I’ve ordered one of the sale Specialized Epic Evo Comp’s, I’m very happy with the build apart from the standard  wheels (2200g suggested on other forums) so i’m looking to swap them out for new ones when it arrives.

I’ve ‘budgeted’ (as much as the bike was budgeted….) around £400 for some new wheels. I’m 80kg+kit, strictly a wheels on the ground trail/XC/marathon type rider, preferring steep climbs to steep downhills, not one to ride big features at speed. Obviously i’d prefer the lightest wheels possible to suit the bike, but I want wheels to be robust/fit for purpose. The bike comes with 2.35″ ground controls which i’ll run tubeless and keep initially as these have been my recent tyre of choice.

On that note the first that came to mind are the Hunt XC Race wides (1517g – £360) but they/Hunt in general seem to be very marmite, i’m not sure about their durability (though warranty is good?). Is this the same for Silt wheels (1599g – £385)?

I’ve always liked DT Swiss road wheels so I have looked at DT Swiss 350 hub based wheels. I can get a set of XM1700 (1900g – £310) for  from Chiggle, while definitely robust they are heavy at 1900g. So following that thread on fitwheels.eu I can XM421 rims with 350 hubs (1671g – £480), will their be import duty to factor in too?

I’ve previously used Stans Crest rims but the latest version has a 90kg rider limit, which i’m pushing, so I have looked at Arch instead (1700g – £460) at fitwheels.eu again. What are peoples experiences of the warranty backup as they’re EU based?

A left field one is some Chinese Carbonzz from kingbike888 on ebay, 27mm rims with Bitex hubs (1600g – £360) but obviously I will be waiting a while for them and expect no warranty back up.

I’ve looked at JRA and Moonglu but nothing jumps out at me there for my budget. I’d appreciate any feedback on the above options and any suggestions of alternatives, thanks!

I’ve looked at JRA and Moonglu but nothing jumps out at me there for my budget.

Monitor alu wheels

I have them, they do what wheels should do. On a rigid MTB, so not sure if that means they’re getting a harder or easier time. I think they’re just under 1600g with 28 spokes. I replaced a 2250g wheelset with them and it made the bike so much more sprightly although I also changed the tyres at the same time. The hubs have bigger bearings than the Hunt ones, same size as Hope Pro 4. Hunt hubs last time I looked were Novatec, and Silt were Chosen.

And you can specify more discreet rim decals, thanks in part to people including me telling them I want your wheels but without the eccentric lizard/dog/wolf.

Or pre-built https://www.justridingalong.com/product/monitor-alu-core-wheels-boost-width-hubs

Thanks @bikesandboots I hadn’t looked under the gravel section, food for thought. I didn’t realise you could order them without the awful graphics too.

I’ve just bought one of the Epic Evo’s in the sale and the stock wheels are like anchors.

I’ve got a set of Hunt XC Wide wheels on my bike now, they’ve been on my Solaris Max for the past couple of years and have been absolutely faultless. I’ve got another set on my singlespeed and they’ve also been faultless. From what I’ve read the Enduro or Trail wheels seem to be the ones that are a bit shit.

I’ve some of the Hunt XC wide on my SS (either rigid, or forked)..they’re fab, and really strong. They’ve been through the mill without so much as a hint of damage..

I had Hunt trail wide – made of cheese. I can’t even be bothered to get Hunt to fix them, i was so dissapointed.

As you may have seen, my Hunt/Proven XR carbons are lovely to ride – light and fast, but I cracked a rear rim..with hunt being fixed as we speak..I’ll persevere with these as they are a great riding wheelset.

So TBH, i’d give the Hunt XC alu ones a punt..

DrP

I’d steer clear of the stans rims, pulled spokes through far too many arches and crests over the years.

XM421’s on my stumpy which gets a mix of XC and the local bike park. No idea who built them as they were an ebay find, 3000miles and they are still going strong.

Ryan Builds wheels:

XC Bomber

MTB Bomber

Bitex hubs seem to be pretty good, have used them for a few builds for mates a few years back and not had them back for any maintenance.

I can XM421 rims with 350 hubs (1671g – £480)

Seems like the sweet spot to me.

I suspect the DT components will prove a durability saving over the longer term anyway.

Thanks all for the feedback so far, appreciated. I suppose it’s a good thing that there are so many good options, doesn’t help me choose though.

<p style=”text-align: left;”>Leaning towards JRA at the minute. I hadn’t realised they were so close in York, nice to support a local business.</p>

XM421s are great – I’ve got them on my 140/130 travel ‘trail’ bike and often forget I’m not on my Geometron, so they get a hammering. I’m 88kgs or so. Mine are 1890g on Hope Pro4s with DB spokes and brass Squorx nipples. Possibly dodgy scales.

For reference these replaced Stan’s Arch mk3s on the same bike which cracked around the spoke holes. No issues with the DT Swiss.

£310 for the XM 1700’s is a stone cold bargain, DT tend to be pretty honest with their weights so these will end up being pretty decent compared to the real world weights of many other options.

Also no issues with import costs and you have UK support if you need anything sorted.

If DT391 on Pro4’s with D-light spokes tickle anyone’s fancy, I have a set to move on.  Probably a bit light for this crowd maybe?

I’ve got a Silt MTB XC rear wheel that I bought as a replacement about 2 months ago for my hardtail. Fat chuffer and I haven’t broken it yet. Similar riding to yourself by the sound of it, maybe a few more clattery rocks.

I have a set of the Silt XC alloy wheels. Am 88kg and they’ve not died after a year of riding the South downs.

Also have a set of old DTswiss ex1900 spline from about 7 years ago that are still going on my boys bike.

Also also have a set of XM 421 on a bike that also haven’t died.

Wheels on the ground xc rider here.

I’d go for whatever has the best and easiest warranty service if you’re concerned you’ll break them.

I’ve been looking at similar recently and took a punt on Hunt trail wides (mk 2) as with them being on sale and using a £40 new customer voucher it brought them down to £280. Wanted 30mm internal width. Could also get them in centrelock meaning no additional costs like new rotors and tape and valves are also included. They’re about 1820g all in.

Thought it was worth it for the price, despite some dodgy anecdotal accounts, just waiting for them to arrive but due to my configuration it’ll be mid to late October.

Trail Wides here. wanted DT, but I was in a hurry to build and ride a new bike and the Hunts were next day delivery.

They’re noisy, I don’t like the noise!  I put some DT ratchet grease in them which might them nicer for 2 or 3 rides.

I folded the rear rim casing a step up gap, edged with a root.  Hunt sold me a crash replacement for £66 (30% off?) which I thought was on the high end for claiming 30% off, puts them on the same price point as DT.

I put a barely noticeable flat spot on an EX511 in an almost carbon copy case (slow learner) – tweaked the nipples a bit, been fine since.  EX511 is a much stronger rim, so damage to Hunt Trail Wide was disappointing, but fair enough, I think.  Would have gone for Enduro Wide replacement, but that’s 36H v 32 on the Trail Wides.

Ah, yet another epic EVO owner who’s swapping wheels straight away. I’m trying to be on my best behaviour and keep my money tucked away until at least the finance is paid off! Wheels will be first to change on mine though.

Doing my best to ignore you lot 😆

<p style=”text-align: left;”>Good to see a couple of other new Epic Evo owners in here. Keen to ride it, anyone else planning to increase the chainring from 32T to 34T? 32*52 lowest gear is a winch!</p>

I thought I might need to but I haven’t span out in 32×10. 32×52 has been used! But maybe I’m a wimp 🙂

If you do strip down your OE wheels stick em on some scales for us!

If you do strip down your OE wheels stick em on some scales for us!

in the same boat (happily) – have stripped the front, it’s 992g (rotor and rotor bolts removed, caps on)

 anyone else planning to increase the chainring from 32T to 34T? 32*52 lowest gear is a winch!

Nah… i like to ride everything I can, so this works for me.. Plust I stuck a new GX AXS set on it, so don’t want to splash out on a new chainring!

DrP

Really happy with Hunt Trailwide V2s. Extremely robust on an aggro HT. I am 85kg. I have tried hard to fold them but couldn’t. And they are light for the price, which makes little sense.

As others have said, have a look at Silt. Their xc wheels are 1600g and their hubs are very dt-like. I’ve got their am wheels (because I’m a heifer) and am very happy with them.

DT XR1700 spline 25’s are absolutely bomb proof and they’re  pretty much what DT quote on their website at 1680g a set. I’d be looking at those over the XM as they’re overkill for the type of riding you describe.

I can also recommend the Silt XC Alloy, I’ve been running a set for nearly a year, around 1500km in all conditions and trail types from XC racing to weekends at Afan on a Scott Scale and they’re as straight and true as the day I got them, FWIW I’m 79kg and ride in a very 46yr old XC racer kid of way.

Keen to ride it, anyone else planning to increase the chainring from 32T to 34T?

I’ve got a 34t on mine, only because I fitted an X01 AXS groupset off another bike and it had the 34t on there, also moved to a 10/50 cassette for the same reason.

OE wheels I weighed at almost bang-on 2200g for the set according to my incredibly accurate £5 Amazon special luggage scales 😂

DT XR1700 spline 25’s are absolutely bomb proof and they’re pretty much what DT quote on their website at 1680g a set.

I’d be keen on the XR1700 if I could find them anywhere other than obscure euro bike websites

I’ve got a set of EX511 wheels on Shimano XT hubs that I’m looking to sell if anyone is interested, not sure of the weight but I can check, they’ve got some virtually new Rocket Rons on them tubeless at the mo so I’d probably have to weigh them with the tyres on initially if anyone was interested….. They’re in mint condition btw with upgraded bearings all round so they’re buttery smooth. They’re 29” 30mm internal btw.

Based on personal experience I would be going straight to JRA. Very well built wheels.

Ive just bought the JRA monitor core wheels for my Crux. They arrived yesterday, weigh 1620g with tape, went up tubeless with no problems, bearings super smooth, free hub relatively quiet, tape perfect. Very pleased, 2nd set of wheels from them, very helpful customer service, great price

Thanks all for your feedback, appreciated. I’ve ordered the JRA monitor core wheelset, at £325 delivered, less than I anticipated spending so happy days.

Very happy with my JRA arch mk3 build. Fast engagement on the bitex hub which has been very reliable.

Just to follow up on this. I got the 2023 Epic Evo comp (they ran out of 2022 so got FOC upgrade), the OEM wheels are 900g front & 1050g rear so not as bad as I first thought. Hopefully the new wheels are justified from a quality perspective too otherwise £325 for 300g doesn’t sound quite as good.

Free upgrade though, it’s all swings and roundabouts. 🙂