Mavic Ksyrium Equipe v. Alex AT-450

genedan said:

Hey,

I picked up a pair of Ksyrium Equipes for around $200 to use as a pair of spare wheels in collegiate races. But the more I think about them, the more I feel I should use them as my primary set of wheels over the stock Alex AT-450's that came with my Trek-1000 circa 2002.

I'm not really experienced with wheels so I'm asking if it's a better idea to use the Equipes instead, with the AT-450's serving as backup. I know neither of these are particularly race worthy, but it's what I'm gonna use until I graduate, get a job, and get a badass bike.

So for comparison, I can't really tell the difference in weight between the two but it's my gut feeling that the Mavics are slightly lighter. The Equipes come with bladed spokes, 18/20 front/rear, whereas the AT's have 32 regular spokes on each wheel. The rim height for the Equipes is 24mm whereas the AT's have a height of ~20-22mm.

Oh, and another question, are 8-speed cassettes (SRAM/Shimano) compatible with the 9/10 speed hubs on the Mavics?

Wheels are there to get you there. Small differences in weight mean little to nothing. Reliability means everything. Use whichever 'feel' better to you, but both will work fine.

And yes, the rear hub is shimano and sram 8/9/10s compatible.