Introducing the Send rims and wheels from Blackbird, a new component brand from Ibis Cycles. When Ibis set out to improve their industry-leading Ibis aluminum S35 rims the mission was simple; eliminate pinch flats and keep the tire sealed no matter what you hit.
Pinch flats occur when you hit your wheel hard enough to “pinch” the tire between your rim and that rock or root that you didn’t see coming. Hit hard enough and the edge of your rim, the bead wall, will slice clean through that brand-new tire you just installed.
To eliminate pinch flats, Ibis designed their bead walls with a hollow boxsection profile to remove the sharp edges and create a broad contact point with the tire. This box-section results in a stronger bead wall that doesn’t slice tire sidewalls and it doesn’t add any additional weight. The unique bead wall is used on both the Send 1 and Send 2 rims, but the Send 2 gets a little something extra.
If you ride hard, you know you’re going to dent your aluminum rims eventually and it’s your rear wheel that takes the brunt of the damage. You can bend back a bead wall but dent your bead seat (where your tire seals) and you’ll be walking back to the trailhead. You can’t bend the bead seat back, which means you can’t run your tires tubeless – at that point they’re worthless because tubes are dead to us.
To reinforce the bead seat on their Send 2 rims, Ibis have added a pair of ribs directly beneath the bead seat. The Send 2 gains 45g per rim because of this reinforcement but it is a small penalty compared to the weight of the insert you need to protect flimsier rims.
Are you looking for a lightweight aluminum rim with good strength? You’ll want Send 1. Need something a bit burlier? Choose Send 2. The Ibis Enduro World Series Team has been testing the Send 1 on the front and a Send 2 in the rear for the last two years. Four EWS racers, several EWS stage wins, three EWS podiums, one Swedish National Enduro Championship, and only one flat on race day. Mission accomplished.
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