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Chinarillo.......... needs some carbon wheels too

by wheelz
Thu, Aug 02, 2012 12:32
6

Hi all,

Well its done a ton of miles on all sorts of roads now, so i took it into a reputable bike shop where they didnt know me to give it an eye over and service.
It came back with a clean bill of health and a million questions too. 1

So its now time to upgrade the wheelset.

I would like some carbon clinchers, either 38mm or 50mm that are obviously lighter than my mavic kyserium equips.

I live on the coast so its windy most days.

Oh and im not a millionaire either, i dont even mind getting them from china, (the frame turned out great), although i would pay a more this time for wheels bought in europe.

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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6 comments

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spongebob | 12 years ago
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1550g full carbon aero clinchers gonna set you back a fair amount I'd imagine though?

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spongebob | 12 years ago
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deep section wheels arent about the weight but about the aero, so you might not save any weight. I've got the Mavic Cosmic Carbones, probably the same weight as your wheels, not full carbon but carbon fairing so you can bash them about without worrying about them breaking.

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step-hent replied to spongebob | 12 years ago
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SammyG wrote:

deep section wheels arent about the weight but about the aero, so you might not save any weight. I've got the Mavic Cosmic Carbones, probably the same weight as your wheels, not full carbon but carbon fairing so you can bash them about without worrying about them breaking.

The Equipes aren't especially light though, especially for a shallow wheel, so whether you can save weight really depends on the construction of the wheels you go for. Broadly:

- a wheel with an alloy brake track (usually made of basically an alloy rim with a carbon fairing, like SammyG's Cosmics) will likely not save you any weight. As SammyG says, the main benefit is in the aerodynamics (and the look, if that's your thing too), but braking is considerably better than on most full carbon wheels;

- a full carbon wheel will likely come out lighter (mine are 1550g on the scales, so a bit lighter than the equipes, and even lighter versions are around). Braking is fine in the dry, but not nearly as predictable as alloy in the wet - you get a longer period of clearing water off the rim and then they suddenly start to bite.

So you should work out whether you care about the weight, and whether you'll ride the wheels in the rain much. One option would be to keep the Ksyriums for wet days and get some full carbon clinchers to use on dry days.

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notfastenough | 12 years ago
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What Drheaton said!

As for the wheels, how much do you want to pay? PlanetX's deep section carbon offerings seem reasonably well-regarded. If I had the best part of £500 to spend I'd probably look at Soul wheels. The UK distie rep posts on here occasionally.

Fancy selling your equipes then? I might be interested.

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step-hent | 12 years ago
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UK built carbon clinchers will be a fair bit more than buying a chinese or taiwanese built wheel, usually.

If you want a UK builder, try wheelsmith.co.uk or stradawheels.co.uk. Wheelsmith is very well regarded and offers a wide range of rim and hub combos. Strada wheels get great reviews too. I've got a set of alloy Strada wheels on the way. Their service has been very good so far. Both builders use parts from the far east (where 95% of the carbon goodies are made anyway).

I also have a set of carbon clinchers from fuertebici.com. They were very reasonably priced and service was good. The wheels are factory built in the far east and sold by a UK based company. They've been going for almost two years now on the best bike and have been great - solidly built and they feel quick. Not too heavy either.

Hope that helps!

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drheaton | 12 years ago
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No advice on the wheels, but interested what questions the LBS had about your bike?

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