From Gunnison, Utah, comes the news from the sustainable carbon fiber manufacturer, Forge+Bond. Their new Shift Series line of more affordable carbon fiber wheelsets are meant for enduro, all-mountain, and XC. These new wheels use the brand’s FusionFiber technology and come in at a comparatively low $1250 per wheelset.
“We’re passionate about making high-performance cycling accessible to everyone,” says Brett Stahl, VP of Brand and Marketing at Forge+Bond. “The Shift Series of wheels within the Forge+Bond portfolio shatters the barrier to entry for riders who want the advantages of carbon fiber, the tangible benefits of FusionFiber, and all at a price point that doesn’t break the bank.”
What makes them more affordable?
What makes the Shift Series possible is the hub. The Forge+Bond Core Series wheels provided riders an option of hubs, between the American-made i9 Hydra, and 1/1 hubs, or the DT Swiss 240 hubs.
The Forge+Bond (F+B) Shift Series features a new proprietary hub they produced with Bitex. These new hubs are designed with a 6-bolt brake rotor interface, utilize a J-bend spoke system, and feature an aluminum body.
The Shift Series rims, like all of the rims manufactured by F+B, are made of FusionFiber. The material “uses long chain nylon polymers as the bonding agent instead of the brittle epoxies found on traditional carbon fiber products.”
This process, according to F+B, makes for a stronger, more durable product by utilizing the microscopic flex within the actual composition of the FusionFiber product. In theory, this “flex” allows the wheels to radically dissipate vibration and shock, resulting in a smoother ride with a much higher resistance to impact.
Recyclability
Forge+Bond take sustainability seriously as well, as all of their wheels can “truly be recycled”. This is made possible by their ability to reform and remold the nylon polymer bonding agent within the carbon fiber material.
For example, if a wheelset breaks or there is a manufacturing defect, F+B seeks to reclaim that wheel so it can feed it back to its Utah-based manufacturing facility. Once it arrives, the hubs and spokes are removed, and the rim simply gets chopped into a short fiber material that can then be used to manufacture any number of thermo-forged products.
F+B is currently making tire levers out of this reclaimed material with more products in development now. F+B likes to think that their commitment to shifting the cycling industry toward sustainability and accessibility shows up in the new Shift Series wheelsets. The new series says that premium performance doesn’t always have to carry a premium price tag.
Forge+Bond Shift Series Features
- Proven FusionFiber technology
- Performance-driven design
- Tubeless-ready
- Forge+Bond Shift 6B Hub by Bitex.
- FusionFiber is fully recyclable
- Made in the USA
Shift Series Retail & Options
The Shift 25 XC 29″ – $1250
- Lightweight and responsive design.
- Hub: F+B Shift 6B – Boost Spacing
- Brake Mount: 6-Bolt
- Tire Size Range: 2.1” – 2.4”
- Max Tire Pressure: 40 psi max
- ERD: 592mm
- Rim Outer Width: 31.4mm
- Rim Inner Width: 25mm
- Bead Wall Thickness: 3.2mm
- Spoke Count: 28h
- Spoke Type: Sapim CX-Ray
- Rim Weight: 380g
- Wheelset Weight (F+B Shift 6B Hub): 1600g
Shift 30 AM 29″ – $1250
- Balance of stiffness and compliance.
- Hub: F+B Shift 6B – Boost Spacing
- Brake Mount: 6-Bolt
- Tire Size Range: 2.3” – 2.6”
- Max Tire Pressure: 40 psi max
- ERD: 594mm
- Rim Outer Width: 38mm
- Rim Inner Width: 30mm
- Bead Wall Thickness: 4mm
- Spoke Count: 28h
- Spoke Type: Sapim CX-Ray
- Rim Weight: 480g front | 530g rear
- Wheelset Weight (F+B Shift 6B Hub): 1832g
Shift 30 EM 29″ – $1250
- Wide rim profile and bombproof construction.
- Hub: F+B Shift 6B – Boost Spacing
- Brake Mount: 6-Bolt
- Tire Size Range: 2.3” – 2.6”
- Max Tire Pressure: 40 psi max
- ERD: 594mm
- Rim Outer Width: 38mm
- Rim Inner Width: 30mm
- Beadwall Thickness: 4mm
- Spoke Count: 28h or 32h
- Spoke Type: Sapim D-Lite
- Rim Weight: 530g
- Wheelset Weight (F+B Shift 6B Hub): 1920g
Check out the carbon fiber goodness at the link below.
