As we alluded to in the posts announcing our RCG36 road/cross/gravel wheels, there is a complement or stable mate or whatever you want to call it, which we're officially announcing here: the GX24.
So named because it expertly handles Gravel X whatever else you might want it to do, and is 24mm deep and 24mm wide internally, the rims are 390g each, with an offset rim bed and hookless bead. Of course they are tubeless ready, and the dimensions and specs are perfect for anyone using "super road" or gravel 650b tires, as well as being a great match for 2.1" to 2.4" mtb tires.
Pricing is very similar to RCG builds, with all of our favorite hub options (White Industries, Industry Nine, Chris King, and Aivee) readily available, with almost any other hub you can name (such as the Project321 hubs pictured here) available as full custom builds. Standard builds use black Sapim CX Rays and brass nipples, but of course round spokes are a custom option to shave some cost, and alloy nipples are an option to shave a few grams.
While the RCG has a hookless bead to accommodate the higher pressure road tires that often get used with them, the GX24's hookless bead trades high pressure tire capacity for ultimate impact resistance. The offset spoke bed reduces the tension differential between left and right spoke groups. We've seen some less than ideal offset spoke beds in other rims (the spoke be basically has to be built perfectly for it to provide a net benefit), all of the GX24 rims we've tested have aligned the nipples perfectly. With shallower rims, tire compression is more of an issue, and while the offset spoke bed doesn't reduce tire compression, it does reduce the negative effects of not enough spoke tension on the "off" side.
While the RCG36's 21.5mm internal width ideally covers the 25mm to 42mm tire widths that you're going to for 700c road, cross, and gravel, the extra width of the GX24 is more closely tailored to the slightly wider tire widths that people use with 650b wheels.
As with the RCG36, the GX24 is a from the ground up disc rim, meaning that it's engineered and constructed solely for use with disc brakes. More resilient and process-tolerant lower temperature resins are used, and no extra weight is just along for the ride to accommodate rim brakes and their issues and needs. GX24s embody what a carbon rim can be when you remove the brake issue.
The tradeoff between carbon and alloy for disc brake use, with properly spec'd products, is and will be carbon's lower weight and higher impact resistance (with stiffness being sort of a secondary benefit), versus alloy's lower price. We still love alloy rims and think they can be an absolute valid and first rate choice. Circumstances have developed along lines that we'd hoped but not necessarily predicted, and now carbon's benefits are available with a much lower premium. No product is right for everyone (which is why we have about 7 zillion products), but the GX24 adds a very compelling option to the lineup.
The first delivery is in process now, and builds will start shipping somewhere about second week of June.