Wheels - I don't want a factory wheel

[okgo]

itsnotarace said:

okgo said:

Yeh, for light wheels they are great all rounders, great for climbing and what not, but for flashy carbon deep section wheels they're usually heavy, and if you're riding alone then you've got to be pretty quick to make the most of the saving on offer, they say you really start to notive the difference above 20 mph, the majority of people are not riding at over 20 mph on the flat, and I've heard figures such as 22/23 as the point where they make the most difference, again, for most people that isn't possible for any period of time.

The aero benefits are really minute, we are talking a few watts in power saved over 40km. The whole point of them is the loss in weight, I saved 450g over my Mavics, along with the improvement in ride quality that a good tubular tyre provides. If you are just going to go for carbon clinchers then you may as well not bother as they are as heavy as alu rims, and braking is worse.

okgo said:

Its not dangerous, you just can't see every hole in the road, no crashes yet in 9 weeks of doing it.

You should get some video of these 30mph pacelines in the dark, would be good to watch

They make a huge difference in wattage terms when you're going fast enough, the thing is, 90% of novice riders outside of a race won't be. Yes, but you have gone from one end of the spectrum to the other, you've gone to probably one of the lightest tubs on the market. I personally will probably use clinchers as on the races I'm doing at the minute the weight won't be an issue and assuming I've got decent tyres I will probably not notice an extra 100g over my mavics anyway, BUT because my races are north of 25 mph averages I will get the benefit, not only in the group, but if on the front, and in the sprint too.

Not to mention that you can get an alu braking surface, so braking is good too.

Ha, I don't know if any of the guys have cameras, but it can be quite furious at times, I must add its probably a 24 mph average ride, but for certain sections we are belting along and you really feel like you're flying!

Edited by okgo on Thursday 22 December 10:52

[Rocksteadyeddie]

Handbuilts for training. Worth the extra IMHO for the ease of service, and if they're a bit heavier then so be it. I clonked one the other day and although it got bashed out of true it'll go back easily enough. Not sure a machine built wouldn't have popped a spoke with the size of bang it got.

Deep section rims are only of much benefit if you are TTing or racing. Below about 25mph I confess to not really being able to feel the difference. Above that I believe you can, although it could be pyschosomatic of course!

[Raoul Duke]

There is definately a noticable difference between shallow aluminium and deeper carbon rims once you get over 20mph. Its not huge, but you can certainly feel it especially when riding solo, my aluminum rims are Shamals so they are hardly a lardy set to begin with - yet the carbon clinchers i run are about the same weight, so there is no penalty in running them other than potential crash damage and wet weather braking.
Not all carbon clinchers are so light though, most are probably about 25% heavier at 1800g+, so the difference would be much more negligable and sprints / hills would certainly be more difficult.
Also in defence of factory builts, over two seasons of running Shamals on rough and ready Devon lanes i have only popped one spoke - even though they have been through numerous potholes etc. Had to order the replacement from Ireland as they are wheel specific and not that easy to come by, which was a bit of a faf - but that said it was hardly the end of the world!
However to continue contradicting myself i still fancy a set of handbuilt aluminium rims with Chris King hubs...

[itsnotarace]

Raoul Duke said:

However to continue contradicting myself i still fancy a set of handbuilt aluminium rims with Chris King hubs...

These are quite pimp





Very Rapha-esque

Spec is

Stan's No Tubes Alpha 340 rims
Chris King R45 Rear Hub 24, Pink
Chris King R45 front Hub 20, Pink
DT Swiss alloy nipples and DT Swiss Competition spokes
Hutchison Fusion 3 Road Tubeless

[Raoul Duke]

Not far off what i'm after.
Fairly set on Ambrosio Excellight rim, Chris King R45 hubs ( blue ) and silver CX ray spokes with blue nipples - should be fairly bling, in an understated way!!
Ambrosio rim:


Love the little detail around the valve!

[paranoid airbag]

DrMekon said:

I don't understand why anyone would use factory wheels outside a race. With the low spoke count, I'd be in constant fear of a pringled wheel and a long walk home. If you are training or out for a club run, I can't see the sense in them.

FWIW the last spoke I popped on shimano 20-spoke factory wheels was on an 18 mile ride (on the rear wheel), and I'm not entirely sure at what point on the ride it went I believe it was 14 or 15 miles in - it was expensive to fix, but it doesn't always leave the bike unrideable.

I'm not sure about factory wheelsets being 'harsher' either. Mike burrows (former bike designer for Giant) compared the give of several 700C wheels under load and got between 0.35mm and 0.5mm, but the load applied caused up to 16mm of tyre deflection! So tyre choice and pressure should overwhelm any difference in wheel choice.

eta: that said, I'd always prefer to at least have handbuilt training wheels, because of aforementioned ease of repair. And sometimes for coolness - those wheels are indeed pimp itsnotarace - I didn't think chris king did 20 spoke hubs.

Edited by paranoid airbag on Thursday 22 December 13:45

Edited by paranoid airbag on Thursday 22 December 13:49

[Rocksteadyeddie]

Love those Chris King wheels.