One look around the show should tell you everything you need to know about the gravel trend. It’s here in a big way, and companies are scrambling so they don’t miss the boat. In terms of wheels, most riders are looking for something that’s light and more importantly, wide, to better suit the larger tires that are popular for the multi surface crowd.
Where the first Reynolds ATR wheels essentially used a leftover mountain bike rim, the new version uses purpose built rims to make the most of the gravel experience. Available in 650b or 700c, the company has options for either wheelsize to keep your gravel bike happy.
Measuring 23mm internal, and 32mm at the widest point externally, both carbon rims are 40mm deep to offer a bit of aero profile to the wheels as well. Keeping a small hook on the bead, the rims are fully tubeless ready and ship with tubeless valves and tape installed.
In order to keep the price down, the ATR line runs Reynolds’ own straight pull hubs with Centerlock rotor mounts, Shimano, Campy, or XD freehubs, thru axle caps (QR caps available separately) and 24 spokes front and rear. Claimed weights are listed as 1550g for the 650 and 1620g for the 700, and all wheels ship with 6 bolt adapters for $1549 and will be available soon.
XC isn’t dead. In fact, it’s thriving as courses become more technical, and less of a dirt crit. As such, we’re starting to see a new round of XC related products pop up like the new XC 259 wheels from Reynolds. Available in 29″ Boost wheelsets only, the wheels have a claimed weight of 1380g with a Black Label 25mm internal/30mm external hookless carbon rim profile. Also shipped tubeless ready with tape and valves, each wheel is built to hubs that were developed with Industry Nine with wider flanges and Torch internals and Shimano HG or SRAM XD freehubs. Available in a few weeks, the XC 259 join the rest of the Black Labels with a new lower retail price of $2299.
