Wheels Question

Mike said:

I am quite new to cycling and have decided to look for a new set of wheels.

I have a Giant TCR2 all carbon bike, with Ultegra running gear, my current
wheels are Shimano 550 so I am looking to make improvements here.

I am just over 90kg but quite fit (too much gym), so I guess I would be
looking for something with a bit of strength as well as speed.

Does anyone have any recommendations they could suggest from their
experiences.

Thanks in advance

well my bike is running mavic ksyrium elites, the bike is all carbon, although im not that heavy, they are not the lightest wheels, but run great, good rolling resistance, pretty sturdy as well, they were an upgrade from my previous mavic cxp wheels, guess it all depends on how much you are prepared to spend as well ... thats always the catch.

for your weight and strength, I would recommend just about any deep dish rim (25mm to 30mm) in at least a 28 hole, but preferably 32, or maybe 36 hole if you consider yourself a masher.

I couldn't believe the huge difference in stiffness and marginal difference in 'perceived' speed when I first stopped using the good old Mavic CD4s a few years ago and got myself some Mavic CXP33s and CXP30s.

I'm a bit 'old school' when it comes to hubs -- I really feel that unsealed bearings run a little faster -- so, get some Ultegra or Dura-Ace hubs, straight gauge DTs, and you'll be laughing. 🙂

This is also a cheaper way to go. In my opinion, for the most part, the fancy, pre-made wheelsets aren't worth the money.

I'm just over 90kg, and have a swag of wheels, including 32 spoke Mavic
Open Pro rims with shimano 105 hubs (F&R). I use these on my training
and commuting ride these days - they're bombproof and plenty fast
enough for anything but racing, and they're cheap to fix and replace
(rims *do* wear out). That said, I have used them for racing for 3
years and they've not gone without some wins. They're pretty light and
stiff for the price - a set of these is maybe $500-600 or so? You can
build them yourself or get a good LBS to build them for you. They're a
good bet for general riding, that's for sure. No [censored]-factor at the
cafe, but why exactly is one riding a bike? For a handjob at cafe
[censored]? 🙂 I digress ... I've also got a swish front wheel, running a
DT-swiss RR1.1 rim with a Hugi 240 hub - very nice rolling hub and a
good equivalent to the openpro/105 combo for a few dollars more. That
front wheel cost $300, but that was mates rates, I'd expect it to be
maybe $350 or so retail? It's nice and stiff, and light enough (you're
90kg+, light weight wheels will make very little difference to your
climbing).

My race wheels are at present Bontrager Race-X-lite aeros - I got these
with my racebike, but I would not have bought them unless they were
bundled. That said, they have advantages over the ubicutous Ksyriums
(that everyone has, because everyone has them ...Mavic are very good at
marketing). Spokes are off the shelf items, so a broken spoke can be
(reasonably) easily fixed. They feel faster than my openpro/105's,
especially on descents, that's because they're deepish dish and have
bladed spokes (off the shelf DT aerolites I think - easy to get at most
places, and able to be run with normal 14guage spokes if necessary)

You mention you want speed. In general, wheels are either one or the
other (or somewhere along the line) of these two speed affecting
criteria - aerodynamic, or light weight. Depending on the sort of
riding you're doing, you go one or the other way. If you're not
racing, the few percentage points difference it may make to shave 100g
off the wheel weight, or add 0.5km/h onto your riding speed is probably
not worth spending a lot of money on. Wheels that are stiff enough and
light enough will be your best bet.

The more aero the wheel, the heavier. Aero wheels are faster on the
flat and on descents, but slower on hills and to accelerate (that
aerodynamic shape isn't free .. material has weight). Good sprinting
wheels also need to be reasonably stiff - but in general, unless the
wheel is some el-cheapo [censored], most anything will be stiff enough.

And almost anything (even an el-cheapo [censored]!) is better than shimano
road wheels.
The lowend shimano wheels are garbage. They're heavy, flexy,
unreliable and very hard to get parts for when (not if ...) the spokes
break. I think Shimano Aust has *finally* got some stock of their 550
wheel spokes - after 2 *months* of waiting for them. Lowend Shimano
wheels have one place - and that's back at the bike shop they were
bought from, as a trade-in on something decent! Did I mention they're
[censored] wheels? They're [censored] wheels ... get rid of them!

Mike said:

I am quite new to cycling and have decided to look for a new set of wheels.

I have a Giant TCR2 all carbon bike, with Ultegra running gear, my current
wheels are Shimano 550 so I am looking to make improvements here.

I am just over 90kg but quite fit (too much gym), so I guess I would be
looking for something with a bit of strength as well as speed.

Does anyone have any recommendations they could suggest from their
experiences.

Thanks in advance

I've got a set of mavic open pros on 105 hubs as training wheels that I've had no problems with and lots of kms. Not superlight but feel a lot faster than the shimano 540s and not that much slower than my deep dish race wheels. If I was getting another set of training wheels I would get something like these from bikepro.com.au and then retension them myself.

Shimano Ultegra Mavic Open Pro rim, built onto Shimano Ultegra 32 hole hubs, laced with DT-Swisse Competition spokes $499

For a 90kg rider I would stick with something like this rather than go for a lightweight racewheel.

Adam

Or, you could go Aussie and check out some Velocity wheels...

I had some similar questions and emailed Velocity direct, and they were
very, very helpful with matching the right wheels with what I wanted.

They don't sell then to you, though. You have to order them via your
LBS. Just for the record, I was looking for a strong, stiff wheel, and
enquired about their Deep V rims. The guys at Velocity steered me away
from the, and towards the Fusion rims...

Cheers,
Abby

Absent Husband said:

Or, you could go Aussie and check out some Velocity wheels...

I had some similar questions and emailed Velocity direct, and they were
very, very helpful with matching the right wheels with what I wanted.

They don't sell then to you, though. You have to order them via your
LBS. Just for the record, I was looking for a strong, stiff wheel, and
enquired about their Deep V rims. The guys at Velocity steered me away
from the, and towards the Fusion rims...

As (ex) resident fat crunt, I can vouch for the Velocity Fusions. Mate these to some Ultegra hubs with DT spokes and you`re laughing. Use a good wheel builder!

See:
tinyurl.comcutq5Open ↗

hippy

Stick with shimano hubs, either Ultegra or Dura Ace (bit of an overkill but last forever and ever)

Choose a decent quality rim and then find a good wheel builder, a good rim can make a poor wheel if not laced well. Also it doesn't hurt to experiment a little with spoke types and lacing. Perhaps 3 cross on drive side and 2 cross on non drive with 2 cross on the front wheel.

I would recommend the DT Revolution spokes (with alloy nipples...coloured if you are that way inclined). If you are a powerhouse it may be worth considering spoking drive side with heavier gauge spokes in the drive direction. (its a bit out there but it works)

Digression - I was in the mood for experimentation when I was building a new front wheel for my DH race bike a couple of years ago and decided to try something out. I took a chance and built the front wheel with DT Revolition Spokes but because I was going to be running a 8 inch hydraulic disk brake, I laced the brake side of the hub with DT Champion spokes in the braking force direction. (all up I saved about 60g...not alot but better than nothing) I figured what is the worst that could happen...if spokes start breaking I will just pull the wheel down and rebuild it with DT Champions. Well the wheel is still going and has had the hell ridden out of it, it has had the usual retensioning and truing that would be expected but has not had any of the massive failures that some people freaked out about.

Also after working in a bikeshop for 3 and half years I wouldnt pay for a mavic wheelset even if wholesale (I dont rate their hubs). Actually I wouldnt put a sealed bearing hub in anything bar a DH or equivalent bike again.

From what I have worked on / ridden top end shimano hubs are brilliant for the money and it would take alot of evidence to convince me otherwise. Even their lower end hubs are great given the price point.

As for rims I would have no problems putting on a good mavic rim, you just need to decide if you want aero or not. But given your weight you are never going to be a brilliant climber and are much more likely to excel in the sprinting and power areas. I would lean towards a good aero rim and let speed be your friend.

"Paulie-AU" <[email hidden]> wrote in
message news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I would recommend the DT Revolution spokes (with alloy
nipples...coloured if you are that way inclined).

If you go aluminium nipples, careful about the rim you use.

Sheldon: "They should only be used with rims that have eyelets of some
material other than aluminum, because aluminum/aluminum contact between rim
and nipple can result in chemical welding, immobilizing the nipples"

Jobst:
"The problem is less from corrosion than from destruction of any trace
of lubricant. The junction between aluminum nipple and rim is
essentially a weldment waiting for energy input. It isn't seized yet
but as soon as you turn it without lubricant it is."

Personally, I would go for brass. Not much of a weight penalty and easier to
true. No styles points for colour though.

"Paulie-AU" <[email hidden]> wrote in
message news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I would recommend the DT Revolution spokes (with alloy
nipples...coloured if you are that way inclined).

If you go aluminium nipples, careful about the rim you use.

Sheldon: "They should only be used with rims that have eyelets of some
material other than aluminum, because aluminum/aluminum contact between rim
and nipple can result in chemical welding, immobilizing the nipples"

Jobst:
"The problem is less from corrosion than from destruction of any trace
of lubricant. The junction between aluminum nipple and rim is
essentially a weldment waiting for energy input. It isn't seized yet
but as soon as you turn it without lubricant it is."

Personally, I would go for brass. Not much of a weight penalty and easier to
true. No styles points for colour though.

Quoted message said:

Jobst:
"The problem is less from corrosion than from destruction of any trace
of lubricant. The junction between aluminum nipple and rim is
essentially a weldment waiting for energy input. It isn't seized yet
but as soon as you turn it without lubricant it is."

Yeah true, I had mtb rims in mind where the greater majority of these have eyelets so this doesnt become a problem.

Does anyone do magnesium roadie rims? I have a set of mag DH (Sun) rims and they are really light and strong

"Paulie-AU" <[email hidden]> wrote in
message news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Jobst:
"The problem is less from corrosion than from destruction of any trace
of lubricant. The junction between aluminum nipple and rim is
essentially a weldment waiting for energy input. It isn't seized yet
but as soon as you turn it without lubricant it is."

Yeah true, I had mtb rims in mind where the greater majority of these
have eyelets so this doesnt become a problem.

Does anyone do magnesium roadie rims? I have a set of mag DH (Sun) rims
and they are really light and strong

--
Paulie-AU

Gemma had a set of Ti rims going although I don't know if they're clinchers
or for tubulars.