Having the right set of wheels for your riding style is the fastest way to improve the characteristics of a bike. It was once thought that rotational weight (your wheels) was the worst kind of weight you can have on your bike. The thinking was that it takes more effort in getting a heavy pair of wheels to rotate.

However, it has been proven that the energy put into moving a heavy wheel is stored within the wheel as kinetic energy. This means that heavier wheels roll further than light wheels canceling out any benefits of a lighter wheel.

Of course, having a lighter wheel means your bike will be lighter so any benefits will be from the fact that it is lighter overall and has nothing to do with the rotational effects. If you have time then check out this GCN video that explains it all in great detail.

What Do You Need To Know?

Again, the first thing we can ask here is, “what will we be using the bike for?” The answer to this will help you determine what to choose when considering the type of wheel setup you need.

I include tires as part of the wheel set. The other components are rims, spokes, hubs, freehubs and skewers. 

I will go through each element of the wheel. It's probably a good idea to buy a ready made wheelset and if that's what you want to do then the information below will help you make the best choice. 

That being said, I couldn't find a wheelset that had exactly what I wanted so I decided to build my own.

I'll start from the outside and work my way to the center. 

How to pick the right adventure bike tire?

The general rule is that wider tires will be more comfortable. However, there is a common misconception that having wider tires will slow you down but this is not always the case. 

If you come from a place that has a perfectly paved surface then skinnier tires may be the way to go.

Unfortunately, road surfaces can more commonly be less than ideal. Having wider tires with less air pressure can actually increase speed over rough roads.

When I started riding a bike the common thought was to have a skinny 23mm tire pumped to 120psi. This was considered the fastest tire setup and as I said already, if you are on perfect roads then this could still be an option. 

However, this does not allow for rough surfaces. When you're cycling with hard tires on rough roads each bump acts like a mini braking force. The bigger the bumps, the greater the braking force. 

Now you could just let a little air out but on skinny tires you risk getting pinch flats (this is when you hit a large bump or pothole and your tube gets pinched against your rim causing a flat tire).

Also, skinny tires with low pressure can be hard to handle on corners and don't roll well.

Fatter tires on the other can be ridden on lower tire pressures. This means the tire is able to absorb the rough surface without it acting like a braking force. 

This is why fatter tires are being considered more and more, even among professional riders. 

Wider tires feel slower

This adds to the myth that wider is slower. When people first switch to wider tires they will instantly feel slower.

I remember when I switched from 28mm to 32mm tires for the first time that I felt like I was riding so slow.

However, when I compared my times to previous rides I found that there was nearly no difference.

When you ride on harder tires you feel more of the bumps on the road. This vibration gives the effect of riding faster. But if I'm on a long ride then I'm always going to opt for comfort over the feeling of riding fast.

Knobby tires

If parts of your ride are going to be off-road then you're going to want a little more grip. It's possible to get tires that are slick in the middle for road riding but have knobs on the outsides that will help you when you get on to softer ground.

Or you can go full on mountain bike tires if you want, however this will require you to use a 650b rim. More on that in the rim section.

Compound

The compound relates to how hard or soft the rubber on the tire. Having a real hard tire might help for puncture resistance and may roll a little faster but they offer less grip than softer compounds. 

A soft compound is able to "attach" to the road more, meaning there is less chance of you slipping on corners and/or in wet conditions. Having a soft compound is my preferred choice. The only downside to a soft compound is that they will wear out quicker.

Puncture resistant 

I don't know about you but if there's one thing that ruins my ride, it is a puncture.

I remember buying a really expensive pair of tires a few years ago. They were a soft compound that offered great grip in the corners and were pretty light. However, I would get a puncture every second ride. They had to go.

That's when I found out about puncture resistance. Some brands use a puncture resistant strip under the rubber. It means you can have a soft compound with puncture resistance. The only downside is that they're a little heavier. 

Folding bead v wire bead

These refer to the material used to create the bead around the tire. The bead is the part that "hooks" inside the rim. These have been traditionally made from wire. This offers great stability between the tire and the rim but they aren't very flexible meaning they keep their circle form even when they're not on the wheel.

Folding bead tires are made from synthetic materials like Kevlar. This also offers great stability but has the added advantages of being lighter and (because they can be folded) you can take a spare tire with you on long rides.

Clincher, tubeless clincher and tubular 

This relates to the way your tire connects to your rim. The most common is the clincher type. This is the one we all know and have grown up with.

The bead of the tire hooks into the rim of the wheel which has high walls known as clinchers. Clincher tires need an inner tube to hold the air. As these are the most common, they are also the most affordable.

Tubeless clinchers are similar to clinchers however their side walls are slightly more pronounced inwards and they also have larger lands for the tube to sit on. This is to help form an airtight seal around the bead of the tire.

A tubeless rim will also have airtight rim tape to stop air from escaping through the spoke nipples. Liquid sealant is used inside the tire that plugs any holes you may get while out on the road without you having to even slow down. 

Ever since going tubeless on my mountain bike nearly five year ago I haven't had a single puncture. I still alway carry a tube with me just in case. If you were to let the sealant in your tire dry out then it would be ineffective so it's alway good to have a backup. 

I haven’t used tubeless on a road bike yet but seeing as you can use a light, soft compound tire with a low risk of having to stop to fix a puncture then this is something I think I will have to experiment with.

Tubular tires are mostly used by professional riders. The tube and tire are one unit and are held to a U shape rim using glue.

As this is a guide to showing you how to set up an adventure bike I‘m not going to discuss these any further. I only wanted you to be aware of it so that you don't get them for your bike. They are completely impractical for adventure riding because fixing a puncture at the side of the road is next to impossible.

There is literally an endless amount of tires you can choose from but it's not practical to have an ideal tire for every eventuality. Luckily, there are some great tires out there that can handle a wide variety of circumstances. 

What Rims Should You Get For Adventure Riding?

Before you decide on which rim you want you must first decide on which type of tire you’re going to use. As already discussed tubular should be avoided so that leaves clincher or tubeless clincher.

I was going to recommend going for a tubeless clincher as you can still use tubes if you wish and you could always try using tubeless in the future.

However, if you have absolutely no intention of going tubeless then an ordinary clincher will do you fine. I say this because tubeless clinchers are more difficult to get the tire off if you get a puncture.

Width

This applies to two sizes of the rim. The external maximum width and the internal width between the clinchers.

Having a wide internal width will give you more stability and air volume meaning more comfort. But you can go too wide if you're running skinnier tires.

The below chart shows you what internal width of rim you need depending on what width of tire you intend on riding.

The external width will affect the aerodynamics. Having a rim that's wider than your tire will actually improve aerodynamics.

Depth

The depth of the rim is the distance from the tire bead to the spokes. Having a deep rim will be more aerodynamic and the deeper you go the better this will be. And it also looks really cool.

That being said, having a deep rim in high winds can be a very scary experience. The deep rim acts like a sail meaning any crosswind will have you blown off course.

I remember a time when I rode a 70mm deep rim in windy conditions. The wind wasn’t any worse than what I would normally cycle in so I wasn’t expecting what was about to happen.

Cycling along a high wall, I came to an opening and the wind blew me right across the road. If there were any cars then I was dead. That was the last of deep rims for me.

Spoke count

This relates to the amount of spokes you want in your wheel. Factors to consider when choosing how many spokes you should have are as follows,

• Terrain
• Rider weight
• Baggage
• Maintenance

If you’re riding on rough roads, have a lot of weight to carry (including rider weight) then you will want to have more spokes.

Also, if you do break a spoke while out on the road then having lots of spoke can be favorable.

For example, if you ride a 18 spoke wheel and a spoke breaks you’re going to have a very buckled wheel. If you’re riding with rim brakes then you may not be able to continue.

However, if you had a 32 spoke wheel and one broke then you should be able to make it home.

Don't be fooled into thinking less spokes is better. Years ago the standard was 36 spokes, with some manufacturers going for 40 on the back and 34 on the front. However, manufacturers decide to make rims with less spokes to reduce costs while at the same time increasing the price.

They claimed that they were lighter and more aerodynamic. While these claims are true, the benefits are far less than they claim.

Firstly, it is logical to think that less spoke means less weight. But in order for your wheels to function properly you must use a stiffer, heavier rim along with heavier spokes.

As for the aerodynamics argument, unless your racing at the highest level then this too will be insignificant.

For adventure bikes, reliability is key.

It's actually hard to get a rim and hub that will take 40 spokes so try to find a wheel with as many spokes as possible. Don't go any lower than 28.

Rim Materials

Carbon and aluminum 

The biggest difference between carbon and aluminum is, unfortunately, the price. Due to a difficult manufacturing process, carbon wheels will set you back one to two thousand dollars, depending on brand and quality. The same set of aluminum wheels could cost anywhere from two to seven hundred dollars. 

So why would you pay the extra money?

Two things, weight and they look sooo sexy. You could save anything from 0.5kg to 1 kg of weight. That's massive but then again, so is the price.

Some would say that you would be better off losing one kilo of fat and saving the money for a holiday.

Carbon rims can also be more aerodynamic because you can have much deeper rims without adding too much weight. However, deep rims have their own problems discussed above.

The only place aluminum rims out-perform carbon is if you're using rim brakes. Braking on aluminum rims are far more effective especially in the wet. And because rim braking wears your rims you will eventually have to replace them.

Does It Matter What Spokes And Nipples You Use?

There are different types of spokes and nipples too. Nipples are the parts the stick through the rim and screw onto the spokes. You can get them in brass or aluminum with the latter being more popular these days.

Aluminum nipples are fine, especially if you're using a higher spoke count but they can fail due to fatigue and corrosion. For a more bombproof solution I would go for brass nipples even if they're a little heavier.

Thread Diameter

The next important part in spoke selection is the thread diameter. The two most common are 2.0mm and 1.8mm. Neither is better. It just depends on the nipple and spoke manufacturer. Just make sure the spoke and nipple have the same thread.

It's possible to thread a 1.8mm spoke into a 2.0mm nipple but the link will fail once it comes under load. For this reason, nipples are normally supplied with the spokes. 

The standard nipple length is 12mm total length with 9mm of thread lenght. the extra 3mm bore covers the spoke threads.

When using longer nipples you should be take note of the nipple thread length. If the thread length is over 9mm then you will have to buy shorter spokes. Don't assume a longer nipple auto matically means longer threads. some nipple may still have 9mm of thread but a longer bore section.

For example, if you calculate that your spoke length is 284mm (I'll show you how to do that below), and the thread length of the nipple is 12mm then you will have to reduce the spoke length by 3mm.

Don't buy longer nipples for the sake of it. Longer nipples are for rims that have thickened walls, such as carbon rims, so that you can get a spoke wrench onto it.

You can also use longer nipples if you can't get the exact right length of spoke.

By using the above example we can see if you needed a 284mm spoke but could only get a 280mm spoke then a longer using a nipple thread of 12mm will be better than a 9mm thread.

Spokes

Spokes are just little rods that hold your wheel together. Not much to them right? This is what I thought a few years ago but I quickly learned that there is so much more to a spoke than I first thought.

Not all spokes are created equal and this really is a case of “you get what you pay for” meaning if you’re going to buy a cheap set of spokes then they will be of low quality.

First up there’s the material. Most common is stainless steel for its strength and corrosion resistance. Cheap spokes are made from mild steel and coated with chrome. These are much weaker and will rust over time.

Titanium rods are another option if you have the extra cash. The only downside to using titanium spokes is that you have to use brass nipples and the weight savings won't be significant over a set of stainless steel and aluminium nipples.

That being said, if you were going to use brass nipples anyway then this would be a way to make a bomb proof set of wheels lighter.

Spoke gauges

The gauge of a spoke basically means the diameter of the spoke. Most people don't use these gauge values any more instead just reverting to the sizes in millimeters.

• U.S./British 13 gauge is 2.3 mm
• U.S./British 14 gauge is 2.0 mm
• U.S./British 15 gauge is 1.8 mm
• U.S./British 16 gauge is 1.6 mm

Spoke profile

Straight gauge - These are simple spokes that have the same circular profile from the hub to the rim.

Blade - these are the most aero of all spoke designs. They have a flat section along the mid section of the spoke that slices through the air as they turn. The only issue I have with them is they’re hard to lace into a rim.

Butted - butted spokes basically means there are different diameters along its length. 

Single butted spokes have a larger diameter near the hub but taper to a regular spoke size for the remaining length of the spoke. This is generally used for bikes intended to carry heavy loads. The hubs will also have to have larger holes to accommodate these spokes. 

Double butted spokes are basically a straight gauge spoke with a narrower section in the middle. A common size would be 2.0/1.8, meaning 2.0mm at the rim and hub (where the forces are strongest) and a 1.8mm section in the middle.

Triple butted - This is a combination of the above with and larger diameter at the hub and narrow section in the middle and the tapering to a slight bigger size at the rim.

These differences in diameter are created by using a method called cold rolling. By using this method the same tensile (pulling) strength can be achieved with narrower diameters.

Extra care needs to be taken when building the wheel as a narrower spoke can wind when tightening the nipple.

Straight or J bend spokes

These terms relate to the way the spoke is laced/attached to the hub. Straight pull spokes require the special hub flange in order to use them. On the front wheel they will pull directly while on the rear the spoke will cross one another. This is due to the rotational forces the rear wheel has to deal with while you pedal.

A J bend spoke is what we all know and grew up with. The end of the spoke is bent in a j shape (hence the name) and looped through a hole in the hub. The spoke then leaves the hub at a tangent crossing other spokes on its way to the rim. 

What's the difference?

Weight. A straight pulled spoke pulling direct is much shorter than a j spoke as it has a much more direct journey to the rim especially on the front wheel. They also look pretty cool.

Others will say that you're able to have a stiffer wheel because you can pull more on straight spokes. Technically this is true but this is irrelevant because both the straight and j spokes will pull the nipple through the rim before they come near their tensile limit.

Spoke Crossing

The spoke cross count is the term given to the amount of times a spoke will cross other spokes from the same hub flange on its way to the rim.

For example, a 3 cross pattern means a spoke will cross 3 other spokes. Below is an image of the popular three cross pattern with the spoke intersections highlighted.

It is possible to get a 1-cross, 2-cross, 3-cross and even 4-cross patterns.

Having a spoke pattern with a low spoke cross count will offer greater lateral stiffness and will be lighter due to the spokes being shorter. However, the wheels will have poor rotational stiffness. This is why you will never see a rear wheel with a low spoke cross count.

Having a high spoke count will obviously be the opposite. The longer a spoke is then the more it is able to stretch. This will help with giving you a softer ride while at the same time giving great rotational stiffness, meaning when you turn the pedals more of your power will reach the road. If you're using disc brakes then a high spoke cross count can give you more effective and smooth braking.

A 3-cross pattern is the must common as that's the most amount of crossing's you can have before you start to get cross over issues as the spoke leaves the hub.

Basically, if you want to have a 4-cross pattern you will need a hub that has a small distance between holes, maybe 30mm - 40mm, and you will need a large effective rim diameter, ERD.

Spoke length

There are many spoke length calculators online that will tell you the exact spoke length you will need.

Click on this link to be brought to leonard.io, Here you can simply pick the hub and rim, spoke count a cross pattern and it will tell you the length of spoke you need for each side of the wheel.

You will have to do it twice as you will have a different hub for the front and back wheel.

If you can't find your hub or rim on their database you can just use a spoke calculator. You just enter a few values based on the hub and rim dimensions. You will need to know;

• Are you using disc brakes?
• Effective Rim Diameter. ERD. This is the effective diameter of the inside of the rim. you should be able to get this from the supplier.

• The pitch circle diameter of each hub flange.

• The distance from the center of hub to the center of each flange.

• How many spokes you intend on using for each wheel.
• The spoke cross pattern for each wheel.

When you know know the above values (You should be able to all values from manufacturers) click this link to be brought to bergfreund.eu. When you input all your values it will calculate the length of spoke you need.

Hubs

A hub is what attaches your wheel to your frame so it's a pretty important part of the overall bike.

The axle is attached to your fork/frame using either a 9mm quick release with a 5mm skewer or for a more secure option there is now thru-axle or bolt through. These come in different sizes which I will explain below.

Bearings either side of the axle allow the hub body to rotate around the axle with minimal friction. On either side of the hub body there are raised flanges where the spokes are attached.

For disc brake wheels there will also be a bracket so you can install a brake disc. And on the rear axle there is also a freehub. More on this below but basically it's the part where you put your gear cassette and allows you to freewheel. And just to clarify, I don't consider single speed or fixie bikes to be adventure bikes so I wont be talking about them here.

There are a few things you need to know before making an informed decision when buying one.

Axle type and sizes

The type of axle you need is already decided by your fork and frame. You must get a hub that is compatible with your fork and frame. Note that your front and rear wheels could have different axle types. 

Most older or budget road bikes come with a 9mm quick release. If your fork and/or frame needs a thru-axle then its important to note that they're not all the same size, and again, this is determined by your fork and frame. There are 12, 15 and even 20mm thru- bolts. And although it's not yet common in road bikes it also worth being aware of a thing called “boost” hubs. This basically means that the hubs are wider by 10mm at the front (110mm) and 6mm at the back (148mm)

Brake type

It's also important to consider the braking type of your bike. If you're intending on using rim brakes then make sure you don't get a disc brake hub. You could still technically use them but if you're going with rim brakes then it's better to use the hubs that were designed to go with rim brakes. 

If you are going with disc brakes then you should know there are two different types. The most common being six bolt. As the name implies the disc is held to the wheel using six torx bolts.

Shimano have released another type known as centerlock. The disc slides onto spines and is held in place with a special nut.

Both systems work great. The centerlock claims it's better because it's faster to change the disc however you will be limited to using shimano products. 

Bearings

The bearings of the hub are obviously the most important part. If your bearings are sticky then your wasting power. Having free spinning but tight bearings is essential to your bike performance. 

Cup and cone

These are bit old fashioned but they're still a viable option, especially if you're someone who likes working on your bike.

The principal is very basic. The bearings are placed one by one in the cup of the axle then a cone is placed over them to keep them in place.

The tightness of the cone determines how free the bearings spin but they can't be too loose or your wheel will rattle. So there is a fine art to getting it just right. T

here also needs to be regular maintenance to reapply your grease and to removing dirt. Ball bearings are also very cheap so as long as you maintain them regularly you should always have smooth running hubs.

Sealed bearings

Sealed bearings come as an entire bearing unit including inner and outer races, bearings and sealing discs to keep the dirt out and the grease in. These can be a little trickier to change however if you bearings are of good quality then they should keep spinning for many months, even years. 

Ceramic ball bearings 

Most ball bearings are made from steel. These work well however they will eventually wear out. When your wheels start to rattle and shake from side to side then your balls in your sealed bearings have worn out.

Ceramic bearings are much more hard wearing so they will last much longer and they're lighter so another bonus for you weight weenies.

Yes they're more expensive but when you consider you don't have to change them as often then the extra expense starts to make sense.

Materials

The outer shell of the hub can be made up of different materials.

Steel

Budget bikes or bikes where the importance is strength and not weight, such as downhill bikes, then steel hubs are used.

Aluminum

These are the most common types of hub. The only problem with an aluminium freehub body (more on freehubs below) can get "chewed up" from the cassette.

Carbon

Carbon fiber hubs are the lightweight option but you're going to have to pay a lot of extra money. 

Freehubs

The freehub not only holds your gear cassette but is also responsible for transferring all of your power into the rear wheel while at the same time allowing you to freewheel when you stop pedaling. 

Instead of being part of the rear hub they are actually a separate unit that can be slid off the axle. While most free hubs will slide off by hand (when the wheel is removed from the bike) there are some brands that secure them with small bolts or nuts.

Within the rear hub shell are ridges where the pawls (the spring loaded arms that catch these ridges when you pedal) of the freehub slot into. These pawls are set at the same angle as the ridges.

When you pedal, these pawls catch on the ridges transferring all your power into the hub. When you freewheel these pawls push in and flick out over each ridge. This is what gives you the distinctive sound when you free wheel on your bike.

You can get 3 pawl or 4 pawl, even 3 pawl with notch on the side. This is all to increase your points of engagement and although this won't increase power output they will decrease the lag between engagement.

The lag is the amount you have to pedal before the pawls of the freehub engage with the ridges of the hub shell.

Oh and of course, you might have a preference of how you want your bike to sound as you're coasting. Different Brands will have different sounds.

Like most things on bikes these days, different manufacturers like to do things differently. Mavic rear hubs and freehubs work the opposite way around with the pawls as part of the hub shell and the ridges in the freehub.

Dtswiss have a completely different mechanism altogether. Instead of using the pawls, dtswiss use two identical rings that rub against each other. These rings have 36 angles ridges so when you free wheel they slide over one another but when you turn the pedals they lock together.

One ring is part of the hub shell while the other is part of the freehub.

Chris King also has their own type. So do Zipp who offer a magnetic freehub meaning they don't have the added friction from the pawls or rings so technically you should roll a little further.

There are even more types but I'll not go on. I just wanted you to be aware that they're not all the same. You won't have to worry about this when buying a new hub because it should all come together. This is obviously more important when you need to do some maintenance after a while.

It's important that you are at least aware of what a traditional freewheel hub is and how it differs from today's more popular freehub. Freewheel systems are still in use today.

The freewheel ratchet and gear cassette are one unit. If you want to change your gear ratio you just screw off the cassette and replace it with a different one. I say, "just" screw it off but in reality this is often a great task because the cassette is usually very tight as it gets tighter as you pedal. 

Freehubs can be easily removed if they wear out. 

Dynamo Hubs

If you intend on riding out in the wide for many days then you will need a way to charge your electronics. Free hubs are the best way to do this while riding.

As the wheel rotates the hub it generates electricity the same way a turbine would. This can then be used to charge your GPS, light and phone. I suggest charging a power bank as well so you will have a way of charging when you have stopped.

The issue with dynamo hubs is that they take more energy to turn. How much energy will depend on who you ask. Some guys swear that you wouldn't know you had one while others admit there is a noticeable difference.

Although I haven't actually ridden a dynamo wheel I did build one and when the dynamo is under load (plugged into a light) the wheel would only spin 2-3 rotations before stopping. I will create a video in the future to try to practically measure the difference between a dynamo and normal hub.

Skewers

I have already spoken about the different types of skewers above but I just thought I would mention it again because these are often forgotten about when upgrading your bike. 

If you want to get lighter skewers then titanium will be the material of choice as carbon doesn’t have great tensile strength at these small diameters.

Tubes and valves

Tubes have been my go to for years. If you get a puncture then replacing it just takes a few minutes and you're off again. And, as already mentioned, with puncture resistant tires you could go months without getting one.

Tubes aren't created equal though with cheap tube perishing quicker. Tube weights also vary.

Valve length should also be considered. If you're running deep dish wheels then you're going to need a valve long enough so it passes through the rim. Also, if you don't have deep rims then you're not going to want long valves.

For tubeless wheels it's easy to think that you're dropping the entire weight of the tubes. Although they are lighter you still need to get a valve installed and use sealant.