Bicycles are almost always defined by the name on the downtube. However, the wheelset alone is often a better indicator of the pedigree as it has the ability to make or break the bike.

The wheels of a bike are the cardiovascular engine that drive the whole system.  Wheels weigh more than the frame, contribute more to the aerodynamic efficiency than the frame and have a significant impact on the compliance and comfort of the ride.

LOOKING BACK | After years of evolution, the rim-brake carbon wheel had arguably reached a plateau. The rim width was heavily constrained by the need to fit inside mechanical brakes. Additionally, the rims needed a lot of material — which added excess weight — to provide adequate heat dissipation under braking. In the interest of better performance, manufacturing disc-brake specific carbon rims was a no-brainer. The irony is that many of the early disc-specific carbon rims, (from many brands), used the same profiles as their rim-brake counterparts. This is largely no longer the case and needless to say these new cSixx all-road carbon rims have been designed without any of the aforementioned constraints.

ABOUT THE ALL-ROADS | The cSixx All-Road rim was designed to be a vertically compliant, horizontally stiff and aerodynamic rim. The focus was to provide a wheel that would enable riders to mix road and gravel riding without feeling any compromise in each application. In other words, the wheels should not be too aerodynamic that they become overly harsh, they should provide an adequate level of comfort on uneven surfaces and they need to be durable to withstand wild off-road affairs. The test set featured DT Swiss 240 center-lock hubs, DT Swiss Aerolite bladed spokes and DT Swiss brass nipples. They were built by Marc Carr at East City Cycles and the complete wheelset came in at 1492g.

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DETAILS

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PRODUCT GALLERY

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RIDE IMPRESSIONS

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I have easily clocked over 1 000km’s on the wheels, covering every possible use of the wheels including speedy bunch rides around the Cape Peninsula and a 6hr solo-mission over Swartberg pass. This is my take on the wheels.

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ROAD PERFORMANCE

A no-compromise fast race wheelset that is stiff, light and responsive. 

The magic of these wheels is that they achieve these characteristics while still being comfortable on the square edge bumps. They do a real good job at damping out the road buzz one often feels on road bikes.  This translates to an appreciable improvement in the riding experience.  A standout quality that I experienced is their aerodynamic efficiency whilst still providing stability during the gusty Cape Town crosswinds.  At 40mm deep they are shallower than what I’m used to but somehow feel faster than deeper section rims I have ridden. 

The on-road performance is very impressive and I do not feel that the all-road capability of these compromises the on-road performance at all.  If you can get the lightweight, acceleration and aerodynamic gains of a deep section carbon wheelset while also getting a road buzz damping comfort improvement – then why not, right?

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GRAVEL PERFORMANCE

I had the joy of riding these wheels across the Karoo on all types of surfaces and can say with hand on heart that I loved these wheels.

With a 25mm internal width, these rims are wider than most MTB rims from just a few years ago.  This means that they will give any tire a wider stance and allow you to run lower tire pressures without compromising sidewall stability.  Why is that important? – Well if the sidewall is deforming the tire will feel “squirrelly” and can send you off your chosen line very quickly. 

I was super skeptical of a deep section rim for gravel. We all know that a deep section is going to be stiffer vertically due to the shape of the cross-section of the rim.  The deeper the rim the more material there is that needs to vertically deform to give the rim compliance. In years gone by carbon rim manufacturers would simply make the rim “strong” which created a super stiff, super rigid wheel that would bounce along on their 23mm tire delivering a “lively” aka; bone-jarring ride. In recent years that has steadily been changing and rims now exploit the dynamic properties of carbon to truly unlock the potential of the material.

I had the joy of riding these wheels across the Karoo on all types of surfaces and can say with hand on heart that I loved these wheels.  They are fast and responsive on the harder surfaces. They are smooth and compliant on the softer gravelly surfaces. Reliability wise I cannot fault them and I found them to be real asset on my solo mission into the Karoo. The feeling of soft-pedaling at 40kph back down to Oudtshoorn at road bike speeds after summiting the Swartberg pass put a massive smile on my face. Tire compatibility ranges from 28mm road tires to mountain bike tires.  Your only constraint will be your frame clearance.  You can run the rims with tubes if you would like.

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THE TAKEOUT

cSixx have put together a no-compromise wheelset that can be used for all drop bar riding.  By merely swapping the tires, you’ll go from a three-hour Cycletour time to a six-hour gravel mission, with confidence.

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| IMAGES: Gary Perkin | WORDS: Gary Barnard | csixx.com

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