Submitted by
criticalw88
a Cross Country Rider
from Richmond, CA
Date Reviewed: May 19, 2009
Strengths: Lightweight
Weaknesses: Too fragile for urban obstacles
Bottom Line:
These came mounted on my San Andreas. For 3+ years they required runout correction and spoke tightening. Maybe a lot of this is due to my 280# riding weight. They seemed tricky when conducting inner tube replacement. One has to be mindful of pinching to assure success. All was fine until they became split due to an encounter with a pot hole one night. I will probably replace them with some Mavic 729's in order to put this problem to bed. I have zero concern for weight. I would have solid granite wheels (Flintstone's style) if I could. Needless to say, I have no interest in replacing them with the same. Maybe they are good for light weight people who dont encounter hard objects.
Strengths: Looks great especially with black nipples, spokes and XT hub.
Weaknesses: Eyelets pop-out
Bottom Line:
After more than 2 years of everyday use, climbing and descending approximately 800 meters of altitude per week and a distance of 80-100 km in every condition (rain, snow, hot summer) some of the eyelets facing the spokes coming from the cassette side of the rear tyre pops-out and have started to make a grincing sound especially when I climb steep ascents. I have dismounted the tyre, put tooth lock washers under the nipples and mounted the tyre again. No problem since then.
These rims fits perfectly well with Schwalbe Racing Ralph tyres, I can pull-out the tyre even without any tool and when installed, fits perfectly. Their diameter match exactly. I have purchased another tyre for spare. There is no problem with the front tyre. I have put more than 8500 km's on these. If I can find new ones, may think of buying a spare again.
Hint: if you can build the tyre by-yourselves, start putting spokes of the cassette side with washers under the nipples first, true them and install the remaining spokes later. By doing this you will not need to adjust the cassette side nipples that much, whose are more stressed than those of the other side.
Bike Setup: Magura Julie 6 bolt brake rotor, XT hub, DT spokes and nipples, Schwalbe Racing Ralph tyres
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Submitted by
jack
a Cross Country Rider
from Woodland Hills, ca
Date Reviewed: November 21, 2007
Strengths: Just awesome. Never needs to be trued, worry free rim. I have no problem getting my tires on. They are a good weight for cross country riding and they are priced nicely. You really cant go wrong.
Weaknesses: Product is great, just be sure to get a nice hub on it to truly appreciate the weight savings.
Submitted by
Pama
a Weekend Warrior
from Quito /Ecuador
Date Reviewed: November 28, 2006
Strengths: strong!!, and light
Weaknesses: the worst experience in my life to change tires or tubes,,, imposible.
Bottom Line:
Im 235 poubds and the rims have hold amazing but everytime I have a flat means 10 minutes per wheel and 2 broken tool levers, this means you probably will damage your tubes and this means another 10 minutes more per wheel and new levers
Similar Products Used: xm819, ditch witch and some crappy ones
Bike Setup: kona caldera
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Submitted by
Krzysztof Dynka
a Cross Country Rider
from Krakow, Poland
Date Reviewed: September 9, 2006
Strengths: Reasonably priced, very light, very well made in terms of finish, reasonably rigid even in quite abusive conditions
Weaknesses: Very narrow even as disc brake specific rims - snake bites are quite likely if tyres not inflated properly or even if lightweight tubes and tyres used
Bottom Line:
I can't really complain about the wheels built with these rims (XT centerlock 36 hole hubs, DT Champion spokes), apart from the snake bites like punctures mentioned in the weaknesses, the rim seems to be very narrow and sharp, I had many problems with the punctures at the beginning, but having put on thicker tyres and tubes everything seems to be sorted out.
I weigh 73 kilos, I'm into quite aggressive XC, Enduro and trail riding and so far I've had no buckles, dents on the rims, however I wouldn't recommend them to heavier riders for sure, at least not for the type of riding I do.
My rims are in anodized red - the colour, the look and the anodized finish is absolutely superb, but it's all badly spoiled by the crappy and peeling off stickers.
If you want to build (cheaply) lightweight and nice looking wheels for not too heavy conditions, then give them a go.
I'll buy something else next time but only because of my riding preferences.
Similar Products Used: Alexrims DM18, Mavic X139, Mavic X517
Bike Setup: Author Vision frame, full XT 2005 disc groupset, Manitou Minute, Easton EA50 set, IRC Serac XC tyres
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Submitted by
Mike robinson
a Downhiller
from Victoria, BC, Canada
Date Reviewed: July 24, 2006
Strengths: Very light, quite tough for the weight
Weaknesses: Haven't found any yet except maybe a few broken spokes
Bottom Line:
I am an ex xc racer who is now an avid free rider. I own a Stinky Primo and I bought my dawg to try the all mountain thing and I have been impressed with the wheels. I did not expect these light wheels to last long with my style of riding but I have been pleasantly surprised. I ride up to 6 foot drops with trannies on these wheels, rock gardens and downhills, and the only problem I have had is a few broken spokes on the rear wheel. Sure, I have had to true the wheels a few times but what do you expect when riding an xc wheel on the edge of freeride. Sounds like a lot of people have had problems with these rims, I would suggest learning to ride smoothly. If you are just going to hack your way through a trail like you are on FR/DH bike of course you are going to have problems. I constanly tell people how good these wheels have been to me and my riding buddies know how hard I ride and have also been impressed by how long they have lasted.
Similar Products Used: only heavier wheels, alex esd 25 and mavic ex 729
Bike Setup: Dawg Delux, lx/xt, race face type x bb and cranks, 2007 fox vanilla rlc (which I love much more than the float), fox rp3, chromag bars, race face headset, hfx nine brakes, wtb saddle, ds1 rims.
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Submitted by
Jeff Andresen
a Cross Country Rider
from Apple Valley
Date Reviewed: June 1, 2006
Strengths: Looks Good
Weaknesses: Not durable
Bottom Line:
Upon landing too much on my front wheel, I took a spill on a simple, small, well-made jump at my local MTB trail. The act of wiping out somehow bent the rear Sun rim into an unrepairable undulating shape. It must have been the sideways stress from the bike and I hitting the ground. This was only my fourth time out on my new bike. This seems too fragile for a MTB rim.
Bike Setup: LX/XT mix, full suspension, Manitou Radium Rear Shock
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Submitted by
Brian Gegier
a Cross Country Rider
from Williamsburg, VA, USA
Date Reviewed: May 2, 2006
Strengths: Low price, light weight
Weaknesses: Durability
Bottom Line:
I bought these for their light weight and low price. Built up the rear around XT hub and had Jenson build the front on an XT (since they'd do it for the cost of hub and rim). First ride I hit a rut bombing down a fitness trail and tacoed the front rim. I was disappointed but figured many xc rims couldn't take that abuse. I replaced it with a 0degree XC and haven't had any trouble. After a few weeks the rear developed a bad flat spot and ever since then the spokes have come loose after several rides. I finally gave up and replaced the rear with a Sun SubIV. Hope it lasts.
I'm a former bike mechanic and meticulous with maintenance. I've also built up at least a dozen wheels and never had a similar problem before. These might be good racing rims, but I think they're too fragile for everyday use. I'd trade a few grams in weight to get a heavier-duty, more reliable rim. I ride strictly cross country with at most 2 foot drops. At 170lbs, I don't think I'm especially hard on wheels.
Bike Setup: Klein Palomino frame, mostly XT components, RaceFace crank, Avid disc brakes
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Submitted by
Tim Carl
a Downhiller
from Thorne Bay, Alaska
Date Reviewed: April 28, 2006
Strengths: This procuct sucks Kona should of not put these rims on this bike
Weaknesses: the rims bend way to much im working on them every single ngiht trying to get them straight and theres a major hop in the rim....not to the side it hops verticaly
Bottom Line:
These rims suck should not be put on a hardcore xc/race bike. if you ever buy these rims and your going to ride hard on them...get a new set asap becase these will be shot in 5 months
Submitted by
Ross
a Cross Country Rider
from Chch, NZ
Date Reviewed: February 16, 2006
Strengths: Light, seem plenty strong enough.
Weaknesses: None so far
Bottom Line:
I weigh 75kg, and ride fairly hard - these rims are still running true after a few thousand kms. Perhaps not the rim for you if you're into big drop offs, but as the name suggests, its a light weight xc rim, not a bombproof dh rim! They do seem to be on the large side, making removing/installing tires a little harder than with other rims, but its really not that bad - at least not with the tioga and panaracer tires i've tried on them.
Bike Setup: '05 kona kula deluxe, panaracer fire xc 1.8
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Submitted by
john
a Cross Country Rider
from Victoria, BC, Canada
Date Reviewed: April 21, 2005
Strengths: None noted
Weaknesses: Are not durable. The rear wheel sprung after having it out for the 5th ride since new (had 27 kms on it in total) along a relatively easy trail.
Bottom Line:
Went out for a normal evening ride, it's typically a 15 Km loop around Mt. Tzouhalem in Duncan... just heading out of Field of Dreams when the rear wheel sprung when I dismounted the bike awkwardly.
For a new set of wheels on a bike with very little mileage this was an enormous disappointment. I have ridden a number of other bikes with no trouble whatsoever, I ride my XC hardtail along this route regularly (Mavic 223s) without any problems and then this... not really pleased that this happened. I don't abuse my equipment at all and I don't ride like I'm out to kill myself or my bike.
Considering my one and only experience with the Sun DS1-XC has not been a good one thus far, I can't recommend these rims to anyone. My LBS is going to see what they can do for my wheel, but I think that it's going to mean getting a new rim in the end.
Strengths: Rims seem to track and brake better than my old OEM Mavics with the same tire combination. Cheap online.
Weaknesses: Next to impossible to get tires on and off. Stickers are cheap and come off right away...not a big deal, but doesn't inspire much confidence either.
Bottom Line:
These are a burlier and cheaper rim than Mavic 317s, but all the problems I've had changing tires have me thinking they're not worth it. I've tried 3 different tires on these rims; Panaracer Fire 2.1s, and WTB Moto 2.24 and 2.14s. I had to cut the big WTBs off the rim and so far I've trashed 2 tubes and broken a tire lever. I keep pinch-flatting tubes trying to get tires on. Never going to try to race on these...one flat would probably mean a DNF. My old Mavics were the exact same dimensions on paper, and I didn't even have to use levers with them. What gives? Did Sun forget to convert inches to metric when they sent these to Taiwan to get made?
Submitted by
m2k
a Cross Country Rider
from Philly
Date Reviewed: August 10, 2004
Strengths: lightweight, looks
Weaknesses: durability
Bottom Line:
These rims came on the bike I bought used - had about a summer of wear on them. This summer, I blew two spokes in the back rim and last week, when I went over the bars, the front rim crumpled under my weight beyond repair, which is why I bought the Mavic. I'm 5'11" 185lbs. - ride a lot of rock gardens but no insane drops.
I don't know. These are definitely light rims, and the guy I bought the bike off tried to shave weight wherever possible, but I don't think it's worth it with these. Racing? Maybe I'd get them. Not racing and not a weight queen? Get something more durable.
PS - removing tires was a little tough, but once you get used to using levers it's not THAT bad!
Submitted by
Donavan
a Cross Country Rider
from Monterey
Date Reviewed: June 24, 2004
Strengths: Light, solid, cheap
Weaknesses: ?
Bottom Line:
Most Excellent. Got the set with XT hubs for ~$200. Last season I road these 9 mi twice a day, 5-6 days a week. 95% crosstown pavement with some occasional XC in Fort Ord when I had time before/after work. Havnt really abused them, just had them trued after the first week and every few months after that. I love them and going to get another set for my Works XLS for this season.
I ride XC...nothing extreme -- 2' drop at the most. I weight 180 pounds. In the 3 years I've had this rim, I have never had it go out of true; I have never had a problem.
The build is on SRAM 9.0 with straight gauge spokes.
They are light and in my experience strong -- absolutely no problems.
I can't believe the one reviewer gave this rim a low rating because it wouldn't hold up to a 200 pounder doing downhill?! Uhh....no sh*t, buddy -- it says XC in the name of the rim.
I personally find the rim kind of cheap and generic looking -- but it works and is cheap
Oh yeah -- it is impossible to change tires on this rim -- I have to resort to levers put the tire on.
