All Things Bikes and Tacos! (...and every vehicle imaginable)

Anyone got opinions/reviews in I9 Enduro 305’s? Highly considering a set.

 

Would buy.

 

I9s are cool. Heavy but tough. Are you okay with loud hubs? Because they are screamers

 

If my research is correct they are actually 470 grams lighter than my stock rims. Never really had loud hubs. I have seen that you can quiet them down with grease if I end up not liking the scream.

 

Been running I9's for 4 years on my main bike (SC Heckler) - solid and virtually impossible to break! Getting a set for the (newer) Nomad.
Every 6 months or so I check the spokes, pop the dust covers and re-grease the bearings, and ride on. And I put my bike through the wringer on a weekly basis (ride a lot in WNC/Pisgah).

 

I just got a set a couple of weeks ago and took them to Moab. The hubs are amazing and really do improve your technical climbing skills. Another thing that is really nice is their rim profile and how it better prevents pinch flats or burps than any other rim I’ve had. It also helps with tire shape too. They are much lighter than my stock rims as well. I’ll never go back to crappy hubs.

 

Great wheelset. A little additional oil, or a small dab of Dumonde hub grease quiets them right down. You can get them quiet enough that you can't hear them at all while riding.

 

Took mine to Moab last year! Fun place.

Also forgot to mention the really tight engagement in the rear hub - once you experience that, the *klunk* of lesser hubs as you hit the pedals becomes really annoying...

 

So you guys with wheelsets and all kinds of other MTB parts; do you usually buy frames and reuse old parts on bike builds or buy new complete bikes and just swap parts out while it's yours and put back to stock when time to sell?

 

A lot of people start by buying completes, swapping parts to what they like better, tinker, play, until they find things that work for them. At one point, you'll find yourself with enough spares to build a whole 'other bike.
Then you buy a frame, hang your spares on it, and build your first bike from the frame up. You quickly realize you've built a sweet new frame with parts you didn't like in the first place, so you sell all the parts you just put on your new frame, and put new parts on the new frame.
Eventually you realize that building a bike is fun, so you end up building most of your rides from the frame up.

 

All of the above.

I tend to just buy/sell frame only, and move my parts of choice around from frame to frame. If it makes sense money wise to buy a complete and swap parts over I do that. I’ll still typically just sell off the new parts from the complete that I don’t want/need.

 

If you guys were offered a deal how much would you be willing to pay for X01 AXS?

I think I'm too cheap for this stuff, but I'm curious.

 

Thanks for all the replies!!! Sounds like I should have bought them already. Sounds like it’s gonna be a game changer.

 

I have seen some of these on sale recently on websites for around the $1500 mark. Most I'd spend is maybe $1k. Not because I don't think it is worth as much but I just cannot spend that much on a drivetrain. I'm in deep to this mountain biking stuff, just not that deep.

 

They are good wheels. I was looking at them as well as some of i9s cheaper options. At the price of the 305s though, I was inclined to look at carbon options. Eventually I ended up getting custom wheels from a vendor on mtbr (SpeedGearBike). Spank 350 rims with i9 1/1 hubs for about $650 shipped. They ended up lighter than the 305s iirc and are still a solid build. No Hydra but the 1/1 hubs still have great engagement. If I wasn't on a budget the 305s would have been a strong contender. Or a set of We Are One carbon wheels.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/114484638180
does this seem legit to y’all? I’m always a little weary of eBay.

 

I haven’t use eBay much since they started charging taxes. All in all eBay and PayPal have you secured.

 

Yes, but it also slows them down. Run em’ loud and proud.

 

Written for the gravel scene, but it's a good spotlight of Knoxville. Maybe I need to pay @honda50r a visit next year

https://bikerumor.com/2020/10/27/wh...ding-other-adventures-in-knoxville-tennessee/

 

So if Trek is killing of 29+, I'm debating my options.

1. Keep Stache and just get tires from probably Surly going forward
2. Keep Stache, get wheelset suited for 2.6-2.8 tires, upgrade to Hydra while at it (likely option)
3. Sell for regular 29er hardtail.

Thoughts?