Spank Tuned 350 Vibrocore 28h wheelset review

The main selling point of Spank's Tuned 350 Vibrocore 28h hoops is surely the Vibrocore insert, which fills the cavity inside the rim and is designed to dampen vibration.

In combination with a relatively shallow rim profile, this is claimed to provide a more forgiving and comfortable ride through harsh trail chatter.

I've been impressed with other Spank wheels with this feature in the past as well as the Vibrocore handlebars. However, this wheelset is designed for enduro, rather than downhill, riding and so forgoes the Vibrocore foam insert in the front wheel in order to save weight.

Spank Tuned 350 Vibrocore 28h ride impressions

Disappointingly, I didn’t find the ride particularly comfortable in back-to-back tests against 13 other enduro-ready wheelsets. If anything, many of the other alloy wheelsets on test gave me less hand pain on the same rough descents when tested in the same conditions.

On one rocky section, I hit a rock hard enough to cut two big slices in the Maxxis EXO+ casing tyres which were used throughout this test. Although rim stiffness and sidewall (bead) thickness can affect the chances of puncturing, I’d say this is more likely down to bad luck because the bead thickness is on par with most other alloy wheels at 2.25mm.

In fact, I’m impressed the rim is barely scratched by an impact that sliced through a tough tyre.

My test wheels remain free of damage and the hubs worked like clockwork throughout my (admittedly short) time on them, despite subjecting them to the roughest test tracks and deliberately punching the pedals to check the hubs can handle it.

Nevertheless, these aren’t the lightest alloy wheels for the price at 1,995g with valves and tape, nor do they deliver the best ride quality. That makes them hard to recommend over the competition.