Long gone are the days that cyclists are choosing the skinniest tyres available for their discipline. Riders are moving towards fatter tyres, for their performance as well as the enhanced comfort they deliver. Wider tyres require wider rims to create the optimal rim-tyre interface, and the industry has responded to the demand.
Direct-to-consumer brand Light Bicycle designs, tests and manufactures everything in-house. They’re at the forefront of rim innovation, and their latest gravel offering is a testament to that. Gravel racing is getting harder, and the ultra-wide and aerodynamic AG48 Disc rims are here to meet the needs of serious gravel riders and racers looking for unmatched performance, with absolutely no compromises. Wheels built around these rims will be able to handle anything you point them at, at speed.
Also seeing a makeover this year is the Turbo rim series, which is now even lighter than before, while keeping its aero credentials.
Why Light Bicycle?
Extensive R&D and rider feedback feed into the creation of new products
Light Bicycle is renowned for producing high-quality carbon rims and custom carbon wheelsets at extremely competitive prices. Extensive R&D and rider feedback feed into the creation of new products and Light Bicycle not only responds fast to market trends, but leads them too, promising riders access to cutting-edge technology. Headquartered in China, with a warehouse in the United States, the brand offers a wide range of rims and complete wheels for various disciplines, and products can be shipped worldwide.
All Light Bicycle rims are sold direct from the factory, and you can customise everything when selecting a wheelset, allowing you to create the perfect wheels for your ride. Choose from a range of hub brands, including Chris King, DT Swiss and Light Bicycle’s own hubs, and get several choices of other parts, including freehub body and spokes.
Ultra-wide, hybrid hook rim
A hybrid hook design provides some of the benefits of both a hooked and a hookless rim
It’s now common knowledge within the cycling world that wider is better: faster, smoother, grippier, more stable. Fatter tyres aren’t just for amateurs looking for more comfort — professional riders are demanding wider tyres thanks to their race-winning performance capabilities.
Wider tyres create a larger surface area, so more of the tyre is in contact with the ground, improving traction in corners, maximising comfort, reducing rolling resistance and preventing tyre squirm.
With a 35mm internal and a 48mm external rim profile, the AG48 tubeless-ready Discs from Light Bicycle are about as wide as gravel rims get. The AG48s are optimised for 45mm rubber, but you can go bigger still — up to 55mm wide.
A hybrid hook design provides some of the benefits of both a hooked and a hookless rim; the tyre-to-rim transition is almost as smooth as hookless, reducing drag, and a higher maximum pressure increases safety, reducing the chances of a blowout. Some of the fastest gravel wheels out there, the design helps smooth out the roughest gravel roads for a flowing, controlled ride feel.
The effects on aerodynamics
The science of these extra-wide wheels is that the air flowing over the wheel and tyre remains attached through the tyre-to-rim transition
It may seem counterintuitive that something wider, with a bigger surface area hitting the wind, can be faster than narrower counterparts that slice through the air. But physics and countless lab and real-world tests have proved this to be the case.
The science of these extra-wide wheels is that the air flowing over the wheel and tyre remains attached through the tyre-to-rim transition, reducing turbulence. On exposed gravel sectors that can go on for miles, you’ll save significant watts through reduced drag.
In aerodynamics, there’s the 105% rule; for the best possible performance, an external rim width should be 105% the width of the tyre. The strategic design of these rims, with a 48mm external rim, 48mm depth, and U-shaped profile which curves subtly inwards at the bead,makes them ideal for pairing with 45mm tyres, maximising crosswind stability and smoothing airflow. These wheels are built for speed.
Keeping weight down
Heavyweight technology is fed into a lightweight rim
Going wider with the same materials has a clear negative impact on weight. These rims are constructed from Light Bicycle’s advanced Flyweight carbon with optimised fibre placement to reduce weight with no compromise to structural integrity or durability.
Further updates to Light Bicycle’s range
Light Bicycle has updated the carbon layup of their flagship Turbo rims to shave up to 30 grams off every rim depth in the series compared to the previous iteration, with the 40mm depth now as light as 1277.88 grams (+/-3%) for the complete built wheelset. This unique rim retains its striking aesthetic and aerodynamic properties but is now even lighter, for punchier accelerations and faster climbing. Available in four rim depths (40mm, 50mm, 65mm and 78mm), there’s a product for every rider, from mountain goat to time triallist and triathlete.
Light Bicycle’s new AG48 rims deliver progressive technology to gravel racers looking to lead the pack. A full wheel build starts from $1026, and the lightest weighs in at just 1426.28 grams (+/-3%). You can customise your wheels and have them sent anywhere in the world directly from the Light Bicycle website. Browse Light Bicycle’s AG48 fully custom wheelsets, select every component and gain access to pro-level wheel performance at reasonable prices.
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