metacomet profile

Very cool concept with these rims.  I like the compliance theory, and I think it could have more and more benefit the more natural the terrain becomes.  But they are in a tough segment with these currently though, as the weight and premium cost is going to be a big sales hurdle if the benefits of the design are most in line with technical back country natural terrain type of rider.  Perhaps too compliant to be smashed into all the things things at bike park speeds, and loaded up into hard packed bike park berms and blown out trails.  A bit too heavy to appeal to a weight conscious trail rider.   That leaves a small market in the middle and a tough competition with perfectly capable and affordable alloy rims at an equal weight.  The extra compliance really has to pay dividends in the experience, and the wheel system better be bombproof in order to attract and keep customers in that space.

A lot of depressions for sure but nothing that cut through the insert. On my previous set of rims and a different tire, (WTB i29 Asym's with a 2.3 Minion SS EXO) I cut into the rear insert in several places and pinch flatted through everything on a particularly dagger-like rock on one occasion. That rim, and most other alloy ones I have found all have a sharp and very narrow bead wall, which is not good for the longevity of anything. It got beat up enough over time to need replacing, but the pinch flatting was reduced to that one occasion. By the time I replaced that rim the insert was smoked. I know if I tried what I did with the Chromag/dd/cc on that set of WTB's, the outcome would have been very very different.  When I pulled that tire off and didn't see any cuts in the insert or real damage to the rim or tire, I was impressed.

My rear wheel setup on my primary bike is Chromag BA30, CushCore, and a 2.3 Maxxis Aggressor with the DoubleDown casing. This has been a really great and dependable system. I think I've had one flat on it, and that turned out to be a spoke through the rim strip after a janky and near vertical roller with a displaced rock in a short transition that became a perfect square edge for my wheel on full compression. It turned into quite a ride. I put air in the tire a few times and it wasn't sealing, but I couldn't find a hole in the tire. The 2.3 DD tire stretched over CushCore was a more challenging install, so I really didn't want to make the group wait while I wrestled the thing off and put a tube in there. So I decided I would just hope for the best and rode on the flat for 6 miles of gnarly featured terrain and I did not hold back on anything. I was partly curious about REALLY trying it as a run flat, and also about exactly how things would hold up through that kind of abuse. I figured the rim and tire and insert were all going to be hacked up. The sound of a flat tire on CushCore on that kind of terrain for six miles was crazy. Big roller after big roller after jump after drop. Pedaling that package was an effort for sure, but the 2.3 width stretched over the insert kept the tire roll to a minimum and gave me a lot more confidence to do things I shouldn't have been doing on a flat tire. I got home and pulled it all apart, expecting to find the insert cut to pieces and the rim dented and flat spotted beyond its useable life, and the tire full of pinch holes. The insert had some marks on it but no cuts. The rim had a few minor flat dings and needed a spoke wrench. The tire had no holes! I added two more wraps of rim tape and aired it all back up. I was honestly Astonished. I'm still riding this setup.

I think it was the combination of the Chromag BA's angled rim profile and the thick and rounded beadwall, the 2.3 width with a double down casing, and the CushCore insert. They all sort of protected each other and worked together in a way I have never experienced and never expected. The inserts have been worth their weight in gold to me. They are a bit of an inconvenience, but I think if all three components were made with each-other's strengths and weaknesses in mind, we could have these results in a more refined and hassle-free package.

I think its going to take a combination of approaches to really come up with a good solution.  Inserts like CushCore work too well to ignore their benefits and I think will always have a place, but rims and tires certainly have some catching up to do. 

The outward sloping rim and bead profile of the newmen/syntace rims is an awesome start for rim durability.  I've been running the Chromag BA30's for a year now and have been impressed, and although there are a few things I would change about them if I could, they are a favorite so far. They share a good amount of the outward facing bead wall of the Newmen and Syntace rims which has made them very resistant to deforming, while also having a larger radius to protect the tire from cuts.  

I love the thicker and rounder bead wall profile, but I would like if it was hookless for more material and matched the angle of the outer rim.  I'd also like rims to adopt an overlapping rubber/plastic strip like ENVE uses, as it would eliminate the rim strip, greatly increase the radius of the bead wall even more, and disperse impacts over a greater area further protecting both the tire and the rim.  This could also potentially make tire changes easier, as there is no tape to mess up and would be more resistant to having a spoke poking through it in a really hard hit.

CushCore makes a plus version now, but only in 27.5.  Are you running 29+?

Please continue to do these revisit's.  They rock, and they provide genuinely valuable insight and more accurately reflect the experience a person will have with a product over its lifecycle.   This is a big part of why your content is consistently above everyone else's.  

I tried running hucknorris for a time, but it wasnt quite up to the task and I was still getting pinch flats more frequently than I had hoped, and the thing got cut to ribbons in short order in the rear tire.  Enter cushcore for that application. 

I had the hucknorris set aside in a storage room, and the front was still in decent enough shape to be used again for something else eventually if I found a purpose for it.  Ended up putting it in the rear tire of my sons 24" Transition Ripcord and it provided a ton of peace-of-mind for running lower pressures for him, especially when we were riding at the bike park.  He had pinched a bunch of tubes prior to going tubeless on his bike.  Tubeless plus the hucknorris really increased the capabilities of the bike quite a bit for him. 

I'm also curious about the people you mentioned that quit running inserts over time.  I know I'm not giving mine up any time soon!

Very nicely written review.  The system sounds super intriguing, and I'm almost certain I'll give it a shot at some point in the near future.  

One quick question.  Did you notice a difference in the rolling resistance/speed when on flat or rolling sections, or situations when grip wasn't a priority?  Such as a jump line or rolling section where pumping and carrying speed is paramount.  With cushcore, I notice no loss in rolling speed in these types of situations, and if anything they may roll a little faster and carry momentum better.  Did you ever feel like the Tannus insert was increasing rolling resistance at all due to the way the foam conforms to the ground?

Thanks for posting this.  Happy to contribute.  

Shred well soon Lorraine!

I do Love short seat tubes, but it's a funny thing on a bike like the stumpy where the seat tube is interrupted so high up and effectively remains consistent through all sizes due to pivot placement/bent seat tube.  This makes the available insertion depth on those small sizes incredibly shallow. Always leaves you with a lot of exposed seat post above the clamp and really impedes droppers for shorter people/smaller sizes.  But I agree, most especially on a bike like this it is better to have the seat tube be shorter so the lower saddle height is at least available with a dedicated rigid post for someone that may use this primarily in the bike park.   But this thing just doesn't have the insertion depth for a 175-200mm dropper unless you have incredibly long legs, which is a shame given its intended use.

I was imagining having a dedicated chain, crank, and cassette for each bike since that would save the most amount of time and keep this practical, and not cause any uneven wear.  I wouldn't want to keep opening up the quick link to move the chain frequently.  You would just remove the lower pulley wheel to avoid having to open up the chain every time.  Might need a limit screw adjustment, but I think if you are the type of person that would be strongly considering this option, that is probably a 1 minute adjustment at the most.  If I could use the AXS shifter and derailleur on 10, 11, and 12 speed cassettes, then that would be a silver bullet.