Shimano XTR Trail Wheels - Review
Shimano's new XTR Trail wheels went pretty much under the radar when they were released, especially compared to their new eleven-speed grouppo that nearly broke the internet when it was finally made official. I've been spending a load of time on the drivetrain over the last few months, but it's the M9020 Trail wheels that get reviewed below. Carbon laminate, you ask? Yup, the wheels feature a 24mm wide (internal) rim that combines both carbon and aluminum, along with 28 straight-pull spokes and redesigned hubs, that add up to 1,706 grams on our scale for the 29ers, sans tubeless rim strips, valves, and disc lock rings. There is also a 27.5'' version of the same wheelset (no 26'' option, though), with both sporting Center Lock rotor mounting only. MSRP for the set is $1,499.99 USD. www.shimano.com @shimano
The XTR Trail rim is manufactured by wrapping carbon fiber over an extruded aluminum base, a technique that Shimano have already been using to create some of their high-end road wheels.
The big talking point with these wheels has to be what Shimano has done with their brand new rim, which isn't just aluminum, and isn't just carbon, but rather a combination of the two. They're calling it ''Carbon Laminate'', and the construction sees Shimano use aluminum for the base to create the inner profile, including the rim bed, sidewalls, bead, and general shape, and then they lay carbon over the outer, visible section of the rim. This approach is actually something the Shimano have already been using for Dura-Ace road rims, with the idea being to take advantage of aluminum's durability, but to up the rigidity by wrapping it with carbon. The finished product doesn't look like a lot of the massively tall and wide carbon rims out there, instead sporting a more traditional shape that's 28mm wide externally, 24mm internally, and 21mm tall. Shimano can definitely do a full-carbon rim if they wanted to - their carbon XC race rim weighs just 275 grams - but they obviously feel that the aluminum and carbon combo makes more sense for how the XTR Trail wheels are going to be used. The rim bed is drilled, so it does require tubeless tape to seal it up (which comes pre-installed, along with tubeless valve stems), but the external nipples mean that you don't have to peel back the tape in order to gain access to the nipple heads if you have to true a wheel. That said, they de require a non-standard spoke wrench to turn the oversized aluminum nipples, as well as a tool to hold onto the short, flattened section of the straight-pull spokes to keep them from spinning.
Shimano has gone with 28 straight-pull spokes for both the front and rear wheels.
The titanium freehub body accepts both ten and eleven speed cassettes.
Just like the rear hub, the 15mm front hub features an adjustable cup and cone angular bearing system.
The XTR hubs aren't as flashy as the brightly anodized units from King or Industry Nine, but they're certainly swanky in their own way. Appearance-wise, they don't look like anything new, but Shimano has revamped the axle design to drop over 30 grams out of the rear hub. There are no sealed cartridge bearings to be found inside, though, as Shimano is sticking with their angular contact bearings that arguably make more sense from a performance point of view. There's no denying that cartridge bearings, as found in the very large majority of hubs out there, can't be beat when it comes to a rider who thinks that maintenance ends at lubing their chain once every few weeks. The downside to cartridge bearings in a hub is that they don't handle side loading well, and while they are better sealed against the elements, they'll never roll as friction-free as a properly setup angular contact bearing layout.
An inside look at the rear hub's angular contact bearings.
Shimano's cup and cone design allows for the absolute perfect amount of bearing load, just so long as you take the time to adjust it properly if required, as well as the ability to easily perform some maintenance with only a few cone wrenches and some fresh grease. My thinking is that the guy who is proud about remembering to lube his chain every now and then is best suited to wheels with cartridge bearing hubs, whereas someone who enjoys tinkering and can appreciate a well sorted bike might be a fan of Shimano's cup and cone system.
The aluminum rear axle, with the cones and locknut visible.
Pinkbike’s Take:
 | Installing the wheels went how installing wheels should go, with nothing really to note. What do you expect, that they won't fit? The eleven-speed Shimano XTR cassette slid onto the titanium freehub body, the Center Lock rotors slid onto the hub splines, and both were held in place with their respective lock rings. There are two related points that bear mentioning, though: the rotors don't rock on the hub splines when on the brakes like I've found when using Shimano rotors on non-Shimano hubs, and the titanium freehub body hasn't been marred by the cassette as an aluminum version likely would have after months and months of use. Plus, it's titanium and titanium is neato, which has to count for something. I mounted up a few different tires on the XTR Trail wheelset - Schwalbe's older Nobby Nic, as well as both Hans Dampf and the monster truck-worthy Magic Mary, and a few different Specialized tires. The fit with all of them seemed to be just a touch looser than I've found when using the same tires on some other rims, and I ended up having to resort to spraying some soapy water to get the bead to seat a few times. Not a big deal, but it could have been painful if I didn't have a good floor pump or access to a compressor. The XTR Trails feel much like a set of wheels when you're riding them, and while that may sound underwhelming, I do mean it in the most complimentary way possible. There was absolutely zero pinging or popping to be heard, even after plenty of riding in dusty deserts and on muddy B.C. trails, and neither the front or rear wheel's bearings developed any play. The thought of the adjustable cone system backing off brought back nightmares from years ago when friends often couldn't get their Shimano hubs to stay tight for more than thirty minutes at a time, but that wasn't the case with these wheels. That's gotta be a good thing given that not many riders have cone wrenches in their tool box these days. Their 1,706 gram weight is pretty respectable for a 29er wheelset - although there are other options out there that are in the same ballpark when it comes to weight, width, and price - but they are nice and sporty when you're trying to ride your bike in a hurry. This is especially true if you're coming off of a heavier wheelset, with rotational weight really counting for so much more than static grams elsewhere on your bike. Weight aside, these wheels feel great. What the hell does that mean? They're not flexy and vague feeling like some lighter aluminum rimmed wheelsets out there, but they're also not overly stiff and unforgiving like I've felt with some wider and taller carbon rims - this is especially important if you're going to run them on a hardtail or short-travel bike. The number of spokes and their tension also come into play big time when talking about wheel rigidity, and the twenty eight spokes per wheel that Shimano have gone with seems to have been the right choice. Top marks for ride quality. And while I'm becoming a big fan of ultra-wide rims, the more modest 24mm internal width of the XTR Trail rim means that they will work with all kinds of tire widths and shapes out there, unlike fatter hoops on the market. Their appearance is likely going to be split down the middle, with some liking the subdued looks and others thinking that wheels of this price should be flashy things. I tend to fall in the former camp, and prefer the stealth, understated presence that they have going on. Four months of hard use has seen the XTR Trail wheels come through nearly unscathed. Both the front and rear rims are dent-free, despite bottoming the tire on the rim hard enough to feel it through the bike a handful of times, but the rear wheel was recently out of true enough to require action. A few minutes on the stand had it back to its original shape, but when it was out I noticed that the hub bearings were just a touch rough. To be fair, I'm pretty hard on hubs, and four months is pretty much par for the course when talking about sealed bearings, so I'm not surprised to see the cup and cone system needing some attention. Also, I much prefer working with a few wrenches and some fresh grease to dial in just the right amount of bearing preload instead of just squeezing in a set of new sealed bearings. I'm sure some mechanics out there will agree with me while others won't. With their aluminum and carbon construction, the XTR Trail wheels are interesting items. That said, I'm not sure if they meet Shimano's claim about being as light as carbon wheels and as durable as aluminum wheels. After all, there are lighter, full-carbon rim'd wheelsets on the market of similar width and price, and the fact that I had to get out the truing wrench means that they're not as trouble-free as some other wheelsets we've had in the office lately. Shimano is generally a conservative company when it comes to design and execution, and I'd say that the XTR Trail wheels fit that bill perfectly. They're not leaders in any specific category, but they are a great wheelset that isn't going to let you down. - Mike Levy |
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What else do they require ? Another 4 specialty tools? GEEZ!
Hope Pro II uses aluminium alloy freehub body as stock, but there is a steel option for durability, which you can buy aftermarket.
I won't use their hubs anymore as I kept destroying (severe notching = creaking and loose cassette) the splines on the aluminium freehub body on my Hope road bike wheels.
Hope were great with their customer service replacing the item FOC 3 times, but eventually gave me the steel body, which added so much weight that the wheels made no sense from a weight/value point of view.
Back when I was a lad, all bearings were that way!
From my experience you're right there's no particular problem with six bolt but putting 6 bolts instead of just one is a little long. Call it laziness - I call it convenience.
Fortunately here (for now) there appear to only be two possiblities (6 bolt V centrelock) so in that respect it's nice to have the choice. We're not at the point as we are with BBs.
This means bike manufacturers building XC bikes and women's mountain bikes (both scenarios where you might want a smaller rear rotor) and road disc-brake bikes are having to use other rotor options, otherwise forced to use centrelock hubs.
My Giant Defy comes with Tektro 140mm 6-bolt rotors which are pretty trick, with an aluminium spider bolted to the steel brake track.
All the 6 bolt rotors setups I've had are usually pretty much welded in and I never heard/read about anyone who had a problem with them. Honestly, if I had to bet on which part would loosen last on my bike, I'd go all in on the rotor bolts without a second thought. Meanwhile, I've seen a bunch of reports saying that centerlocks sometimes have back and forth play.
If ease of installation or weight savings is a big factor for you then centerlocks are probably great but saying they are less prone to loosening is a solution to a problem that doesn't exist.
For the average person, it doesn't matter at all whether a rotor is 6 bolt or centerlock. For a shop mechanic or anyone else who needs to remove & install rotors on a more frequent basis for wheel & hub service, travel, or whatever reason, centerlock is a godsend.
I already stated in my first comment that it is very rare and unlikely to happen if you properly install your rotor with the correct hardware, but it is possible and has happened. You would probably think it is impossible for a steering wheel to fall off a modern car too, and yet the steering wheel on my 2008 Tacoma fell off while I was driving last Saturday. My point is, sometimes shit happens, and when it does you want their to be redundant systems in place to ultimate failure and prevent serious injury or death.
Also...When I added the off the clock 'training's" in for shimano, giant, 3.5 etc..... It was cheaper for me to Ribble or CRC than to even to EP especially Shamino groups.
In a LBS, there is a Sun Rims Rhyno Lite for 65 Euro, because they say it's rare, yet a few years back I bought two for 32 Euro and are currently for sale at 28 Euro a piece at CRC. They sell Elixir 5's for 250+ a set, when online you can get them for 140. And tires are a whole other nightmare. When people start selling at normal retail prices at least, then I may consider, until then, I will just learn the craft better and buy my parts online
You work in a shop nowadays, you need to know your shit inside out otherwise your service isn't worth the prices of your goods.
So I'm more than happy to support an LBS before buying online and will always try and do so, but it takes so little these days to steer a consumer away with lousy service and know-how and a lot of times those customers don't come back: too many options to get it elsewhere.
I'd think to myself should I EP this and wait a week and fill out this paperwork or go through Jenson: have it here in two days for $10.00 cheaper because some bike company order too many cranks. Or should: I spend my evening doing silly trainings on Shimano or 3.5 to get a price $20.00 cheaper and wait two.5 weeks for the parts (unwrapped the same as Jenson w/o support)? The whole idea of EP was to get the parts out to guy's who sold them and let them do the selling. But, having to work for the discount off the clock with trainings and waiting....It was too much-
@Varaxis Well I have 24mm, 32/32 AX-Lightness clincher, Sapim CX Ray, XD drive, lefty front hub and the wheelset is just below 1300 ( 1288 ). Your wheels must be made of lead
some of us have money to burn and like burning. So for us lighter wider faster stronger quieter more $$$£££€€€ is great not pointless.
diffrence in ride quality from hope hoops compared to truly light wheels carbon ect is amazing.
For those who don't know, sandstone is extremly hard and abrasive : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandstone.
I'm sure Alsace doesn't get so much rain than Scotland. Even if I agree on the (pink) sandstone, which is particularly abrasive, it doesn't particularly affect my bearing and transmission.
that's the same weather, and I guessed you were obviously not riding in strasbourg (flatland)
Most ALL cartridge bearings, even the expensive German ones, come with little to no grease in them.
Don't know why but it's a fact.
I ALWAYS pop off the seals on new bearings before I fit them (pointy end of a cutter blade with care) and pack them with moly/lithium grease (the black stuff truckers use on the 5th wheel). Years and years of trouble free service.
Cheers.
What else do they require ? Another 4 specialty tools? GEEZ!
I'm with you though on companies releasing new wheels that still have narrow, kinda stupid rims. I went from 19mm DT to 25mm Enve and the wider rim made a huge difference on air pressure, traction, and small bumps seemed to disappear. I'm looking forward to my next wheelset using Light-Bicycle or Derby 30-38mm 29's, but I will most likely get XT hubs. The bigger companies are always slow to change. I think narrow rims will be a thing of the past soon. I have tested several rim and tire widths racing BMX, but I never continued riding rims under 30mm except when I was running 1-1/8".
I am just wondering how much width before it's too much.
I'm a "standard" rider.
32 hole, j-bend hubs & spoke.
The bin man nicked it in 1978. T**t
They're also a cup and cone system, which is awful and I wish that Shimano would finally start putting cartridge bearings in their hubs. It's not 1990 anymore.
The fact remains that they're a non-cartridge system that is outdated. I think that they should be cartridge. You know, join the rest of the wheel/hub manufacturers out there.
Shimano's design is not outdated at all. It is easy to work on, takes side loading extremely well (most hub manufacturers that use cartridge bearings don't use angular contact bearings) and has less friction with only two seals per hub. They're simple, light, elegant, durable and without disposable parts (unless you don't maintain them). Preload adjustable hubs are great whether they use standard bearings or cartridge bearings.
If you don't like them then don't buy them but don't spread misinformation.
Everyone else has switched to cartridge bearings. Shimano is just too stubborn to change.
Center lock- NO THANKS
11-40 NO THANKS
They are so stubborn to re-design the free hub to Sram standard that they are going to fade away...
10-42 and DONE SRAM
I will never go back to 2x10 Shimano garbage that skips and sends me over the bars "kick standing" again....very dangerous.
Center lock is scraping the barrel for cons, you can get adaptors.
Shimano blew it big time.
Just because it doesnt work for you, doesnt mean it doesnt work for anybody else
That'll be a no from me (again) then.
And 99% of those that ride in muddy conditions.
Great idea in theory, terrible in practice.
C'mon Shimano! Just accept it
@Sheppers The races that are on the hubs themselves (not the axles) cannot be replaced because they are actually a part of the hub shell, its all one piece. The reason they can't get around it is because Campagnolo (who also uses the loose ball bearings) have patented a design for their hubs that uses removable hub races, and have not licensed it to shimano.
I know a certain group will never like cartridge bearings for wheels and I get why, but for those of us who like them, why not have the benefits of angular contact as well? You only explain why you don't like cartridge bearings.
A well designed cup and cone hub with labyrinth seals (non-contact, no friction added) on top of smooth rolling no matter how you ride the bike? Sure, sign me up, at least for the front. I'll pass on the rear until the cassette and freehub interface is redesigned to something like Kappius's.
Chris King has angular contact bearings that work similarly, which the Syndicate races on. Though I'm sure they remove the draggy contact seal that CK uses. CK's design is heavier and draggier. Their rear hub has a fairly novel design to work the ACB in, with the driveside bearings riding on the outer circumference of the freehub, and the freehub transmitting that load to the needle bearings riding between the axle and freehub.
I agree 60 POE is pretty weak in comparison to anything 120+, however realistically, 98% of the population needs hardly more than 18 POE for most applications.
In my opinion the best hubs today are probably the dt 240s!