I have decided that I would like to do a little retail therapy and get a new set of wheels for my 2017 Trance 2 and use the stock wheels as my winter studded set.
I’ve been bouncing around different sites and the selection is pretty big and confusing so I was wondering if you folks wanted to assist me in choosing a new set?
I see sets for $100 into the thousands with differing widths but am having trouble comparing them to what I have as there isn’t a ton of detailed spec about stock wheels online that I have found.
IE. Fulcrum Red Zone 500, Hope Forus 30, Race Face Aeffect R, etc. How do they compare to stock Giant AM Boost 27.5 ETRTO 584x23 wheels?
My requirements are fairly simple
Alloy
An upgrade from stock wheels (lighter, etc)
Low cost preferably $3-400 if possible
Able to run 2.3-2.6 width tires
Bicycle wheels are not my strong suit and I am tossing in the towel. If you have something to sell or would like to assist in my retail therapy adventure I am all ears
Aside from overall better quality. the biggest difference between your stock Giant wheelset and the ones you listed is the rim width.
Yours have an internal width of 23mm. Most sources would suggest that a 30 to 35mm internal rim width is ideal for wide/high volume tires.
Of course this is also up to personal taste and preference. I ride 28mm internal width rims on 2.5 tires and 35mm internal rims on 2.8 tires. I am very happy with the performance of both but feel that the 35mm rims are probably a bit wide for my preference, when it comes time to rebuild those wheels I will got to 30mm internal.
I’ve got a set of wheels that I could sell you. The rims are WTB i35 laced to Novatec boost hubs with Sapim Race spokes, 32 spokes 3 cross pattern. The rims are taped and have Stan’s valves. The driver is XD and they are 6 bolt disc compatible. I built them to run 27.5 x 3.0 tires but they are too narrow for my tastes. I’ve got 3 rides on them. I’d sell them for $450.
