While everyone is getting ready to reveal the next latest and greatest goodies at Sea Otter starting Thursday, a few companies will let a few things slip through the cracks a little early before we get to see them in person. We just saw yesterday a few new carbon Ibis wheels laced up around Industry Nine hubs. Well, now that so called crack needs to make a little extra room for Industry Nine’s own new Ultralite and Enduro wheels on.
Check out the new UL235 Ultralite and EN305 Enduro wheels with their completely new rim design, plus the new I9 Centerlock road wheels…
The new UL235 rims build up I9’s 2nd generation Ultralite wheelset. They get a little wider with a 23.5mm internal, up from the current wheel’s 21mm. We’re told that the new shorter and revised bead hook will improve tire retention, and by adding more material to the rim wall, the UL235 rims will be more durable as well.
No word on revised wheel weight yet, but we should hear something soon, and will update it here. They are available now in 27.5″ and 29er will be in about a month.
With the new wider profile comes an update in recommended tire sizes. I9 now rates these to fit up to a 2.3 inch tire. Depending on axle and bearing configuration, the new Ultralite wheels will retail for around $1,225.
Once you’ve finished trying to figure out which bike you could put those purple Enduro beauties on, take into consideration that I9 has grown the internal width of the EN305 rims by a whopping 17% to handle bigger tires, lower pressures, and more aggressive riding.
With the wider rim profile, the Enduro wheels should snuggle up to a 2.6 inch tire just fine. The now 30.5mm internal EN305 rims use the same revised bead design as the Ultralights for improved performance, and will be available by the end of May for $1,255.
We saw this coming, but now it is official! Centerlock hubs will be available on all of I9’s road offerings by mid May. Depending on rim choice and configuration, you’ll be able to roll with the new hubs on the road from as low as $1,175, up to about $2,500, so start saving up now.
