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Halo Vapour Carbon 650b wheels


With subtle water transfer decals and red alloy nipples in the mid-depth rounded rims they're stylishly low-key wheels. The deeply hooked rims are easy to turn tubeless with rim tape and an appropriate valve. However, while the external width is a chunky 28mm the curved lips mean internal width is a skinny 20mm so tyres over 2.2/2.3in can feel pinched and unstable.

While Halo wheels have been under some of the most aggressive pro dirt jump and freerider users for years, and we don't doubt that they've done a lot of testing on these rims, there's no escaping the fact we cracked the rear rim on a rock on the first run that meant an end to tubeless sealing. At 562$ a time for replacement rims they're relatively cheap for carbon but more expensive than an alloy rim.

While they're significantly stiffer and more damped in feel than the 465$ alloy Vapour equivalent the carbon wheels are 110g heavier at 1830g, which is definitely on the lardy side for a near 1500$ wheelset.

On the plus side conventional J bend spokes make crash replacement easy as long as you're careful with the alloy nipples. The latest 6-Drive evolution of the Spin Doctor rear hub engages quickly (12 degree lag to be precise) and we've always had good reliability results from over a decade of Halo hubs. Front hub adaptors stay in place when the wheel is out of the bike too. QR, 15 and 20mm front and QR and 142x12mm rear adaptors are included with the wheels and 135x12mm and 135mm M10 bolt kits are available as extras. SRAM XD freehubs can be specified when ordering or switched later.

Quality hubs and stiff tubeless ready rims but skinnier, weightier and more fragile than you’d hope for carbon.

Price 1380$
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