Ibis

928 29in Wheelset

While the jury seems to still be out as to whether wider rims on the road really are better, on mountain trails, you'd be hard-pressed to argue their value. The Ibis 928 29in Wheelset runs a 28mm rim to set the "new normal" in mountain bike wheel design.

When it comes to trail riding, tire pressure can make or break your day. The Ibis 928s are tubeless-ready, which means that you are able to run lower pressure right out of the gate. Furthermore, because a wider rim puts less pressure on the sidewall, that also allows lower pressure. Ibis has found that light riders on moderate terrain can run as low as 17psi in the 928 rims. Wider rims also reduce burping for the same reason — less pressure on the sidewall reduces the pressure on the bead.

The most important aspect of carbon wheel design is strength. While the Ibis 928 wheels are no lighter than alloy rims, they make up for it in stability. The profile design of the rim is essentially a rectangle, not an inverted "T." This spreads out any impact force over a greater area that is supported by more material. Additionally, Ibis discovered that changing to a hookless bead also affects impact strength.

The Ibis 928s feature a full regiment of 32, triple-butted, conventional spokes. By doing this, you're able to fine-tune your wheels without special tools and without dismounting the tire and rim tape. More importantly, with 32 spokes, if you break one, you are more likely to be able to ride home. Each spoke hole is reinforced with extra carbon to ensure that the rim is always stronger that the spokes, so that if one does break, it doesn't damage the rim.

Ibis worked with a private label to engineer its hubs. The front features a 15mm thru-axle, while the rear is 12x142mm thru-axle. They feature Enduro bearings and are available in Shimano/SRAM.