Mercury has expanded beyond their road bike origins to include two new mountain bike wheelsets, with two models each offering two widths depending on the intended use. They’re both running the brand’s own rim designs on their own hubs, and they’re all handbuilt in Ogden, UT.
They’ve also updated the road graphics and added a new deep, wide carbon tubular for cyclocross…
The top of the range for mountain bikes is the X1. They come in two different widths, a lightweight XC (24mm, 18mm internal) and a bigger Enduro (32mm, 26mm internal), both available in 27.5″ and 29er. Depths are 21mm and 24mm, respectively.
The carbon rims are hookless clinchers, a design that eliminates the machining process typically used to create a bead hook. That process also tears the fibers, which potentially degrades the integrity of the rim at a point vulnerable to impacts, particularly on a mountain bike wheel. Retail is $2,199 per set for any of the sizes. Claimed weights are:
- 27.5″ XC – 1525g
- 27.5″ Enduro – 1540g
- 29er XC – 1580g
- 29er Enduro – 1641g
Hubs can go 12mm or 15mm thru axles up front, and 12×142 in the rear, and both can be set up with standard QR dropouts, too. These are the same hubs they’re using for their gravel and cyclocross builds, too, but those get lower spoke count drillings. That means any of those wheelsets can fit anything from trail and enduro mountain bikes to road, ‘cross and gravel…which gives you a good crossover wheelset to be used as a backup, race day or whatever simply by swapping end caps on the front and axles on the rear. You can even sub in a Campy freehub body!
The X3 is the alloy set of mountain bike wheels, which founder Chris Mogridge says are actually selling really well to gravel and ‘cross riders.
The alloy rims do have a bead hook. The XC rims share the same widths and height as the carbon X1 rims. The Enduro spreads out a bit to 35mm wide, 29mm inside, depth is 27mm. Weights are:
- 27.5″ XC – 1530g
- 27.5″ Enduro – 1820g
- 29er XC – 1660g
- 29er Enduro – 1895g
Retail is $799 for any size option. All MTB weights listed are with 15mm front, 12×142 rear thru axles.
Their road line up gets new outline graphics on the S-series wheels, in contrast to the block white logos shown on the M5 in the foreground. They also get a subdued matte carbon finish.
Otherwise, their existing road wheels carry over unchanged, including the $699 all ’rounder alloy S1, available disc or rim brake builds.
For the past 18 months, they’ve been testing a new full carbon tubular under Smart Stop team and, more recently, Adam Myerson on the cyclocross circuit. The result is the M38, a new carbon tubular that measures a fat 24mm wide and 38mm deep and hit the scales at a claimed 1370g for rim brakes, and about 1410g for the disc brake version.
The wheelset comes in at a claimed 1370g and retails for $1,999 with Sapim CX-Ray spokes.
