Best 26 inch touring wheels??

Slukecp

i have a beautiful soma groovetail mountain bike for touring but i need to soup up all the components,,, particularily the wheels. I want something light and quick but also as strong as possible for fully loaded touring and am willing to spend a fair bit on wheels as i think for touring they make a big difference... does anyone have any suggestions?? They are 26 inch. and thats why i ask as i know nada about 26 inch stuff... thanks
[;)]

vernonlevy

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Sluke</i>

i have a beautiful soma groovetail mountain bike for touring but i need to soup up all the components,,, particularily the wheels. I want something light and quick but also as strong as possible for fully loaded touring and am willing to spend a fair bit on wheels as i think for touring they make a big difference... does anyone have any suggestions?? They are 26 inch. and thats why i ask as i know nada about 26 inch stuff... thanks
[;)]
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
Try www.spacycles.co.uk and www.sjscycles.co.uk for advice. Both specialise in touring bikes.

Light, quick and strong....mmmm....you might get two out of the three.

ut_o_cykla

I have sun ryno lite rims, Shimano upper range hubs and panaracers on my Thorn from SJSC. fully loaded 7 week tour, tarmac, tow paths etc. Not one problem - only 2 punctures.

pousse moi s'il vous plait

Philip Davis

Sunn ringle Rhyo's are the ultra heavy solution for fully loaded touring. Properly built they are almost indestructable, but you pay a price in weight. CR18's are more of a compromise between weight and strength. I've used Mavic x517's, which are much lighter without a problem, but I haven't had very heavy loads.

Basically, any rim rated for freeride or downhill should be strong enough. But check the manufacturers website carefully for specifications, some (such as Mavic) design some mtb rims for low pressure tyres only. This may be the reason for some reported failures of heavy Mavic rims on long term tours.

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I hate to advocate drugs, violence or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me.' Hunter S. Thompson

Magnus Thor

Ive been using Mavic XC721 Ceramic rims for the last 3 years or so, for touring and commuting and they have staied absolutely true and show no signs of wear...

Magnus Thor
Iceland

My new thing: http://www.flickr.com/photos/70951302@N00/sets/109683/

Chris Bcp

Got two sets of mtb wheels that I use for heavy duty xc (jumping off stuff, rocks etc).

One set made by Dave hinde is Shimano LX 32 hole with Mavic 719 rims, used with V brakes.

Other set is Merlin cycles Shimano XT with Mavic 717 disc rims used with discs.

Both needed truing after the first few rides but have been faultless since. I consider the 719 rims to be bombproof and have toured with them.