Industry Nine Trail 270 Wheelset: Product Review

Everyone here at Worldwide Cyclery is a big fan of Industry Nine. Not only with their wheelsets, but also with their latest A35 stem, everything Industry Nine produces is designed, engineered, manufactured, and assembled at the headquarters in Asheville, North Carolina. Industry Nine is focused on integrating high quality machining with innovative design, bringing you unique components that make your bike one of a kind. A majority of our customers fit in to the trail bike category, and so it only made sense for us to check out the Industry Nine Trail 270 wheelset. We've got our guy Max Morgan on a custom set of Trail 270 wheels mounted up to his Santa Cruz Blur. Let's see what Max thinks!

Trail 270 Wheel Specifications

The Trail 270 wheelset is Industry Nine's attempt at an all purpose wheel that can be suited for a wide variety of different bikes. Just like how the Enduro 305 wheel is one of the most versatile wheels on the market, the Trail 270 can be mounted up on anything from your aggressive cross country bike all the way up to an all mountain rig. Industry Nine product is nothing but top shelf, and you can expect nothing but high quality machining and components from the American manufacturer. 

The Trail 270 wheelset is available in both a 24 hole and a 32 hole combination, as well as in both 27.5" and 29" models. Just like all Industry Nine wheels, the Trail 270 wheels can be configured with any axle and hub standard. Industry Nine's system chassis uses one-piece aluminum spokes that thread directly into the hub shell. The Trail 270 is now available with Industry Nine's all new Hydra drive mechanism featuring 690 points of engagement. All i9 wheels can be configured with either a Sram XD, a Shimano HG, or a Shimano Micro drive freehub body.

If you a sucker for custom colors to match your build, Industry Nine has got you covered. Check out Industry Nine's Ano Lab to design your own custom wheelset!

Initial Impressions

When you pull Industry Nine wheels out of the box for the first time, you will notice an incredible attention to detail and craftsmanship in the build. The Trail 270 wheels tested here are the 32 hole version configured with 12x148mm rear hub spacing, 15x110mm front hub spacing, and a Sram XD freehub body. You will even notice the initials of the wheel builder who assembled the wheels on the rim tape. 

Mounting tires was straight forward with no surprises. Up front I have a Maxxis Minion DHF 29" x 2.3" tire with their 3C MaxxTerra rubber compound and EXO casing construction. In the rear I have a Maxxis Aspen 29" x 2.25" tire with Maxxis' Dual Compound rubber and the same EXO casing construction. 

Riding and Performance

Having ridden the Enduro 305 for a couple years now, I was excited to get some miles on the Trail 270 and see if they were up to the task. Even though the Santa Cruz Blur only features 100mm of rear wheel travel, I have my personal bike build fairly aggressive just because of how much time I spend on bigger travel bikes. So just like the rest of the build, the Trail 270 might be a bit overkill for some riders that are purely riding cross country, but for me these wheels seemed like the perfect fit on the Blur. 

Right away you will notice how the Industry Nine System chassis helps you generate speed exiting corners. The aluminum spoke chassis does a great job balancing lateral stiffness and wheel deflection/traction. For each wheel and rim model, Industry Nine uses a different gauge spoke to give the wheel the right characteristics for its intended use. For example, the wider 30.5mm rim on the Enduro 305 wheelset is built with larger diameter spokes than what is used on the Trail 270 wheels. 

When you get out on the trail, you will find your wheels tracking across off-camber roots but then also slingshotting you out of corners. After riding the Trail 270 wheels for 6 months now, I haven't had any problems denting rims or even knocking the wheels out of true. Even though the Trail 270 wheels are lightweight, they are built to be thrashed on and can take a beating. 

If the Trail 270 wheelset is out of your budget, Industry Nine offers their Trail S wheelset that uses the same rim paired with their Classic hubs and steel J-bend spokes.  

What's the Bottom Line?

The Industry Nine Trail 270 wheelset is built for the rider that is looking for a top shelf quality wheel for the trail or all mountain bike. The Trail 270 wheel is at its best when you asking the most from your bike and your wheelset. Balancing lateral stiffness with wheel deflection/traction can be a tough task and Industry has done just that with their Trail 270 wheelset. If you are a rider looking to build a bike park shredding enduro machine, check out the Trail 270's big brother, the Enduro 305. 

Industry Nine rewrote the rules of engagements with their all new Hydra drive mechanism. Check it out!

About Me

Max Morgan is 26 years old, and lives in Brevard, North Carolina. Max grew up in Atlanta, Georgia and started racing downhill at the age of 15. He has now been racing professionally for the last 9 years, competing in the UCI World Cup series and U.S. Pro GRT series. To learn more about Max, check out Max's rider spotlight here! 
Instagram: @mxmorgan77