uprgrading from my stock botranger light wheels for the season. any suggestions for wheels and tires? want speed and durabilty, long term and versatile, that can take long rides and be raced on.
have heard a lot about Mavic's. anything further?
wheel and tire suggestions?
Fri, 04/01/2005 - 5:36pm
Fri, 04/01/2005 - 8:17pm
#1
Bontrager Race X Lite or Mavic Cosmic Carbone are good for racing. ADAs are even better, but somewhat spendy.
Your current wheels are durable, versatile, and good for long rides. Riding either of the above wheelset for training or club rides seems silly.
- Christian
Fri, 04/01/2005 - 9:15pm
#2
How about hand built?
There are a lot of people out there that can make you a very nice wheel by hand, for a very nice price. Maybe check that out. Mavic's are cool and all, but some nice chris king hubs with a cool Fir or Ambrosio rim is cooler!
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 2:32am
#3
Wheels
I have had good luck with custom built wheels by Colorado Cyclist (www.colorodocyclist.com) and they are reasonably priced with free shipping through April 6th. You give them your weight, riding style, and terrain and they will build and ship you a wheel. They put 14 gauge spokes on my wheels because I tend to break spokes. I prefer the Mavic Open Pro Ceramic rims because they stop fast in wet and dry conditions - critical in a paceline ride. I ride in urban areas and in two seasons have put 9,500 miles on these wheels. I haven't had a broken spoke and the wheels are still perfectly true. I plan on riding another 5,000 miles on them this season.
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 7:48am
#4
Breaking spokes is indicative of a poor wheelbuild, not of a problem with butted spokes.
Butted spokes actually tend to make for better wheels than straight gauge spokes because they are more elastic and put less stress on the nipples. 14g spokes have a nasty tendency to tear out the eyelets from the rims.
That said, I think the Colorado Cyclist wheels are ok, too. I think Mike Garcia at oddsandendos builds even better wheels, and is usually price competitive.
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 7:52am
#5
Re: Wheels
"""I prefer the Mavic Open Pro Ceramic rims because they stop fast in wet and dry conditions - critical in a paceline ride.""
Hard braking in a paceline?
""They put 14 gauge spokes on my wheels because I tend to break spokes.""
Straight gauge? 14-15-14 butted spokes make a more durable wheel.
""Chainwheel"""
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 8:02am
#6
Hard braking in paceline
"Yep. Situation - NYCC ""A"" ride, 12 riders, going 20MPH - going along fine for several miles. All of the sudden, I noticed the rear wheel on the bike in front of me stop/lock without and verbal or hand gesture warning - unfortunate but a real eye opener for me. Has happened to me only a couple of times, but I tend to prepare for the probable."
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 11:40am
#7
quick reactions
At 20mph, you cover 29.3333 feet per second. Even assuming you left a comfortable 3 feet between you and the rider in front of you, that would give you appox 1/10 of a second (.102272) to react from the time the rider in front of you locked up his rear wheel. That's phenomenal reaction time, but please stay out of any paceline I'm in.
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 9:17am
#8
Chainwheel, I just want you to know that my wife thinks you're my alter ego. Posts like this are not helping. :)
- Christian
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 12:20pm
#9
It's quite possible she's right Chirstian, I've never seen you and Chainwheel at the same time!! Sort of like Clark Kent and Superman (I'll leave it to you two to decide which is which).
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 2:02pm
#10
Aghhhhhh!!!!
"""I've never seen you and Chainwheel at the same time!! Sort of like Clark Kent and Superman.""
What took you all so long? Yes, it's true. Chainwheel is Superman. I mean Batman. I mean.... Holy Scandium!
Nah, I guess Christian and I are just on the same wavelength when it comes to bikes.
""Chainwheel""
(Mild-mannered cyclist on a great metropolitan newsgroup)"
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 9:06am
#11
Two suggestions:
1) A DT-certified wheelbuilder on West Babylon, Long Island. By day, he's an aircraft mechanic at JFK and he boasts of some pretty high end wheelbuilding equipment. Excellent advice, very professional and fast turnaround.
Frank Corda
[email protected]
516 381 7429
2) You may ask Richard Rosenthal to notify you the next time he holds a wheel building clinic. You wont save money but you'll be learning a valuable skill.
I have a set of MTB wheels from Colorado Cyclist that are holding up well but the first set they sent was was messed up. Customer service was quick to issue a replacement though.
I prefer to keep my business local if I have a good option.
Fri, 04/01/2005 - 11:33pm
#12
so stick with the stock wheels or go with the expensive hand made?
do wheels not make that much of a difference when i comes to long rides and training?
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 5:28am
#13
What team are you on?
"""do wheels not make that much of a difference when i comes to long rides and training?""
Are you a Cat 1 or Pro racer? Aerodynamic wheels are important at speeds close to 30mph and beyond. But aero rims tend to be heavy. If you're a recreational rider and expect new wheels to make you faster, I think you're going to be disappointed.
""so stick with the stock wheels or go with the expensive hand made?""
Handmade conventional wheels are usually a lot less expensive than boutique wheels. They also tend to be more durable and maintainable. And they use standard parts (hubs, spokes, & rims) that can be easily replaced, even years from now, when the boutique model has gone obsolete. And they can be custom designed for YOU.
For example, see:
http://www.vecchios.com/bikes.html
http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/wheels.html
What don't you like about your current wheels?
""Chainwheel"""
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 2:40pm
#14
Aerodynamic wheels are important at speeds < 30mph
My experience differs. I'm sure if I took the time to look it up I could find academic work, i.e. Damon Rinard, to support it. I don't race but do fast recreational and solo rides. For instance, a long, 18-23 mph solo ride, it's noticeable enough for me. Aerodynamics is another consideration as well as weight, durability and cost.
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 6:20pm
#15
Very True
Always giving credit were credit is due, you would have marginally beat me on Whiteface last year had we swapped bikes, and we would have been equal on equal bikes. I need all the help I can get, not being a lightweight...
Sat, 04/02/2005 - 4:13pm
#16
wheels as new
addition to bike for the season, with tires. looking for smoother and faster. current wheels are strong though thought about picking up some zip.
maybe take tires from 24's to 23?
Sun, 04/03/2005 - 4:47am
#17
Check engine
"""looking for smoother and faster.""
For ""smoother,"" you want wider tires.
""current wheels are strong though thought about picking up some zip.""
Zip depends mostly on the engine.
""Chainwheel"""
