Over all, a great looking rim. Makes the wheel sooooper puffed up. Donny's 2.35 looked like 2.7s on those bad boys. The spoke holes were offset. Nice touch. Building it, it was temperamental. For a builder, a really great rim for building is when you equally tension the spokes gradually to your max tension, and you end up with a wheel that is fairly true. This was not the case. Spent at least an extra hour working on it and getting it just right, true with balanced tension. But it did finally. One major observation. The rim is built with I-beam technology. That I-beam though, doesnt go around the wheel continuously. The I-beam is cut at each spoke hole. I guess they cut it every time they drill in a hole. If they didnt do this, there is no way getting a nipple in there. What good is an I-beam for structural integrity if its cut in sections? Doh! Which leads me to the WTB i23 KOM rims. They removed the I-beam, and made it even lighter. "KOM i23′s come with the same TCS tubeless bead technology that makes mounting and sealing tubeless tires as painless as possible. Most of the weight savings come from the removal of the internal I-beam structure and the infusion of new alloys to add strength. While WTB is being coy about the alloy they are using, they are claiming scandium-like durability and stiffness." - http://blog.artscyclery.com/mountain/interbike-2013-wtb-kom-i23-tcs-and-i25-rims/ Now, if they made an i-25 KOM rim, that would be lighter than Flow EX's, and it would be the shits I'll update this with a field test from Donny in a few weeks
I might be able to lend some info since I have i25's on my Kona Process 153. Solid rim, so far I have ridden SS, telonics, stair steps, TNA and some other nutty trails putting them through their paces. They have held up great, my front wheel has a little bit of wobble but considering I ride my trail bike like a DH rig I'd say they go above and beyond what they were built for. I also ride tubeless and I have to re-pump up my tires after a week or so because they drop about 5-10psi consistently. Affordable, no special looks or bling, but gets the job done... Not trying to pirate your review just give you guys my input considering I have road these rims for almost 6 months..
Have you actually ridden one or done some torsional testing & comparison with rims that do not have the i-beam to say that it is worthless? I am no structural engineer, but i-beam in sections vs one that is continuous is a compromise on both structural support & function to make room for spoke holes. Temperamental? With the 4D drilling it's actually a lot easier to tension and true. There's less stress on the nipple heads, spokes are lined up in the direction of the pull, etc...
I don't know how to take your comment, but I will answer it. No, I did not take it to a lab. My opinion is based on basic knowledge of structural strength. A structure is only as strong as it's weakest point. Given that the wheel is supported by an I-bream that is cut in 32 different sections, then I would presume that it would be as strong if there were no I-beam at all. Were you able to confirm with your own torsional testing and comparison that it is stronger than non-I-beam rims? I'd be very interested in your results. And 2, I found it to be temperamental as it did not true like a Flow or Mavic or DT Swiss rim. It would twist in ways that was different to the first 3. It took me twice the amount of time to true the first rim, vs. the second one. By that time I was able to predict how it would react to adjustments better. How did you fare building one? Share your experience with us. Personally, I like the box section of the old speedmaster II.
Take it however you want, it's an open forum. But do not take the wrong way especially here on STR LOL. IMO it's a far shot to call out a rim to be "temperamental" unless you use the same hubs, spokes, nipples, spoke prep, and build procedure is all. As far building experience goes, I would favor WTBs over STANs - I have the complete opposite observation & impression of both products. And it would not be fair for me to call out a product based on my perception. You know what's temperamental are those cheap generic carbon rims...stay away.
My observations are personal. Purely my opinion for wheel building. I found it temperamental because when I was building up tension, I would tighten one spoke, then a spoke a few spokes away on the other side would unload by 3-5 notches on the Park meter. Why? I dont know. But when I realized that, I compensated by simply feeling for it and tightening it too. Also, final dish was a little difficult. Centering dish by 2mm required something like 1/16th of a turn. I kept turning by half, and I'd over shoot the dish, then I realized that it was overly sensitive. There were a few more little things, but I forget. Otherwise, it was fine. Just different. I didnt say it was junk.
Stronger? Do you have actual torsional and comparative tests to back that up? :lol::lol::lol::lol: I like those DTs. Just wary of tubeless burping. I wonder if theyve changed their bead channel?
Bing has a point here - sure Gwin's DTSwiss stood up to unbelievable abuse, but why did it flat in the first place? Maybe it doesn't secure the bead as well as others?
