best retro mountain bike rim and why...

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Has to be the arai 7xs for me.They changed mountain biking,it meant we could ride uphill relatively easy,and they still look good now, even when anodised,gold red and blue,and now with modern rims increasing in width,it seems the 1.75 7xs were right all along
 
When I was 16 ('97) and weighed considerably less then I do now I went through about 4x rear 217's in just one summer (mainly pulling the eyelets through the rim)!! That was until I switched out to a ceramic Mavic 121... worlds apart and most importantly lasted! Also gave more tyre volume due to being wider and seemed to ride nicer! I've got a load of Campy rims, they do look the nuts, I've not yet ridden them hard so no idea about longevity but generally I like to run a more robust rim on the rear if possible.
 
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When I think vintage rims I think Araya RM 20's and RM17's. I think I had some fancy Mavics built up on my 91 Stumpy because the specialized OE rims were like cottage cheese. Can't remember which one I used. It was a good rim. I could never afford the fancy stuff.
 
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Always loved the 217, still do especially in sunset, looked great, light and strong for its designed use.
But the 121 ceramic is still king, especially for my riding style back in the day.
Could take a beating, wider allowing a square profile on the tire (trials) and grip from the ceramic coating.
 
A bit off topic perhaps, but just acquired some Rigida Laser 400, and looking at the rim profile
you would be hard pushed to tell the difference with a pair of Mavic Crossmax.

I always thought Rigida took a back seat compared to Mavic, but so far these rims have surprised me.
 
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ferrus":2w0u8sbl said:
Campag Stheno are my faves; wider and a tiny bit heavier than Ateks but still very light at around 400g (some weigh under). Really strong and stiff too. The only downside is their relatively thin sidewalls, but I can't say I've noticed them wearing out prematurely.
All Campag rims are good and are surprisingly strong for their weight.

Yep, I have a set and they are good and a bit less common than a Mavic, not that they are bad either.
 
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