Just a thought. I have a set of as new hope hubs laced to some 26″ rims which I have tried to sell, but even at silly cheap price don’t seem to have any luck (understandably I guess). Now I actually could use a second set of wheels for my gravel bike and it also happens to have the same hub standards as these Hope hubs. So I just got to thinking perhaps I could build them into some 36 spoke  29″ or 700c rims if such things exist. A quick google suggests they are, in fact, far more common in 36 hole than 26″ rims ever were.

So am I missing something here? Makes sense I hope.

perfectly possible. They’ll be four spokes heavier (less the weight of the extra holes in the rim and hub) than a 32 spoke wheel.

I’ve always wished that I had gone 36 for my back wheel, partly because the rear rim always cracks loads quicker than the front, but mostly because Sheldon says you should!! 🙂

A pair of stronger 36 hole wheels wouldn’t be a bad thing, hey? Plus you get the pleasure of building them! 🙂

Makes perfect sense. 36 spoke wheels are pretty common for touring applications. I run 29er rims on my road/gravel/CX bike because when I built them up there weren’t many road disc rims around, they’re perhaps a little on the heavy side but I’m not bothered about that, it’s all good training. Your idea is a good use of the hubs, go for it.

I think 36 spokes is better for an all purpose gravel or roughstuff bike, but what width tyres are you planning to use (or possibly what range of widths), and would you want a tubeless compatible rim?

If they will suit your requirements, there’s plenty of choice in traditional rims (inner tubes and rim brakes), ranging from the Mavic Open Pro C to wider and heavier touring rims (e.g. see Spa’s and SJS Cycles’ websites), but lightweight rims marketed for gravel bikes which are intended for tubeless and disc specific like the Stans Grail and Pacenti Forza rims are typically only only available with 32 holes or less.

And just how much (and what) were these wheels? I like older Hope hubs and do build them into road wheels.