The XCX+ wheelset pack in a lot of technology from the e*thirteen’s all-mountain and downhill offerings but in a lighter package.
The 6-degree pawl, 60-point engagement provides the trademark whir and instant pick-up. No matter where you are in the pedal-stroke, these wheels hook up and fire you forward.
Coupled with the super stiff feel that has become synonymous with e*thirteen wheels (in part thanks to large flanges found on the XCX+ hubs) you can be forgiven for mistaking these for more of a trail/moderate all-mountain wheelset. We reckon that in 32h guise (a 24h lighter option is also available) you can easily treat them as such too – we even gave ours some light downhill abuse.
A tubeless conversion kit comes included and the front is swappable between regular QR and QR15, the rear between 135mm/QR and 142x12mm through-axle options. At just 1,510g for the pair, this is an extremely light wheelset that makes its confidence inspiring strength even more impressive.
The XCX+ wheels aren’t the cheapest and you don’t get the flash carbon fibre bodied hubs of the TRS+ numbers. What you do get is a good trail wheelset capable of hitting just about anything bar full-on downhill duties.
This article was originally published in Mountain Biking UK magazine, available on Apple Newsstand and Zinio.