Nick is a lucky guy. He’s owned a lovely Intense All-mountain rig for many years, and since we helped him sort out a 26″ wheelset a couple of years ago, he’s been riding the pants of it.
When he last performed a major rebuild on the bike, we suggested he buy a 650b (27.5″) ready fork, in case he chose to go that way with a future build.
And so, two years on, he’s planning on converting his X-Fusion fork to 650b – to slacken the head tube a bit, and add some trail. Making the bike a little less twitchy. The rear wheel will remain 26″ as the frame won’t fit any larger.
He also liked the idea of going wider with the rims, as he’s now hitting bigger gaps, harder. Wider rims hold the sidewall of beefy tyres better, and result in better grip, and the ability to run lower pressures for comfort and traction.
Nick selected the 26″ Spank Oozy 30mm rear rim (as his preferred Easton to match the 35mm wide 27.5″ front was not available on his timeline). Nick sourced his own hubs for this build, and he seems to have managed that lottery well. We’ll see how those bearings go.
Sapim Race double butted spokes and brass nipples ensure reliability and stiffness. Total weight 1680g.