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Trials gear for SS XC

747 views 3 replies 4 participants last post by  sean salach 
#1 ·
Are components made for Trials strong and lightweight, or weak and lightweight?

There are some rims and hubs made by Echo Bikes that look great- but I can't find much info about them and the company seems to market towards Trials riders.

http://www.echobike.com/SL.html

Scroll down that page for a bit and you'll see the components I'm talking about, specifically the 135mm Disc rear cog hub and their cnc'd 26" rim.

I'm a 225 pound rider looking for some aggressive XC action- building up a fully rigid Mountain Cycle Rumble 69'er.

Would this stuff hold up?

p.s. does anyone know if that hub is a freehub or fixed? I emailed this question to the company a few days ago but no response yet.
 
#2 ·
Trials wheels are strong but not light weight like some xc weight weenies might consider light. the rims are beefy, and you can forget running tires <2.3 The rim is super wide so that the tire won't roll/fold at low pressure. And those cut outs you see in the rim to reduce rim weight are somewhat offset by the need for special rim strips and DH tubes.

All of the rear hubs on that site are fixed. alot of trials riders run 22x18ish with a freewheel threaded onto the crank and fixed cog out back. If you wanted a good trials freehub/cassette rear hub, then pick Chris King or Hope Pro 2. Both are great but not free.


IMO
Honestly FWIW you are afraid you are gonna break stuff? Then go Alex DX32 or Sun Rhynolite for a rim, both are pretty dang tough and reasonably priced, and Surly or Pauls for hubs. Be sure to get straight gauge DT spokes. Then break that Mr. Tough Guy :p
 
#3 ·
I am running the Echo SL rear rims on my Pugsley and they are great in that application, but at 780g they would not be my first choice (or tenth for that matter) on a regular trail bike. If you are looking for robust product a Mavic 729 sits below 700g and is fairly wide as well as easy to find.
 
#4 ·
Elektro, if you have specific questions about that stuff, these guys might be able to give you the best, local, answer: http://midwestbiketrials.com/store/

I usually get any trials related gear from http://webcyclery.com/ when I do though. I've gor a wheelset built up with Viz 46mm trials rims laced to Paul hubs that I would call a pretty bomber set up. I wouldn't recommend it with less than 2.7" wide tires though on dirt, as the width will expose the sidewalls of xc weight tires to every rock you see.

As the other's said, rims around 30mm +/- 5mm are going to generally be beefy enough without being excessively heavy or negatively affecting the xc characteristics of tires.
 
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