Ok,

So I’ve just destroyed another wheel at Fort William.

Can anyone recommend a pretty bombproof rim / wheel? Not too fussed about build weight, as it’s only going on the DH bike.

I’m pretty light @ 65kg, but also pretty hard on equipment, and the Fort track is pretty brutal on gear.

LBS suggested a look at the Halo rims (but has no stock), any experience?

Bonus points if it comes in anodized green… 😀

Cheers!

Oh, 26″ only!

Mavic 823?

I had a crash from height and speed in the back of a landing that cracked a dh frame. front wheel still straight…

atomlab dhr rims are very strong….i’ve had mine for nearly 10 years

they only come in Ti grey but the pimplite rims (slightly narrower but as strong) come in the green you’re after

Mavic deemax?
I’ve been riding mine with a spoke missing for best part of a week in Malaga without issue.

You need to talk with your wheel builder if you’re continuously getting wheel failures as well. Unless you’re really ham fisted then anything half decent should stand up to a lot of abuse in a well built wheel before failing in the way you’re describing.

823’s.

They are pretty beastly.

///Slight hijack mode on\\\

I have a CK ISO 20mm front hub laced into a EX823 and an unlaced EX823 rim that I had had earmarked for a semi fat build 1×1 but now has gone in an opposite direction.

Both rims are in really nice condition and the front (built wheel) has green nipples 😆

Drop me a mail if your interested.

///Slight hijack mode off\\\

823s sound promising

cracked a dh frame. front wheel still straight…

🙂

They even state “bombproof” in the spiel!

I asked the LBS about the Deemax actually and he wasn’t a fan due to difficulty sourcing spares. Rumour has it the 729 rims are the old deemaxs…

I’m not fussed about UST on my DH bike, any idea how the 729 compares to the 823s?

Just use the 823’s with tubes?

729’s are pretty dingtastic, but they do keep going.

823 is a serious lump of metal, and not just strong but also hard to dent… 729s are strong but softer than most of the Mavic range, they dent really pretty easily but that’s not that important really (and soft rims undent easily too!)

How are you actually killing the wheels- rims or spokes? Dents, bends or cracks? If you’re doing the rims in, there’s a lot to be said for just getting something cheap and decent, and replacing as need be…

Swaying towards the 823s in the hope of saving the faff of rebuilds.

To be more specific, riding the Alps and local DH trails I only suffer from the odd dent which i’m not too fussed about. Local stuff pretty rough and rocky.

My trail bike is fine, with lighter rims, also running the loacl DH course on it (but at slower speeds).

But the last two trips to the Fort track have killed a rear each, one totally destroyed, cracked (in several places), bent and severely dented (in one day), one with broken spokes, dents and a large crease by the valve (in 2 days). Was being especially careful yesterday to check spoke tensions after each run, but to no avail.

Was hoping to repair yesterdays effort but LBS reckoned it would be a bit sketchy!

My problems are likely due to a combination of love of speed and lack of skill 😛

Atomlab PimpLites are very strong, mine survived 13 weeks of Whistler bikepark including dropping off the big GLC at least 8 times a day, usually with a minimum of 2 spokes missing off the rear.
They are still going but I should probably replace them soon 🙂

Fort William kills most rims if you ride it as it’s meant to be ridden but a decent wheel build should keep the thing in one piece. I destroyed a brand new and very well built 823 after 1 run at Fort William. The problem is to save the rear rim you have to run crazy pressures and then the bike handles horribly. Apparently the pro’s get through 6 set’s of wheels on a race weekend!

721’s dent all over the place but stay in one piece if they are well built.Santa Cruz Syndicate claim they use the same ENVE carbon rims all season and don’t have to rebuild them. If that’s really true then it’s probably worth spending the silly money on them in the long run.

duir – Member

Fort William kills most rims if you ride it as it’s meant to be ridden

Yeah, it’s pretty harsh, and pretty fast. Good fun til you break something though!

Syncros ds32
Roseversand.de have Them at a super bargain price

Looking at building up a heavy duty rear wheel, and putting together a ‘regular’ DH set, so I don’t have to abandon a days riding next time I kill a wheel.

Anyone have any experience of the Havoc DH wheelset? I can get a set super cheap in the US 🙂 But are they any good?!

limkilde – Member

Syncros ds32
Roseversand.de have Them at a super bargain price

I can’t see the Syncros, am I being a bit special?

I’ve got some 729’s if interested,

Used, straight though, few scuffs,

£30 collected for the pair, Wigan.

doubletrack

Sorry, they must be sold out then.

wideboy – Member
823s sound promising

cracked a dh frame. front wheel still straight…

They even state “bombproof” in the spiel!

I asked the LBS about the Deemax actually and he wasn’t a fan due to difficulty sourcing spares. Rumour has it the 729 rims are the old deemaxs…

I’m not fussed about UST on my DH bike, any idea how the 729 compares to the 823s?

823s are great rims if a little portly but if you’re not worried about weight that’s no issue. They do come with the added bonus of being designed tubeless without any faf though they are a bit of a pain to build with the extra nipple cups.

729s – very heavy and pretty strong, a good width and a classic setup when fitted to the rear with a 721 on the front.

Deemax? Wouldn’t bother – 1 wheel will cost you as much as a whole set of 721/729 on Pro2 with the 823 combo being not much more. Ok you can save a tiny bit of weight but as said all the bits are proprietary and therefore harder (and more expensive) to get.

729s the old Deemax? Not sure about that one, there was a stage where 721s were the factory rims and Mavic would sponsor riders for rims so they could build them onto their own hubs but that was a long time ago. I’m pretty sure the original Deemax were just 823s painted yellow. (though happy to be corrected on that)

So I’ve just taken delivery of a nice heavy Halo SAS wheel, first impressions are good, and it was delivered in 24hrs and a bargain 🙂

Also in the package was a nice green Pimplite rim to be built up (cheers gonzy), not as heavy duty as the SAS rim but still feels good in hand.

So the Halo for Fort William and the Pimplite for everything else when it’s ready.

Once the Halo gives up i’ll be going for one of the heavy Mavics, probably the 823.

Thanks for all the feedback guys.