Cycling Equipment · Public discussion

Wheelset upgrade

Started by TheDoc · · Last activity · 3 posts · 1,414 views

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Cycling Equipment
Published
30 July 2010
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1 August 2010
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TheDoc
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  1. I'm sure this topic is often done to death, but i wouldn't mind some advice on which rims to look at for an upgrade.

    I'm about 3 months out from my first Half Ironman tri and I'm thinking that a wheel upgrade might help with a last few kph of speed. Currrently riding a Pinarello FP5 with Mavic Cosmic Elites. I've been happy enough with the Mavics, but they don't exactly set the world on fire with their speed and stiffness.

    Being 6'3" and around 80kg, climbing is my (only) strength, so I don't want the new wheels to compromise my ability to climb competitively. Also, the majority of my training is done along coastal roads, so cross-winds can be an issue.

    Price is a consideration (unfortunately) although one of my current ideas is to go for Zipp 303 for the front and Zipp 404's for the rear, so if there are any other wheels out there that are a similar standard for half the price I'd love to hear about them!

    Cheers for any help.

  2. The best aero wheels will net you roughly an additional 0.5-0.8 kph at 40 kph, not huge by any means.

    The Zipps are good choices, although I would likely go for the 404's all the way around. They're fine for climbing. Even if you just did 303's all around, you'd still be in great shape aerodynamically. Other wheels to consider are Mavic Cosmic Carbones. They're very aero wheels that aren't too bad climbing. They're only real weakness is the rear hub, but that's the case with all Mavic's boutique wheels. Corima Aero wheels are stellar in just about every aspect. Shimano's C50 is another excellent option if you run Shimano or SRAM. Campy's Bora One and Bora II are both excellent options, as is Fulcrum's Racing Speed (which is just a Campy Bora with a different lacing pattern and a different name. It's for Shimano folks who can't bring themselves to buy Campy stuff.) All three can be used with Campy, Shimano, or SRAM. You just have to specify the group you'll be using at purchase.

    Of course, you can go off the board and have your own wheels built up. Zipp sells their rims, and Edge Components makes rims, too, although the Edge rims have never been tested in a wind tunnel. I'd give the Zipp rims the edge in a custom built set. In fact, my next set of aero wheels will be customs with Zipp rims.

    Frankly, I'd skip Reynolds wheels. While they're structurally strong as hell, aerodynamically they're inferior, especially in cross winds. Zipp rims/wheels will perform the best in cross winds.

    I guess I should also mention HED wheels. They're very aero, their deep section rims are, but their hubs are [censored]. They don't sell rims separately.

  3. if you're on a tight budget then it's worth a look at planet x wheels they currently do 3 deep rim carbon aero sets . number 1 is 2 50 mm rims for £399 then it goes up to 1 50 mm and 1 82 mm for £399 then it goes up to 1 82 and 1 108mm rim for £399 this is the cheapest carbon wheel on the market and check www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk to see them in the shop

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