November 25, 2009 in Cycling, Featured by Bill Lobe
Weight as built: 2556 grams (full set, with tires, sealant, no cassette, no skewers, no rotors)
MSRP as built: $720.00
Wheel weight only (as quoted): 1420 grams
NoTubes products aren’t new on the mountain biking scene, but they sell one of those product lines that generate a lot of controversy in the cycling universe. Much like all other subjective controversies, you’ll get a different story from every mountain biker you speak to. Some love them unconditionally, talking about their tubeless setup like they witnessed its birth. Others will tell you it’s all hype and you’re wasting your time on a potentially dangerous product. Well, after polling my local group of dedicated bike geeks and digging through other popular (and generally misinformed–no names, not yet) mountain bike product review websites, I’ve concluded that most riders criticizing Stan’s products typically have their wheels set up incorrectly–be it for their weight or for their style of riding. It seems to be a weight saving issue–it’s always the 250-pound rider that wants to sport the Olympic lightweight racing rim, and then bitch when they get a blowout or can’t keep the tire seated to the rim in a tight corner. Does anyone else find it strange that the Clydesdales are always the weight weenies? I’m no scientist, despite holding dual PhDs in Sweet Lovin’ and Good Times, but there seems to be a correlation worth investigating. Also, let the record show that I float slightly above or below the Clydesdale high-water mark of 200 lbs., so I take my weight-to-durability ratio very seriously.
