When we checked in with i9 on their all encompassing fat bike hubs at Frostbike, there was one hub standard missing – only we didn’t (officially) know it yet. That would of course be the new 150x15mm front spacing on the new RockShox Bluto suspension fat bike fork. Rather than making an entirely new hub, i9 is offering a replacement non-disc side end cap that will make their 135×15 hub Bluto compatible.
The end cap adds 15mm in width to the hub, and requires a 7.5mm adjustment in dish to the non disc side which could mean that new spokes are needed depending on the build. One of the benefits of the 150mm spacing is that the resultant wheel is build with zero dish for improved strength especially on a fat bike. End cap kits to switch from a 135mm QR hub will run $30, and a single 150mm end cap will run $15 to switch from a 135x15mm set up.
Likely the bigger and more exciting news for most of you is i9’s new Ultralite Carbon disc wheels, which you can find full details on after the break!
According to i9, the response from their Ultralite Alloy disc wheels was so great, taking the design to carbon was an easy choice. Using their Ultralite carbon mtb rim from Reynolds, i9 builds the wheels to their road disc hubs for an awesomely light yet strong set of hoops perfect for cross, gravel, or road disc. The rim itself has the same dimensions as the 29″ Ultralite MTB rim so a 25mm outer/21mm inner width, tubeless ready profile (use tape and valves for tubeless), and a weight of 375 grams.
Laced with 24 spokes front and rear, Ultralite Carbon CX wheels will be available as 15mm or QR front and 142×12 or 135mm quick release rear, and with Shimano/SRAM 10/11 or Campy 11 Torch 60 point, 3 pawl hub mechanism. Weighing in at 1320g for the pair, the wheels are available now in standard colors for $2450.
