Anyone running Hutchinson Rock Monster wheels?

[gburchett]

Saw video on the Rock Monster Beadlocks. I was wondering if anyone in here has them and what they think of them. I think they look pretty cool. Thanks

 

[Some Random Guy]

I have them. I love them for a shade tree mechanic. I can mount my own tires, and if I use beads I can balance them too. They're double beadlocked, so no intrusion if you match the insert to the tires correctly.
Some cons to think about. If you want them road force balanced, be prepared to bring them home and tear them down to rotate the tire on the wheel if they don't come out good the first time. Most shops won't do this for you, or will charge a lot of labor. Beads can foul valve cores, even the ones meant for beads. Then you have to do a full teardown to replace it because part of the core will get stuck in the stem. There are multiple inserts, so future tire upgrades require another $1,000 in inserts or you need to stick to specific tires. They do require maintenance. Be prepared to pull the face off (hard work) to clean the bead and re-torque everything down. I've gotten a lot of bark wedged in there causing slow leaks. They do get ripped up too. I listened to someone who said theirs still looked good as new, but mine were all scarred up within 2 months of wheeling. Guess I'm harder on them than they were. And Hutchinson doesn't sell just the face piece, so if you want it to look good you'll need a whole new wheel.
I'm still buying their 8x6.5 when I go full float, so don't think the list of cons is bad. But if any of those sound like they'd drive you crazy, these are NOT the wheels for you. Beadlocks in general probably aren't.

 

[gburchett]

I have them. I love them for a shade tree mechanic. I can mount my own tires, and if I use beads I can balance them too. They're double beadlocked, so no intrusion if you match the insert to the tires correctly.
Some cons to think about. If you want them road force balanced, be prepared to bring them home and tear them down to rotate the tire on the wheel if they don't come out good the first time. Most shops won't do this for you, or will charge a lot of labor. Beads can foul valve cores, even the ones meant for beads. Then you have to do a full teardown to replace it because part of the core will get stuck in the stem. There are multiple inserts, so future tire upgrades require another $1,000 in inserts or you need to stick to specific tires. They do require maintenance. Be prepared to pull the face off (hard work) to clean the bead and re-torque everything down. I've gotten a lot of bark wedged in there causing slow leaks. They do get ripped up too. I listened to someone who said theirs still looked good as new, but mine were all scarred up within 2 months of wheeling. Guess I'm harder on them than they were. And Hutchinson doesn't sell just the face piece, so if you want it to look good you'll need a whole new wheel.
I'm still buying their 8x6.5 when I go full float, so don't think the list of cons is bad. But if any of those sound like they'd drive you crazy, these are NOT the wheels for you. Beadlocks in general probably aren't.

I can’t believe it, but I guess you are the only that has the Rock Monsters. I really thought I would have gotten more feedback then from just one person.

Thank you for your input.