Two hours into a gravel ride, the road opens up and you want to hold speed. Ten minutes later the track turns rutted and rooty, and you want control instead. Most gravel wheelsets ask you to choose between those two moments: wide or aero. Wide rims support high-volume tires, improve sidewall stability, and handle varied terrain well. Aero rims reduce drag on open roads and faster surfaces. The two profiles pull in different directions, because a rim deep enough to be aerodynamically meaningful tends to be built narrow, and a rim wide enough for serious off-road use tends to be shallow. That trade-off is what the SandStone SL32 LTD was designed around.
The SandStone SL32 LTD doesn’t make that choice. At 37mm internal width and 52mm deep, it is built to do both, and at a 32-inch diameter that combination is rarer still.
Why width and depth together is the harder problem
A 37mm internal width is genuinely wide for a gravel rim. Many gravel rims are considerably narrower internally, wide enough for a 40mm tire but not built to support the high-volume tires that make rough terrain manageable. At 37mm, the SandStone rim is optimized for tires from 50mm upward: a tire mounted here runs broader than it would on a narrower rim, the sidewall gets the support it needs, and the tire deforms less under cornering load and at lower pressures. You feel that as grip that holds when the surface is loose, and confidence that the tire doesn’t squirm under hard effort.
Wide rims typically sacrifice depth to keep weight in check. A shallow profile, 25mm or 30mm, is the common answer on wide adventure wheels. At 52mm, the SandStone rim stays in aerodynamic territory. That depth reduces drag on open gravel roads, fast descents, and exposed terrain where you carry speed. The combination of 37mm width and 52mm depth in a single rim is what makes the SandStone platform unusual, and what makes it work across a wider range of conditions than most gravel wheelsets can cover. The ART asymmetric rim design keeps spoke tension even between the two sides of the rear wheel, so the wheel holds its shape under load.
What the 32-inch diameter adds to that picture
Layer a 32-inch diameter on top of that rim profile and the picture changes further. A larger wheel rolls over obstacles at a shallower angle than a 700c: roots, rock edges, eroded track crossings. That means less speed lost to impact and fewer corrections needed to hold your line.
The 32-inch format is not common in gravel. Most frames built for 32-inch wheels are built for bikepacking or adventure riding, where clearance matters more than rolling efficiency. The SandStone SL32 platform takes that clearance and fills it with a rim that is built for performance, not just volume. You can read the full argument for 32-inch wheels in our article on 32 inch wheels for gravel bikes.
Why we think 32 inch will matter more on gravel than on a mountain bike
This is our opinion, but we are confident about it. A larger wheel is harder to bring up to speed, and that is the price you pay for the extra roll-over. On a gravel ride there are fewer changes of pace than in mountain bike racing, so you pay that price less often. A mountain bike also has suspension and geometry that already take care of much of what a technical section throws at you. A gravel bike has neither, so the bigger wheel does a job that the bike itself cannot do. We expect the roll-over of a 32-inch wheel to give more confidence on a gravel bike than on a mountain bike.
Where the LTD goes further
The SandStone SL32 LTD is the same rim, built to a higher specification. The hub is the DT Swiss 180 Boost with ceramic bearings, for the rider who wants the full-option build. Combined with silver Alpina aero spokes, the total wheelset weight is 1503g, 75 grams less than the standard SL32. A 32-inch setup is inherently heavier than 700c, so every gram recovered matters.
Twenty-eight spokes front and rear, four more than on the 700c SandStone SL, give the larger rim the structural depth it needs under load. Boost axle spacing (15×110 front / 12×148 rear) widens the hub flange base, which contributes to lateral stiffness in a wheel that carries more leverage than a smaller diameter. The brushed silver decals and matching silver aero spokes complete a build that is coherent in both specification and finish.
The LTD is an edition of 32 sets, made to mark the introduction of our 32 inch wheels. When the run is sold, it’s done.
SandStone SL32 and SL32 LTD compared
| SandStone SL32 | SandStone SL32 LTD | |
|---|---|---|
| Rim | 52 mm deep, 37 mm internal | 52 mm deep, 37 mm internal |
| Hub | DT Swiss 240 EXP Boost | DT Swiss 180 Boost, ceramic bearings |
| Rotor interface | IS / 6-bolt | Center Lock |
| Axles | 15×110 / 12×148 | 15×110 / 12×148 |
| Spokes | 28 / 28, Alpina Ultralite aero | 28 / 28, Alpina Ultralite aero, silver |
| Wheelset weight | 1578 g | 1503 g |
| Max. rider + gear | 125 kg | 125 kg |
| Optimized for tires | 50 mm and up | 50 mm and up |
The rotor interface is the difference that decides whether a wheelset fits your brakes: the standard SL32 takes IS / 6-bolt rotors and the LTD takes Center Lock rotors. Check which one your rotors use before you choose.
Who this wheelset is for, and who it isn’t
The SandStone SL32 LTD requires a frame with Boost axle standards (15×110 front / 12×148 rear), clearance for 32-inch tires, and room to run at least 50mm width comfortably. Those requirements narrow the field. If your frame fits, and you ride the kind of terrain where a wide, deep, large-diameter wheel earns its advantage, such as rough gravel, variable surfaces, and long days where you need both speed on open sections and control when it gets technical, then the LTD gives you the SandStone platform at its highest build level.
If you want the same rim without the ceramic hub specification, the SandStone SL32 with DT Swiss 240 EXP Boost remains in the range. The rim is identical.
Frequently asked questions
Will the SandStone SL32 LTD fit my frame?
You need Boost axle spacing (15×110 front, 12×148 rear), clearance for a 32-inch wheel with a tire of at least 50mm, and Center Lock rotors or Center Lock adapters for your brakes.
What is the difference between the SandStone SL32 and the SL32 LTD?
The rim is identical. The LTD has DT Swiss 180 Boost hubs with ceramic bearings, Center Lock rotor mounting and silver spokes, and it weighs 75 grams less at 1503g. The standard SL32 has DT Swiss 240 EXP Boost hubs with an IS / 6-bolt rotor interface.
Which tire size should I use?
The 37mm internal width is optimized for tires of 50mm and up. Our tire pressure chart gives the maximum pressure per tire width. The best pressure is almost always lower than that maximum.
Is a 32 inch wheel heavier than a 700c wheel?
Yes. The rim is larger and the wheel carries 28 spokes instead of 24 on the 700c SandStone SL. That is why we use the lighter DT Swiss 180 hub on the LTD.
View the SandStone SL32 LTD in our webshop.
