EASTON EC90 SLX TUBULAR WHEEL SET

We salivate over light wheels, which is what we found ourselves doing when we first held the Easton EC90 SLX Carbon Tubular Wheelset in our hands. The combination of a shallow-depth carbon rimmed wheel with a low spoke count means light and fast. It's a wheelset that will almost climb by itself. Mount Washington, Mount Evans, Mont Ventoux, here we come. We fully expect Cadel Evans is doing the same and will pull these out for the big mountain stages at the Tour.

The rims are 24.9mm deep and a standard 21mm wide. The shallow shape is still strong enough to pass the impact tests that Easton puts all their wheels through. One change you'll notice with the shallower depth is the external spoke nipples; it's hard to fit internal nipples in a shallow wheel like this. They also use double-butted straight-pull spokes to add the requisite strength while still keeping the spoke count at 18 front and 24 rear.

The hubs are Easton's R4 SL and are 36g lighter per set than the R4. Weight shaving tricks include a pared down rear axle and the lightened R4SL freehub body. They have a tool-free bearing preload adjustment on both wheels, the axles are made from 7050 aluminum, and the pawl carrier has been redesigned to be wider and have a larger diameter to improve its ability to resist flex under high-torque loads.

The Easton EC90 SLX Carbon Tubular Wheelset is available with either Campagnolo or Shimano/SRAM compatible freehub bodies. The spokes are Sapim double-butted with 18 of them radially laced in the front wheel and 24 of them in the rear, laced radial on the non-drive and cross-two on the drive side. The rims, spokes, and hubs are Black, but the nipples are Red. They come with brake pads and quick releases. Easton handbuilt wheels do not have rider weight limits.