Conclusion

Like many components, mountain bike wheels are better than ever. It’s rare these days that a wheel test will throw up a catastrophic failure – something that was fairly common in the past. Technology and design have been standardised to the point where many brands know what works and so models share similar ideas and engineering. But as always, the devil is in the detail, and some wheels still ride very differently to others.

All the rims are aluminium at this price point, with the skinnier Xc-weight rims being easier to damage and buckle, but there’s no escaping how these lighter options (Hunt’s wheels in particular) bring a snappiness to climbing and accelerating that you simply can’t get from a 2kg+ wheelset. If that’s a compromise you’re willing to make, and live somewhere less chunky, lightweight wheels can feel fantastic on trail bikes, and outperform the cheaper wheelsets many complete bikes come with.

Of the two lighter XC wheels here, we’d take Hunt’s rapid-feeling XC Wides over Silt’s soft alloy XC wheels, even though the latter are supremely comfortable and could suit a flyweight rider. For the cash, few upgrades will have such an impact on ride quality as Hunt’s wheels, but the flip-side of that extra zip and surge is a sharper ride quality that shakes you around a bit more.

Of the three sturdier wheels more suited to enduro riding, Hope’s latest Fortus SC package blends its legendary hubs into a much more coherent package, with a lighter rim that balances speed and strength, rather than just being bombproof. The faster hub engagement is very noticeable, but we also reckon the Pro 5 hubs seem to roll much faster now, and we also preferred the quieter freehub whine too.

If your budget doesn’t stretch that far, you simply can’t argue with Nukeproof’s Neutrons, especially if you need a single replacement for a damaged wheel. They offer excellent value and a well thought-out package that simply works. The Neutrons don’t feel quite as snappy or zippy as either the Hope or Race Face wheelsets, but seeing as the very solid Race Faces are the most expensive on test, they’re harder to recommend.