I have these, seem great so far. Also have Scribe’s for my CX bike. Great value - better than Hunt IMO (I have hunt wheels for my gravel bike).
1 Like
The ENVE M525’s are a great wheelset and have been bulletproof for me. I have two sets, one on a HT and one on a FS, and they have held up extremely well and never had to be trued over multiple seasons of use.
1 Like
I wouldn’t be too stressed about 28 spokes, that seems very standard for XC and you’re a light rider. They are high quality spoke too.
I’m curious about the 2x lacing. From my recent research it seems 3x for Aluminium and 2x for carbon is the best practice…?
Any thoughts on these Roval controls? I believe Bontrager makes a Kovee XC wheel that is a tier below the XXX that is at a similar price point.
I am looking for a lightish, reasonable width XC wheel and have access to both Specialized and Bontrager shops.
1 Like
I have these on my Salsa Cutthroat but don’t have many rides on them yet. For what it’s worth, they’re light, built really well, and I can go a few weeks before topping off pressure 
2 Likes
Also running the Control SLs. I’m 185-190 in my birthday suit, and there have been no issues with the wheels. They have a pretty decent warranty. So if my bike came with them, no way I’d swap them out for something else.
3 Likes
Love the Roval Control 29 Carbons…mine have been bulletproof.
3 Likes
I wanted to piggyback on this topic. I broke a wheel and now am unexpectedly searching for a new wheel set. I think the Santa Cruz Reserve 28 XCs are exactly what I’m looking for, but they are backordered for 6 months+. I really like the lifetime warranty Santa Cruz offers - the other lifetime warranties are really just 2 years. So far my search has found the following available:
Hunt XC Wide 25mm 1647g $469
Roval Control Carbon 6B XD 29mm 1450g $1350
Reserve 25 DT350 25mm 1607g $1600
Used (no warranty)
Bontrager Kovee XXX 29mm 1290g $1480
I have been riding 25mm rims (DT X1900) and they have done fine, but it seems like 28-29mm is now the accepted sweet spot. I have a set of 24mm wheels and I do feel like the 2.25” tires kinda balloon out more than my other rims. I’m <68Kg and really not hard on wheels (my sidewall blew out - I don’t think it was rim related).
What do you recommend?
I went for the Hunts. Will get Enve someday.
Donovan Lee
Hunts (all you need) or Rovals (splurge choice). Spending any more than that makes no sense.
Same. Came stock on my Epic. Zero issues.
2 Likes
Should I let the warranty sway my decision? I have 4k miles of MTB riding + 9k gravel/road and this is my first wheel problem. However, I am really annoyed that I have a set of rims that are essentially worthless now bc I dinged a rim. Even if I could find a replacement rim, the cost of re-lacing drives the cost up to near a new wheel price.
A mate has the Hunt XC Race wheels and really likes them. He’s quite tough on stuff (obliterated a wtb i30 rim he was running on his slash - now replaced with ex511 rims) but is running them on a Top Fuel with 120mm SIDS / slack r / offset bushings etc. It gets quite a tough time but the wheels seem to be doing well.
If you’ve got lots of money I’d be inclined to pick up carbon rims that have the best warranty possible and money no object hubs like Industry 9 hydras for the bling / noise. I was eying up Knight composite rims that looked decent but decided to stay with alloy rims (XM481s) on my Sentinel.
Hunt offers great warranty too!
My friend just had a spoke pull through the rim after years of hard riding. Hunt shipped him a new rim, and even covered the cost of having them rebuilt at a LBS!
I am not sure if warranties will cover rim hits
Roval’s warranty looks pretty good and I think would cover rim hits.
WeAreOne offers a lifetime warranty and crash replacement. Their warranty is pretty similar to what SC offers, although I think WAO only covers the rim, so you’d have to cover having the wheel rebuilt with the replacement rim. I have the Revives (25mm internal) and have zero complaints. Not sure what their wait time is currently, but if you’re really looking for good warranty coverage, it might be worth considering them.
Silt offers lifetime warranty and free crash replacement for their carbon wheels. (covers parts but not cost of rebuild)
I just bought Enve M525 even though they’re dated. They came with a Hydra hub and if I can break them Enve will replace them.
1 Like
I dont’ think there’s anything dated about the Enve’s except the value proposition.
I think the Hunts would be exactly the same as the x1900, so don’t bother. Cabron will take a lot more beating then the AL rims if that’s a factor. I think generic carbon wheel sets are around $1000 delivered these days.
Have you thought about looking for a set of takeoff wheels? ebay, pinkbike, craigslist
https://www.ebay.com/itm/403655309483?hash=item5dfbbb38ab%3Ag%3ANpEAAOSwdFNifXoK&LH_ItemCondition=1500
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/bop/d/san-francisco-dt-swiss-xmc-wheelset/7471029900.html
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/bop/d/los-altos-bontrager-line-pro-30-tlr/7485306508.html