Is it ok to use 24 spoke wheels for strictly XC use?

Question

ive been looking into getting the new XTR 24 spoke wheelset. i would use it for my XC race bike. is this ok to use? the wheels comes with a disc hub so i will be using LX hydros on them. ive heard that discs will damage low spoke count wheels - why?

i would be using this bike for only XC and road.

what do you know about Vuelta wheelsets? ive seen a lot on ebay and they are fairly inexpensive and look sweet.

does having a lower spoke count mean they will get out of true easier?

im about 150lbs with all my gear on, and i have never broken any other rims, just bent them a little.

Answer 1

Some wheelsets are OK for 24 spokes. But this will also depend on your weight. But probably for XC racing they're OK.

The deal with less spoke count is that you put more stress on each spoke. And disc brakes usually have more power than V's, so if you brake really hard you put more stress on the spokes than if you have more spokes to even the tension. To compensate this, several builders use stronger spokes to build their wheels, so maybe this is not a big deal.

What I would think about getting a factory wheelset like the XTR is that it is very propietary. If you eventually want to get lighter rims, or a better rear hub, you'll probably out of luck.

Anyway, if you're looking at the WH-M975 XTR wheelset, it has the new XTR hub looks nice with it's 32 point of engagements... but how much money is it? But Shimano also offers the WH-970 wich is for rim brakes, if that's what you want.

I don't know about how much money the wheelset is, but I would also consider looking at other wheelsets/hub combinations. Cris King, Hadley and Industry 9 offers hubs with more that 72 engagement points, and pretty cool ones.

Answer 2

How much do you weigh? Do you have a history of beating up your past wheels? Those are the main questions. As long as you really only use them for race day, they should be fine. Just be sure to check them after every race / ride and have spare spokes and the right tools to replace and true them if you need to.