When you think of high end bike components, sustainability is maybe not the first thing that comes to mind. But it's always been a big motivation for us here at AVT as the majority of the brands we sell are manufactured in a pretty sustainable way, just check out this video from Chris King himself explaining the company's commitment to sustainability.
All of our USA made hubs, headsets and BBs are made in the USA which reduces the distance (and environmental impact) they travel to get to you. High quality materials and manufacturing techniques means they are extremely serviceable to last a long time, and can be upgraded to adapt to new standards.
Until now, carbon rims have always been an area lacking in sustainable options and it's a conscious choice on our part that in order to offer high performance carbon rims we have to compromise on sustainability. Obviously USA made carbon rims from ZIPP and ENVE go some way to reducing the environmental impact, but other than that carbon rims environmental credentials are pretty limited.
So, when we found out about what bike company REVEL have been doing in the rim production space we were excited to find out more. Using a new type of carbon construction called Fusion Fiber, REVEL have gone some way to making rims in a more sustainable fashion. You can read more about their production process here and how it stacks up against traditional carbon production.
In addition to the production method, REVEL's other main sustainability play is that the rims are 100% recyclable. Now when I first heard about these rims I'm sure like many others I read this and thought they were made of recycled material. The term can be misleading and it's worth clarifying that these can be recycled at their end of life... but they are not made from recycled material. Making high end components from recycled carbon is a more challenging project and likely some way off. So in the meantime addressing the issue of end of life recycling is a great first step in keeping more carbon fiber out of landfill.
OK, so all of this sustainability stuff is great but how do these rims perform? We laced up our first pair of 29er rims some White Industries CLD hubs (which are available to purchase from stock now) and are impressed with the end result which stacks up against other high end carbon enduro rims from Santa Cruz, IBIS, Zipp and others.
Don't just take our word for it.. BikeRumor, BIKE Mag and PinkBike have all taken a more in depth look at the riding performance of these wheels and they received high praise for their compliance which helps on rough all mountain terrain.
Available as a custom wheel build on any hub sold on AVT.Bike, prices starting at $1995 with White Industries CLD hubs and Sapim Race Spokes. We have this first 29" pair available right now with Black CLD hubs and spokes, for any other hub combination lead time is approx 12 weeks depending on hub availability.
