# Good 24 hole 24" rim options?



## backinmysaddle (Jul 27, 2011)

I have some 24" 24 hole rims built up that I'm using on my daughter's bike but the hubs don't have rotor mounts (bike is set up with v brakes). I have purchased everything to convert to disc, originally thinking I would just unlace her wheels and reuse the rims. Now I am reconsidering and would like to just pick up 2 new 24 hole rims... but I am not sure I am finding all the options.

I see the Stans Crest 24" 24 hole, but wow $85 per rim?

Pretty much everything else I come across seems to be for BMX and is 32 hole, although more in the range of what I would like to pay. I've already bought the 24h hubs so hoping someone can suggest other 24h 24" rims...


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## AGarcia (Feb 20, 2012)

Not sure there's much out there in 24" with 24 holes. I just had a set of 24" built up for my son. I went with 24 hole up front and 28 hole in the rear. But I used Stan's Crest Mk III's. Not cheap, but Stan's products are top notch. Had them built up with Bitex Hubs and Sapim spokes. The wheels weigh 1323g. with tape and valves.


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## jestep (Jul 23, 2004)

Stans is actually the only 24 I know of. Every other 24" MTB rim I've seen comes in 28 at the lowest, but most are still going to be 32 hole.


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## BullSCit (Mar 26, 2004)

I just laced my daughter up a pair of Crest MK IIIs in 27.5 with 28 spokes (wish they had a 24 option), but previously built her up the Crest in 24" with 24 spokes. She rode the 24s pretty hard (hasn't quite mastered wheelie upping curbs yet), and they never needed truing (but she only weighs 55#). The 24" wheelset replaced a 36 spoke Rhyno-Lite wheelset with heavy tubes, tires, hubs and skewers, and I knocked off 3.5# of weight. They cost a lot, but being able to run tubeless at low pressures is worth it. 

Especially if you have another young one who could use it (my son and then my brother's son), then turn around and probably get at least half of what you paid for it. I've tried to sell the old heavy wheelset for $100 for no takers, but figure I could easily sell the 24" Crests for $250.


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## jochribs (Nov 12, 2009)

AGarcia said:


> Not sure there's much out there in 24" with 24 holes. I just had a set of 24" built up for my son. I went with 24 hole up front and 28 hole in the rear. But I used Stan's Crest Mk III's. Not cheap, but Stan's products are top notch. Had them built up with Bitex Hubs and Sapim spokes. The wheels weigh 1323g. with tape and valves.


Well, that sells me on the Crests. I had no idea they were doing the MK3 in the 24". I'm definitely going with these for my son's upcoming build. Perfect weight, and perfect width. Any hole pattern you could want/need. Made to go tubeless. These check off all the boxes.

To the OP. Just go with the Crests. The problem that I have spent WAY too much time trying to solve is the lack of viable options in compatibility for the various rims that you'll find. If it's moderately cheap, it'll be 36h for BMX, might be a 32 or 28 option, but most of the time not. If there is, most of the time, it's so skinny of a rim, that it's pointless to go through the trouble of building up. (We are all going fatter, and wider with the rims, why should our kids run the skinny 90's era width stuff?) Or they're just absolute pigs of rims in terms of weight.

These Crests are going to cost you maybe 30 more per rim (maybe a bit more, depending on what you've been considering), but in the long scheme of things, that is really not that big of a deal. You're going to end up with a great set of wheels for your kid. And lightest possible.


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## GSJ1973 (May 8, 2011)

AGarcia said:


> Not cheap, but Stan's products are top notch. Had them built up with Bitex Hubs and Sapim spokes. The wheels weigh 1323g. with tape and valves.


Great looking wheels! Did you have Prowheelbuilder.com build those up? Looking at some Bitex for a set as well, but was hoping to be more in the 1250g weight. Do you know how much the hubs weigh f/r or model you bought? LARGEST selection of Hubs Rims Spokes or Nipples | PROWHEELBUILDER - Bitex Cheers!


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## AGarcia (Feb 20, 2012)

jochribs said:


> Well, that sells me on the Crests. I had no idea they were doing the MK3 in the 24". I'm definitely going with these for my son's upcoming build. Perfect weight, and perfect width. Any hole pattern you could want/need. Made to go tubeless. These check off all the boxes.


Thanks!! Yeah, they're not up on the Stan's site yet. But I called and happen to inquire. They had just made a batch. So I picked them up. My builder thinks these may be the very first pair of Mk III built wheels


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## AGarcia (Feb 20, 2012)

GSJ1973 said:


> Great looking wheels! Did you have Prowheelbuilder.com build those up? Looking at some Bitex for a set as well, but was hoping to be more in the 1250g weight. Do you know how much the hubs weigh f/r or model you bought? LARGEST selection of Hubs Rims Spokes or Nipples | PROWHEELBUILDER
> 
> My builder is Dustin from Southern Wheelworks [url]www.southernwheelworks.com
> 
> ...


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## jochribs (Nov 12, 2009)

AGarcia said:


> Thanks!! Yeah, they're not up on the Stan's site yet. But I called and happen to inquire. They had just made a batch. So I picked them up. My builder thinks these may be the very first pair of Mk III built wheels


They are, ya just gotta look for them


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## AGarcia (Feb 20, 2012)

jochribs said:


> They are, ya just gotta look for them


Ahh, yeah they must have recently them up!! They were not up two weeks ago!


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## jochribs (Nov 12, 2009)

I hear ya. The heading they are under is misleading.


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## BullSCit (Mar 26, 2004)

The 24 hole 24" Crest were the first wheels I built up. It really isn't that difficult, as there are so many videos out there. I did a double cross on all sides. I used Circus Monkey hubs that I got on Ebay. They were some of the lightest that I could find, had really good engagement and at the time included Titanium skewers. I wouldn't use these hubs for me, but they are good for the under 80 pound crowd. And after building up the second set of wheels (27.5" MK3s), I have almost paid for the truing stand, dishing tool, spoke prep and spoke tension meter for what wheelbuliders locally charge.


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## stevelim (Jul 23, 2008)

BullSCit said:


> The 24 hole 24" Crest were the first wheels I built up. It really isn't that difficult, as there are so many videos out there. I did a double cross on all sides. I used Circus Monkey hubs that I got on Ebay. They were some of the lightest that I could find, had really good engagement and at the time included Titanium skewers. I wouldn't use these hubs for me, but they are good for the under 80 pound crowd. And after building up the second set of wheels (27.5" MK3s), I have almost paid for the truing stand, dishing tool, spoke prep and spoke tension meter for what wheelbuliders locally charge.


What's your experience so far with the Circus Monkey hubs?


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## BullSCit (Mar 26, 2004)

They are definitely lightweight, and have decent engagement (and lots of color options), but they make some strange noises every once in a while, like something is slipping when she is putting a lot of power into them. Doesn't happen too often, maybe once a mile, but has me a little leery, regarding their long term reliability. But it doesn't seem to be getting worse, but I would definitely not recommend these for an adult who mashes.

I got a second set for her new wheelset, and haven't heard this noise at all. So maybe I just need to take apart the 24" hub (as my son is riding it now), and clean and regrease.


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## traillite (May 5, 2013)

Can anyone offer advice on using 24 hole for a rear wheel? Looking at a Hope Pro 4 Hub with DT Swiss Spokes. Just curios if 24 hole is adequate for rear. 50lb early skills rider. Thoughts?


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## GrayJay (May 16, 2011)

traillite said:


> Can anyone offer advice on using 24 hole for a rear wheel? Looking at a Hope Pro 4 Hub with DT Swiss Spokes. Just curios if 24 hole is adequate for rear. 50lb early skills rider. Thoughts?


A 50# kid on 24 spoke wheels is putting only a fraction of the stress on the spokes & rim that an adult rider puts onto a 32 spoke wheel, it will be fine unless they are bashing strait into curbs, (in which case the number of spokes is largely irrelevant.) 
I have a 24" wheelset I built for my kids using 12 spokes front, 18 spokes rear that has now survived fine with 3 years of kid use and racing and I occasionally have jumped on the kids bike for testing and the wheels do fine holding my 200# of weight.


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## traillite (May 5, 2013)

Thanks so much GrayJay. I've got an Orbea MX24 Team Disc headed my way and planning to pull the factory wheels in favor of a 24 hole Crest build. I was going to use some Hope Pro 4 hubs that come in orange for some fun color flare. But WheelBuilder.com said the finished weight with tape and valves was going to be 1436g which sounded high. All the folks in the forum talking about Stands Crest 24" builds that get to near 1300g was the goal. Any thoughts a better hub choice that might also be a bit lighter? Hubs that are readily available for a build up before Christmas?


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## jestep (Jul 23, 2004)

traillite said:


> Thanks so much GrayJay. I've got an Orbea MX24 Team Disc headed my way and planning to pull the factory wheels in favor of a 24 hole Crest build. I was going to use some Hope Pro 4 hubs that come in orange for some fun color flare. But WheelBuilder.com said the finished weight with tape and valves was going to be 1436g which sounded high. All the folks in the forum talking about Stands Crest 24" builds that get to near 1300g was the goal. Any thoughts a better hub choice that might also be a bit lighter? Hubs that are readily available for a build up before Christmas?


Really depends on your budget and time. The hope's are great hubs but they're not necessarily the lightest out there. They're not boat anchor heavy either. Figure about 300g for the rear, 190g for the front. Best case for disc hubs you're looking at roughly 110g - 120g for the front and 230g - 250g for the rear.

For cheaper, circus monkey's are probably the way to go, they would be my pick if I were building these for a 24in kids bike. They're extremely light, 120g and 230g. The reviews tend to be somewhat mixed, most are good and I've never had problems with them which I have on my CX bike, or the koozer hubs we used for our hotrock build, but there are a number of reviews of them failing or having poor bearing life. For light riders, I personally think there's very low risk to use them. If they're going to be used for AM riding or by a heavy adult, I might look elsewhere. The koozers are cheaper hubs but are a bit heavier.

The real problem though is with 24H rims you're limited in what hub options you have as most MTB hubs don't come in 24H so you're limited to those or trying to find 24H road disc hubs with the correct spacing on the rear. Many road hubs have 130mm instead of 135mm rear spacing.

If you can find some and price isn't an issue, 24H Disc, DT 240s, hubs would be my personal pick. By far my favorite hub ever, easy to service, they last forever, and they're quiet! I just built a set of 26" wheels with them and I think with good spokes and the stans rims you could get close to 1200g. I came out with 1360g with tape and valves installed on 26in/32H rims, so you could easily lose at least 100g with the stans 24in/24H rims.


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## traillite (May 5, 2013)

Is the the Circus Monkey Hub ? We're not doing XX1. Circus Monkey HDW2 MTB Disc Hubs For SRAM XX1 , 24 Hole ,1 Pair , Orange


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## jestep (Jul 23, 2004)

traillite said:


> Is the the Circus Monkey Hub ? We're not doing XX1. Circus Monkey HDW2 MTB Disc Hubs For SRAM XX1 , 24 Hole ,1 Pair , Orange


They come with SRAM XD and normal freehub options.

This should be them in orange as well: Circus Monkey HDW2 MTB Disc Hubs,24 Hole,1 Pair,Orange | eBay

I only looked briefly, but if you do decide on them you may want to see if there are any US sellers as the shipping from Taiwan takes roughly 10 - 14 days to get here.


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## Steve-XtC (Feb 7, 2016)

traillite said:


> Thanks so much GrayJay. I've got an Orbea MX24 Team Disc headed my way and planning to pull the factory wheels in favor of a 24 hole Crest build. I was going to use some Hope Pro 4 hubs that come in orange for some fun color flare. But WheelBuilder.com said the finished weight with tape and valves was going to be 1436g which sounded high. All the folks in the forum talking about Stands Crest 24" builds that get to near 1300g was the goal. Any thoughts a better hub choice that might also be a bit lighter? Hubs that are readily available for a build up before Christmas?


Crest 24 mk 2 with Sapim x-ray *32'hole* with novatec d811/812 hubs is 1106g before rim tape and tubeless valves....i didn't weigh after ...but you can work out the tape and valves...

This is less than my 27.5 Giant carbon wheels with DT Swiss hubs and spokes. You can save 8'spokes on the 28 but I stupidly didn't just go for the stans and thought to use the existing rims. The difference is 8 spokes which is 30g and 8 nipples and I used brass so realistically just over 1kg is possible... then again it won't change rotating torque much.


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## traillite (May 5, 2013)

BullSCit said:


> The 24 hole 24" Crest were the first wheels I built up. It really isn't that difficult, as there are so many videos out there. I did a double cross on all sides. I used Circus Monkey hubs that I got on Ebay. They were some of the lightest that I could find, had really good engagement and at the time included Titanium skewers. I wouldn't use these hubs for me, but they are good for the under 80 pound crowd. And after building up the second set of wheels (27.5" MK3s), I have almost paid for the truing stand, dishing tool, spoke prep and spoke tension meter for what wheelbuliders locally charge.


I just ordered those Circus Monkey hubs and some Stans Crest 24" 24 hole. Can you tell me what length and make of spokes you used on your build? Also where did you find the best price on your spokes and wheel tools? Looking forward to lacing a set up myself. (will probably have the shop 2x my work though)


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## softbatch (Aug 19, 2014)

ZTR Crest 24" - 24 Hole Black

Stans Crest 24" 24 Hole for $50.

Sorry to jump on the thread but what 36 or 24 hole shimano hubs would be good to go with this for an inexpensive light wheelset?


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## Steve-XtC (Feb 7, 2016)

softbatch said:


> ZTR Crest 24" - 24 Hole Black
> 
> Stans Crest 24" 24 Hole for $50.
> 
> Sorry to jump on the thread but what 36 or 24 hole shimano hubs would be good to go with this for an inexpensive light wheelset?


Do you mean Shimano branded or for a Shimano cassette ?
Shimano branded will add weight ... even XTR whereas there are choices for a cassette freewheel...

I used 32H front and rear with Novatec d111/112 hubs. Built up this was 1106g before rim tape and valves for both wheels using CX ray spokes.

you can choose the cassette mount from either SRAM or Shimano. 
Same with axle type ...9, 10 Or 15mm

For an adult the Novatec are a bit weak ... there are upgraded (steel) axles available but for a kid I've had no problems.

The circus monkeys are probably similar but I heard reports of them not liking British weather ...


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## Mark194 (Mar 3, 2012)

trailcraft cycles sells 24 inch wheelsets, light weight and a good price...


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## softbatch (Aug 19, 2014)

@Steve-XtC, yes I was thinking of using some inexpensive Shimano SLX/XT disc hubs instead of spending $150 on Circus Monkeys or Novatecs.

Decent Weight at a decent cost are what I'm after in this wheel build. I do always have the fall back to Novatec, Circus Monkey, or BITEX.


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## Steve-XtC (Feb 7, 2016)

softbatch said:


> @Steve-XtC, yes I was thinking of using some inexpensive Shimano SLX/XT disc hubs instead of spending $150 on Circus Monkeys or Novatecs.
> 
> Decent Weight at a decent cost are what I'm after in this wheel build. I do always have the fall back to Novatec, Circus Monkey, or BITEX.


If you shop around the price difference isn't so great (at least not from here in the UK and SLX up)
I got mine from Australia ... took 2 weeks to arrive but free postage.

After spending on debateably the best rims + cost of spokes and nipples the extra $20-$30 a pair was questionable for me....

(Aside I have a spare unused set as it happens as I had planned a second set of wheels but they need the axle and QR that you can order direct from local Novatec... but I don't know what shipment cost would be.)

I got them 50% off in a sale... so I'd let you have them for the same if we work out postage...


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## Dr_UNIX (Jun 28, 2015)

Mark194 said:


> trailcraft cycles sells 24 inch wheelsets, light weight and a good price...


"Schwalbe Rocket Ron Performance 24" tires (2) 24" presta tubes (2) and tubeless valves (2) included. Trailcraft 24" wheelset with tubeless tape installed weighs only 1500 grams."

Would love to hear any about any experience with these wheels. Others haven't mentioned the the out-the-door costs of their custom builds. So these seem to be the best compromise out-the-door easy offering.


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## Steve-XtC (Feb 7, 2016)

Dr_UNIX said:


> "Schwalbe Rocket Ron Performance 24" tires (2) 24" presta tubes (2) and tubeless valves (2) included. Trailcraft 24" wheelset with tubeless tape installed weighs only 1500 grams."
> 
> Would love to hear any about any experience with these wheels. Others haven't mentioned the the out-the-door costs of their custom builds. So these seem to be the best compromise out-the-door easy offering.


I think you hit it right on out of the door costs.... it's rather easy for these to add up...
HOWEVER ... I ended up spending way more on interim wheels and I'd have saved money (and time) just buying the Stans straight up! I've seen Trailcraft get flak on prices on other threads with people comparing discount sale items with no P&P etc. against their retail full bike... and I'd say their prices seem very reasonable ... the only question is if you enjoy building and does your time count as positive or negative... if you love building then that's another thing 

I'm struggling to see *where *the extra 300g come from ... 
I weighed the Crest 32H before I put in rim tape and valves with the axles fitted (but not QR from memory) at a pinch over 1100g nowhere approaching 1500g

Where is the most important... everyone knows rotating weight vs non rotating but the distribution matters... weight in the middle doesn't really count as rotating so rims and tyres are biggest and hubs smallest and spokes ...in the middle....

On hubs though .....
Hope make some great hubs (I have a personal interest in that I was born literally a few miles from the factory) ....and like everything Hope will last until at least the next millennium which is great for adults... you can switch your bearings every few years (dah dah) but this is just way over engineered for a kids 24er.... (you might have 3-4 kids all the right age gap in which case perhaps but still marginal)

Anyway .. I figure if you want good wheels do it right and do it once... I'd from experience say go for the Crests and light hubs.... and work on retail cost + a build cost then everything else in terms of discounts is a bonus

My biggest headache was calculating spoke lengths.... actually lacing the wheel was very simple after knowing I had the right spoke length.. I was prepared to pay to get them trued at the LBS but it turned out not to be needed. I didn't use a wheelbuilder simply because of the post costs .... that you potentially pay for multiple times...

In summary .... I don't think the Trailcraft after market wheels are quite there ... (as opposed to the Crest ones they put on their own bikes) .. The price is reasonable but I'd rather pay what might be an extra 20% ....

In my case the build coincided with discounted Sapim CX-Ray's ... these were HUGELY discounted to 1/3rd the price... I'm not sure looking back how much this would have been worth had they not been 99p a spoke instead of the RRP £2.99

What I can say is 32H with CX-Ray is bullet proof on a kids bike and weighs 1106g before rim tape and valves. I can't imagine *any situation* these wheels could get damaged with a kids weight. (So long as I check spoke tension every so often though even this becomes less important with aero spokes)

I can change the freewheel should it be necessary and also change the axles should it be necessary...

Sale right now .... I don't know what shipping would be for you!

Crest 24" Kids Bike Special - Superstar Components

You won't benefit from the lifetime truing service ... but these are pretty decent


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## softbatch (Aug 19, 2014)

Steve-XtC said:


> Sale right now .... I don't know what shipping would be for you!
> 
> Crest 24" Kids Bike Special - Superstar Components
> 
> You won't benefit from the lifetime truing service ... but these are pretty decent


Unfortunately Superstar Components doesn't ship to the US.


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## Trailcraft Cycles (Sep 6, 2014)

Steve-XtC said:


> I think you hit it right on out of the door costs.... it's rather easy for these to add up...
> HOWEVER ... I ended up spending way more on interim wheels and I'd have saved money (and time) just buying the Stans straight up! I've seen Trailcraft get flak on prices on other threads with people comparing discount sale items with no P&P etc. against their retail full bike... and I'd say their prices seem very reasonable ... the only question is if you enjoy building and does your time count as positive or negative... if you love building then that's another thing
> 
> I'm struggling to see *where *the extra 300g come from ...
> ...


Hi all,

I was directed to this thread by one of our customers and thought I'd give some insight from our end. We have weighed a lot of bike parts in the last few years in order to build lighter 24" and now 26" kids high performance bikes.

We use the 28 hole Novatec D771SB hub up front (145 grams) and the 28 hole D7725B rear (269 grams) on our Trailcraft branded wheelset. It is a great performance/to weight/to value hubset and just 414 grams. The rims we have made for us by Alex, they are taped and tubeless ready. Out of the box weight is about 1490 grams, we round up and say 1500 grams with tubeless valves. We sell a lot of these wheels to parents with non-Trailcraft 24" disc equipped bikes and they have reported saving 500-750 grams or more of rotational weight on their stock wheelset which is huge.

Someone above posted their custom build with Bitex hubs, Sapim spokes and the New MK3 Crest rims at 1323 grams. We feel the small weight increase (167 grams heavier _(not 300g)_ than a custom built Stans wheelset in this case) and available with one click, on your doorstep in a few days is well worth the price to some families who don't have the time or know how to build their own wheels but want to make a heavy bike kids bike lighter.

I agree with Steve that there are a lot of deals right now on the original Crest ZTR 24" rim and you can build your own for a really good deal currently. Steve, I am super curious on the hubs you used to achieve an 1106 gram total wheelset weight. Reading earlier posts you built _32 spoke with brass nipples_. The math by working backwards says your hubset weighs about 190 grams or lighter, which seems very very light before tape and valves which are no more than 25 grams for both.

Crest rims = 620 grams / pair (The original Crest 24 are ~320 grams)
2.0/1.8 Double Butted Spokes are ~4.7-5 grams each x 56 = ~265 grams
56 ALLOY nipples are about 30 grams, brass double that
This leaves your Novatec hubset (pair) at 191 grams. The DT 240 rear bub is 230 grams, you still need to include the front hub.

For reference, the custom wheels we spec on our new 2017 Pineridge Pro are new Stans Crest MK3 (24 hole drilling), about 310-315 grams. 
48 Double butted spokes = ~236 grams + 315 gram MK3 rims x 2 =630g + ~29g in nipples + 380 gram hubset + ~10g in tape = 1285 grams

The new ZTR Crest MK3 are also $100.00 each as of today, but as noted earlier deals can be found on the original Crest 24 ZTR rims on closeout. Moving past the closeout rims, a wheel build with Stans MK3 rims starts at $200 for rims only. Add in hubs, spokes, nipples, and _most important your shopping/build time_ and you pass $400 really fast.

ZTR Crest MK3 24 Rim, 24-hole, Black

There are many types of people in this world. Some are super skilled at building things with their hands. Some are creative working with their minds and not their hands. Some want convenience factor. Some want the best money can buy. Some want best performance to value and are really good at shopping.

This is also very true when it comes to wheels. Some enjoy spending time shopping rims, hubs, know how to calculate spoke lengths, and know how to build wheels from scratch with their kids - or have a desire to learn. Some are very busy parents and would prefer to buy a pre-made built product to spend more time riding with their kids. Choice is good, and Internet shopping allows so many options!

Happy Trails, 
Ginger


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## Steve-XtC (Feb 7, 2016)

Trailcraft Cycles said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I was directed to this thread by one of our customers and thought I'd give some insight from our end. We have weighed a lot of bike parts in the last few years in order to build lighter 24" and now 26" kids high performance bikes.
> 
> ...


Ginger, you are correct. I actually went back and checked the spreadsheet and the wheels are actually 1304g. When I look 1106 is the difference from the original wheels!!

So the 36H D711/712, Sapim CH-Ray and Brass nipples without rim tape (10g?), skewers (96g for his Ti ones), valves and cassette is 1306g.

For reference, the custom wheels we spec on our new 2017 Pineridge Pro are new Stans Crest MK3 (24 hole drilling), about 310-315 grams. 
48 Double butted spokes = ~236 grams + 315 gram MK3 rims x 2 =630g + ~29g in nipples + 380 gram hubset + ~10g in tape = 1285 grams

The new ZTR Crest MK3 are also $100.00 each as of today, but as noted earlier deals can be found on the original Crest 24 ZTR rims on closeout. Moving past the closeout rims, a wheel build with Stans MK3 rims starts at $200 for rims only. Add in hubs, spokes, nipples, and _most important your shopping/build time_ and you pass $400 really fast.

ZTR Crest MK3 24 Rim, 24-hole, Black

There are many types of people in this world. Some are super skilled at building things with their hands. Some are creative working with their minds and not their hands. Some want convenience factor. Some want the best money can buy. Some want best performance to value and are really good at shopping.

This is also very true when it comes to wheels. Some enjoy spending time shopping rims, hubs, know how to calculate spoke lengths, and know how to build wheels from scratch with their kids - or have a desire to learn. Some are very busy parents and would prefer to buy a pre-made built product to spend more time riding with their kids. Choice is good, and Internet shopping allows so many options!

Happy Trails, 
Ginger[/QUOTE]


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## TigWorld (Feb 8, 2010)

When I built up my daughter's set of lightweight 24" wheels I stuck with 32h hubs and 32h rims. The savings by using 24 hole rims and hubs are not particularly significant. I did however, end up dropping the spoke count to 16 Ti spokes front and rear and they held up really well.

If I was building a set today, I'd go with Crest MK3's in 32h with 32h hubs. For a really light kid, 16 paired spoke lacing front and rear (eg ~30kg). For a 40kg kid, 16 spoke front and 32 spoke rear (or even 24 spokes with 16 on DS and 8 radial on NDS) would work well. For DH use just go the 32 spoke front and rear. This way, you can use a wider variety of hubs/rims and it also makes it much easier to re-use the hubs for a future 26", 27.5" or 29" build. This is important because it will be next to impossible to get your money back on a second hand set of 24" wheels. By the best 32h hubs you can get and use them on future builds.

The spokes you can't reuse, so DT Revolutions will be the lightest, cheapest spokes you can get. They are only fractionally heavier than 2.0 straight gauge Ti and are the same weight/strength as CX-Rays for a fraction of the price.


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## Steve-XtC (Feb 7, 2016)

Trailcraft Cycles said:


> We use the 28 hole Novatec D771SB hub up front (145 grams) and the 28 hole D7725B rear (269 grams) on our Trailcraft branded wheelset. It is a great performance/to weight/to value hubset and just 414 grams.
> 
> The rims we have made for us by Alex, they are taped and tubeless ready. Out of the box weight is about 1490 grams, we round up and say 1500 grams with tubeless valves. We sell a lot of these wheels to parents with non-Trailcraft 24" disc equipped bikes and they have reported saving 500-750 grams or more of rotational weight on their stock wheelset which is huge.
> 
> ...


Ginger, you are correct. I actually went back and checked the spreadsheet and the wheels are actually 1304g. When I look 1106 is the difference from the original wheels!!

So the 36H D711/712, Sapim CH-Ray and Brass nipples without rim tape (10g?), skewers (96g for his Ti ones), valves and cassette is 1306g.



> The new ZTR Crest MK3 are also $100.00 each as of today, but as noted earlier deals can be found on the original Crest 24 ZTR rims on closeout. Moving past the closeout rims, a wheel build with Stans MK3 rims starts at $200 for rims only. Add in hubs, spokes, nipples, and _most important your shopping/build time_ and you pass $400 really fast.
> 
> There are many types of people in this world. Some are super skilled at building things with their hands. Some are creative working with their minds and not their hands. Some want convenience factor. Some want the best money can buy. Some want best performance to value and are really good at shopping.
> 
> ...


My point is that the option for the Stans Rims built doesn't exist except buying the whole bike. 
Your prices are as I have said before very reasonable. Comparing your full price with the best discount scouring the internet, ignoring shipping charges etc. is apples and oranges.

My point really is IF I am going to buy pre-built wheels in that prioce range I want "the best" not a compromise.

I didn't build the wheels because I wanted to build wheels, I built wheels because I couldn't buy them.



> We feel the small weight increase (167 grams heavier _(not 300g)_ than a custom built Stans wheelset in this case) and available with one click, on your doorstep in a few days is well worth the price to some families who don't have the time or know how to build their own wheels but want to make a heavy bike kids bike lighter.


Except, be it 167g or 150g it's right at the maximum inertial torque. Only the tire is further from the axis of rotation...150g extra on the hubs is not the same as 150g extra on the rims...

I'd rather pay $489 (or similar) for the Stans than $389 with Alex... because its a case of "if you are going to do it then do it properly" .. if not then I'd stick with the default wheel-set...

Indeed the reason I ended up with 32H is because I happened to have some 32H Alex Z1000's but after dismantling the wheels they were on I decided with spokes, hubs and (labour or my time) saving $100 on rims was a bad place to save. I could have had the wheels built ... it was just faster to do it myself...

I'm all for 1 click .... I'm just not for one click *instead *of an equal better product.

I'll pay more for the right item delivering to my door but only if it's what I actually want* or much cheaper* and I can live with the cheaper.


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