Wheelworks.co.nz, Handbuilt wheels by Tristan Thomas

The Stan’s ZTR Race are a rim I’ve wanted to build with since their release mid 2008 – a claimed weight of 284g makes them lighter than most carbon rims and is almost 150g lighter per rim than a Mavic 317. Light weight is one thing, but can they be stiff and durable?

I was reluctant to recommend these to anyone before getting some first-hand info on how they build and how they ride; after all to finish first – first you must finish. Luckily XC racer Cameron Wood approached me for a pair of wheels and we a struck a deal where he’ll be wearing Wheelworks kit for this year of mtb racing and rolling along on these wheels.

Cameron is a proper weightweenie: We were arguing over a difference of 3 grams between quick-release levers :-) He requested these rims and I was more than happy to build them up and let him guinea-pig them. I managed to talk some sense into him with hubs and we settled on DT 240s units – very durable despite being “very light” rather than “exceptionally light.”

Because of the light weight of the rims Stan’s has a few rules on building them; max spoke tension is a very low 97kgf and the choice of hubs is limited due to their bracing angle / nondrive spoke tension. The DT Swiss 240 is actually on the ‘banned’ list but after doing some math I figured they must mean the 6-bolt version as the Centerloc rotor version has a more suitable bracing angle than the Hope Pro2 and Chris King ISO which are both on the “ok” list. I ran my thoughts past the knowledgeable Bryce at the Stan’s importer and he agreed with my logic.

Spokes are DT Swiss Revolutions matched with black aluminum nipples. The brake rotors pictured are Stan’s aluminum and tyres are Stan’s Raven – both lightweight items.

1280g is very light for a pair of mountain bike wheels. The wheels felt stiff when I was building them but I didn’t have the chance to confirm this with the lateral stiffness jig – I’ll do this at some point though. If the durability of the ZTR Race rims is as good as the other Stan’s rims then they’re onto a winner.