Reynolds R27.5 AM Wheels - Review
Reynolds Cycling has made a few headlines with its elite-level carbon fiber wheelsets and expectedly so, as it was one of the pioneer wheel-makers in that field. This review, however, celebrates Reynolds' commitment to the more affordable end of the spectrum, with its $625 R27.5 All-Mountain wheelset, based upon its 23-millimeter inside width tubeless aluminum rim that fits, as you may have guessed, 27.5-inch tires. R27.5 AM wheels are designed, tested and trail-proven in and around Reynolds' US factory near Salt Lake City, Utah, and then shifted to Asia, where they are manufactured in a factory which they own and operate there. Weight for the complete wheelset is 1755 grams.
Details:
• Purpose: Trail/all-mountain
• Rim construction:19mm deep, tubeless aluminum profile, pinned and pressed joint
• Width: External: 29mm, internal: 23mm
• Spokes: 1.8 x 2.0mm double-butted stainless, black
• Spoke Pattern: 28, three-cross, front and rear
• Nipples: External 2.0 alloy - black
• Hub: Reynolds, straight-pull flanges, six-bolt rotor interface
• Freehub capability: Shimano or SRAM ten-speed, SRAM 11-speed optional
• Axle options: QR or 142 x 12mm through-axle rear. QR and either 15mm or 20mm through-axle front.
• Included: All stated axle endcap options and quick release skewers. Pre-taped rims and tubeless valve stems.
• Weight: 1755g (set, depends upon axle configurations)
• MSRP: $625
• Contact: Reynolds Cycling
Construction
Reynolds builds the R27.5 AM wheels conservatively, with 28 butted stainless steel spokes, laced three-cross on both ends, and with straight-pull-type hubs that, reportedly, allow for higher spoke tension and a measure of longevity. What makes R27.5 AM wheels most attractive, however, is that the axles can be easily configured for quick release, or any number of through-axle configurations - and all the bits are included with the wheelset purchase. The front hub employs large-diameter bearings and its press-in endcaps can be pulled out and reconfigured in seconds without tools. The rear hub requires a small amount of threading, but we switched from the stock SRAM/Shimano ten-speed freehub, to an eleven-speed SRAM XD driver in about seven minutes. (XD drivers are an option, not included in the comprehensive axle kit that is shipped with the wheels).
Reynolds pre-tapes the wheels and includes tubeless valve stems in the accessory kit.
Large-diameter stainless steel bearings in the front hub allow it to accept 20-millimeter axles.
Reynolds inverts the conventional freehub ratchet mechanism, preferring to put the engagement spline on the inside of the freehub body and the pawls on the outside of the circle, nested beneath the drive-side hub flange. There are 30 points of engagement and that divides out to 12 degrees between clicks, which is average for most wheels sold today. The freehub spline is aluminum and, as mentioned earlier, Reynolds sells an XD driver kit for those who may need to upgrade their wheels to eleven-speed SRAM cassettes down the road.
Measuring 23-millimeters inside and 28.5 millimeters outside the flanges, the R27.5 AM rims are sufficiently wide to provide support for tires in the 2.35-inch realm, but a bit dated in light of the present wider-is-better trend among all-mountain riders. There are no eyelets to reinforce the rims and the joints are pinned and pressed together instead of being welded and ground smooth. Experience, however, shows that aluminum wheels in the 1700-gram range can do fine without either feature as long as the rims are designed well. We noted that Reynolds designed the rim flanges to sit very low, which reportedly adds lateral stability to the tire.
Reynolds reverses the classic freehub ratchet mech. The engagement spline is fixed to the cassette body.
The Reynolds straight-pull rear hub uses a high/low flange design. Replacement spokes should be readily available.
Trail Report
Testing the Reynolds R27.5 AM wheels began as a necessity. We needed wheels to fit bike in our stable with a Fox 36 fork and the Reynolds' front hubs were the only hoops we had that could be switched out from 15 to 20-millimeter axles. So the aluminum hoops were pressed into service on a bike with over 180 millimeters of travel and an appetite for straight-lining rock gardens and other features that riders aboard lesser machines would seek to avoid. Once we learned how simple it was to pull the endcaps from the front hub, we also employed the wheels for tire testing, which provided additional opportunities for us to break or bend them.
Fitted with tires from three brands and in sizes from 2.25 to 2.35 inches, the Reynolds rims only gave us trouble with tubeless installations if the tire beads were severely bent or folded. In such cases (two times), we managed to air the tires up with a high-volume floor pump by fussing with the beads to coax them to seal while pumping furiously. Once seated, however, the tires all locked onto the rim flanges and we did not experience a single burp or tubeless malfunction throughout testing.
Reporting on the handling and performance aspects of the wheels is normally where we would complain that 1700-gram aluminum wheels are slow to accelerate and easy to ding in the boulders, but when mounted to a mini DH machine, they actually felt lightweight when compared to the heavier wheels and two-ply tires they replaced. On a more conventional all-mountain bike, the Reynolds wheels accelerated briskly enough to forget they were there and the two primary riders both remarked that their feel in the corners was on par with some of the wider all-mountain wheelsets we have been riding this winter which cost over three times more. That said, they are not going to trick anyone who has been riding lightweight carbon wheels. Reynolds wisely chose durability over "brisk acceleration" and put enough aluminum into the R27.5's to keep them alive for a while.
Issues
Each time we review a Reynolds wheel we receive a handful of negative comments about the reliability of the hubs, so in this test, we kept an eye on them for any hints of weakness. Nothing to report, The bearings look and run as new, and while the freehub ratchet did not have the whizzing sounds and instant engagement of a premium wheelset like an Industry Nine, it zips along as well today as it did months ago when we pulled the rear wheel out of the box. Same goes for the alignment. While I was writing this review I checked for even tension and runout. Tension was higher than I expected and while the rear wheel had a tiny bit of side play (run-out) it wasn't enough to warrant fussing with a spoke wrench. I'd say that our only beefs with the R27.5 AM wheels were that we had to wrestle with two tires to mount them tubeless, and that the rims are the old-school, 23-millimeter width.
Pinkbike's Take:
 | Reynolds produced a good looking, rugged wheelset that could be a great upgrade for a rider who needs a do-it-all pair of hoops with an affordable price tag. While there are a number of choices in the $625 range, Reynolds offers convincing warranty and crash protection options that extend the value of its R27.5 AM wheel well beyond the sticker price. Pinkbike test riders are admittedly spoiled by riding wheels that cost more than many pay for their bikes, so when a value-priced wheelset catches our attention - especially one that looks as sharp as the R27.5 AM - we are happy to report on it. I thought that they would be toast in a couple of months, but it appears that our R27.5 AM wheels will be happily assisting us to test tires through 2015. - RC |
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For example;
Many companies have stop producing 26" bikes exept for their low end bikes, where do you think all of that overstock goes?
Review stated these wheels roll slow, but I wonder how much of that is down to 180mm fork and bike?
Also PB reviews is pretty inconsistent. I seen reviews on pb calling 1800g light vs this one calling 1700 heavy.
Lastly the reviews doesn't seem retaliative to their market. Comparing carbon wheels 3-5x the price is hardly relevant, what of similar wheels on the market?
Also agree on the point of tire makers needs to catch up. Any rim profile with 30mm+ inner width causes a square profile to the tire. Of note is this actually reduces grip on hard bank/leans as the side nobs are no longer on the side, causing wash out vs something like a 23mm rim. (Of course there is other benefits such as higher volume lower pressure, more grip etc and depending on the rider, might out weight the square tire profile problem)
The manufacturer uses alloy nipples to save weight.
If you've ever trued a wheel with alloy nipples and no rim eyelets you'll know its a f*cking nightmare and needs to be a ruled out practice of the system wheel world.
All to save 20 grams or whatever the hell useless amount of weight.
You don't have to be a hack to ruin alloy nipples in a wheel without eyelets. You just have to try trueing your wheel. Have you ever had to replace a whole wheels worth of alloy nipples because they're all rounded off?
Maybe you haven't.
Maybe you don't ride hard enough to be reviewing bike parts for people?
Or maybe you think 80 percent of the world doesn't ride hard enough or look closely enough at what they've bougnt to know any better?
And the bike companies are never going to change unless people like you Richard, stand up for the bike buying public that just want their bike to last longer.
Help us make the bike parts we buy better Richard.
Help us by speaking up about things that the industry just wants you to glaze over like it's not a problem.
It can be avoided by using good lubricant at build time, and not using threadlock like some do.
Given that, I never rounded a nipple when truing full alloy wheel, even when nipple were badly stuck (just need to unwind nipple completely, re-lube thread/hole with linseed oil and voila). Using good spoke wrench helps a lot.
So some of you needs to stop trolling...
www.specialized.com/us/en/ftb/wheels/roval-mtb-all-mountain/roval-traverse-650b
There is no reason to buy skinny, heavy wheels when there are so many better options out on the market.
You can get Outlaws for just over $300 if you shop carefully. Components are pricey enough without calling $600 a budget minded price....
That whole width thing too... standards do not exist anymore, please call them something else.
love the instant engagement on my I9's. not so much the proprietary spokes, or having to remove the tire and tape to replace a spoke.
ideal set of wheels would have mavic style rims/eyelets/nipples mated to "normal" straight pull steel spokes and I9 hubs, with a "wide" rim profile.
doubt if any of this will ever happen.
But still are looks like great affordable rims.
Serve the masses and live with the classes
All of my DH wheelsets are Mavic rims. They're dependable, durable, and you can wrap them around any hub you get your hands on. No waiting for the proprietary part that only works on that particular wheelset that no one holds in inventory that you need to order from Timbuktu and pay duty and freight and all the other B.S. Just lace it and ride it. Replace it when ness and repeat.
Cheap and easy.
Will pick a Hope Hoops set over them anyday for $500