Velocity Cliffhanger Disc Brake Rim
The Velocity Cliffhanger is the touring rim for the big-tire era. Where the Dyad and Atlas were designed around 28 to 45mm tires, the Cliffhanger has a wide bed that supports 32 to 60mm tires properly, which is what bikepacking, dirt-road touring and modern adventure bikes need. It is eyeleted, comes in disc and rim-brake versions, and Velocity extrudes and finishes it in the USA in a range of colors.
This page covers the Velocity Cliffhanger Disc Brake Rim in 29in, 27.5in, 26in, 20in. The Cliffhanger comes from us only as a finished wheel: pick the hub, spokes and nipples, and we lace, tension and true it by hand in Georgia before it ships.
Design and construction
The Cliffhanger is a double-wall aluminum rim with a 25mm inner bed, deep enough to be stiff under a loaded bike and eyeleted at every spoke hole so it takes high tension without complaint. The wide bed gives a 40 to 50mm tire a square, stable shape at the lower pressures a loaded bike on dirt wants. The rim-brake version has a machined sidewall; the disc version is plain.
The factory recommends 110 to 130 kgf spoke tension. The Cliffhanger is a tube-type rim in its standard form; many riders run it tubeless with tape and a tubeless-ready tire, but Velocity does not list it as tubeless-ready and we build it for tubes unless you ask.
Velocity USA makes its rims in Jacksonville, Florida, from extrusion through drilling to anodising, and backs them with the kind of support a small American manufacturer can give: replacement rims years later, matching colors, and straight answers about what a rim is for. The published spoke-tension range of 110 to 130 kgf is on the high side for alloy, and it is part of why these rims build into wheels that stay true.
How it rides
A Cliffhanger wheel on a 45mm tire rides like a loaded bike should: planted, comfortable and undramatic on rough roads. The stiff section keeps a heavy rear wheel tracking straight, the eyelets keep the spoke bed happy under high tension, and the wide bed lets you drop pressure for comfort without the tire squirming.
For a lighter touring wheel on 28 to 38mm tires the Dyad is the choice; for tandems and very heavy loads on narrower tires the Atlas. For adventure and bikepacking on big tires, the Cliffhanger is the Velocity rim we recommend.
Specifications
| Wheel size | 29in, 27.5in, 26in, 20in |
|---|---|
| ERD | 598 (29in), 560 (27.5in), 535 (26in), 381 (20in) |
| Inner width | 25 mm |
| Depth | 21.6 mm |
| Drillings | 28h, 32h, 36h, 40h, 48h |
| Weight | 675g (700c/29in), 625g (650b/27.5in), 600g (26in), 430g (20in) |
| Material | Aluminum |
| Tire type | Clincher Tubeless Compatible |
| Brake | Disc |
| Nipples | External |
| Finishes | black, silver, polished, custom |
About this listing
Version notes. 29in, 27.5in, 26in, 20in, 28h, 32h, 36h, 40h, 48h, about 675g, 25mm inside, 21.6mm deep, disc. The other sizes and brake versions of the Cliffhanger have their own listings; this page is for this one.
The disc version of the Cliffhanger has no brake track, so the sidewall is a plain extrusion that saves a little weight and never wears; it is the one to choose for any disc-brake frame. The rim-brake version, listed separately, has a machined sidewall.
Sizes, fit and compatibility
The Velocity Cliffhanger Disc Brake Rim comes in 29in, 27.5in, 26in, 20in and 28h, 32h, 36h, 40h, 48h drilling, in rim-brake and disc versions; check the name on this page. We build the Cliffhanger on Velocity Standard and Race hubs, DT Swiss 350, Shimano, White Industries CLD, Phil Wood and Son dynamo hubs, usually with DT Champion or Competition and Sapim Race or Strong spokes and brass nipples.
Tire range on the Cliffhanger is 32 to 60mm. Pick touring or bikepacking as your bike type in the configurator and it recommends a spoke count and lacing pattern.
Build it with us
We build this rim to order. Open the Custom Wheel Program with the Velocity Cliffhanger Disc Brake Rim already selected and pick the parts around it; it is offered for gravel and road disc, track and road single-speed, touring, tandem and e-bike, mountain bike and MTB single-speed builds, and the configurator will not let you assemble a combination we would not build.
Spoke head is decided by the hub, not the rim: this rim builds equally well with J-bend or straight-pull spokes, and the configurator only offers the spokes that match the hub you pick.
Testing, standards and warranty at Velocity
Velocity USA rolls, drills, anodizes and builds its aluminum rims at its own factory in Grand Rapids, Michigan; Velocity states the extrusion comes from Profile Precision Extrusions in Arizona. Production moved there from Jacksonville, Florida beginning December 2016. Rims are sleeve-joined: a piece of extrusion shaped to the rim's inner cavity is bonded in and the join heat-treated to set the bonding agent, then the rim is drilled, cleaned of swarf and anodized in Velocity's own tanks. Spoke holes are drilled at an exit angle of around 4 degrees, alternating flange bias at every other hole.
Velocity publishes no impact-energy, fatigue-cycle, ISO 4210 or third-party lab figures and no per-rim maximum tire pressure; its tubeless guidance uses 45 psi (3.1 bar) as the threshold between one and two layers of Velotape. Warranty: all Velocity products are warranted against defects in material and workmanship for the life of the product, excluding normal wear and tear, accidents, misuse, improper assembly or maintenance; repair or replacement is at Velocity's discretion.
Velocity's videos
From Velocity
Certifications
- Made in USA claim — Velocity states it rolls, drills, anodizes and builds rims and wheels by hand in Grand Rapids, MI using locally sourced materials (all production consolidated there December 2016) (source)
Sources on Velocity's site:
- Tech - Velocity USA
- About - Velocity USA
- About Us - Velocity USA
- Go Big And Get Home: Clydesdale Wheels And YOU! - Velocity USA
- Manufacturing with Passion: Velocity USA's Grand Rapids Wheel Factory - The Radavist
Velocity publishes those results; ProWheelBuilder builds the rim into a wheel and does not test it in a lab.
Building it at ProWheelBuilder
Velocity USA makes the Cliffhanger; ProWheelBuilder is an independent wheel builder in Georgia, not the manufacturer. We measure the rim before we cut a spoke, bring the wheel up in three or four rounds with a gauge, stress-relieve it between rounds and true it last, then tape it and fit a valve if you want it tubeless.
Only compatible hubs and spokes appear in the configurator, impossible combinations are struck through rather than hidden, and the price is live.
Warranty
Velocity's warranty. Velocity warrants its rims against defects in material and workmanship for the life of the product, repairing or replacing at its option. Normal wear, accidents, misuse, improper assembly and poor maintenance are excluded.
ProWheelBuilder. Lace this into a wheel here and the finished wheel gets our own one-year warranty as well as the maker's. For twelve months we replace broken spokes however they broke, and the work on the wheel is on us - truing, re-tensioning, a rebuild where it is needed. If the rim or hub is covered by its manufacturer we put the claim in and chase it; if it is not, we supply an eligible replacement rim or hub at 25% off the current retail price. Carriage both ways is the customer's, and this does not cover wheels built from parts you send in.
Full terms are on our Policies & Warranty page.
Cliffhanger Disc Brake Rim questions
What tire width suits this rim?
25mm inside is the all-road and gravel width. Think 32 to 45mm tires: wide enough to support a gravel casing properly so it holds its shape at low pressure, narrow enough that a 30mm road tire still sits right if you swap wheels between bikes.
Is the Cliffhanger tubeless?
Velocity does not list it as tubeless-ready. Many riders run it tubeless with tape and a tubeless tire; we build it for tubes unless you ask us to tape it.
Cliffhanger or Dyad?
The Cliffhanger for 40mm and wider tires and bikepacking; the Dyad for 28 to 38mm tires and classic loaded touring.
What tires fit the Cliffhanger?
32 to 60mm. A 42 to 50mm tire is the usual pairing on an adventure bike.
Does the Cliffhanger work with a dynamo hub?
Yes. It is one of the most common rims we lace to Son and Shimano dynamo hubs for touring bikes.
Is it tubeless-ready?
Yes. Velocity lists the Cliffhanger Disc Brake Rim as clincher tubeless compatible; we tape and fit a valve when you choose the tubeless option.
Which spoke count should I choose?
It depends on your weight, terrain and the hub, not the rim alone. The configurator recommends a count from your bike type and rider weight, within the drillings this rim is made in.
Not sure? Text or leave a voicemail on 470-253-0929 or email info@prowheelbuilder.com — you will be talking to the people who build the wheels.
