[Closed] Wheel Upgrade - Benefits?

depends on that wheels you have. lighter wheels are of benefit obviously and you should notice the weight depending on how heavier the old and new ones are.

the bike came with Mavic XM319 and I mainly just do XC.

Learned on my 27.5 inch bike how important the "width" of the rim really is.
This bike has 25 mm inner bead rim width and 2.3 inch tires.
A combination which works so extremely well that I'am upgrading one of my other bikes (29 inch) right now. This had 19 mm inner bead rim width and comparable tires.
What I try now:
cheapest DT Swiss hubs (DT 370) with wide Fun Works rims (very comparable to PACENTI rims). Ordered at

https://www.actionsports.de/en/wheels/custom-wheels/mtb-disc-29/

Front wheel 80 Euros, rear wheel 110 Euros (both DT Swiss with Fun Works rims). Inner bead width 25 mm.
Custom build.

I'am not focused on weight. But cornering / traction with these wide rims on my 27.5 bike works so well that I'am upgrading the 29 inch bike as well.
Lets see if this upgrade will work as I'am hoping for.

The main benefit will be that your wallet will be substantially Lighter, and thinner, therefore easier to carry around. 😀

The stock Boardman wheels are ok for general xc trail duties, a bit weighty but tough with it.

You [i]may[/i] notice a slight weight loss and handling improvement with newer lighter wheels, but they don't come cheap.
I'd be more inclined to save some weight with some good xc tyres until your wheels need replacing.

I've upgraded the wheels on my bikes a couple of times and noticed significant differences. You don't have to get all spendy either, just something a bit lighter, better hubs, only little change, but a big improvement.

I changed out the rims on one set of wheels, not any lighter, but wider, much better ride now.

good xc tyres

good point.

Depends on your riding and wallet.

To me a big red signal here is when you say “Just XC”. Do you actually mean XC racing or ‘not DH or Enduro’? Most XC riders I know would never refer to it as ‘just’ but I know plenty of people that use the term almost as an insult... A wise man once reminded me that “it’s all XC...”

If you mean XC racing then cheap OR wheels are exactly where you want to lose some weight in a hurry. If you mean ‘Just bimbling on bridleways and towpaths’ then the stock wheels are probably fine. If you mean anything else, then you’ll probably see a benefit with wider rims and hubs with a better engagement but not necessarily much lighter than your current wheelset.

the bike came with Mavic XM319 and I mainly just do XC

On what hubs? You can't really judge wheels on rims alone. That said, XM319s are, whilst neither light or flashy, pretty good actually.

then you’ll probably see a benefit with wider rims

Definitely. For me: just for fun trail biking. Biking in a group where we always challenge our skills... Fun enough: the wide rims on my 27.5 bike had a BIG effect.

My post, above (25 mm rims): did that also to get rid of the Shimano XT hubs. Although generally like Shimano - these XT hubs drove me nuts. Front and rear. Have the impression that these hubs are still from Shimano "road bike" engineers. An mtb service nightmare!

Take everything off, weigh the wheels (I’m guessing 2100g)

Price up some nice wheels, then decide if a 500g weight saving is worth £400 - £500.

As above the wheels will produce some decent changes but at some cost! So depends what you do - I upgraded to a wider rim and only saved a few grammes, however grip, cornering and feel all improved with the wider rim, and the comfort was also better - I am heavy so went with Stans Flows, mate has Crests which for XC would be top. Obvs wallet will be lots lighter though!

If you want to go faster some light XC tyres + wheels will almost certainly make you go faster as long as conditions are nt too boggy.

I would recommend stans crest + 2.2 schwalbe tyres ie racing ralph, rapid rob or even thunderburts (for very dry conditions).

However that maybe not what you want to do.