I’m looking to upgrade my gravel wheeset for the first time as existing ones are showing their age.
I have a pinnacle arkose grave bike 10×2 speed. I’m looking at some Mavic Aksium as there are a pair not far from me for a decent asking price. Would the wheel-set be compatible? Decathlon advertise it as 11 speed compatible but would that include a 10 speed too? Complete novice in this field
Any thoughts, advice or recommendations appreciated
TIA
by LifeChampion4655
4 Comments
Yes, any 11sp hub is also 8/9/10/11 speed with the appropriate spacer.
Ensure the hubs match your bike – thru axle or quick release. They likely do, but you don’t want to buy QR when it’s thru-axle or Boost spacing thru axle when it’s standard, etc. It should tell you what type on the Akrose spec sheet (likely 12×100 and 12×142.)
Aksiums are comparable to most stock wheels. Not much of an upgrade, but a decent replacement if required.
I had Aksiums on my Synapse and would not class them as a gravel wheel by any means. If you are using your gravel bike mainly on decent surfaces then they should be OK but for mainly poorer surface riding, I’d consider looking at more robust options.
Uhm, those are road bike wheels, NOT gravel wheels. Do not get those.
– Get something with a decent inner width on the rim (preferably at least 24mm). This is suited for the wider gravel tires. Most road wheels have only 17mm internal rim width.
– Get something with at least 24 spokes front and rear. Mavic Aksium has only 20 spokes front, not sturdy enough for gravel riding.
– Any 11 speed wheel works with 10 speed with a spacer.
Look at options like the Mavic Alroad, Fulcrum Rapid Red 3 or 5, Hunt 4 season gravel, DT Swiss GR1600, etc. Any of those would probably be a decent upgrade from your stock wheels. Good luck!
https://www.backcountry.com/e11even-alloy-disc-gravel-wheelset-tubeless