Hi-de-Hi Campers!

Just wondering if many people have first hand knowledge of running carbon rims on a hardtail? People talk about the rims being super stiff, but with the new hookless beads, one can run lower pressures (in theory at least) which would presumably put some comfort back? I just built up a set of LB rimmed wheels for a buddy and they did look pretty well thought out.

Hi de Ho!
I run Reynolds carbon on my 29 no probs, mostly rigid too! Tyre pressure far more important IMHO.

Why not?

I run LB rims on a carbon hardtail. They’ve been flawless. Why wouldn’t they be…?

I’m considering a set for my ratchey p29. From what I’ve heard, they’re stiffer, but also absorb buzz well, so could, in theory, be more comfortable.

Curious to know others experiences.

Depends what you ride I would’ve thought?….as a lightweight option on a weight weenie HT they sound ideal…..for uplift days?….I’m yet to be convinced!

…..and despite what the MTB media would have you believe most riders I see are still on 26 inch DH bikes, full sussers in 27.5 are becoming more common but tyre sizes are still 2.2 – 2.5 from what I’ve been seeing this year….and when somebody wants a really hardcore set of rims they invariably still go down the Mavic DeeMax or Stans Flow EX route.

I ride a steel HT with a 140mm coil fork, I weigh 80 – 90kgs depending on how much I’m riding, I’d love to lighten the big old lump with carbon here and there….but I’m just not a good enough rider to trust myself not to trash a pair!

While I don’t have a hard tail with carbon rims, I do have a hard tail, and I do have carbon rims, but never the two shall meet as I just think that together they would be so harsh to the point of not being nice to ride. Admittedly it’s a burly (chameleon) frame and they’re burly (enve AM and 70thirty) rims in 27.5 flavour, rather than xc light 29er stuff, but def try before you buy if you can.

I’ve got one of the first gen lightbicycle rims on my ragley- it’s been ace tbh, it’s the old design so not as strong as the curent ones but it’s still done a couple of years without any fuss, including a (slow) run down fort william dh, last year’s tweedlove EWS, and just generally a hell of a lot of miles, some of it pretty harsh. No bad things at all to report, it’s just light, and stronger than the alu rim it replaced (a roval traversee, which was absolutely killed with less hard use)

Also sometimes use my 33mm lb enduro rims in it when racing, they’re a lot burlier and do feel noticably stiffer than either the lighter duty lb rim or the roval traversees I used to use in the hardtail. But it’s never been problematic. That’s a ti hardtail with a 2.2 rear tyre so there’s other comfort/control-stuff going on there.

Thanks guys. Interesting feedback. I’ve read several times that ‘my carbon rims are super stiff. I wouldn’t want to ride them on a hardtail’. I’d be running 2.4″ tyres though so figured that this would negate any stiffness issues from the solid rims.

All sound s bit princess and the pea to me. Firstly how much does an alloy rim move/provide any absorption at all and secondly with big MTB tyres what difference would it make any way.

We are not talking 23mm road tyres at 100+ psi are we…

Just had some 35mm LB rims built into Hopes for my Jones. They’re incredible, really does feel like a magic carpet but with virtually no deflection. I’m sure some of this will be down to the build & some of it will be down to the Jones, but compared to the Flows that they’ve replaced it’s like night & day.

27mm hookless LB rims on my rigid 29er. Lovely.

When funds permit, I’ll be getting some for my 650b full susser too.

[All built by Fuse]

All sound s bit princess and the pea to me. Firstly how much does an alloy rim move/provide any absorption at all and secondly with big MTB tyres what difference would it make any way.

Main difference I’ve noticed going from Flows to LB is more lateral precision. That may all be in my head, but that’s how it feels.

1st ride on my quarter horse with 35mm LB rims last night. more direct power transfer translated as more responsive and eager to drive forwards, notably stiffer laterally, resulting in tons of oversteer whilst I adjusted. Bike feels less comfy too, but that could be because the last time I rode it the ground was soft and the going was slow and I’ve been rocking the full suss bike until last night.

As an aside I’m very pleased with my bargainous DT 350s – 1st time away from hopes in about 13 years.