Shimano wheel durability

pete-<< LBS says they really haven't sold enough of these wheels to say much about durability.
Anyone know about these wheels?

If ya can'tr trust the bike shop...why the bike shop buy these things if they can't stand behind
them 100%???

Ask for some conventional wheels built well...these are 'racing wheels', with expected
reliability....

Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St. Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535 vecchios.comvecchios.comOpen ↗ "Ruote convenzionali costruite eccezionalmente bene"

Kinda like restaurant menus without prices.

If you have to as...

"Paul Westall" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

I am looking at a bike at my LBS that has some strange Shimano wheels... Should I get them swapped
for more normal wheels if I buy the bike?

"Qui si parla Campagnolo" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

pete-<< LBS says they really haven't sold enough of these wheels to say much about durability.
Anyone know

about

Quoted message said:

these wheels?

If ya can'tr trust the bike shop...why the bike shop buy these things if

they

Quoted message said:

can't stand behind them 100%???

Ask for some conventional wheels built well...these are 'racing wheels',

with

Quoted message said:

expected reliability....

Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St. Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535 vecchios.comvecchios.comOpen ↗ "Ruote convenzionali costruite eccezionalmente bene"

Thanks for the advice. I found out the wheels are Shimaon 540's. A couple of internet reviews noted
that they are "heavy" and "flexy". Normally I ride a mtb, so the shocks would obscure any "wheel
flex" I'm sure. Is this "flex" a valid point, or is it like the "stiff" aluminum, "compliant" steel
thing? At any rate, I think you are right-16 spokes seems a little sparse to me for everyday
riding. Paul

Paul Westall said:

Thanks for the advice. I found out the wheels are Shimaon 540's. A couple of internet reviews
noted that they are "heavy" and "flexy". Normally I ride a mtb, so the shocks would obscure any
"wheel flex" I'm sure. Is this "flex" a valid point, or is it like the "stiff" aluminum,
"compliant" steel thing?

You got it. Now, in fairness, some super-light wheels do flex (side-to-side, such as when climbing),
so much so that some racers loosen their rear brake's QR for a climb. "Heavy" is something you can
certainly measure, but most aero wheels are pretty heavy compared to box-section wheels at half the
price. But beware anyone who claims to be able to feel the wheel flex, or who ascribes serious
concern about a few ounces on the wheel. Weight is weight, weight on the wheel has no more
importance than weight in the water bottle in terms of speed.

Quoted message said:

At any rate, I think you are right-16 spokes seems a little sparse to me for everyday riding.

Yeah.
--

David L. Johnson

__o | To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or _`\(,_ | that we are to
stand by the president right or wrong, is not (_)/ (_) | only unpatriotic and servile, but is
morally treasonable to the American public. --Theodore Roosevelt

Paul Westall said:

"Qui si parla Campagnolo" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

pete-<< LBS says they really haven't sold enough of these wheels to say much about durability.
Anyone know

about

Quoted message said:

these wheels?

If ya can'tr trust the bike shop...why the bike shop buy these things if

they

Quoted message said:

can't stand behind them 100%???

Ask for some conventional wheels built well...these are 'racing wheels',

with

Quoted message said:

expected reliability....

Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St. Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535 vecchios.comvecchios.comOpen ↗ "Ruote convenzionali costruite eccezionalmente bene"

Thanks for the advice. I found out the wheels are Shimaon 540's. A couple of internet reviews
noted that they are "heavy" and "flexy". Normally I ride a mtb, so the shocks would obscure any
"wheel flex" I'm sure. Is this "flex" a valid point, or is it like the "stiff" aluminum,
"compliant" steel thing? At any rate, I think you are right-16 spokes seems a little sparse to me
for everyday riding. Paul

I've ridden flexy wheels on my full sus mountain bike. You DO notice
it. Especailly in the turns. Feels a little flakey (like it's a little less stable -- about to wash
out). Took getting used to.

David

David L. Johnson said:

On Mon, 02 Jun 2003 01:51:44 +0000, Paul Westall wrote: Weight is weight, weight on the wheel has
no more importance than weight in the water bottle in terms of speed.

I climb better when I drink my water bottle on the way to the trails and ride with just my hydration
pak (vs. drinking the same amount of water from my hydration pak). But, I doubt that the difference
in rim weight is the same as a water bottle 🙂.

David

David Kunz said:

I've ridden flexy wheels on my full sus mountain bike. You DO notice it. Especailly in the turns.
Feels a little flakey (like it's a little less stable -- about to wash out). Took getting used to.

Could you quantify that a bit. How much does your wheel deflect sideways when you stand on one
pedal? You can see this clearly at the top of the wheel because it deflects about the same and to
the same side as the ground contact point, changing the brake pad clearance. Have a look and
report back.

Also how much does you front axle go lower when you put your weight on the bicycle. You could
measure the distance from hub to rim by whether any spoke becomes slack, they having a preload of a
few thousandths of an inch if steel and a few tens of thousandths of an inch if Kevlar.

Jobst Brandt [email hidden] Palo Alto CA

In article said:

Paul Westall said:

Thanks for the advice. I found out the wheels are Shimaon 540's. A couple of internet reviews
noted that they are "heavy" and "flexy". Normally I ride a mtb, so the shocks would obscure any
"wheel flex" I'm sure. Is this "flex" a valid point, or is it like the "stiff" aluminum,
"compliant" steel thing?

You got it.

I disagree.

I've a set of 535s, the predecessor to the 540. Compared to standard wheels, I can feel some flex in
the wheels when climbing out of the saddle, and a slight bit of uncertainty on descents. It's not
objectionable but it is noticeable. They also ride a little softer than regular radial laced wheels.
I was suprised to notice this. I rode with the same tires (inflated to the same PSI) on the same
roads. Again, it is not a huge difference, but I have switched back and forth and I do notice it.

The 535 wheels are pretty durable. So far I have about 5000 miles on them and have needed to tighten
the rear spokes once. That is much better than I normally get. The wheels were still in true. I
could not locate a spoke wrench (it uses larger than normal spokes with larger nipples) so I made
one on a milling machine. They are heavier than many wheels, and I feel this when accellerating on
the flats or up a climb.

I have not noticed them being any faster due to being aerodynamic. I am pretty slow on the
flats though.

The wheels I replaced them with were cheap Performance something-or-others with a semi-aero rim,
radial laced 28 or 32 spoke front and 32 rear. They felt lighter and stiffer and had a harsher ride.
The rear also came with too-low tension and eventually started breaking spokes. So I am back on the
535s for the moment.

All in all the 535s are fine recreational wheels (IF you get a spoke wrench!) But a decent set of
handbuilt "normal" wheels will do just as well, cost the same and feel a little lighter. The
Performance [censored] wheels [censored] me off. I have a good rear wheel coming from Excel (32 spoke Ritchey
rim on an ultegra hub) and I'll pair that with one of my old regular front wheels and relegate the
535s to backup duty.

Eric