32” Mountain Bike Wheels are a thing, aren’t they?!
While they haven’t exactly had a moment yet, 32” mountain bikes (and wheels) are here. Whether they actually benefit cyclists and end up sticking around will be the subject of much gnashing of teeth. Either way, wheels being the focal point of my mental disorder, I’ve decided to dive right in. Further, with all the discussion and attention 32” bikes are getting, I thought I might contribute some premium wheels to support the evaluation of the platform.
· Judge not with $hitty wheels
· Verum to the rescue
· Oh, but spokes, hmmm
From my perspective (bias acknowledged but not apologized for), it strikes me as difficult to get the measure of a bike's performance if your only option is to strap a mediocre set of wheels to it. Sure, you can learn some things as long as the wheels roll, but you’re not going to know if you’ve got a top performer until you’ve got a great set of wheels (and tires). I’ve developed the Verum X30 to support bike builders and early adopters of the 32” MTB, and to try to give them a better measure of the format.
32” wheels present a couple of challenges, and raise a few questions; my curiosity is getting the best of me. An initial concern lies in my ability to design a wheel with adequate lateral stiffness. As with all Verum wheels, we start with an asymmetric rim profile which will help balance both the bracing angle and spoke tension between the drive side and non-drive side of the wheel. The quest for lateral stiffness, and my love of spokes, also resulted in our offering the X30 in both 32 and 36 spoke options. Of course, like all their Verum brethren, the X30 features our unpatentable TTS Technology… no tubeless tape required (#tubelesstapesucks). Oh, and here's a question: Should 32" wheels be built on Boost or Super Boost hubs? I'm not going to pretend to know the answer just yet.
"Hey there big fella" said the 29er to the 32er.
But wait, perhaps I spoke too soon. Seriously, I said I was going to build some “premium” 32” wheels, but my favorite spokes aren’t available in lengths anywhere near long enough to accommodate these behemoths. For the most part, I believe that the best wheels are built with bladed spokes, such as the Sapim CX-Ray spokes featured in so many of our wheels. The thin center section of such spokes provides tremendous strain relief, resulting in outstanding longevity. After a flurry of calls and emails, some pleading and the promise of fame without fortune, one manufacturer stepped up (thank you Alpina). As a result, Verum may be among the earliest wheel brands to offer butted, in our case bladed, stainless steel spokes with our 32” wheels.
The first build, show above, utilized Berd spokes. They are beautiful and lightweight, built with the impeccable Erase Components hook flange hubs. I’m really interested to see how the wheels compare once we have both steel spoke and Berd versions out on the trails. My instinct is that the steel spoke wheels will offer slightly better lateral stiffness. Likewise I’m eager to ride 32 and 36 spoke versions for comparison. Chances are I’ll be dusting off my torch to tie and solder some of these as well.
I’d love to hear from you (yeah you!) regarding your thoughts or interest in the 32” wheel craze… I know, a little early. Verum X30 (and X32) wheelsets should start to populate the website late Feberuary of ’26. If you just gotta have ‘em before then or would like to preorder, feel free to drop us a note.