Roval expands Terra gravel range with more affordable CL and C carbon wheels
Today Roval Components has announced three new additions to its adventure road and gravel Terra range, including two new do-it-all carbon wheelsets that are vastly more affordable than the pre-existing premium CLX offerings.
Of course, you can expect to find these new components on future bikes in Specialized’s range, but as the pricing shows, Roval is clearly intending for these new products to be desirable for aftermarket purchase, too.
Roval CL wheelset
First up is the new US$1,400 (AU$2,600) Terra CL wheelset, a product that drops US$1,100 from the top-tier Terra CLX wheelset despite featuring the identical rim, only gaining 104 grams, and perhaps offering increased hub reliability. Interesting, eh?
First up, the carbon rim (700 C only) used in the Terra CL is the identical 25 mm internal width, 30.5 mm external width, and 32 mm-deep U-shaped model found on the Terra CLX. This rim uses a hooked bead for wide-open tyre compatibility with tubeless and tubed clinchers, and it comes tubeless-ready with tape and valves installed.
Roval suggests these are a lightweight wheel suitable for anything from 28 mm to 47 mm rubber, and so these wheels may also find some acceptance in the “new road” (aka all-road) category that isn’t quite full-fledged gravel. The maximum recommended tyre pressures (up to 90 psi for a 28 mm tyre) remain well above what most people would and should run in the narrower tyre range.
Roval makes no aerodynamic claims for this wheelset, but the rim profiling is quite comparable to other 32 mm-deep wheels in the category that feature the word “aero” in their marketing literature.
Where these wheels differ from the flagship CLX is in the spokes and hubs. The Terra CL rolls on DT Swiss’ 350 hubs with a traditional 36-tooth (10º of engagement) Star Ratchet mechanism inside. I’d expected to see DT Swiss’ internals within a more generic hub shell, but instead Roval has indeed used the entire 350 assembly (right down to the stock white decals). And at a time when DT Swiss is having a few issues with its new EXP ratchet system, the 350s continued use of the well-proven Star Ratchet means a known reliability record.
The hubs are the straight pull version and are laced up with DT Swiss Competition (double butted) spokes and DT Swiss Hexagonal Prolock alloy nipples. There’s 24 spokes front and rear. The wheels are supplied with a detailed spoke tension, tension balance, and trueness report. Spare spokes and nipples are provided, too.
All up, the new Terra CL wheels are claimed to weigh a very respectable 1,400 g, and my test set that just arrived tipped the scales at 656 g for the front and 754 g for the rear (1,410 g total, including rim tape and tubeless valves).
I only just received these and so it’s too early to provide riding impressions (a short review will come in the future). First impressions are positive with easy floor-pump-friendly tubeless tyre inflation, well-balanced build quality, and proven components throughout. Roval’s lifetime warranty and crash replacement policy is sure to add value to these wheels, too.
The only issue so far is with the provided tubeless valves that feature a flat sealing washer. I immediately had slow leaking issues until I swapped in a cone-shaped washer – it’s an easy change I’d like to see Roval make.
Roval Terra C wheelset
Roval has also announced the Terra C, a US$1,000 (AU$1,600) carbon wheelset which still has many features in common with the Terra CLX and CL.
The Terra C uses a heavier hooked carbon rim that retains the same 25 mm internal width and 32 mm depth as the CLX and CL rim. That US$400 saving over the Terra CL comes with a 210 g weight penalty (1,610 g claimed paired weight) and uses the base-level DT Swiss 370 hub with the newly introduced LN Ratchet (18T version). The wheelset also moves to a double-butted J-bend spoke.
Terra handlebar
Roval has also announced a new gravel-friendly handlebar to join the existing carbon fibre seatpost. This new carbon fibre bar features egg-like shaping on the tops that’s said to be ergonomic. There’s a shallow 103 mm drop, a short 70 mm reach, and a 12º flare at the drops. Both sides feature internal routing for Shimano’s Di2 EW-RS910 junction box (the one that goes in the end of the bar).
Roval has this bar priced at US$275 / AU$400, with a 42 cm version said to weigh 200 grams. Available widths are to be confirmed.
And there’s a new Roval Rapide aero drop handlebar, too
Going along with all of the new Terra bits is an update to the brand’s aero road drop handlebar. The redesigned Rapide still features very wide-and-deep aero-profile tops like before, but the tops are now offset further forward to provide better wrist and knee clearance when sprinting. The carbon fiber is also textured for improved grip without tape, and there’s now a molded-in step for a smoother transition to the taped section than before. It’s even admirably light with a claimed weight of 225 g for a 420 mm size.
Roval is offering the new Rapide handlebar in four sizes — 380, 400, 420, and 440 mm — all of which use the same 125 mm drop, 75 mm reach, and 2° flare. Retail price is US$300 (pricing for other regions is to be confirmed).
More information can be found at rovalcomponents.com.
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