Race Face’s new Period Carbon enduro wheels declare to supply the last word mix of power, weight, and luxury – and include free crash alternative

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Race Face’s new flagship carbon wheels goal to ship low weight and excessive power with glorious consolation.

Race Face’s new Period carbon wheels declare to supply the optimum steadiness of weight and compliance, in addition to providing the peace of thoughts that comes with a no-quibble crash alternative assure. Reasonably than attempting to design the very best wheelset in a single particular space, Race Face’s engineers have gone for a extra holistic strategy that, it says, nets them the greatest general wheel bundle available on the market.

Race Face Period Carbon Wheelset Have to know:

  • 1,750g weight on 29in wheelset
  • $1,599 USD worth (GBP TBC)
  • Flagship Vault hub with 3º engagement
  • 30mm inner rim width
  • Lifetime guarantee – inclusive of crashes
Race Face Era wheels

The brand new Race Face Period wheels declare to be sturdy, mild, compliant, and snappy (however not within the unhealthy method)

To attain these targets, it has gone down the entrance and rear-specific route, with a entrance wheel optimised for compliance, and a rear wheel geared in direction of stiffness and power, utilizing totally different rims and spokes to tune the trip really feel and efficiency traits. It’s an idea that will probably be acquainted to anybody who’s owned or ridden any of Crankbrothers present wheels.

Race Face Era wheels

Cross-sections of the rear (left) and entrance (proper) Period rims.

Up entrance, the rim makes use of a shallow double wall profile with an 18.6mm depth and 30mm inner width. Preserving it low profile permits larger lateral compliance, boosting consolation and management by way of tough terrain, and the uneven design reduces uneven spoke pressure. The sidewalls have a small bead hook on the within, and a broad, flattened higher part, that resembles an anvil, to assist unfold the load underneath impacts and keep away from pinch flats.

Race Face Era wheels

The rear wheel will get a large Vault hub with wider bearing placement and offset pawls for speedy, strong engagement.

On the rear there’s a deeper, 22.6mm, uneven box-section rim with the identical 30mm inner width. That is laced with double-butted spokes to the Vault hub, with 3º engagement (utilizing six alternate pawls), an oversize hub shell to cut back spoke size, improve torsional stiffness, and lengthen the bearings additional aside to cut back loading and enhance sturdiness.

In-house testing at Race Face was carried out throughout the design and validation phases of the brand new Period growth utilizing wheels from standard manufacturers akin to Reserve and Crankbrothers. Try the chart under for the outcomes from Race Face’s lateral stiffness check under, but when the outcomes are to be believed (they appear broadly consistent with our trip expertise throughout testing on-trail) it clearly reveals that the Eras carry a extra snug trip than a Reserve 30 HD or DT Swiss entrance wheel. The Period needing round 40% much less power to deflect 1mm in comparison with the Reserve.

Race Face Era wheels

Race Face Period wheels had been examined by Race Face in-house towards main rivals.

Issue within the weights (chart under) and it’s clear that there’s a weight penalty hooked up to Zipp’s super-supple 3Moto wheels, with the Period coming second solely to the DT Swiss XCM 1501 on the scales, and runner-up to the reserve for impression power.

Race Face Era wheels

The most effective general mix? Race Face definitely thinks so.

Race Face will probably be providing the Period Carbon as single entrance and rear choices in each 29in or 27.5in, permitting clients to simply construct combined wheelsets. Particular person wheels will probably be offered with spare spokes., and shoppers can select from Microspline, XD, and HG freehub choices. For now there’ll solely be a six-bolt rotor fixing choice, however a Centrelock model will comply with later this yr. Worth for a pair of wheels is $1,599, with UK pricing to be confirmed.

All Period wheels are backed by Race Face’s lifetime guarantee, and for the last word peace-of-mind, that features crashes.

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