Wow, industry nine needs to give Jeff a raise because he seriously sold me on this rim and I previously had no interest in it. Pretty impressive that it getting hit that hard and it still trucking
Hey Jeff you can use the plastic insert in the Shimano cassette to align it with the freehub body, remove the lockig insert and then just slide it over the hub. Makes it way easier to get all the single parts of the cassette on. It's a real time and nerve saver!
So thaaaat's how we need to test the FR541's! But hey Jeff, throw in EXO or EXO+ tires in there to see if those rims pinch flat tyres or not. Running DH casing on trails is preeetty overkill.
I can't ride EXO+ or EXO. To avoid excessive rim strikes, I have to run near 30 psi, and will still get tears in the casing. Maybe I'll do a video going over this one day, folks constantly tell me there is no reason for Double Down (or the lighter DH casing), but rest assured, I've wasted plenty of rides trying to ride the lighter stuff!
The FR541s were completely unkillable with a normal weight rider hulk smashing it off rocks with no tire on it. NRML MTBR has killed one I think, but it was part of a torture test of the rim and he's 330lbs. The only FR560 failure I've ever seen was landing sideways off one of the big jumps on dirt merchant, tacoed it, but that was an impact that would probably kill any rim.
That wasn't a rail road tie, the ties are the wood or concrete blocks that hold the running rails in the ballast (loose sharp stone). You were jumping onto a section of running rail.
@@JeffKendallWeed I think that's a fantastic idea. I would love for everyone I ride with to run cush core, 2.6 tires, and low tire pressure. Double down Assigi front and rear! Also, carry my spare tube. And pump. And phone... And my water.
This aluminum wheelset is over $1400! At that point, I'd probably go carbon, they stay truer longer. Or the $700 Reserve wheelset with lifetime warranty...
Exactly this. Still waiting on a good YT review of the Reserves but on paper they are going to be hard to beat. If nothing else, hopefully they force others to offer lifetime warranties.
For racers, the aluminum is a better option than carbon. With a week of riding on these wheels, I'm starting to think the extra $1000 to go carbon isn't necessarily worth it!
I've had good luck with the previous AL version of the enduro on my park/enduro bike. I ride N* all summer and the tech trails there have a *LOT* of square edge hits as they're mostly just rock. Have some rim dingers but no pinches and no destroyed rims. Good to see these are even more bomber, that huck to flat on a railroad tie is kinda mean. :D
NOWHERE beats wheels up like Northstar! It's not the rockiest place ever- which means speeds are a bit higher than the rockier spots! But then there are indeed TONS of rocks, and smash they do!
I appreciate you taking the time out to abuse these wheels I just purchased the exact same set of wheels and now I know what my limits are appreciate it. 😅😮😮
I don't know if in this scenario it would have helped or not ... but I always do a double-layer of rim-tape on all my wheels. Manufacturers (including Race Face, DT Swiss, Halo and i9 too) just cheap out and only use a single layer. By the time I go through the 1st tire, the tape is a "bubble" at the spokes, and sometimes showing wear on the edges. A double layer just lasts more. Lately use Muc-Off, I kind of like that it's transparent and when you swap tires you see what's happening under the 1st and 2nd layer. Also, a double layer helps with seating tires. ps: I am hesitant to try i9 again... the Enduro S lasted 3 months before it started shedding spokes. Even the front wheel, and in off-season on natural trails... literally, I would break a spoke on tiny drops and even pedaling.
I used a single layer of Muc-Off tape, with some small pieces of I9 tape stacked in the dent, and was able to get this wheel back in service. Have already got in a few more rides on it since the vid!
The Enduro S spokes are not the same as their in house aluminum spokes. I have riden my EN315s for over a year, done multiple Enduro races on them and weigh 250lbs and I haven't had to true them once. Their handbuilt wheels made in house are legit.
@@travistweedle9674 Yes I know that about the spokes. But I have a bit of a brand disappointment as that was my first i9 product. I am much lighter and it was rainy season, so local rocky/rooty trails and no drops and jumps. The wheel dented and fell apart like crap. I was shocked. Even front spokes that I literally never had...... I am on Halo Vortex now .. after 5 months I broke the 1st spoke (and I think it was actually a rock that flipped into it) and it is dead straight. And I literally ride bike park 5 times a week (one opened 15 minutes from me) ... how the enduro S fell apart I would literally be scared to do a single lap on it :( ..which is sad .. Ordered a second set of Halo for my e-bike too... When those are gone I might chance an i9 with the aluminium spokes. After all, even my Crank Brothers alu spoke wheel lasted me years and that's a 24 spoke thing.
@@JeffKendallWeed I really like the Muc-off. If I have any issue with the factory tape (or 2nd set of tires) I just rip the original off and put 2 loops of Muc-off on. Even made my pain-in-the-butt to seat Raceface wheels a relatively bearable experience (with Cushcore) .. Ps : I found LMNT through your videos. Don't leave the house without it. Also if you are on Keto/low carb, that's the best thing that can happen to hydration... Thanks for that...
I wonder if DT Swiss uses different tape on different rims. My FR560s have this super tough rim tape that is almost like plastic, will be awhile before it ever needs retaped
Nice idea for those "ünbreakable" rim break videos, but in fairness, I did not expect them to stay in perfect shape with that kind of hard hit. I use tannus armour so I can use inner tubes and not have to worry about flats, also super comfortable but kinda heavy. But even with that armour to just go bomb up stairs (not down) I need high pressure, otherwise I still run the risk of damaging my rim on a hardtail.
Tannus armor, tubes, AND high pressure? Oh my. Something doesn't seem to be right here. If your tires have decent casing |(Maxxis exo+ or better), then you shouldn't have to do all of that. Have you had issues with damaging rims before?
@@rrolleman4879 I'm a cheapskate on a 2010 era xc bike. Rims ID 19mm with a 2.25" schwalbe racing ralph. I have damaged a lot of rims as a young teen and the first cheapo bikes I bought last year also couldn't handle my riding. I weigh
I've been unable to wheelie or manual my 15.5kg heavy 29" full suspension that i got back in December 2022, but I still can with ease on my 26" Hardtail. Must be the geometry, or just too much bike for me.
It's funny how he's like oh that's a strong rim even after it broke, them he tries the blackbird rims and can't even destroy it haha and it's 3 times cheaper
That asymmetrical rim should make the tyre easier to install from the correct side as well, right? easier to get into the drop center.. That'd be awesome!
Not if they're RaceFace rims. I've never had an issue seating tires on rims until RF asymmetricals graced my garage. Had to go out and buy a compressor for the first time. grrrrr
@@rrolleman4879 not seating, I mean when mounting the bead on the rim, you push the opposite side of the tyre into the middle of the rim where it has whats called a dropcenter, that way the bead goes on much easier.
Jeff, Thanks for the awesome vids! I’m trying to decide what i9 wheels to get for Emmy enduro bike, BUT don’t want to break the bank. Is it worth spending the extra money on the new alloy i9 wheels, or should I go with the classic i9s that are a bit cheaper.
Great video as always! Good to see you back on the Ripmo. How do these wheels compare to the 35mm that Ibis specs? Interested in your thoughts because the carbon Ibis S35 Carbons are on clearance.
S35 alloys are a nice trail wheel if you like 35mm wide rims and their resulting handling characteristics (understeer-y and hard to lean over, but great on steep but straight stuff), I killed 2 in a year at the bike park and had a set of FR560s built.
If you're keeping it as you said, try taking the wheel ring itself and heat it up slowly to see if you can push the dent out, since it's not cracked or creased it might actually try to take its original shape, depending on the alloy it's made of.
When I ordered my last bike I was really paranoid about not getting CF wheels. I ended up just putting inserts because I did't want to go to the previous tier. One thing to note is that some reputable CF wheel manufacturers offer lifetime warranty. PS: I just realized that I usually wear the same top and trousers that you do (the blue set) but in black. I will I also had your skills on a bike xD. Cool video.
Yo Jeff I also have headset issues. I’m looking to try something nicer then a cane creek 40. How is i9’s headset? And I too love to “wheelie” as much as I can and just switched to a Dissector from a dhr2 and I totally agree with you. I pulled some nice ones but it’s definitely less stable. Great video and riding 🔥
The i9 headset is awesome, if you want a lifetime headset get a cane creek 110 headset. Either a cane creek 110 or the new i9 will be better than the 40. The 40 is a good very very basic headset. Cane creek has a 110 year warranty on their 110 headset so ya, I’ve got them in all my bikes.
Not to mention the DT Swiss FR541 and FR560. They hulk smashed the FR541 through a janky rock garden at speed with no tire and didn't even bend the bead support.
@@JeffKendallWeed We need you healthy and strong, Jeff. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-DU84RvE568k.html&pp=ygUeZHIgZWtiZXJnIGluc3VsaW4gc2Vuc2l0aXZpdHkg
This is not how you test new wheels . . . BUT it's how I do. I guess it's more difficult to find ways to test to failure with the likes of Logan and the Fanatik Bike shop boys
Well I did not want to destroy these wheels, and didn't destroy them, but I did want to do something special to see how/if the tech works. This was the best I could think of.
