Specialized Roval Traverse AL Reviews

Model/Year: 2011

Pros: Have a nice look to them

Cons: They were OEM on my 2011 Specialized Enduro Expert. Have had them 3 months and have had 2 rear rims crush! Specialized won't cover either and I'm riding to rehab a broken back so I can't ride hard enough to crush a GOOD rim.

Recommendation: Only buy these rims if you want the headache of dealing with Specialized telling you they won't back up their rims!

Model/Year: 2010

Pros: They are fairly light, I liked the straight pull spokes

Cons: Well, were to start? Well the first is that it is not a 240 hub on these wheels it is the low grade older onx hub from Dt Swiss. Second is the aluminum free hub body slips on the steel ring in side and makes a horrible noise, when you need the power the most. You will need to loose the light weight aluminum one and replace it with the heavy steal one. Then after you think that is fixed you will become close friends with your specialized dealer as the steel hub will crack around the not so well thought out inner free hub bearing. I should mention that these will need lots of servicing to keep them sounding like new, Every time I hear a new noise on my bike it seems to be a damaged part somewhere on the wheels. I don’t think I’m hard on this stuff as it was sold as all mountain, I run fairly soft suspension front and rear and don’t do drops larger then 2 ft. I run high volume tires and not real high pressure, I’m 220lbs and a strong intermediate level rider.


Recommendation: Only buy these if you are a light person and don't push hard on your pedals. Oh and don't go through rock gardens or can't work on them yourself or climb technical stuff or want fast engagement. If you are a beginner AND weigh less then 175lbs or only ride xc they are probably great wheels.

Pros: Light, low rotational weight, easy to convert to tubeless. My favorite part of these wheels though are the DT Swiss 240 hubs... their SUPER easy to service and keep the weight XC low while the rims are strong enough to case into rocks (just don't make a habit out of it).

Cons: None really. There's lots of competition in this class of wheels so there are lots of options... these are a fantastic choice though.

Recommendation: They are everything an AM wheelset should be.