Reynolds 27.5 AM Carbon Wheelset - Review

Oct 27, 2014 at 16:34
by Jordan Carr  
Reynolds Summit AM Carbon


Reynolds's creative genius, Paul Lew, is one of the pioneers of carbon wheel technology, and the brand has a devout following of riders in the road genre as well as in the mountain bike world. Reynolds began in the 1990's making elite-level products, with MSRP's to match, but their new Summit Carbon AM wheels are more reasonably priced. The new wheels are designed around all-mountain style riding, and are said to be the most durable offering from the brand yet. Weighing in at 1640 grams for the set, Summit Carbon AM wheels are a balance between weight, durability, and cost effectiveness. Straddling its three MTB ranges, the Summit Carbon is the most affordable carbon offering from Reynolds, with a retail price tag of $1900.
27.5 AM Carbon Wheelset

• Intended use: all-mountain / trail
• Sizes: 26", 27.5'' (tested), 29''
• Width: 31mm outer, 23mm inner
• 28 straight-pull spokes, three cross
• Alloy nipples
• Alloy freehub body (SRAM XD, Shimano or SRAM 10spd)
• 15mm / 9 mm QR front (incl.)
• 12 x 142 / 135mm QR compatible (incl.)
• Rim weight: 440g (27.5")
• Weight: 1640g (27.5" wheelset)
• MSRP: $1900 USD (pair)
• Contact: Reynolds Cycling



Strategic Carbon Construction

What sets Reynolds carbon rims apart from the mass produced cut outs? Reynolds devotes an extensive amount of time to their carbon engineering, constantly working to improve carbon layups and reduce weight while maintaining durability. The AM Carbon wheels feature rims constructed of MR5 (Mountain Rim 5) carbon, which is described as a precise method of assigning different fiber and lay-ups to five different rim regions. The idea is to create structural integrity to areas prone to impacts, while reducing weight in other places where impact resistance or ultimate tensile strength is less important. Once out of the molds, each batch of rims is tested and certified to Reynolds' stringent quality standards. The Summit Carbon AM rims feature a boxy rim profile that measures 31 millimeters outside and 23 millimeters between the flanges - dimensions that have become the standard for most AM/trail rims on the market.

Reynolds Summit AM Carbon Wheels
  The Carbon AM rim's boxy profile helps to create a stiffer, more durable AM rim. Reynolds adjusts the type of fiber, epoxy and resin to achieve the optimal tensile strength, stiffness and elongation for each rim design.


Hubs and Spokes

The Summit Carbon AMs come laced with 28 straight-pull, double-butted, DT Swiss Revolution spokes, and with red alloy nipples. The Summit's spokes aren't interlaced - they don't contact each other as they would in a traditional two or three-cross lacing pattern, and no special tools are needed to true them The alloy nipples can be turned using a traditional spoke wrench, making truing quick and simple, no matter where you may be - an oversight of many high-end wheel-makers.

Using different push-on adapters, the front hub can be configured for a 15 or 20 millimeter through-axles, or for standard quick-release types. The adapter extends past the inner surface of the bearing and part way onto the internal aluminum sleeve. This slightly different design allows the hub to house a slightly larger bearing and improve longevity. The rear hub can also be adapted to work with nearly every frame standard out there with the included adapter kit (except for 150mm). Rear hub adapters are included to set up the wheel for quick-release,135x10mm through-axle, or 142x12mm through-axle.

Reynolds offers its six-pawl ratchet freehub system in both Shimano/SRAM ten-speed and SRAM's 11-speed XD drivers. The pawls each have two engagement teeth and reportedly provide a five-degree interval between clicks. Reverse of most ratcheting systems, Reynolds installs the pawls in the hub. The star wheel rotates inside the pawls and is attached to the freehub's cassette driver. For those who plan on converting to an 11-speed system with an XD drive, Reynolds says their drivers are interchangeable. Check spec, though, because previous hubs used a conventional ratchet configuration with a hub-mounted star-wheel, and those require a matching XD driver.

Reynolds Summit AM Carbon Wheels
  The Reynolds' XD driver (left) has the only threaded end cap. The rest pull off. The front hub can be configured for both 20mm and 15mm through-axles. Straight-pull spoke flanges enhance durability and provide for higher spoke-tension values.


Reynolds Assurance Program

Sure, $1900 may be a lot for a set of wheels, but if they can last for many years, it makes them a good investment. Many have concerns about the long-term durability of carbon wheels and while our experiences with carbon wheels have be predominantly good ones, anything can break, Reynolds has developed a program to give consumers a little more peace of mind. Their Reynolds Assurance Program or RAP, provides two years of coverage above and beyond their warranty and crash replacement programs to add a whole other level of protection. For an additional $250 at the time of purchase (or up to 30 days after), riders are able to return damaged carbon wheel(s) for repair or replacement (at Reynolds’ discretion), no questions asked. Meaning that if you ride down on a flat, crash, or even if you run the wheel over in the driveway, Reynolds will repair your wheels for only the cost of shipping - which seems like a nice way to insure that your $2000 hoops will last for many years to come, no matter how clumsy you may be with them.




On The Trail

Paired with the included Reynolds Tubeless rim strips, valves, and Stan's sealant, we mounted up two different sets of tires during the test period; a pair of Maxxis High Roller IIs and the new Michelin Wild Rock'R2s. Both required a little muscle install, but seated easily with both a floor pump and a low-volume compressor. Early in our test period, we found the rim strips to be a little finicky which, during our initial install, must have gone on a little crooked, causing the tires to lose the majority of their pressure while the bike sat overnight. Though an obvious error, the strips do slide around relatively easily making them a bit more of a concern with when mounting up tires with a tighter fit. But with a little finesse, this should be a non-issue for even a beginner mechanic.

We ran the wheels with the rear setup for a 12 x 142mm axle and the front for a 15mm axle, which is how they came setup from Reynolds. We spent the time to reconfigure the hubs to see how difficult the job is - which proved that swapping end caps is about as easy as it sounds. It took less than two minutes to reconfigure the front hub from a 15mm to a 20mm axle once it was removed from the bike. The rear drive-side end cap is the only one that threads on (to keep the freehub in place)- a job easy enough for any novice mechanic with a 15mm box wrench. We really appreciated the ability to run the hubs for any axle configuration needed with included axle end caps. In an age with an overabundance of options, Reynolds removes the headache of understanding axle configurations.

Reynolds Summit AM Carbon Wheels
  An up close look at the six pawl ratchet. Each pawl is activated by its own flat steel spring in order to improve reliability.


And how do they perform in the dirt? Well, for a wheel billed as an affordable one, the Summit Carbon AM wheels provided us with some amazing rides. Out on the trail the Reynolds Summit wheels were a significant upgrade from our previous stock wheels. During the test period, we were pleasantly surprised that the carbon hoops served up continuous enjoyment with no issues. When investing close to $2000 on a set of wheels, many argue that they should provide an unrivaled improvement over aluminum hoops. Do they? Well, they do provide a noticeably stiffer rim, though not overly stiff, like some other carbon offerings. Hammering wheels through the roughest trails is a part of product testing that send tingles through our nether regions and that's exactly what we did. Many rocks that would have dented any aluminum rim proved no match for the Summit rims. We rallied them through high-speed rock gardens and scree fields with a variety of tire pressures, and can report great results. Both rims are as true as the day we mounted them up, which speaks highly to Reynolds' build quality.

Bomber rims are only half of the equation. Reynolds' straight-pull hubs provided similar results. The ratchet engagement was sufficient for most slow, technical terrain. When we found ourselves in a big gear on a quick grade change, we never had issues with skipping or popping from the freehub. We opted to run the an XD driver mated with an X01 SRAM cassette and had no problems in any of the 11 gears. We were pleasantly surprised with the ride quality of the 11-speed mated to the Reynolds hub.


Issues

Surprisingly, we had very few issues other than with the initial pressure loss from a maligned rim strip. Though we think the Reynolds tubeless rim strip could be improved upon, it holds a variety of benefits over other tubeless systems. It was nice to be able to remove the rim strip when needed and to be able to re-position it to remedy the leaky valve problem. Another issue worth mentioning is that longer stemmed tubes are required due to the deeper than normal rim profile. The valve stems supplied for running the wheels tubeless are long enough, but if you want to install a traditional Presta tube, you will need one with a longer stem length (48mm as opposed to the more common, 32mm).


Pinkbike's take:
bigquotesWe have a hard time advocating everyone should drop almost $2K on a set of wheels, but if you're a rider who purchases components hoping they will last for many years, the Reynolds Summit Carbon AM wheels are a great choice, especially when paired with the Reynolds Assurance Program. Sure, you can buy two sets of inexpensive alloy wheels for $1900, but the ride quality, durability and Gucci-factor that the Summit Carbon wheels will add to your rig are well worth their price tag. Shredding hard, day in and day out, and not worrying about the durability of our rims was a nice bit of assurance that we learned to appreciate. - J. Carr



Reynolds Cycling

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JordanCarr avatar

Member since Aug 7, 2013
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143 Comments
  • 68 1
 "Sure, you can buy two sets of inexpensive alloy wheels for $1900"

$950 for a set of wheels is inexpensive? Man....
  • 13 0
 ZTR Flow on Hope Pro 2 Evo ~$520
Bit heavy, but tough and "cheap". In Russia even $500 is expensive for many riders, and $1900 price tag for wheelset is beyond good and evil.
  • 2 2
 $900 for EX823 on Hope Pro 2 Evos. And that's built as well.
  • 3 0
 Does the extra $250 extend the warranty to a lifetime as well or just for oopsie-daiseis?
  • 5 0
 A durable alu wheelset is 400. Nuff...
  • 6 0
 ZTR Flows on Novatec 4 in 1 hubs, DT spokes, and learn the, how easy it is once you get used to it, ways of lacing and tensioning a wheel and you can have even more confidence in your wheels for a quarter of the price. Why? Because you know how to bloody well look after them, how to maintain them, and how to keep them running under you for decades to come. The Gucchi Factor? TBH, if you need that, you deserve to have to spend 2000 US.
  • 5 0
 Hope pro2 evo, sapim x-ray spoke, stan's arch EX 27.5 32 holes, brass nipple, 1700g. 750$CAN incl. taxes.
  • 4 0
 Legalaze, rest assured $500 for a set of wheels is expensive for many riders in US as well.
  • 4 0
 pff just get these www.pinkbike.com/photo/11184355 carbon dh rim for 205$ put some hopes pro evo2 hubs and some spokes and your'e done for much cheaper Wink
  • 1 0
 $250 is just a 2 year, no questions asked replacement or repair warranty. Kinda shitty that after 2 years you're left high and dry...
  • 2 0
 Roval Traverse with DT internal's, $600 done and done.
  • 2 0
 I have two sets of Mavic EX 721's on Pro II's. One 9 speed hub, and one SS hub. I think I paid $620 for the 9 speed set and $650 for the SS set, shipped to my doorstep. 32 DT double butted spokes on both sets. Nothing fancy, but they've been bulletproof so far. Seems like the guys at Pinkbike have completely forgotten the value of a dollar these days.
  • 4 0
 Superstar Components. Nuf said
  • 1 0
 How about PB review LB rims on Hope or DT 350 hubs. I think a lot of us on here would like to see that done, except perhaps Reynolds, ENVE, NOX, etc.
  • 37 15
 Reynolds will have a hard time with any product over $800 on Pinkbike, none of these kids have jobs. I rode a Reynolds carbon rim equipped Industry Nine Torch Wheelset for a year. I had to send them back because the spoke holes in the rims were drilled at the wrong angle and causing spokes to break. After a rebuild they were fine and rode like what you would expect a $2600 wheelset to ride like.
  • 38 3
 It's not that we don't have jobs, it's that we understand mountain biking and that parts break and we fall in love with new bikes.
$2K for a set of wheels, I can build FOUR sets of Hope Pro on DT Swiss EX500 wheels for that price. I'll only need one and when I fall in love with another bike, separating from $500 vs $2000 will be much easier. If they break, then replacing a $500 wheelset will be much easier. Plus, that is $1500 left to spend on other things, like a second bike! Or season passes for multiple years, or a trip to Whistler.
  • 6 0
 Carbon wheels look awesome and I'm sure they are great... not sure if they are $2k+ great. Getting a good set of hubs and changing hoops when necessary ftw.
  • 10 1
 Let Gwin run them without tires down the mountain
  • 4 0
 had a set of theses wheels - the spoke holes were also drilled at the wrong angle and caused about 6 spokes to break free and then as they got caught up in the rotor. This then sheared 4 of the hubs rotor bolt fixation points off completely destroying the hub, rim and rotor. Eventually got warranty after 6months - but all of that problem is substandard for a set of $2000 wheels. I have just got the replacements and yet to do a ride on them.
  • 9 2
 Jobs, or not, these wheels are marketed to the 1%. Don't make sense and aren't applicable to the other 99. These reviews aren't for the benefit of PB users. They are advertisements, not reviews.
  • 1 0
 @dutflip - i have a set of these on my 130mm trail bike - would recommend them over the reynolds anyday.
  • 2 0
 2,600.00 and they didn't come with a bike?
  • 1 0
 @Hammm Got a set on my Bronson road them really hard and been super happy with them
  • 22 0
 Do yourselves a favor and buy the alloy ones. 1100 USD less for only 45 grams more weight. Seriously.
  • 3 0
 This...
  • 6 7
 don't forget : the weight is not the only good thing about carbon. Think about flex, feedback to the rider etc...
  • 3 1
 I'm aware of the benefits of carbon... I'm currently running a Haven carbon wheelset BUT I would never have bought them if they hadn't been an absolutely ridiculous deal ($800 new). And to be honest, there not THAT much better than my previous Mavics.
  • 3 3
 I have some enves too, and I gotta say, when things get slippery, the stiffnes really doesent help
  • 12 0
 I think having 3 sets of alloy wheelsets so you quickly could choose tires ideal for that dags condition would give you better overall performance than the one expansive wheelset where you cant be botherd changing tires all the time.
  • 4 0
 ^This if you wanna spend 2k for wheels. and save gucci for evenings.
  • 3 0
 @feeblesmith is throwing down some wisdom. Having three, or even two, sets of wheels for different conditions set up, ready to swap In a couple of minutes would indeed provide a vast performance boost over carbon for anyone except racers, who already do the necessary trail prep before the big day.
  • 2 0
 Too bloody right. Two sets of wheels with your muddy marys and dirty Dans is an ideal setup for race day too
  • 18 2
 I have a hard time spending 1000$ on a set of wheels,let alone 2k!, i know my flow ex's on hope cant compare to a carbon set up, i bought mine for 650$, and they've been rock solid!.
Anyway that's my 2 cents..
  • 11 0
 As far as bang or your buck goes, nothing even comes close to Stan's on Hopes.
  • 2 0
 I agree @fredgrillet, Stan's + Hope = Mega bang for bucks.
  • 5 1
 I run a front hope bulb with mavic 321 rim, cost £100. 10 years of dh, a few bearing changes and it's still going strong.
  • 6 1
 @goytay - Actualy your Flow EX is very comparable, because it weighs just 100g more than according carbon rim, which is nothing. 490g for a 26er is a very decent weight and most carbon rims give too stiff feeling. One thing I don't get is why ZTR rims are so expensive (as for an alu rim) they cost more than comparable WTB Frequency i25 or even DT Swiss EX471.
  • 3 0
 Not sure Waki,i bought stan's based on reputation. haven't been let down since. Cheers
  • 11 0
 Light Bicycle + Hope. Fantastic carbon wheels for $800 or so. How are these wheel manufacturers so clueless about manufacturing wheels?
  • 4 0
 Light Bicycle, Derby, Nextie... etc. All these companies sell equally good rims for a fraction of the price.
  • 1 2
 I wouldn't say "equally good", however derby etc., replace rims when one breaks them.
  • 9 1
 There is no way any of us can know that @dualduspensiondave Big Grin these are handmade products... I asked a known Polish manufactuter about testing frames for strength: unless you mess something completely - it's Just about PR. People want to feel that the sht they ride on 30mph down a rocky slope holds up according to "a scientifically looking experiment". All it takes is Joe the welder to have a rough night, either partying hard or having a terthing toddler: he'll mess up a weld or two and your test is worthless, warranty comes in
  • 1 0
 I'm sticking with "equally good". Recently Enve had some serious issues with rim failures. At this point there is nothing to suggest that they are higher quality.
  • 1 0
 Enve's fit and finish is better. Much more time put into them. Customer service is top notch. Failure rate is less than others as well (from my experience). The ridiculous price of Enve's... well that's up to the individual consumer and debatable. Not to mention the horrific internal spoke nipple situation. Overall quality still currently goes to Enve.
  • 2 0
 For me the customer service of Light Bicycle was top notch. I did not compare them to ENVE. I'd say anything that isn't ENVE is the same. At the same time... I'd never ever buy ENVE, even if I had the money to be stressed with the consideration whether I should buy ceramic brakes to Porsche Carrera GT3...
  • 1 0
 dualsuspensiondave - Have you seen the rims coming from these other companies now? Many are equivalent to Enve. Some even offer custom paint and logos/text for just a tiny bit more.

The only possible advantage to enve that i'm aware of are the angularly drilled holes. This means spokes are bent less when exiting the nipple. However this is arguably trivial because that bend is nothing compared to j-bend at the other end.

As for failure rate, all we've got are anecdotes. If going that route, note that pinkbike had a complete rim failure when they reviewed enve DH rims.
  • 2 0
 Yep, my friends and I have a dangerous addiction to carbon bike parts. We've ridden and broke just every carbon rim out there. Definitely stand by my comments/observations. Pink bike breaking a pre-production rim is hardly representative of a product. Enve issues have mainly been from lacing up sets with the wrong DT spokes for the higher tension. They are taking care of that. Like I said though, $2700 is a lot to spend on wheels regardless how good they are.
  • 2 0
 People will hate on carbon wheels because they can't afford them and haven't ridden them. Simply put. Ride a set...you won't want to ride anything else.
  • 1 0
 That is a greatly exagerated. I have carbon and aluminium wheels, I don't care as much about weight as I care about width. I also care about the fact that I can't simply talmke off the tyre off a carbon rims using tyre levers and how tricky it is to tension them. For that reason you can't comfortably use alloy nipples with them as you will damage them under higher loads, so you can immediately add 60g per wheelset, diminishing the weight wins of Enve DH carbon rim over Flow Ex or super robust EX741 to 50g...
  • 1 1
 lol, Enve rims breaking from using the spokes that work fine with every other rim. Doesn't sound like higher quality to me. I found Enve's response to that to be smoke and mirrors. It caused me to lose respect for them as a company.

I too run tons of carbon components and offer a counter anecdote to your experience of cheaper carbon being prone to failure. Now what? I still see no evidence that expensive carbon rims are less likely to fail than the cheaper, factory direct options.
  • 2 0
 Incorrect. It's the same spoke as other rims work with, but at a much higher tension. You'll see if you ever get your hands on a set. But hey, I'm not making any pinkbike sense when developing an opinion based on first hand experience. Haha.
  • 2 0
 I can simply use tire levers, what are you talking about? If you're using metal tire levers on anything you need to re-evaluate how you put on tires or grow some muscles. I can use crappy $1 plastic tire levers to put on DH tires....I do it every day....literally.

Can't use alloy nipples? Are you kidding? It makes no difference what nipples you use if you build a wheel properly. If you're applying that much tension to ANY wheel it's going to break.

And comparing an uber flexy Stan's rim to a rigid Enve is....lol.

As for spokes causing rims to fail...meh, I call that being put in a shitty position. Much like how the only Fox forks to be complete shit where the CTD and lock-out doesn't work on a brand new bike is on 2013-2014 Scott bikes. "Oh...but those forks are fine on every other bike..." Yeah, it's the same kind of statement. Sucks that Enve got stuck with a shit lot of spokes, but that's the nature of mass production, you can get shit batches.

Like the saying goes "The birds only peck at the best fruit..." So many people rag on Ferrari and how x car is faster and cheaper....well good, stay with you lower end stuff that is faster and cheaper; it's still not a Ferarri.
  • 2 0
 I used Parktool plastic tyre lever and it chipped off surface of my rim in several places. Some rims and tyres are tighter than others. Mine are super tight yet I had to learn to put the tyre on and take it off, using only fingers. I damaged at least 10 alloy nipples in the process of truing my wheels and had to be super cautious with other, doing max 1/4 turns very early in the process. I shall not use them again. Stan's Flow EX are not Uber flexy. They are stiff enough for gargantous majority of riders in the world. I don't know how often on a regular ride you'd have to experience the forces like those acting on the wheel in the berm after the road gap in Hafjell (Sick Mick fell off of it last year) I know people who raced DH whole season on one pair.

I find it hard to motivate buying a carbon rim again in the future (eventually if I buy a 29er) due to the fact that material is not stainless while price is super high. Even for LB rims. ENVE - yea, maybe... after I buy a Ferrari and a roof rack for it (although Veyron is fkng ugly, you have to have your taste fkd to like it!). I love how ENVE they look, I love their properties how light and stiff they are... I drool honestly - I would just not buy them. If someone wants to? Please do! Buy four, or five! I shall not judge you - I don't care what you spend your money on. I just feel I need to express my opinion in that topic because A-there's too much blind praise and B -if there's a soul that feels the same but is affraid to talk, then he'll know he's not alone in this world.
  • 10 0
 so is the elephant in the room width? "The Summit Carbon AM rims feature a boxy rim profile that measures 31 millimeters outside and 23 millimeters between the flanges - dimensions that have become the standard for most AM/trail rims on the market. " I thought the industry standard was closer to 25mm inner width, with the trend going to ever-wider (www.pinkbike.com/news/ibis-741-carbon-wheels-review-2014.html). so... yes, these are carbon, and at that price point there are wider carbon rims. Is it still worth investing in these skinny ones when there are equally good wider ones out there?
  • 9 0
 I agree with you. PB has been rather inconsistent when talking about rim widths. I think they are fans of wider, but I also think PB is more and more concerned about offending advertisers and so they hold back from harsher criticisms such as "too skinny to recommend for a 2K AM wheelset." Prime example of this was last year when Mavic's latest AM rim was something like 21mm and RC said nothing about how skinny they are when weeks earlier he posted a big article on the advantages of wider rims. Obviously didn't want to tick off Mavic.
  • 9 2
 There are voices who say that 25-27 inner is quite a sensible dimension for 2.35-2.5" tyre because if you go wider the tyre loses vertical compliance as it's sidewalls get too vertical and straight...
  • 6 0
 I agree, based on the recent review of the ibis 741 wide carbon rims, I'd say this review lacks some credibility for failing to reference the Ibis option recently reviewed by Pinkbike. Almost misleading to say the Reynolds are twice the price of an inexpensive aluminum set of wheels (so $1000.00), when there are carbon options (Ibis) out there for only $1299 (which is probably a more apt comparison). So the Ibis is only 2/3 the price, plus it's wider - which according to Mike Levy in his review was pretty much all positives and no negatives... So, why even write this review if the price is 50% more than ibis, and it's a narrower rim - unless you're retracting your position on the wider Ibis rims? Why not be critical and say how the Reynolds ride in comparison to the Ibis? or Enve (at $2,700 - with same inner width)? That's a review I'd like to see. Maybe I'll be happily surprised when you post the review of the Enve 70thirty...
  • 2 0
 @trillot, good point. I forgot about the Ibis wheel review. Sad that this is the consequence of PB becoming so commercially successful---they have to be very careful not to do any head-to-head comparisons. Can't remember the last time PB did a real product comparison other than to say essentially "both products are equally great!"
  • 12 0
 Wheels or...pay your mortgage for 2 months... gee that's a toughie.....
  • 11 2
 Most of Pinkbike users don't own a house.
  • 2 1
 @seraph, you sir are most likely correct...

touche`
  • 13 0
 Poll.
  • 3 1
 We need more PB user demographic pollls
  • 2 0
 New set of Wheels, or pay 2 months tuition... hmmmmm... there thats more PB friendly.
  • 3 0
 Mommy, Daddy and the Government pay for tuition.
  • 7 0
 They did a Budget poll a couple of weeks ago and here are the results:

Everyone wants to ride a 27.5" / 650b carbon everything air suspension sub 35lb DH rig.

Nobody wants to pay for a 27.5" / 650b carbon everything air suspension sub 35lb DH rig.

Some kid " hey, are you selling your M9 frame? "
Me " I'm selling the whole bike, I wont part it out "
kid " well I can only afford the frame "
Me " I'm letting it go for a song if you need to save your paper route money till next spring "
kid "Still too expensive, oh hold on I have to call my dad... Dad, can you pick me up I'm almost finished with my ride...yeah twenty minutes "
Me " I guess you live far away? "
kid " No about 5km from here "
My inside voice " what the f*ck kid, get a spine and a job, you've already moved out of for fathers scrotum and your mothers birthing area. When I was a your age I couldn't afford bikes like this ( they also hadn't been invented yet )and had to ride my piece of shit beater to the riding spot ( which hasn't changed locations in oh, never )"
My outside voice " get a job and talk to me in the spring, maybe grandma and grandpa will give you a Christmas extra if your super nice "
  • 3 0
 @Reverie2Reality I wish. i'm working my way through college. Saving lives of the unfortunate and irresponsible.
  • 3 0
 TFreeman, Thanks for that bud! I hope you'll be buying some real expensive stuff to help the grommets eventually afford the trickled down technology!! Now go mend some wounds!!!!
  • 2 1
 Bullshit, you live in the states, for you it's more like wheels or pay 2 week's tuition @TFreeman
  • 1 0
 nah, instate tuition for SDSU for two months is about 2,100 dollars. now out of state its about 10k...
  • 6 0
 everyone loves to bitch about price, but give it a few years and carbon will be affordable for the masses. we should thank the wealthy/techy early-adopters for financing this level of innovation. plus, we can buy their (barely) used stuff in a year or two for 60% off Wink
  • 7 0
 Hmm. Roval Traverse SL Fattie wheels are 400$ & 110g less plus 7mm wider internally. Unless you're a big S hater, it's a nobrainer.
  • 10 2
 Ive been riding Reynolds Carbon wheels for 3 years now, love em!
  • 4 0
 "Sure, $1900 may be a lot for a set of wheels, but if they can last for many years, it makes them a good investment."

Oh plus the extra $250…

I'll stick to my mavic rims laced to whatever I want, they'll last just as long, if not longer…

And why aren't there ANY 26" wheels on their site??
  • 3 0
 1640g for them in 27.5 size. Not massively lighter than some good aluminium rim wheels which cost less than half the carbon price.
I'm gonna say I doubt I'd notice the benefits of these wheels over a good quality hub/alu rim wheel...
  • 4 1
 How many points of engagement does the hub have? This is important info and should be part of the spec summary here:

27.5 AM Carbon Wheelset

• Intended use: all-mountain / trail
• Sizes: 26", 27.5'' (tested), 29''
• Width: 31mm outer, 23mm inner
• 28 straight-pull spokes, three cross
• Alloy nipples
• Alloy freehub body (SRAM XD, Shimano or SRAM 10spd)
• 15mm / 9 mm QR front (incl.)
• 12 x 142 / 135mm QR compatible (incl.)
• Rim weight: 440g (27.5")
• Weight: 1640g (27.5" wheelset)
• MSRP: $1900 USD (pair)
• Contact: Reynolds Cycling
  • 3 0
 They mentioned that;

"Reynolds offers its six-pawl ratchet freehub system in both Shimano/SRAM ten-speed and SRAM's 11-speed XD drivers. The pawls each have two engagement teeth and reportedly provide a five-degree interval between clicks. Reverse of most ratcheting systems, Reynolds installs the pawls in the hub. The star wheel rotates inside the pawls and is attached to the freehub's cassette driver"

Five degrees is pretty standard.
  • 3 0
 Yea but my point is it should be in the spec summary. I shouldn't have to dig through the whole article to find the POE. Smile
  • 7 1
 Blah blah blah too expensive blah blah bah I'm cheap
  • 2 0
 So let me see the Reynolds 27.5 AM carbon wheel set cost $1900 and weighs in at 1640g. I have been riding the Canfield Bros 26" All Mountain Wheelset and have been very happy with them. The 27.5 All Mountain Wheelset is $450 and weighs 1900g. So for $1450 I can save 260g. Sounds like a bargain.
  • 8 2
 Why isn t it possible to create carbon for less than 500$ ?? Come on guys
  • 2 8
flag Willie1 (Nov 5, 2014 at 10:01) (Below Threshold)
 Considering good hubs will set you back $400.00 or so, its not realistic, is it? You won't get any "good" wheelset for $500.00, unless you are OK with 2000g or heavier.
  • 15 0
 It is possible. You just have to know where to look. www.light-bicycle.com is an affordable alternative to overpriced name-brand carbon wheelset price gouging. Name brand hubs/spokes and nipple options, decent warranty program. Lot's of people are trying them and having positive experience, myself included.
  • 5 0
 @markw Yup...I have LB's laced to DT 240s..light, strong and not that expensive..An aluminum rim like a flow ex would last me 3 weeks in the rear...Ive got allot of time on the LBs and aside from being scratched/gouged from rocks they are perfect
  • 7 0
 Carbon wheels are priced insane, the problem is they sell at that crazy price and that is why they have not come down... I would love to see a test study between zipp, reynolds, and enve vs the cheaper chinese carbon wheels vs aluminum like flow or mavic.
  • 2 0
 Thanks @markw that looks awesome !
  • 4 0
 What markw said, a set of LB rims and some DT350's and you're good to go for about $850USD built.

So carbon can be had cheap. Oh, but 'you get what you pay for'. There's probably more LB rims out there than any other carbon rim and not too much in the way of negative press; quite the contrary.
  • 3 0
 I've purchase 4 LB rims so far. I had to warranty 2 of them (1 had 15 cracks) and one of them now has a huge crack (new hookless design). Not a fan of carbon in the rear but will run in the front.
  • 2 0
 Think its hit or miss on the quality control...I had them on my 26" bike and I cracked a bead hook but I had flatted and smashed a rock with zero air..They sent me a new one for free and my 27.5s have been good so no complaints here
  • 2 0
 I have light bicycle wheels, but I haven't seen ANY carbon wheels for $500.00.
  • 2 0
 Been riding 29er LB rims on hope pro 2 evo for 18 months now. I have the older (less strong) design and even these bullet proof. I snapped two spokes (crash - my fault) and once replaced and trued they are as good as new.
They weigh 1510g for the wheelset, they are way stiffer than aluminium and with no decals are very discrete...
  • 2 0
 I think some of the problems people have with their carbon wheels, is that carbon requires much more even spoke tension than aluminum. I bought a spoke guage to make sure, but the wheel building techniques I learned from a master wheel builder tended to result in really even tension so I don't check anyone, unless something feels wrong. If the tension is uneven, a few spoke holes end up taking up most of the tension, resulting in stress risers.
  • 8 4
 I like it when they post question in the title that I can easily answer: NO THEY ARE NOT WORTH THE STICKER PRICE. (no matter what)
  • 25 4
 Cool your shit, peasant.
  • 5 0
 Let Aaron Gwin take em down for a spin - without tires, then you've got something.
  • 3 0
 BLING! I have too many other bike "wants" to dump $2k into a wheelset that is the same weight as my WTB KOM's . $2k pays a lot of Hotel rooms for destination riding and gas.
  • 3 0
 Dear Pinkbike, please review some good affordable wheel sets, you know the ones that we can actually afford........ most of us, after all, live in the real world.
  • 4 0
 Are these the wheels that were broken in that new pivot frame video that later got edited to remove those sections?
  • 1 0
 yep, www.teamrobotkillsyourface.com has as screen grab.
  • 3 0
 My sram roam 50's weigh a 100g less than these made from alloy and retail at about £750 rolling on 240 hubs, am I missing somthing?
  • 2 0
 I've been thinking... what if I was looking for let's say a sub 500$ wheelset and wanted to read a few well written troughout reviews to see which ones aren't made of cheese. I have a feeling PB wouldn't be very helpful.
  • 2 0
 Reynolds really ought to get in touch with what riders are looking for ... the only thing impressive about this wheelset is that they're able to convince people to drop $1900 on these wheels.
  • 3 0
 So let's see, every carbon wheelset review goes something like this ... They ride nice but are they worth $2k? We'll let the buyer decide.
  • 1 0
 I have 4 rides on my Reynolds AM 29er set, with the same hubs, and have had 2 freehub failures. For this price you would at least expect some decent hubs from a brand name company!

The first failure happened when two of the pawls deformed the hubshell (remember that the pawls seat in the hubshell with this design) so it required a full wheel rebuild with a new hub. The second failure happened when the toothed ratchet ring started spinning on the freehub body. The rear hub is of very poor quality. Reynolds has rebuilt the rear wheel with a DT hub so I give them credit for that but it has taken a year to get to this point with only 2 solid rides on the wheels.
  • 3 0
 LOL 1900 bucks, leave me to my stock wheel set and once those get dented up, i'll just take the pliers out
  • 4 0
 Stans on Hopes and I own a house.
  • 3 0
 Mavics on Shimano, and I own debt. Just got a 53$ parking ticket this morning....HAPPY F-ING DAY!!!!
  • 1 0
 Sorry to hear that! Just goes to show real world problems = real world wheels.
I guess at the end of the day if money were no object we'd all be ridind carbon everything on the days we weren't riding our titanium or bespoke steel etc etc.
  • 3 0
 There is always the $400 Chinese wheels that plenty of people are running, they hold up well it seems
  • 3 0
 Its gna be tuff to beat derbys, ibis, light bicycle, and the Al ac wide lightning (@1500g).
  • 4 1
 Pivot really did these guys no favors with the Firebird video last week. You can clearly see a failure in the video.
  • 2 0
 It was actually the new Phoenix...
  • 2 0
 Link?
  • 3 0
 Oh yeah.
  • 3 0
 They already edited it out of the video, www.teamrobotkillsyourface.com for a screen grab.
  • 1 0
 Props for linking to the Team Robot page. That guy is genius!
  • 4 0
 Sweet! $2000 wheels!
  • 6 2
 "most affordable".....
  • 3 0
 Lol
  • 2 0
 For 1900$ I would expect that they make them somewhere outside of china, but no Smile
  • 4 1
 Rather save $700 and get a set of woven precision carbon wheels locally.
  • 1 0
 Which ones are you talking about?
  • 1 0
 www.wovenprecision.com

They do 26 (including fat bike rims), 650B, 29 and 700C.
  • 1 0
 Nice. Thanks man!
  • 3 0
 Great, just what we need. Another 2k set of wheels. Wahey!
  • 2 0
 they're relatively narrow, not THAT light, they cost $800 more than my I9's. $1200 more than my old mavis SL's. NO
  • 1 0
 Is there a suggested rider weight limit?
I've been annoyed to find that I am on the cusp of "safe" (@245#) per several wheel manufacturer's recommended max weights.
  • 1 0
 you sir should have your own wheels built, Custom built wheels are better than any bling set, in my book..Smile
  • 1 0
 I have custom built wheels... Mavic 521's laced to Hope Evo2's... heavy. By the numbers posted, most of today's wheels are wider, and lighter (some by as much as 2#!)
I've been considering just relacing these hubs to a set of Velocity Blunt 35s, with some lighter spokes and nipples to see what I can save... but then I see wheels like these (above) and it makes me wonder.
  • 1 0
 This is how carbon fiber will advance and become part of the cycling market.
At one time Disk brakes were 500 bucks each.
Repairable rims? cool!
  • 1 0
 Pinkbike should just stop reviewing anything that costs more than $1000 (especially wheels)... they get a boat-full of sh** every time they do.
  • 2 0
 Still happy with my Flow EX and Demon.
  • 1 0
 2k for a pair of wheels? they would need to be gold-plated and diamond encrusted.....
  • 1 0
 I prefer Industry 9, best wheels and hubs I've ever used and 3 degree engagement.
  • 2 0
 If someone pays for a set, then that means that's how much they are worth.
  • 1 0
 they seem like a decent but expensive option... the end caps are odd on mine
  • 1 0
 Maybe i'm super cheap but i look at the replacement plans lol
  • 1 0
 Going to have the bicycle industry think we are not all rich !!!
  • 1 0
 >affordable
>$1900

:/
  • 1 0
 Is this the technology of the future, with the rim width of the past?
  • 2 5
 I got a 27.5 AM pair for $1200 slightly used...have ridden these on 29 before...they are worth it!







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