“From NC to BC.” That seems to sum up the newest Industry Nine mountain bike wheels pretty well. I9 has always been rightly proud of their Asheville, NC based manufacturing of their hubs and spokes, but for obvious reasons they haven’t gotten into composite construction. Instead, they’ve partnered up with another North American manufacturer to introduce a completely new line of I9 carbon rims.
We Are One Composites is a carbon rim manufacturer based in Kamloops, BC. The Canadian upstart has offered their own rims for a few years now, but the I9 rims are a completely new product for both companies.
Built with Industry Nine’s own specific carbon layups, molds, and specifications, the rims will be unique to I9. They’ll also result in a complete wheelset manufactured entirely in North America.
Industry Nine claims that the rims will have improved radial compliance thanks to a shallower rim depth and specific carbon fiber positioning and orientation. You’ll also find a thicker bead wall which is said to increase rim durability and decrease the chance of pinch flats under hard impacts.
Combined with the awesome new Industry Nine Hydra hubs with 690 points of engagement and their straight pull aluminum System Spokes, and you have the makings of what looks to be lust-worthy new wheelset.
Spanning disciplines from light weight XC to burly DH riding, the new carbon MTB lineup includes five different models – all with new rims from We Are One.
UL280 XC Wheelset
The lightest of the new options with a 370g rim weight, the UL280 comes in at 1450g for a 29″ wheelset. Even though these are designed to be light weight, they haven’t given up on width to get there with a 28mm internal width meant for 29 x 2.1 -2.4″ tires.
Built with 24 System spokes per wheel, each wheelset is Hydra equipped and available with all current MTB freehub options including Micro Spline.
TR280 Trail Wheelset
A bit more burly than the UL280, the TR280 is still 28mm wide internally, but is slightly heavier thanks to more carbon with a 410g rim weight. It’s also available with more spokes with either a 24h or 32h option (1540g or 1630g per set). Also only offered in 29″, the wheelset includes a hub option for Super Boost 157mm. Intended for tires between 2.2″ and 2.5″ wide, the TR280s use Hydra hubs and System spokes like all the new carbon MTB wheels.
EN315 & EN355 Enduro Wheels
Moving on to the Enduro focused wheels, I9 will offer two different widths – 31.5 and 35.5mm. Those numbers follow the established naming trend with the EN315 and EN355 names to keep things simple.
Also offered in 24h or 32h options, all of the EN models will be sold in 27.5 or 29″ models. With rim weights of 470g to 495g, complete wheelset weights vary from 1600g for the 27.5″ EN315 to 1800g for the 29″ 32H EN355. Like the TR280, there are Super Boost 157 hub options for both wheels.
GR315 DH Wheels
Going big? Then you’ll want to check out the GR315 wheel for DH & Park riding. With a 31.5mm inner width, the burliest rim checks in at 500g for a 27.5″ or 520g for a 29″, both of which run 32 spokes. Meant for 2.3-2.6″ tires, the GR315 wheels include multiple hub options including 12 x 150 and 12 x 157mm.
Pricing and Availability
With the exception of the Grade GR315 which will ship later this spring, all of the other wheels are available now. As usual, they’re offered in the full range of 11 anodized color options with the option to pick the color of individual spokes and hubs through the I9 Anolab. Each wheel is covered by a Lifetime Warranty, and pricing starts at $2,250 for a complete wheelset.
