The foundations of these machines we devote our working, cultural, and recreational lives to, come in familiar shapes and proportions. The welded triangles that form the chassis. The arc of a drop style handlebar, or the subtle bend of a pair of fork blades. The round shark-finned cogs that comprise our drivetrains, amplified out to that same round shape that comprises our wheels. Perhaps what we love most about bicycles is just how simple they can be. There’s few hidden mechanics at work. It’s all right there in sublime working order. Balanced. Efficient. Rudimentary. The empirically understood physics of bodies in motion.

SimWorks is pleased to introduce our first rim developed in collaboration with Velocity USA- The Standalone 001. Built with the same extrusion as the industry workhorse Cliffhanger rim that has become a go-to for riders looking to build a quality off-road touring or ATB wheel, SimWorks has embellished upon this tubeless compatible, bulletproof rim with an aluminum eyelet for even greater strength and durability, as well as lending a more classic style. Offered as well in 2 unique custom anodized colors- Grey and Olive, to supplement more traditional black and silver offerings, we’ve made Standalone in your 3 favorite sizes, as well as offering black and silver in a machined side wall option. Regardless of the vintage and spec of the bike you might choose to incorporate the Standalone- you can rest assured that you’ll have a capable travel companion on your farthest flung adventures.

The bicycle rim, translates a great deal of what we come to experience while riding a bicycle. Tasked with not only providing a structure to attach our tires to, but also a halo to harness and amplify the energy created at our drivetrain; we expect our rims to be strong, but lightweight, perfectly round and sized to perfection for security and ease in their relation to our chosen rubber. The best rims, are the ones that once assembled, we essentially forget about.

When it came time for SimWorks to seek out a partner to aid us in developing our own rim offering, we knew that we wanted to work with Velocity from the start. A long standing relationship that has grown over the last 10+ years, with Circles acting as one of Japan’s largest importers and distributors of their products has provided a proven case study for how they conduct their business, the care that goes in to creating their products, as well as their emphasis on creating practical, durable and versatile products that provide outstanding performance, value, and safety to the people who hang their rims on their rides.

I had the opportunity to visit Velocity’s headquarters in my home town of Grand Rapids, Michigan back in June. There I got to take a peek behind the curtain to see their manufacturing processes, their anodizing line, and their wheel building operations first-hand. I had a general sense for how rims were manufactured, but to see that process broken down in to distinct operations was revelatory and gave me a newfound appreciation for what often times is a fairly unheralded component within the bike industry.

From extrusions of raw aluminum that arrive in long lengths that are then trimmed to exact lengths for their respective applications to the hydraulic bending mandrels and dyes that are utilized to achieve different rim sizes, each of these steps has been painstakingly distilled down to an efficient and accurate process. The joining of the ends of the rim, where a carefully placed sleeve is utilized to chemically bond the rim together eliminates a more traditional arc welding process that may weaken the joint, and minimizes the amount of grinding and blending needed at the joint.

Once checked for round and flat on an alignment table, the rims are loaded in to machines that drill out the spoke holes, and then finally they are sent for anodizing and eyelet installation.

The whole rim construction process is fairly intuitive and straightforward, but nevertheless impressive to see broken in to smaller operations and to get to watch material evolve from a long stock of aluminum extrusion in to something more recognizable and integral to our bikes.

Velocity still offers a machined side wall option on a selection of their rim catalogue, and they’ve gone to great lengths to ensure that they’re removing only the minimum amount of material from the surface of the rim to achieve that ground flat surface for rim brake users who are seeking the flattest most consistent braking surface obtainable. We’ve opted to offer Standalone 001 in a machined sidewall version in all 3 sizes, but only in black and silver finishes.

SimWorks as a brand relies greatly on our relationships and trust in our suppliers to create quality goods. We take pride in working with manufacturers in both Japan as well as the US who have outstanding reputations for producing quality goods and for driving culture and focus within their given niche of the cycling industry. We’re humbled and honored to get to place our brand name on such quality products and to get to continue to grow these partnerships. The Standalone 001 is the initial offering in what we hope will be an ongoing focus on developing exciting products with our partners and friends at Velocity USA.