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Control SL
Fastest XC wheels in the real world
Control SL
Fastest XC wheels in the real world
Aero, Stable, Light, Efficient? Yes Please!
1240 grams is an obscenely light weight when talking about mountain bike wheelsets, the kind of weight that XC racers dream about. But light weight alone is no longer enough. So, we engineered the new Control SL wheels to be sharp handling, smooth riding, extra durable, and 22% less likely to pinch-flat your tires, in addition to being some of the lightest weight production wheels on the planet.
NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES
Take a look at the shape of this rim. It took SIXTEEN different prototype shapes, and countless hours spent designing, testing, breaking and redesigning, to finally arrive at the rim you see here. It is lighter and stronger than any rim close to its weight. There’s just enough engineered vertical compliance to provide a comfortable, true tracking, long lasting ride. And those wider than usual flat tops atop the rim walls? It’ll take 22% more force than the competition to pinch-flat tires with these rims. The new Control wheels are packed with features that help bring out the best in your ride, but these rims are the stars of the show.
ASYMMETRY BEGETS SYMMETRY
The asymmetric design of the Control rim offers some subtle but important benefits. With the spokes offset to one side of the rim, this allows us to reduce the spoke offset that usually occurs at the hub. In turn, this means we can generate greater bracing angles for the spokes between the hub and rim, while also minimizing the spoke tension differential that often occurs between drive- and non-drive side spokes. The end result is a wheel that is stronger, laterally stiffer, more durable, and in the case of the Control, allows us to utilize the same length spoke throughout the whole wheelset.
REAR HUB
To build the lightest wheels, you have to consider every single component that goes into those wheels. The hubs on the Control SL are a prime example of that detailed scrutiny. They are the lightest Roval hubs ever made. Straight pull spokes use slightly less material than j-bends, so they were used here. The spoke holes are drilled at a precise angle to match the rims directly without any undue stress. The freehub utilizes DT Swiss’ EXP mechanism; 36t engagement, fewer moving parts than before, less drag, and outboard bearing placement all work to ensure that these wheels deliver strength and durability without any excess flab.
FRONT HUB
The front hub of the new Control SL is an exercise in engineering minimalism. We eliminated the front axle - letting the thru-axle of the fork handle that duty - and in so doing were able to reduce the size of the bearings and the diameter of the hub shell itself. The end result is an entire hub that weighs less than the hub shell of its predecessor. Strength, stiffness and reliability are all present and accounted for, without a single gram of excess material.
Product Specifications
Technical specifications
Carbon clincher, 2Bliss Ready, Zero Bead Hook 4mm FlatTop design
Carbon fiber
29mm internal
Two-cross
24h Front & 24h Rear
DT Swiss Aerolite Straightpull
294mm (Single Spoke Length)
DT Swiss Pro Lock Hexagonal Alloy 14mm 2.0mm
6-Bolt Alloy body, 15mmx110 thru-axle, 19 and 31mm OD end cap options included, Max Rotor size < 200mm
6-Bolt alloy body, SiNC Ceramic Bearings, premium-quality DT 180 internals and 36t EXP ratchet system, Max Rotor size < 200mm
SiNC Ceramic Sealed cartridge
Handbuilt
No-Fault crash replacement policy. Lifetime warranty.
Every wheel includes aluminum tubeless valve stems and individual spoke hole plugs, tubeless tape, and a spare spoke kit.
564g
676g
1240g
275lbs / 125kg
Tire pressure recommendations
Still Have Question If Our Components Are Right for You?
Call Us at 1 (877) 808 - 8154
How we made it
LAB TESTING
Design. Prototype. Test. Test again. Every step of the Control design and prototyping process leads to this; thousands of hours of grueling lab tests—simulating exaggerated real world forces – generating relevant data regarding strength, stiffness, weight, and other critical measures. We compare our test data to all the relevant wheels we’ve made in the past, and to every respected wheel in the market. The result? Control wheels excel in both qualitative and quantitative test results.
FIELD TESTING: NAME THAT PRO
Annika Langvad, Jaroslav Kulhavý, Christopher Blevins, Simon Andreasson, Alan Hatherly and many other top pros have tested (and won on) Control SL Team LTD wheels. Their continual feedback from prototype through production enables us to perpetually improve the performance of our products. All the victories they’ve racked up - UCI world championships, Olympics, and UCI worlds cups - are the ultimate proof of concept.