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Hed Offers Details on Carbon Fatbike Rims, Offers Custom Wheels on Your Hubs

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YoMommaRimsPair_IMG_0006Yo Momma’s so fat, she could run fatbike tires tubeless. While it could have been the start of a thousand jokes, Hed is still playing around with the name of their fatbike rims. The wheels have gone by the moniker Yo Momma and Zepplin since we last saw them at Interbike, though Hed is currently referring to them as the carbon fatbike wheel until the name gets sorted. Regardless of what the rims are called, Hed recently announced how they would be sold – as a complete wheel. Building all fatbike rims in house, Hed will only be offering fatbike rims in complete builds at this point in time. Andy from Hed mentioned they may introduce a certification program for dealers to build their own wheels in the future, but for now it is complete builds only. Due to the number of different standards in the fatbike world currently, Hed will be building the rims on to your hubs.

Send in your hubs, pay for the build, and carbon fatties are headed back your way. Get the skinny after the break.

YoMomma_Edited_IMG_0015As stated, Hed will not be selling the carbon rims alone. Instead fatbike rims can be built to your 32 hole 135mm front, and 170 or 190mm symmetrical rear hubs (offset 135mm rear is not an option). In order to set up a wheel build, dealers will need to call 651-653-0202 to set up an RA number to send in your hubs without the skewers. Expect about 2-3 weeks turn around on the build. The entire service is offered at $875 per wheel ($700 Rim, $175 parts and labor), which gets you a hand built fatbike wheel with a carbon, tubeless rim laced with Sapim CX Ray spokes and alloy nipples to your hubs. Colored nipples may be an option in the future, but at this point black spokes and black nipples are the only options. Depending on demand, Hed is also considering stocking fatbike hubs in the future from companies like Industry Nine.

Slightly lighter than what we saw at Interbike, claimed weight on the 85mm wide rim is 480g, with an additional 166g for the build kit. The fatbike rims feature a patent pending rim shape and a tire mounting system that uses a unique system for setting up a fatbike tire tubeless. Most tires that have been tested on the carbon rims have mounted up without any trouble, which is done by placing the tire in the center of the rim which causes the tire’s bead to settle into two channels in the center of the rim. When you start inflating the tire, eventually it gets to the point where the pressure is high enough that it pops into place. However, if you run into a tire that is a struggle the wheels will include some rather large rubber bands. The bands are installed into the channels on the rim, which seals off the rest of the rim bed and helps the tire seal up to the point of inflation. Andy mentioned that you could use both bands, one, or none depending on the fit of the tire.

Want a pair? Drop Hed a line, and get your fatbike rolling.

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Collin
Collin
10 years ago

The one gripe with this is the fact they are using alloy nipples on a snow bike. Being from the midwest, anytime it gets close to freezing, the salt comes flying and soon enough, your nipples are corroding away and your left with a bunch of broken spokes (err nipples) at the worst possible time. Yes these are all about light weight but in the grand scheme of things the extra 40 grams or so from brass nipples is a drop in the bucket when you consider your rolling on tires that weighs between 1000-1600 grams.

Tandumb
Tandumb
10 years ago

Yeah… I hate when my nipples freeze.

Velo
Velo
10 years ago

@Bike Rumor: [deleted] but please stop using the term “alloy” for aluminum alloy. Every metal in a bike is an alloy. Brass is a alloy of copper and zinc. Steel is an alloy of iron.

Hermies
Hermies
10 years ago

These carbon rims weigh as much at my Ardennes+ rims.
Not knowing as much about fat bikes, what do alloy rims weigh, 1000g ?

Ripnshread
Ripnshread
10 years ago

Is that some type of plug coming out of the spoke holes at the rim? Or is that the nipple head? In any case how are the nipple’s sealed?

Josh
Josh
10 years ago

@Velo – [deleted] You would have to admit that “alloy” has almost become a bike industry standard term for aluminum alloys when applied to rims or nipples.

Mindless
Mindless
10 years ago

@Zach: We appreciate you crusade against the improper use of metallurgical terms, but frankly, can not really give a damn if it is successful or not.

LULZ
LULZ
10 years ago

@Velo: TL;DR

dan
dan
10 years ago

[deleted]

David
David
10 years ago

I will wait for the $175 version from o’er the Pacific.

macr
macr
10 years ago

I find it funny that you debate over the term alloy when the debate over aluminium/aluminum is so much more fun.
Either way, they should call them ‘Jobs’.

Surly Shawn
Surly Shawn
10 years ago

IF…I had the money for these, they would go on my fat project bike (that will never leave the ground), not my fat trail/commuter bike. Otherwise…cool, but I’ll pass.

Bikeelements
10 years ago

Carbon Rims for a Fatbike i dnont need this stuff. For a light Road Bike oder a Mountain Bike ok but for Fatbikes to crazy

BGrease
BGrease
10 years ago

darn, i´ve been riding with aluminium nipples, aluminium frame, aluminium spokes and rims. 12months a year. Luckily i live in Finland so we dont suffer from salt and snow.

Joe Maki
10 years ago

I ran aluminum nipples on my winter commuter here in northern Wisconsin with no problem. Until I tried to true the wheels in the spring. They just crumble in the spoke wrench 🙁

andre
10 years ago

I would like to see ‘bike ahead’ making fat rims…their wheels are awesome and would solve the problem with nipples.

file
file
10 years ago

BGrease, not everyone lives in conditions that corrode aluminum nipples, but some people do.

The issue is not just the aluminum, but the fact that it is threaded onto a steel spoke and that threaded interface is tiny. The difference in metals is what causes the problem when constantly wet and covered with salt. Combine that with the tiny amount of material and it doesn’t take much time for corrosion to become a problem.

Other steel on aluminum threaded bits on a bike aren’t exposed to so much constant salt and water. Nor are they tiny. This is why, for example, an aluminum brake mount and steel bolts are less problematic. They’re bigger and less exposed to corrosive conditions.

When my brake caliper bolts are seized into a brake adapter, it is easy to crack them loose by exerting more force. Nothing breaks because the pieces are big. However when I true an old wheel with aluminum nipples, those aluminum nipples break when that much force is applied. This is true even when everything is properly prepped (before assembly) to prevent corrosion.

But I suppose if you can afford these rims, you can also afford new nipples or an entirely new wheelset by the time corrosion destroys nipples or their ability to be turned. Yep, these HED wheels are amazingly light and there are people looking for that. Well done HED!

chris
chris
10 years ago

I just saw the first set of these wheels come back with corroded and broken nipples. The steel washer behind the aluminum nipple sets up a potential disaster, especially if the bike sees any salt at all.

Mike
Mike
9 years ago

@chris Haha! The HED engineers are like “anode? cathode? we aren’t making e-bikes… yet”

I thought these weren’t meant to be ridden, but for the owner to stand around and awkwardly explain their bike to people like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wO02wi9nAaI

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