Easton’s Record-Breaking 26in and 29er XC Wheels

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Climbing might just become fun again. Assuming you can afford them.

Wheels to make you go ‘zoom!’ – Easton’s new EC90-XC carbon wheels are super tough (we’ve seen them being tested) and weigh very, very little, and yet they’re fully UST approved and have a decent 19 (inside)/24.7mm (outside) width.

There will be a 26in and a 29in version. All hubs come with endcaps to run QR or 15mm at the front and QR or Maxle at the rear. They are hand built using regular straight pull spokes (20 spokes on the 26in, 24 on the 29er) and are completely rebuildable and serviceable. A super-clicky hub gives you a 12° engagement.

And how much do they weigh? A truly featherweight 1285g a pair for the 26in and 1416g for the 29er wheels. They should be out in a month or so and they’re going to set you back a fair amount of cash (US price is $2500 a pair) – but if you absolutely need the best…

We’ve just come back from a 25 mile ride on them and the wheels are really noticeable by their lack of weight. Expect to see many of these at a start line near you – but also just for general trail riding. Having light wheels is fun!

Chipps Chippendale

Singletrackworld's Editor At Large

With 23 years as Editor of Singletrack World Magazine, Chipps is the longest-running mountain bike magazine editor in the world. He started in the bike trade in 1990 and became a full time mountain bike journalist at the start of 1994. Over the last 30 years as a bike writer and photographer, he has seen mountain bike culture flourish, strengthen and diversify and bike technology go from rigid steel frames to fully suspended carbon fibre (and sometimes back to rigid steel as well.)

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Comments (15)

    trailertrashtrailertrash April 14, 2011 at 9:41 am

    $2500/general trail riding. ok.

    neil853neil853 April 14, 2011 at 10:00 am

    I think they look awesome, but $2500 a pair!!!

    dirtyriderdirtyrider April 14, 2011 at 10:57 am

    what records do they break?

    NaffNaff April 14, 2011 at 11:26 am

    American Classic MTB disc 130 & 225 hubs laced to NoTubes ZTR Podium MMX rims.

    Weight = 1242g
    Price = £545.28

    http://www.justridingalong.com//shop.php?product=3210

    bennyboy1bennyboy1 April 14, 2011 at 12:13 pm

    Easton rip off & fibs right there…

    2011 Specialized USA Control SL Carbon wheelset = 1200g @ $1500. So there. 😛

    mudmonstermudmonster April 14, 2011 at 12:26 pm

    I’ve always enjoyed climbing, unless it’s up some boring trail center fire road.

    footflapsfootflaps April 14, 2011 at 12:28 pm

    Yep AC & podium MMX is a better combo and a mere $1500 cheaper!

    njee20njee20 April 14, 2011 at 12:46 pm

    I’ve got some A2Z hubs which come out of the same factory as AMCs, built on Podiums with Revs they’re 1246g with yellow tape and valves (I’ll wager tyres seat more easily too!), and cost less than £300, makes JRA look expensive 🙂

    The Rovals would get my vote a long way before these too!

    dirtyriderdirtyrider April 14, 2011 at 2:26 pm

    Tune Kong and Cannonball on DT XRC330 (from planet-x when they were £199 not £249 each) with Sapim-CX Rays cost me under £800

    WAKiWAKi April 14, 2011 at 2:48 pm

    ZTR podiums buehehe, just as probably every rim from Notubes works great as “I will impress ppl on forums” item pictured on a kitchen scale – all are drunk-wiener soft and not gonna dance tonight, plus expensive as hell, but who cares?! they are super light! look at the scale, I’m so fast in theory!

    Yes sub 1500g wheels feel great, I bet most of the buyers will wheelie themselves to death on tech uphills and believe that “cornering flex compromising handling” is a term from George W Bush memoir – not a real life situation.

    ChippsChipps April 14, 2011 at 3:16 pm

    “Easton rip off & fibs right there… 2011 Specialized USA Control SL Carbon wheelset”
    They’re not UST though. The Stan’s ZTR aren’t either – hence the Easton’s being the lightest UST wheels in the World 🙂

    dirtyriderdirtyrider April 14, 2011 at 4:19 pm

    ah super, $2500 for what you can do with 99p worth of 3M tape then?

    does anyone care about true UST anymore?

    MrK mkIIMrK mkII April 14, 2011 at 9:10 pm

    is not the record breaking in the cost, not the weight?!

    no_eyed_dearno_eyed_dear April 15, 2011 at 9:28 am

    I’d still like a pair. In bicycle dream world.

    Imagine the tears though if you dinged them :-O

    bennyboy1bennyboy1 April 15, 2011 at 10:26 am

    Chipps – damn, ok you got me there, that’s a good spot!

    I’d still take the Carbon Rovals for tubeless wheels though… if only to save myself $1000! 😉

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