They say you should never go full Enduro, but if you do, you should be prepared with some stout wheels. Industry Nine knows a thing or two about the abuse talented riders can dish out when it comes to carbon rims. Between the local shredders and the unforgiving roots and rocks of the trails around Asheville, it doesn’t take long to find out if a rim will hold up. Claiming that the new Enduro 310 carbon rim is their widest and strongest to date, Industry Nine also confided that these rims have held up to local conditions better than anything else yet.
Offered in 27.5 or 29″, the 310 combined with custom build options from their new Ano Lab should make for a pretty tempting wheelset. And for those not into anything Enduro, I9 had an interesting new freehub body in their booth which may be a signal of things to come…
Built by Reynolds to I9’s specifications, the 310 Enduro gets its name from the 31mm internal width (36.5mm external). Based on their tire width recommendations, this should be the sweet spot for 2.3-2.6″ tires, though it could even be used on 2.8″ plus applications if needed. The rim is a hookless tubeless ready design and has a claimed 445g rim weight.
Offered in 27.5 or 29″ rims, the 310 will also carry the option for 24 or 32 spokes. I9’s Jacob McGahey says that the 24h option balances out the stiffness of the carbon rim and the burly 2.9-2.7mm butted aluminum spokes making a more compliant wheelset that should be better for lighter riders.
Starting at 1515g for the set with I9’s straight pull Torch hubs with almost every axle configuration imaginable, the wheels will be available in 5 weeks from dealers or through I9’s new Ano Lab which lets you customize the look of your wheels down to the individual spoke color. To make this possible, Industry Nine has made a huge investment in an all new anodizing facility that will allow them to run more colors at once and provide better throughput. With Stock, Plus, and Premium builds you’ll gain access to Level 1, 2, or 3 customization which ranges from stealth black, to wild rainbow.
This Torch road hub didn’t seem all that out of the ordinary, until you check out the freehub. Industry Nine calls this the XD/R as in XD Road. It is supposedly 1.8mm wider than the standard XD freehub which falls in line with current 11 speed road compared to 10/11 speed MTB HG freehubs. I9 didn’t have any information other than the fact that the standard exists, but it suggests that new road cassettes for XD freehubs may be on the way. The new XD/R is cross compatible with all I9 road hubs and uses the same road end caps for all of the current axle standard. Other than potentially allowing for lighter cassettes, the freehub is also 13g lighter than the HG road freehub and is available now.
