Velocity Cliffhanger Rim 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 Rim Brake Rim in 29in, 27.5in, 26in, 20in. The Cliffhanger is sold here only inside a wheel we build: choose the hub, spokes and nipples in the configurator and the finished wheel ships from Georgia, laced, tensioned and trued by hand.
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 | Rim brake-brake |
| Nipples | External |
| Finishes | black, silver, polished, custom |
This version
This version is the Cliffhanger in 29in, 27.5in, 26in, 20in, drilled 28h, 32h, 36h, 40h, 48h, about 675g, 25mm inside, 21.6mm deep, rim-brake. Where the same rim is sold in another size or brake type, that is a separate listing with its own page.
The rim-brake version of the Cliffhanger carries a machined braking surface on each sidewall, which is what a caliper or cantilever brake needs. It weighs a few grams more than the disc version and it is the one to choose for a rim-brake frame; the disc version is listed separately.
Sizes, fit and compatibility
The Velocity Cliffhanger Rim 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 into a wheel
This rim is live in our Custom Wheel Program for road rim brake, track and road single-speed, tandem and e-bike, touring, mountain bike and MTB single-speed builds. Start a build with the Velocity Cliffhanger Rim Brake Rim and the configurator opens with this exact rim pinned at the top of the Velocity list — you choose the rest of the parts and it validates every combination as you go.
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.
How Velocity tests its rims
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
Everything in this section is published by Velocity. ProWheelBuilder is the wheel builder, not the tester, and the rim reaches us as the maker ships it.
Building it at ProWheelBuilder
Velocity USA makes the Cliffhanger; ProWheelBuilder is an independent wheel builder in Georgia, not the manufacturer. Spokes are cut from the ERD we measure on the actual rim, the wheel comes up in stages on a tensiometer, and it is stress-relieved and trued before it goes in the box; tape and a valve go on if you ask.
The configurator filters to what fits, crosses out what is not made, and prices the build as you go.
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. Built into a wheel by us, this part is covered by our own one-year wheel warranty on top of the maker's. For a year we replace broken spokes whatever caused them, and we cover the labor on the wheel - truing, re-tensioning, a rebuild if it needs one. If a rim or hub fails and its maker covers it, we run that claim for you; if the maker says no, you get an eligible replacement rim or hub at 25% off retail. You pay the shipping each way. Wheels built from parts you send us are excluded.
Full terms are on our Policies & Warranty page.
Cliffhanger Rim 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 ProWheelBuilder the manufacturer of the Velocity Cliffhanger Rim Brake Rim?
No. The rim is made by Velocity; we are the wheel builder in Georgia who laces it into a finished wheel to your spec and stands behind the build.
Is it tubeless-ready?
Yes. Velocity lists the Cliffhanger Rim Brake Rim as clincher tubeless compatible; we tape and fit a valve when you choose the tubeless option.
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.
