Wider tires need wider rims, and more aggressive riding needs more aggressive carbon. And Race Face has both with their new Next R36 wheels, using a massively wide offset rim that’s ready to rally. As more and more bikes ship with 2.4 to 2.6 tires, or at least clearance for them, we need to make sure we’re matching those with rims designed around that width. The new Next R 36 have a 36mm internal width, a step up from the Next R31 for those wanting to run wider tires.
There’s a lot going for these wheels. Standout features include:
- 120 point, six pawl system with a snappy 3º of engagement (three pawls engaged at any point, each individually sprung).
- Single spoke length for all spokes, all sides, front and rear, and they ship with spares.
- Tool-free end caps let you swap axle interfaces quickly and easily.
- Tubeless ready, as expected, with rim tape and valve stems pre-installed.
- Oversized hub shells with wide bearing stance.
- Carbon Confidence Guarantee pretty much means whatever you break, however you break it, they’ll take care of you.
Specs include:
- Available in 27.5″ and 29″
- 36mm internal width
- 25mm height
- Designed for tires from 2.4″ to 2.8″ wide
- Claimed weights: 1,700g (27.5″) and 1,800g (29er)
- UD carbon fiber construction
- Matte black finish with gloss decals
- Sapim Laser spokes
- 28 spokes front and rear, 3x lacing
- 6-bolt disc brake rotor mount
- Retail price: $1,499 USD / $1,999 CAD
The wheels use their Vault hubs with straight pull spokes, which you can only get as part of a prebuilt wheel. The hubs are available in standard and Boost thru axle options, with the ability to swap to QR if you really want to. And these will have a SuperBoost option, too, to fit some of the new bikes from Pivot, Devinci and others.
And if you want to build up your own wheels? They have a full range of AR/ARC rims in four widths (from 25mm up to 40mm internal, in carbon and alloy), along with a J-bend spoke compatible version of the Vault hubs used here.
