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• 2008

Interbike 2009: Where's the catch?

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2009 Interbike: The Reynolds 92.2 rim is a carbon clincher without a bead hook, and the rim is wider than a standard tire.

Photo: Ben Delaney

With its RZR wheelset, Reynolds has plenty of buzz in its booth at Interbike. But the company’s forthcoming 92.2 rim is equally as remarkable, as the carbon model redefines how a clincher tire mounts to a rim.

Paul Lew works as a consultant for Reynolds. In addition to his cycling experience, Lew has built unmanned flying vehicles. His inspiration for the 92.2 came from aerospace designs.

“No aircraft wheel uses a hook,” Lew said, referring to the inner lip of a clincher rim that typically holds a clincher tire in place.

Dubbed a “Bead Seat Clincher,” the Reynolds system features a two-depth inner. When you mount a clincher on the 92.2, the tire’s bead falls easily down into the deeper valley inside the rim. When the tube is inflated, the clincher’s bead is pushed out into the top shelf. Since the tire’s bead circumference is substantially smaller than the rim’s outer, the tire sits snugly.

The rim has a double wall — it’s hollow. This means any heat build-up on the brake track on the rim’s exterior does not transfer to the structural wall inside where the clincher is secured. “It doesn’t warp from brake track heat,” he said.

The design holds 200psi no problem, Lew said.

But the most immediately noticeable difference with the 92.2 is its huge width — the rim is a few millimeters wider than an inflated 21c tire. Lew said wheel makers like Zipp understand the aerodynamic benefits of having smooth airflow from a tire to a wider rim wheel, which is why Zipp has rims that bulge near the brake track. “We just made the whole rim wider, and left the brake track smooth and parallel, instead of having to angle it, so braking performance isn’t negatively affected,” he said.

Reynolds expects to have the 92.2 ready for sale “sometime in 2010.”

Below are a few more looks at the 92.2, plus bikes from Cannondale, Orbea, Scott, Fair Wheel and Fuji.

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