I would question if a carbon wheelset is worth it to begin with?
Enve M5 W/ I9 Hydra: 1388grams, $2550
Hunt XC Wide aluminium: 1647grams, $529
That’s a whole lot of dollars for a very small weight difference. Which I bet you could completely erase if you built Hunt rims to expensive hubs, using expensive spokes.
I’d reviewed the service procedure & it looked like something to send to Fox. I’ll get in touch with them & see if I can have a damper only rebuild. If not, I think there is a tech at an LBS who is FOX trained to work on their forks. I’ve got to do an air can service on my shock soon, it’s well past due & sticky. I just need more time!!
One nice benefit of sending to Fox, is that you can get it custom tuned while you’re at it.
Last I checked they did not charge extra for that, but that might have changed.
I was going to mention the Hunt wheels until I saw the Carbon (and subsequent warranty) preference.
I have the Hunt XC Wide and they’re awesome. To get lighter I’d have to spend a lot of money. There’s definitely other upsides to carbon though, warranty, potentially compliance/robustness, whether those are worth the money is up to the individual.
If I had no bills to pay etc I’d get carbon wheels, but I can’t justify it yet.
The whole compliance issue seems harder and harder to sell as an advantage.
Nowadays they all talk about making them more compliant, just like the aluminium wheels are…
Maybe there is something to it for a construction like the Zipp Moto.
It’s not that expensive to buy a rim + spokes + nipples and have it built by your LBS. certainly not compared to the price of a carbon wheel set
If you’re going to that level of hassle then I’d go Stan’s rims. Hunt rims are nice but not so light as to be head and shoulders above other options. My Stan’s rims I had built for my Anthem held the bead better and were lighter on paper. That suggests to me there’s not a lot of gain to be made building your own unless you’re speccing extremely expensive hubs and spokes.
Hunt are all using easily accessible and replaceable bearings and are excellent for the money.
I guess there must be some legitimacy to the other benefits as you don’t get the companies standing behind aluminium the same way.
Absolutely!
It was just an example. I built my own wheel using a Stans Flow rim, and it has been bombproof. So would also recommend Stan’s.
Not really a big hassle, lots of online and local shops that build wheels a la carte.
That’s exactly why I posted here - I’ve never ridden carbon rims, so not sure how they’d feel differently. The warranty (and robustness - e.g. the stuff Danny MacAskill does: Danny MacAskill Tests Santa Cruz Reserve Carbon Wheels - YouTube) is another argument probably.
I’ll take a look at the aluminum wheels from Stan’s for sure, I also have the Hunt Enduro Wide on my trail bike.
What else would you looking to upgrade, if you had a little spare cash? 
@mailman @adrian_r
I’m currently weighing up carbon handlebars. I just can’t decide if the dollar/gram equation adds up. My two considerations are potentially improved comfort and whether I’m adding unnecessary risk with the clamping/unclamping every time I travel to race.
I am looking at the potential of going for low riser bars and potentially lopping off a few extra grams at the steerer.
WCS 2x and renthal fatbar lite are currently the leading candidates.
ETA: I’m at a tricky point of having really good, upper mid-range gear all over my bike (ti rail WTB saddle, carbon cage, lightweight alloy Syncros bar/stem) and so to drop any weight requires jumping up a significant level. Wheels I’d have no problem running as I’m sure they’re tough enough for my riding. The carbon bars etc are slightly more of a concern as my bike is both my race bike and my all day pedal/medium-gnar bike.
I think my future wish list will be:
Cranks, Cassette, Brakes & fork.
If you haven’t already tried, I would try a set of inserts. At least for the rear tire.
Weight of inserts are down to 60-100grams, and they massively improve comfort on a short travel bike, and even more so on a HT.
I have a Pepi’s noodle, and previously had a CushCore XC (rear only). I really enjoy my set up 
. I’d only change if I stumble into a great big bucket of money.
Just curious, do you have two mountain bikes? Sometimes it’s worth having a “low-end” or “different purpose” bike, for those times when your bike is in the shop, or as a way to manage maintenance intervals so the bike doesn’t need to go to the shop right before a big race…
I have two bikes, same brakes, drivetrain, and axle spacing, so I can swap between them and swap parts if necessary…
I’m currently weighing up carbon handlebars. I just can’t decide if the dollar/gram equation adds up. My two considerations are potentially improved comfort and whether I’m adding unnecessary risk with the clamping/unclamping every time I travel to race.
@mailman Are you always flying for races? I’ll definitely take a closer look at a few different handlebars / stem combos, primarily for comfort.
I’m in a similar boat in that most of the components are XX1 and XT level, so not that much more to gain there - I’m also not interested to just shave weight (e.g. with brakes), also want to increase ride performance/comfort ideally. It’s also my race and now trail bike.
I think my future wish list will be:
Cranks, Cassette, Brakes & fork.
@adrian_r
Are you looking at cranks to save weight or also for some improved stiffness on climbing/comfort on downhills?
I have two bikes, same brakes, drivetrain, and axle spacing, so I can swap between them and swap parts if necessary…
@wake I am in the process of selling my trail bike, as I rarely ride it - it’s more fun downhill, but very rarely do I opt for it instead of my XC rig, since it’s so much nicer to climb on.
I do have a HT as well (luckily with similar drive train), so that I could swap my wheelset between them.
My main races are all flying ones (only 1.5hr flight but still). I have a local series that didn’t line up with my roster last year but looks like it will this year so that’s exciting. The local stuff is all balls to the wall XC racing though which while enjoyable and technical isn’t my main strength.
No, I don’t think there is anything to be gained from a stiffness perspective with cranks.
In general, I am not too worried about weight. Multiple studies have shown that a difference of 1 kg or so, doesn’t add up to much more than a few seconds on a climb. Which I realize is all the time in the world if your name is Schurter. But I have my hands full as it is to crack 4watts/kg 
My next bike will most likely be the comp build of the Epic Evo. So if I was to shave weight, I think the cheapest bang for buck would be to ditch the heavy GX cassette & crank.
Totally agree - I am aware that part of upgrading at this point is just the joy of having a new part on the bike 
The rainbow casette really hurts as an upgrade over the X01 from a $/g perspective, but it looks so nice!
Did you get a chance to get a couple pictures?
I’ve found a Race Face Next carbon handlebar in 6mm and 18mm rise at a not hideous price. The reviews suggest they are good, comfortable bars, and they have a reinforced stem area to minimise crush risk.
Seems ideal for me. I just can’t decide if going 3/4" rise and dropping my stem 15-20mm is worth it/too risky.
I wouldn’t fall for too much marketing hype. I destroyed a nice carbon (not SC, but still) hoop on my first hard hit in a rock garden on my E29. I have gone through a large number of wheels on that bike.
That said, I have done well with Crests in the past when on a budget. If I was trying to save some money and weight, I would totally build some up again for XC.