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Frostbike: Tubeless Ready Road Disc Rims Take off with Velocity’s new Aileron

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Chances are pretty good that if you’re on board with the road disc concept, you may also be a fan of road tubeless. Thanks to more road disc bikes popping up on a regular basis, Velocity is entering the market with their first disc specific road rim, the all new Aileron. Built as a tubeless compatible aluminum rim with a nice wide, aero profile, the Aileron looks like it will help you go fast while stopping on a dime.

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The rim itself is very wide at 25mm external and an internal width of 20mm. To add to the aerodynamics the rim is 28mm deep, and carries a claimed weight of 480g. Using Velocity’s 24mm velotape, the rims can be set up tubeless which should work very well with the rim’s wider profile. The 25mm tire on display filled out really well on the rim, which makes us think 28s would be awesome on the Aileron.

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Offered in 24, 28, and 32 hole drillings, the US-made rims will retail for $126.99 in black or polished. The polished may be a bit blingy for some, but it looks really good in person. Ailerons will also be available in complete wheel builds with 24 Sapim Cx-ray or Dt Swiss Competition spokes and the new convertible disc rear hub (135mm or 142) with 11 speed compatibility and the light weight disc or convertible disc front to match just about any axle configuration.

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Specs:

  • Pro: 745g F / 875g R | 1620g set | MSRP $987.99
  • Comp: 800g F / 930g R | 1730g set | MSRP $732.99
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10 Comments
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ve
ve
10 years ago

One of the big advantages of road disc is the ability to run carbon rims and race wheels on normal rides, not just race day, by making them not a consumable.

David
David
10 years ago

@ve,
These have aluminum rims, life on a bike is not 24/7 carbon for everybody.

wako29
wako29
10 years ago

Am I the only one that thinks 480g for a disc specific rim is a bit heavy?

Alb
Alb
10 years ago

480g is a bit porky. Wonder what it’s come out like weight-wise with 10mm off the depth.

Alex
Alex
10 years ago
Kevan
Kevan
10 years ago

@Alb –

10mm shorter would give you the Blunt SL: same external width, 60g lighter and $35 per rim cheaper than the Aileron.

greg
greg
10 years ago

480g is not bad for a big, wide rim. that’s actually 50g lighter than the rim on the now defunct zipp 101.
another comparison is Stan’s Alpha400 rim at 425g. its internal width is 17mm, compared to 20mm here.
American Classic claims 390g on their Argent wheel’s rim (not available separately). i wonder if anyone has weighed just the rim…

mateo
mateo
10 years ago

– You mention the Alpha 400, but the Alpha 340 is also out there if weight is the primary concern. They’re 385g, 17mm internal, and 22mm deep. So they’re a little shorter/narrower than the Velocitys, but also 100g lighter (and still tubeless compatible).

bikermark
bikermark
10 years ago

@mateo: road tubeless + discs on Alpha 340s would seem ill advised due to that rim’s history of spoke de-tensioning. Cross tubeless + discs on 340s would be a better match.

Ajax
Ajax
10 years ago

Most manufacturers don’t tell you what the internal width is.

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