Mark Adams In the Midwestern United States, Fat Bike traffic rivals automobile traffic. Let’s face it, the wheels on these rigs are purpose built. Purposeful pigs of a wheel size.
Steadfast, durable, ramble over anything wheels! So they named the new 80mm wheel after the most bad ass pig on the planet. The Mulefut. Wide enough to handle a sizable tyre patch, with strategic cut-outs to reduce overall weight. The STR tubeless system creates tubeless seals that burp less, leaving you with more air inyour tyre. Shorter Sidewalls trap air better when runningtubeless. When tubes are used, the lower sidewall of STR rim will eliminate many of the pinch flats that occurwhen the tyre is driven into the top of the rim. Also, the combination of lower air pressure and better tyre stability allows riders to go faster with bettercontrol.
Features:
- Rim: STR (Sun Ringle Tubeless Ready)
- Hubs: Cartridge, bearing, J-Bend all new SRC 197
- Spokes: Wheelsmith Double Butted
- Outer Rim Width: 80mm
- Inner Rim Width: 74.4mm
- Size: 26in (559)
- Brake Compatibility: Disc only
- Hole Count: 32 (Dual Row)
- ERD: 551mm
- Hole Offset: 19mm
- Weight: 1450g
- Additional: Bead humps retain the tyre bead to the rim
Sun Ringle Mulefut Wheel Review:
Sun Ringle are a quality manufacturer. The company is well represented at Track days, Cross Country rides, Ice races, and Ice Cross Downhill. The quality is there. You don’t find too many issues with Sun Ringle components.
So the Mulefut rim.
The 80mm is built to impress.
The STR (Sun Ringle Tubeless Ready) rim is a burly high quality unit, that withstands the stresses of a tubeless setup. Even if you decide not to run tubeless, you can still use a tube as the inner bead is burly enough to handle a high PSI and high flow tubeless tyre.
Being a rim width of 80mm, you can run a large volume tyre that will give you the float you need. I have been running a Schwalbe Jumbo Jim that is 2.3inch, 85mm wide, and will take a 80mm tyre with additional clearance.
The STR rims run an internal width of 74.4mm. You do need to run 2.2inch or larger for a comfortable ride. 1.8inch tyres will be a tight ride.
I have been running mine with a Tubeless setup, worked a treat.
The Mulefut 80mm rim will impress your riding buddies as the wider rim will improve on many of the benefits of 1.9/2.1inch rims.
The 28 hole rim is built with a 551mm ETD. You need to run a 6.5inch tyre to gain the maximum width. The ETD 81.2mm leaves you with 1.7 inch clearance. Which should suit even the knurly tires. Another positive is the 10.6mm rim depth. This depth allows for an impressively low air pressure. The sidewall of the rim are burly and due to the ETD/ETR the sidewall hooks on to the tyre bead and the tyre has a flush fit.
You can run a tubeless tyre with just 150psi. The Mulefut I came with a straight pull spoke that is all new and pretty burly. A Schwalbe fatbike comes with a star pattern that is quite burly. I don’t think you need worry about breaking spokes on these rims.
Due to the lower weight of both the rim and tyre. Compared to a standard racing rim. The low air pressure has you slooooowly rolling over obstacles. Where with the standard racing rim the compromises made to get under the minimum weight limit do not allow you to run a lower pressure.
My tyre choice is the Schwalbe Jumbo Jim 2.3 fatbike tyre. The 2.3 sidewall means the tyre is running at 90psi. This rolling resistance would be higher than an all mountain racing tyre.
My choice for ride would be the Mulefut 80mm Fatbike wheel plus the Jumbo Jim plus the Race Face Next SL crankset with the 36/22 setup. For a niggle free gear ratio.
I have been happy not going down the uber stiff monster truck tyres as these tyres haven’t let me down in the past. I have bruised my butt on a few occasions due the more aggressive sidewalls. The 2.1 or 2.25 will give you a more controlled ride.
First impressions.
2.3 fatbike tyres need wider rims to be comfortable and great fun to ride.
This Mulefut rim is great and is stout for a tubeless setup. The tube will probably give you less issues.
I would be happy running the Mulefut 80mm on my fatbike (I have tester), and this size 80mm option in 26in or 650b (more tester needed).
While fatbike tyres are known to be slow, I don’t think you will find the Mulefut 80mm an unpleasant riding experience.
If you run the 2.3 and the Mulefut 80mm rim you will be faster, you will float over roots and rocks better, and you will have a more enjoyable ride!
Storage and Hubs:
You can put a 2.5 inch tyre inside the wheel and still have 2.5 inches to run your star fangled nut.
The hub comes with the c
artridge axle, the bearings and the J-bend. The hubs are manufactured by HBE, a quality manufacturer. The width of the free hub is the common 197mm. The hub does come with the QR. On the inside of the rear hub, it has two old school 5mm holes. These holes can be used to run the ring without the QR.
Because the free hub body is 197mm wide you can slide your ordinary single speed cassette off the free hub body for a spacer. I have also been using the Demon Sport Chain links (with a single speed clip) to help the chain stay in place and not pop off the ring.
It comes with the cartridge bearings. This means that the bearings will spin smooth with less force applied to the free hub.
The free hub by itself is a quality piece of kit, and could be used with just on the non QR side of the hub.
So the uses are pretty much endless. The holes have enough clearance that you don’t need to worry too much about the Star fadged nut on your 29er. You can use an inner rim width of around 30mm, and gain the width from the internal body width.
The fatbike rim heads come with a QR (not on the 26in), so there is no worries of the QR not clearing the fork.
You can run a 2.25 inch tyre with the STR Mulefut rim in 26inch wheels and still run 2.5inch tyres with a 100mm free hub. The 26in version of the Mulefut comes with 32 holes. Check out my Sun Ringle Valor 26 wheels review.
The Mulefut 80fatbike rim is as utilitarian as the sausage roll. Which is great, as you can be a high flying gastronaut!
Time to roll.
Ok, so if you are thinking of a Fatbike as your next road/touring/commuting wheel you are in for an enjoyable ride.
The lower air pressure allows you to roll over cracks, small ripples and ditches without registering them in your brain.
The mandatory photo, look at the build height.
So I am going to ride a slightly more aggressive tyre. To see what sort of a ride is like with a standard racing rim and a standard aggressive All Mountain tyre. You can see over the roots, up and over the rocks and you can just cruise along!
