FT has those Spanks and beats the holy crap out of them. The hub explodered but the rims seem to hold up fine.

Strong / Light 650b DH rims

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