The DetailsSRAM set out to build a wheelset that offers impressive lateral rigidity without the weight penalty that is usually associated with larger diameter 29" wheels, a design goal that required the use of a carbon fiber rim to achieve.  The rim is manufactured using uni-directional carbon for its external shape that gives it a high level of impact strength, combined with a bi-directional carbon weave for the internal construction.  SRAM says that the mix of materials and layup has allowed them to tune-in the desired amount on vertical compliance while still allowing the wheels to be laterally stiff.  The finished product stands 26mm tall and 27mm wide, with an internal width of 19mm that makes them compatible with tires up to 2.4" wide.  The rim bed is drilled to allow the nipples to be put in place, and thus requires some sort of tubeless conversion kit if one wishes to run them without tubes. 

The Rise 60 wheels are assembled around large-bodied hubs that are home to sealed bearings - two 6804 bearings in the front hub, two 6902 bearings in the rear hub shell, and three 6802 bearings in the freehub body.  Bearing preload is not adjustable, which is a good thing in our mind as it eliminates the chance of over-stressing the bearings, and the axles and hub endcaps utilize a tool-free press fit that allows freehub maintenance or axle conversions to be performed sans tools.  The front hub can be swapped between a standard QR dropout configuration and stiffer 15mm thru-axle setup, while the rear can convert from 135mm QR to 12 x 142mm layout.  Interestingly, the rear hub employs endcaps that feature

long overlapping sleeves, thereby offering more support for each axle setup.  The aluminum freehub body is home to three pawls, each with three biting edges of their own, that are sprung separately by small leaf springs.  A 54 tooth engagement ring works with the three pawls to provide a relatively quick 6.7° engagement angle that limits drivetrain lag during those make it or break it moments on the trail. 

A 54 tooth engagement ring meshes with three pawls to provide fast pick-up. 

Tying it all together are 24 straight pull, bladed Sapim CX-Ray spokes that are generally acknowledged by those in the know to be the Gucci of spokes.  Going with straight pull spokes means that SRAM can do away with the pesky J-bend found at the hub-end of a traditional spoke, the point where the majority of non-impact spoke failures occur.  Straight pull spokes are certainly less common, though, so it might pay dividends to have a few spares in your toolbox.  Cleverly, both the front and rear wheels share a single spoke length all around.  Aluminum nipples are employed, complete with a nylock inserts in each one to prevent the spoke tension from backing off. 

PerformanceThere are only a few different options when it comes to carbon rimmed 29er wheelsets, but all of them are quite expensive.  Enough that SRAM's $2,000 Rise 60 wheels are actually on the lower end of the price scale, believe it or not.  Regardless, that is a large amount of money to be spending on a set of wheels, so we would expect them to offer some substantial performance and reliability gains in the real-world, not just on paper.  While not an overly fair comparison, we went from a set of 1800 gram, aluminum rimmed 29er wheels straight onto the Rise 60's and found the difference to be, in a word, startling.  The wheelset weighed in at 1600 grams on our scale, a fair bit heavier than claimed, but the difference between the standard aluminum wheels and the Rise 60s is mostly down to the lighter weight carbon fiber rim (although SRAM admits that it is not the lightest carbon rim available).  That lighter rim makes for much less rotational weight, and therefore a bike that rides as if it is much lighter than the scales say.  Lively, playful, and responsive are overused words when it comes to product reviews, but they all apply to a bike fitted with the Rise 60 wheelset.  Yes, there was only 200+ grams difference, but we have to say that the bike felt significantly more dynamic and sporty than we expected.  There is surely more than just lighter weight that is coming into play, though. 

While we wouldn't say that the Rise 60s had us grabbing taller gears on the climbs, they certainly did offer an energetic feel compared to a more standard wheelset. 

How a lightweight wheelset affects a bike's performance is well documented, but this attribute is often sacrificed for rigidity.  This is especially true when talking about featherweight aluminum rimmed wheelsets, with the rims usually having to sport a very low profile in order for them to shave grams, and therefore that all-important rotational weight.  The Rise 60s, and some other carbon rims as well, feature a relatively tall and wide profile that helps them to be surprisingly stiff laterally.  Of further benefit is the wheelset's relatively high spoke tension necessitated by the 24 spokes per wheel, 8 less than you'll find on a conventional 32 spoke wheel.  Their shape, carbon construction, and high spoke tension makes them not only much stiffer than any aluminum 29er wheelset that we've spent time on, but also lighter.  It's hard to beat those facts.  What about that vertical compliance that SRAM says they've built-in?  Sorry, but we didn't notice the difference between the Rise 60's and other wheels. 

We fitted the Rise 60 wheelset with a number of different tires during our time on them, including everything from 2.0" wide, purebred cross-country racing tires to high-volume, 2.4" options, all with no trouble whatsoever.  Their 19mm internal width means that we certainly wouldn't go any wider, though, although we can't imagine why a rider using a set of Rise 60 wheels would do such a thing. 

The wheelset's straight pull spokes proved to be trouble free. 

The carbon rim also proved to be quite sturdy, shrugging off more abuse than it would likely see under most cross-country riders.  Not only did we often run excessively low rear tire pressure, often resulting in hard bottoming of the rear rim on rock edges, but we also rode out of the bush on a flat tire on two occasions.  After all of this, along with months and months of regular hard riding, and the rim's bead edges remain dent and ding free.  This includes a massive strike to the tall rim sidewall of the rear wheel on a sharp and unmovable rock while riding Utah's Gooseberry trail network last Winter, a hit hard enough that we expected to find some sort of damage to the carbon sidewall - we confess to being somewhat letdown that there was only the smallest of cosmetic marks from the contact.  We've seen a few carbon rims from other manufacturers crack at a one or two nipple holes in the past, but to date the Rise 60 rim has had zero impact issues. 

While the carbon rims dismissed more abuse than we thought a rim could, they did require a few minor truings during our time on them.  The adjustments needed were minor and nothing that we would consider out of the ordinary, but it should be noted that you'll have to use a tool to hold the bladed spokes from twisting as you true the wheels - the aluminum nipples use a nylock insert that keeps them from backing off over time, but it also means that they feel quite stiff when it comes time to turn them.  Bearing-wise, the wheels have performed as expected.  After over ten months of solid use, including using them through most of the seven day BC Bike Race, we've just recently had to replace the front wheel bearings, with the rear's coming due soon.  As with most hubs that use sealed bearings, the job is a simple task that you or your local shop should be able to do relatively quickly.  The rear hub's 6.7° engagement figure sounds impressive, but we have to admit that we didn't seem to notice the quick pick-up on the trail when comparing it to slower-reacting hubs. 

The carbon rims used for the Rise 60 wheelset are incredibly strong and reliable, but we wish performing a tubeless conversion was easier.  This has apparently been addressed on newer versions. 

IssuesThe Rise 60 wheelset certainly added performance to whatever bike we bolted them to, but we did have a major issue in the form of two broken rear axles that took them out of commission until replacement parts could arrive.  We'll be the first to admit that we were likely pushing the Rise 60 wheels harder than they were intended to be ridden given their cross-country intentions, and that both failures occurred while using the lighter duty quick-release setup, but that is also looking at the problem through rose-tinted glasses because we aren't the only riders who like to get a bit rowdy on our cross-country bike.  Having said that, SRAM is aware of the issue and has made a change to current production axles that sees them feature far more material where the failures have been occurring, which is where the overlap on the two-piece, slip-together axle comes to an end.  This change should go a long way to eliminating the problem, and early production wheelsets can be fitted with new axle as well. 

The Rise 60s great performance was let down by reliability issues with the quick-release rear axle. 

The other kink that needs pointing out was the difficulty we experienced when it came to setting them up as a tubeless wheelset.  We had zero luck getting a number of different tires to seat, including the usually easy-to-tubeless Specialized tires, when the rims were equipped with a standard wrapping of Stan's tubeless rim tape.  It took three complete wraps around the rim with Gorilla Tape in order for us to create an interface that would seal reliably, but once seated we never had any issues.  The difficulty comes from the Rise 60's rim bed shape that is a touch too deep, thereby not giving the tire's beads an opportunity to create an airtight seal and requiring us to build up the height of the rim bed with multiple layers of tape.  SRAM has recently made a running change to the internal shape of the Rise 60's 29" carbon rim profile that produces a shallower rim bed, meaning that it should be far easier for customers and shops to perform a tubeless conversion, although we have yet to carry out this job on the updated rim.  Potential Rise 60 buyers should be aware that their taller than average profile means that some tube valve stems may not protrude enough for a mini-pump to get enough purchase. 

The 29" Rise 60 wheelset had been advertised as weighing 1420 grams when they were first released but SRAM has revised that number slightly, putting them at 1530 grams.  Yes, that is still a very impressive figure for a 29" wheelset, but it is still lower than the 1600 grams that our test wheels came in at.  Riders who are thinking about picking up a Rise 60 wheelset for themselves should take note that the 1420 gram weight still showing on the SRAM website has yet to be amended, and that their actual weight is moderately higher. 

Pinkbike's take:

There is no denying that $2,000 is a lot of money to spend a set of wheels, especially when you consider that many riders pay less than that for their entire bike, but in the rarefied world of carbon wheels it is actually one of the least-pricey options.  Just as we've said in the past, a set of carbon-rimmed wheels will drastically improve how your bike performs.  It is easy to say that losing an inch or two from your waistline would have the same effect, but that simply isn't true - your bike will handle better with a set of lightweight, carbon wheels bolted to it, no matter what you weigh.  The Rise 60s are undoubtedly quite nice, fulfilling much of the performance expectations that come with a $2,000 sticker price, but our early production wheelset's rear axle issues, along with their difficulty when it comes to performing a tubeless conversion, left us feeling a bit unfulfilled.  SRAM says that both issues have been remedied on current production versions, which, if true, should make them winners.  We'll have a chance to put some longterm test time on the updated Rise 60 wheels, so stay tuned for an updated report in the future.- Mike Levy

Are you f***in kidding me!?  Even if I had the extra 2 grand laying around i still wouldn't spend it on a set of rims.  Negative prop me all you want but the pricing on some of this stuff is just getting ridiculous.  The only people who can afford it are either sponsored by the company or have to work so much to pay it off they never actually use it. 

I finally got my dream bike with my dream forks........ but i'm the kind of people that bryanBobo said...... i work too much ... my bike has around 2 months at home and i have not been able to use it..... maybe today...... or at least that's what i say every day....

Neg prop me all you want but products like this serioulys put me off the whole mtb scene.... see the circle of product development nearly always leads too newer and more expensive products being released with in term makes cheaper end products cost more until you release even a basic bike build set you back more than a car.....

Nice to see that a big player like SRAM is coming out with new carbon wheels to add to the selection.  But WTF? -  19mm internal and 27mm external?  Is it only me that finds this relationship strange?  No wonder they can stand some abuse with all that material, but the narrow internal must seriously compromise the tubeless stability.  I was hoping sub-20mm rims were gonna be a thing of the past by now as they offer zero advantages apart from a very few grams saved.  And the review does not even mention this...strange, especially regarding fellow reviewer Richard Cunningham's love of wide rims. 

The trend is certainly moving toward wider rims for xc/trail use, but I found zero issues running 2.4" rubber w/ low pressure (22-24psi) on the Rise 60s.  The 19mm width is internal... it is a bit misleading, but it is also not nearly as wide as some of the new-school rims out there. 

Another vote for aluminum nipples from myself.  They require more maintenance in the form of a few drops of lube to keep them turning free, and need more care when actually working on them, but I've really only had trouble with a few al.  nipples in over a decade.  They're lighter, which means that I want them haha. 

I laced up my latest pair of wheels with alloy nipples, DT butted black spokes.  I somehow managed to get a 1 inch thick stick in the rear wheel.  Came to a grinding halt.  A few months later I was touching up my wheels and found where the stick stopped it.  Right at the nipple.  I had to work at it, but removed the nipple.  It stayed at a 45 degree angle after I removed it.  Think alloy nipples have gotten much better.  The first alloy nipples 20 years ago would pop the heads off just from riding. 

Yeah, aluminum nipples might work for you guys, but try living in Hawaii, those things come here to die.  I work in a shop and most of the people who bring their bikes in with alu nipples almost always need all of them replaced.  Then again, most of the people who bring their bikes in don't really take care of them. 

I have been using ENVE carbon AM rims and I can concur that bike performance is drastically improved.  I will say that you can go faster, have more fun and keep on rolling more, with uphills feeling like downhills with carbon rims, it absolutely no joke.  Bike performance in corners over jumps, in ruts over roots everything is better.  If you have 2000 dollars and want to do an upgrade, really this is the only way to go. 

I just built up my own 5in trail bike for a little over £1000 so the price of these wheels does seem pretty ridiculous... sure i got a fair amount of my bike off ebay which kept the cost down, but still...

Also, while on the subject of ebay, I wonder if anyone would buy a used set of these wheels?  I don't think I would risk it

I have a set of Enve AM wheels as well and they have been the best wheels I have ever owned.  Before these I was running Mavic 823s with King hubs and was killing at least one rear wheel a summer.  I have almost 4 years on my Enves and they haven't given me an issue yet and amazingly they still run true. 
I dont make a lot of money.  So Yes, I was Freaked out about spending over 2k on a wheelset especially since I had already racked up a huge bill for the rest of the bike.  Looking back I'm glad I did.  And yes I will buy another set for my next bike.  Yes it will mean sacrificing everything else for a while but for me the Performance gain and Durability are worth the cost. 
For those of you running narrow wheels you really should try a set of wide rims the performance benifits are immediately obvious. 

they look really nice.  $2000 is the only thing I'm sceptical about these and I usually don't like large wheels.  Because of the price I'd rather buy two sets of deemax and crush the rocks the 29s would roll over easier. 

I ride Pacenti TL-28s on Hopes with the same spokes.  Tubeless is easy-peasy (1 layer of Stans tape only), and they weigh EXACTLY the same as the SRAMs (on my digital scale).  In fact, without all that gorilla tape, they are probably lighter, and they are wider too.  They have taken a few dings, but I rode them in the BC Bike Race (top 40 finish) and 15 more days of racing (plus triple that in training and casual riding) and they are still good to go- and I ride black diamond nearly every day.  They are 32-spokers to boot, and are as stiff as any wheel I ever had before.  I can replace the rim for only $80, it ships from within Canada in 2 days, but at this point the wheel looks good for multiple years of racing.  At one third the price of these chi-chi wheels, I think carbon will have to come down a loooooong way before I throw my money at it. 

Light Bicycle sells really wide carbon 29er rims via their website.  With shipping, it works out to $140 per rim.  It is these direct-from-the-factory start-up companies that will bring carbon to the masses.  There's no reason that carbon components should cost as much as the major manufacturers are charging. 

Until you look at them wrong and the wheels fail.  Do you think they are just charging a 500% markup?  No, there are significant R&R cost, lay up methods, engineering,many manufacturing that makes these better than some sketchy online factory catalogue company. 

Yes, they are charging a massive markup.  Perhaps not 500%, but still quite high.  You know that SRAM truck and SRAM sponsored riders who appear everywhere across the planet at major bike events?  I thought Whistler had been renamed SRAM Village during crankworx.  That's where the markup is going. 

There is no evidence that the Light Bicycle rims are any more likely to fail than carbon rims from companies with larger advertising budgets and distribution channels. 

Old reply but you are correct.  Light Bicycle rims are solid.  My riding weight is from 217-240lbs and the only failures I experienced were due to over tightening the alloy nips.  I am finishing up my second set for my 29r with their new hookless rims similar to the Roval Control Carbon 29s.  Bottom line they are worth the coin. 

Adjustable bearing preload is more often than not the cause of much premature bearing wear - it isn't a good thing.  Sealed bearings don't/require such a thing.  As for the 15mm axle, remember that these wheels are intended as XC/trail wheels, not to be hucked or the like.  We had zero spoke issues.  Comparing your MTX rims (as great as they might be, I fully admit) to the Rise 60s isn't really apples to apples - different intended applications entirely. 

"Lateral Rigidty" with bladed spokes?  Not possible.  I have been building wheels for 20 years.  Larger diameter wheels already flex more than smaller ones.  Flatten the spokes and it is exagerated.  Think of a long 2 x 4.  Lay it across a gap vertically and walk on the skinny side....pretty stiff.  Now lay it down flat, walking on the wider part.  It sags/flexes.  Same with spokes.  Blade should stay on time trial bikes. 

Spokes work like cables in a suspension bridge.  The hub hangs from the spokes above it.  The spokes below it are fairly limp when the wheel is compressed.  Similarly, lateral rigidity is from being unable to stretch spokes.  Almost no strength comes from spokes resisting compression. 
In other words, wheels can be built with flexible cables and the reason we don't is simply that it is easier to work with a threaded rod.  A wheel built with cables for spokes would be just as stiff. 
Lateral rigidity is more a factor of the degree of dishing and rim stiffness.  Bladed spokes have almost no affect on rigidity. 
Seriously, all the books written on wheel technology stress this commonly misunderstood concept. 

The rims do play a major roll in rigidness of the wheel.  Cables in the right tension will produce a good wheel as well.  However, Bladed spokes do flex/deflect more that a traditional straight or butted spoke.  It has been proven, and I have seen it myself.  Built up two identical wheels with two types of spokes.  I have also read most of those books and my practical real world experience trumps the books.  Originally blades were produced for the aero benefit. 

I hope in 3-5 years these become mainstream and affordable on a consumer level. 
These wheels kinda remind of the days of Spin vs Spinergy mountain wheels... but that was like 12 years ago and they be looong gone. 

£2000 for a set of wheels!!  Do they honestly honestly think that the riding community are pissed!!!  For gods sake.  These companies are making a fortune out of the common misconception that carbon fibre is mega expensive.  It's not...it's been around for many many years!! !  If the Mercedes F1 team can build a double DRS system into their F1 car for a couple of grand then a bike wheel made out the same stuff should be shed loads cheaper than they are charging. 

@Matt76 - I'm not saying that SRAM isn't making a good profit on these wheels (that is their goal, obviously, and there is no shame in that), but you are comparing two entirely different industries.  Saying that the Mercedes F1 team can "build a double DRS system into their F1 car for a couple of grand" is complete nonsense... try a few hundred thousand dollars to fund the development.  They have multiple and very well-paid engineers from different fields who would have put hundreds of hours of work into a system that they may only make five of, not to mention the incredibly expensive machines that are required to make such a thing given that the entire car was developed with the DDRS in mind.  Merc F1 isn't trying to make a profit from their DDRS (although I guess they are in a way), but rather make the car faster. 

The Rise 60s carbon rims are designed for near-mass production, and if you compared the quality of carbon workmanship between the rim and Merc's DDRS I'd bet that you'd actually find that the DDRS is pretty rough in comparison.  Yeah, the wheels are a lot of money, but your comparison is way off base.  It isn't that the material is inherently expensive, although it is more expensive than aluminum, but it does require more man-hours to make a product out of it.  A machine manufacturers aluminum rims, and a machine often assembles a wheel from scratch, whereas a carbon-rimmed wheel is much more hands on. 

It's a rip off whichever way you look at it.  And actually it was Ross Brawn who said the DDRS cost a couple of grand to produce.  His words not mine!  There is no justification for this price at all when you can get a really good bike for the same money. 

Every one is freaking out over the 2k price tag for a carbon wheelset.  That's actually a pretty good price when you compare that to a set of ENVE RIMS for $2000.  Then you still have to get your hubs/spokes/nipples.  Your looking at closer to 3k if you go that option.  Still more than I can afford to spend but when you compare to what else is out there its not as bad.  I'm sticking with my Stan's Flow EX rims that only weigh 10 or 15 grams more than the ENVE's for a fraction of the cost.  $1000 vs. $90 per rim

I wonder if the rim shape takes any queues from Zipp's rim shapes... the new Firecrest shape really rides well, almost like a leafspring action inthe rim.  I'd think it'd lend itself really well to XC rims. 

When your run discs and freehubs wide enough for a cassette on a standard (100 or 110 mm front, 135 or 142 mm rear) hub, your wheel is going to be dished (centerline of rim not centered between hub flanges, often with different spoke lengths, angles, and tensions).  If you want to design a wheel where all four of your spoke lengths (front drive-side, front non-drive-side, rear drive-side, rear non-drive-side) are the same length, then offset drilling the rims is going to help make that happen. 

To be fair, the updated rims (the ones that consumers will be getting it they purchase a set of Rise 60s now) are supposedly much easier to tubeless thanks to an updated internal profile.  We'll be on them in less than a month. 

Wouldnt that be a fair weight considering its a 29"?  I do agree on the price tho.  Hopefully carbon will come down in the years to come.  Or buy the chinese knock offs and support borderline slave labor! 

$2000??  I was hard pressed to spend that on a full bike let alone a set of wheels... Now as awesome as I'm sure these are, ill stick to my standard and affordable ones.  They give me just as much fun as these would, if not more being I don't have to worry about a huge price to replace them. 

No, no they won't.  Lighter, stiffer, faster.  Wheels are a huge upgrade for any bike.  They are carbon, they are not for people riding $1,400 hard tails.  Which are great bikes, but there are plenty of people who look at 2k like a reasonable price for an upgrade.  I am not a fan of the no pre load adjust or the straight pull spokes, simply from a serviceability point of view. 

Why would you worry of replacement?  I'm sure they have a solid warranty.  Secondly if you are afraid of failure, then these are within your budget.  But don't assume they aren't in someone else's budget. 

budget aside, dropping 2G's for wheels that leave you with broken axles??  A no go for me.  The customer service better be exceptional, like air dropping new axles in my front yard the next day I call with that problem.  If youre going to the extreme of buying carbon wheels just for the weight savings they better be top notch and problem free.  Another product that doesnt justify the ridiculous price. 

Yes carbon fiber is still expensive.  But its not anywheres near as expensive as it used to be.  And not worth the mark up price in my opinion.  But thats my opinion and everyone is free to express theirs. 

You're annoying.  Always a carbon hater no matter what it is and you've probably never been on a carbon bike anything...right?.  Get with the program son, its 2012 and carbon is stronger than alloy any day.  Expensive depends on how much you make.  We have customers in the shop daily that don't bat an eye at these prices. 

God forbid I say anything about carbon... I didn't even mention carbon, but of course I have ridden on a carbon bike before... I honestly didn't feel any difference.  It is cool though; but, regardless it is all simply marketing.  Everyone thinks that they need the latest and greatest thing out there when really none of that matters... most of it is up to the rider themselves, a terrible rider won't perform any better with these wheels and I believe that the same frame or same wheels replicated in carbon wouldn't make any difference, its all in the mind.  Regardless whats up with the price?  Why on earth would a pair of bike wheels be more expensive than car wheels?  It doesn't make any sense.  Also why is everything about extremely overprices bike products, I want to see an article reviewing a normal piece of gear that sells for a normal price; not some crazy piece of BS that only suckers buy because they think it will make them perform that much better. 

Carbon bikes....not for everyoneCarbon forks....not for everyoneCarbon wheels....not for everoneBut, guess who benefits from the research, and competition between the companies......EVERYONE!Quit your bit*hin. 

everyone got an opinion wtf does your comment have to do with this topic, get a sense of humor.  Oh your Spanish probably depresssed about your shitty little country's economy or lack of.  But I can forgive morons. 

you started it.  I ended it.  Keep the topic related to Mtn biking, don't cheap shot/ attack my name because you disagree with my opinion.  and the USA is the strongest country in the world.. don't forget it..... Our unemployment rate is around an average of 8% what's yours??? 

I had a blow out on carbon rims going mac 10 hit a small sharp rock had no choice to carry on as i could not stop in time for the corner .  All im saying is that i had carbon rims years ago and they didnt do well .  But that was years ago and hopefully things have got better with carbon rims.  There are such times that the rider is not to blame such as ive exsplained with the blow out i had. 

I'll second this^^ I had some carbon rims cost me a fortune to buy and after I got a blowout (3rd time riding them) they were fit for the bin and nothing else!!  Just ripped the rim to shreds!!  Waste of money in my eyes!