They don't really have much in common. The price/performance wheels of the established brands roll neck and neck. With prices between 519 and 749 euros, eight workhorses for all-mountain use in 27.5 inches are in the test. Neither sinful carbon nor lead-heavy no-name goods are represented in this price range. It is, so to speak, the sensible class for touring bikers.
A look at the laboratory shows just how close this comparison is. Only 183 grams separate the lightest from the heaviest wheelset. In terms of acceleration, it is therefore similarly close. The inertia determined with the Auditor Inertia Chronograph shows a maximum difference of just ten per cent between the wheels. In a blind test, it would therefore be impossible to recognise which of the eight wheelsets is currently spinning in the bike. In addition, the inertia of the wheels is lost in the overall system, as the measurements of the Mavic Crossmax XL wheelset with tyres fitted show. If you accelerate a complete wheelset with tyres and tubes, the bare wheelset alone only takes up around 40 percent of the acceleration energy. If you want a more agile bike, it is therefore more effective to tune the inner tube (keyword "tubeless") or tyres, which account for the lion's share of the inertia.
So does it matter which wheel you ride? Not quite. In addition to weight and inertia, other factors such as concentricity, spoke tension distribution, stiffness and resistance to overload also play a role. The good news is that there was not one really major slip-up in the criteria we assessed. All of the wheels tested were manufactured with care and professionally centred. Only the Sram Roam 40 wheels were not as good as the others, as the spoke tension on the front wheel was very different. The deviation of up to 40 per cent causes unrest in the spoke mesh, which can have a negative effect on durability and allows conclusions to be drawn about the rim quality.
As there is no such thing as a perfectly round rim, concentricity and uniform spoke tension are at odds with each other. Either the wheel runs perfectly round without lateral and radial run-out, which requires a slightly different spoke tension, or the spokes are all pretensioned to exactly the same degree, and there are major deviations in concentricity. It is important for manufacturers to find the optimum compromise between these two variables, whereby uniform and sufficiently high tension overall is crucial for the durability of a wheel.
We have developed a fatigue test for wheels so as not to rely solely on empirical values in terms of durability, such as the fact that a toothed disc freehub (DT Swiss and Syntace) can transmit higher torques and is generally more durable. The great art here is to imitate the complex loads from practice in fast motion on the test bench so that the same defects occur as in the wild. In order to come closer to a meaningful test standard, each individual wheel completed up to 5000 kilometres on a modified test stand from Bohle. As not all loads such as cornering, drive and braking can yet be reproduced on the test stand and the damage patterns do not yet correspond one hundred per cent with those in practice, the results are not yet included in this test. However, the most stable wheelset under our test conditions came from Ritchey and completed the 5000 kilometre endurance run without any recognisable damage.
With such a homogeneous test field, unique details have to decide in the end. DT Swiss and Syntace stand out with a robust toothed disc freehub, while Ritchey and Mavic come up with a genuine tubeless rim without the fiddling with tape. In terms of rim width, Ritchey and Syntace are ahead.
Conclusion Peter Nilges, BIKE test editor
"In the criteria we assessed, the wheels are very close together. DT Swiss and Mavic score the most points, while Sram falls slightly behind. If you want to follow the sensible trend of wider rims for better tyre stability at low pressures, Ritchey, Spank and Syntace have the widest wheels in this test. In addition, the wheels from Ritchey and Syntace are also very light compared to the rim width."
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CENTRE OF ROTATION IMPELLER
When it comes to weight and the associated inertia, the test wheels have little in common. The differences are in the details: toothed disc or pawl freewheel, aluminium or steel spokes, tubeless rim or tubeless tape? And last but not least, the build quality.
WHEELS IN THE ENDURANCE TEST
BIKE is working on a test standard for durability in order to assess more than just the quality of a wheel when new. The major challenge here is to select the load in such a way that the damage patterns from the test bench correspond to the defects in practice. As a basis for data collection, each wheel loaded with 65 kilograms completed up to 5000 kilometres or 164 hours on a modified outdoor roller test bench from Bohle at a tyre pressure of 3.7 bar. Four twelve-millimetre-high ledges were rolled over as obstacles with each rotation. Every 40 hours, the wheels were checked for visually recognisable defects such as loose or broken spokes and cracks in the rims and hubs. As the defects that occur do not yet correspond 100 per cent with real-life conditions, the results obtained are not yet included in the evaluation of this test. The most stable wheelset under our conditions comes from Ritchey. BIKE will continue to work on this topic in order to evaluate durability in the future.
WEIGHT AND INERTIA
The greater the mass moment of inertia of the wheels, the more difficult they are to accelerate. It is not only the weight but also the distribution of the mass (distance from the centre of rotation) that is decisive. For comparison: The lightweight 29er wheel has a high moment of inertia.
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LAUFRAD FAQ
Just like a tyre or a brake pad, a wheel is subject to a certain amount of wear, which depends heavily on mileage and stress.
Can I retrofit 11-speed?
Shimano 11-speed cassettes do not require a special freehub body. Almost all manufacturers have the XD driver body for Sram 11-speed cassettes in their range.
What axle standards are currently available?
Front 15x100 mm and rear 12x142 mm are the most common. Many manufacturers offer replacement end caps for alternative standards. The newly emerging Boost standard for 29ers is not compatible.
Can I convert to tubeless?
Almost all wheels can be converted with a tubeless rim tape and valve for tubeless use with latex milk.
How wide should the rim be?
The rim width should match the tyre width. A wide 2.3 mm tyre should be ridden on a rim that is at least 22 mm wide. A wide rim supports the tyre better and allows a lower air pressure.
Is there a weight limit for wheels?
All all-mountain/enduro wheels in this test are approved for a rider weight of at least 110 kilograms.
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