I'm looking for a pair of sensibly priced 28h 30mm rims to rebuild a pair of wheels; the last one I used was a DT Swiss XM481, which was jolly nice and quite light and still straight and true. I had some luck (and loads of amazing miles) on a pair of E13 TRS + rims I built up - they were a complete steal and I've never seen them for sale since.
I can get decent pricing on some hookless carbon rims that look a lot like the ones Stanton uses for its OEM builds, but I'm a little worried about them being a bit too stiff for my hardtail, haven't laced carbon before and probably can't justify the expense, either. FWIW, the wheels I'm going to be rebuilding are about ten years old - Hope Pro 4s on Pacenti TL28s that are looking a bit ropey. I'll hang onto the hubs but the spokes have also seen better days.
What would you recommend? I don't need flashy (in fact I'd prefer no logos at all).
Before even reading your post my mind went 'XM481'.
They are just really, really good, and have a very good strength/weight ratio. They build really nicely, and if you peel the stickers off have a long lasting bead blasted type finish.
If your not going with a full carbon 'wheelset', I'd just get XM481s again!
Biketart have cheap Stans Flow mk4 at the moment. That’s what I’ve gone for.
I have XM481 (28 spoke) front and rear on my hardtail and they’re hard to fault. On my ebike I had EX511 32 spoke front and rear and now have EX471 on the back because it was cheap and I wanted to see how a narrower rim worked on the back, and I like it a lot (running 2.4” tyres front and rear but a DH casing on the back).
I've been using XM481 as DH/bikepark rims for years with no drama. The first set got nicked after an Alps trip. I bought another on the understanding that if they weren't up to the abuse I'd have to buy something heavier. They're still in excellent condition. I do run inserts these days though.
Stickers are removeable for the blacked out look.
If your not going with a full carbon 'wheelset', I'd just get XM481s again!
This
As above. Been using XM481 for ages and still using them on my normal bike and my e-bike. Not had any issues
Ah, thank you! I was pretty happy with the only xm481 I've built up so far, and my local shop does a decent price on them, so that'll do for me.
Selling a set of xm481 rims if you are near North Yorkshire 28/32 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/157797151741
As per everyone else’s suggestions, stick with the XM481! Had a couple sets and never any drama and takes way more abuse than it has any right to as a ‘trail’ rim.
Thank you, everyone. I'm curious about carbon rims, and I don't have a thing against carbon, but I do like the idea that an alloy rim can just be smelted down again at the end of its natural life.
I'm going to get a pair of XM481s (thanks for the offer, Ogden, but I need two 28hs, so unless you're happy to split...), brass nipples as I've never met a Squorx one that wasn't horrible to retrue, and the skinniest spokes I can get away with. I'm fairly light on wheels (I'm not sure how) and will likely stick these on the hardtail once I'm done.
And if you don't like the 'red and white stickers look, Slik and Invisiframe will happily sell you replacement decals in any colour or design your heart may desire.
Thanks - I'll likely just remove the stickers entirely if I can be faffed with it. I imagine a heat gun or hair dryer and some IPA'll shift it
@bentudder happy to split if you're local/collection North Yorkshire. Ebay postage for anything too big starts getting really expensive where it makes more sense to just but them from biketart or somewhere.
