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Wheelset Advice (Read 26 times)

snapa55


    Does anyone have any opinions on the following wheelset companies?

     

    -Boyd

    -Williams

    -ROL

    -Bicycle Wheel Warehouse

     

    I'm looking for a 1400-1500g wheelset for around $700.

    5K: 18:43 (12/13) 10K: 42:50 (12/12) HM: 1:30:10 (3/14) M: 3:34:46 (5/14)

    Slo


      Since two of the brands listed only make road wheels I'm assuming that Road is what you are looking for.

       

      I have a set of ROL's installed on my crit bike and I am extremely happy with them. I did my homework before purchasing and wouldn't hesitate to buy another set.

       

      $700 is a pretty good price point to get yourself a damn nice set of wheels.

       

      What are you using them for?

       

       

      Will these be the only set of wheels on a bike that you will ride for training and racing?

       

      What are the road conditions like where you will be riding?

       

      A must ask question, how much do you weigh? The closer you are to the upper weight limit of the wheel you are buying the less likely it is that you will be happy with them.

       

      Clinchers or Tubulars?

       

      I don't know anything at all about The Bicycle Wheel Warehouse but I don't think you can go wrong with the other three. The biggest mistake I've seen people make is buying the wrong wheelset for their actual needs.

       

      Whatever you buy...contact the mfg's customer service and ask them to put you in the correct wheelset. It'll be well worth the phone call or email.

      Does anyone have any opinions on the following wheelset companies?

       

      -Boyd

      -Williams

      -ROL

      -Bicycle Wheel Warehouse

       

      I'm looking for a 1400-1500g wheelset for around $700.

      snapa55


        They'll be going on my new Felt Z4. I won't be doing much racing, maybe a sprint tri here or there.  Additionally, I have a century ride coming up in June.

         

        These would be my only set of wheels.  There isn't much rough terrain over here, the roads are well maintained.  I'm thinking clinchers.

         

        I fluctuate between 140-145.

        5K: 18:43 (12/13) 10K: 42:50 (12/12) HM: 1:30:10 (3/14) M: 3:34:46 (5/14)

        Slo


          They'll be going on my new Felt Z4. I won't be doing much racing, maybe a sprint tri here or there.  Additionally, I have a century ride coming up in June.

           

          These would be my only set of wheels.  There isn't much rough terrain over here, the roads are well maintained.  I'm thinking clinchers.

           

          I fluctuate between 140-145.

          At that weight you won't have any problem with any wheels.

           

          I'm impressed, I think, that you are willing to stick that type of money into wheels that are not aero specific. A top end wheel set can greatly enhance the ride and performance of a bike. It's the single most important upgrade anyone can do to a bike.

           

          What wheels are currently on the Felt. I wouldn't consider the Z4 entry level and would think that it came with a pretty decent set...could be wrong.

           

          I am running the ROL Volant and I probably have over 6000 miles on them. I set the front up running Stans tubless with a Hutchinsen tubular tire as an experiment. ( clincher rims). I have been extremely satisfied with this wheel and wouldn't hesitate buying another set. They are heads and tales better than the Bontranger Race Lites I'm running on a different bike.

           

          Another wheel to take a look at is Velocity. I'm not sure what you are wanting out of your wheelset but this rim is friggen bullet proof. I'm running a set of the A23's on a Monster Cross Gravel Road Rig and this wheel stands up to everything I throw at it. I had these built up with Ultegra Hubs...All in all probably a little heavier than what you called out but you could shave some weight by selecting different hubs.

           

          The A23 is a 23 mm cross section. A little wider than some other rims but is supposed to actually be more aerodynamic.

           

          Read the reviews, I doubt you will see many bad ones. It's easy to get the A23's (or any Velocity) rims only so there are several rim builders out there that offer them.

           

          That's my 2 cents.

          snapa55


            Thanks for the advice Slo_hand.

             

            I tried the whole aero thing, I initially bought a Cervelo S2 but then quickly realized that a racing geometry just wasn't for me.  So I'm all set with anything aero for now, ha.

             

            The Felt Z4 came with Mavic CXP22's, they feel like absolute boat anchors.  I'd say the acceleration is about the same as my old Trek 1.1, definitely not the feel I'm looking for.  I'm rather envious of my brother's C'Dale Synapse with Mavic Krsyrium SL's, the acceleration on that thing is absurd.

             

            I'll definitely look into the other rims, thanks again!

            5K: 18:43 (12/13) 10K: 42:50 (12/12) HM: 1:30:10 (3/14) M: 3:34:46 (5/14)

            Slo


              Thanks for the advice Slo_hand.

               

              I tried the whole aero thing, I initially bought a Cervelo S2 but then quickly realized that a racing geometry just wasn't for me.  So I'm all set with anything aero for now, ha.

               

              The Felt Z4 came with Mavic CXP22's, they feel like absolute boat anchors.  I'd say the acceleration is about the same as my old Trek 1.1, definitely not the feel I'm looking for.  I'm rather envious of my brother's C'Dale Synapse with Mavic Krsyrium SL's, the acceleration on that thing is absurd.

               

              I'll definitely look into the other rims, thanks again!

               

              I got a good chuckle out of this.

               

              As much as I'd like to tell you it's the Cannondale and not the wheels...I'm pretty sure we can give a little credit to the wheels in this case.

               

              BTW...I'm a huge Cannondale fan.

               

              There just isn't any comparison between the Mavic CXP22's and the Krsyrium SL's. The Z4 isn't priced to be an entry level bike. I'm a little disappointed they would put the CXP's on it.  I just pulled up the web site and they do not list wheel specs other than the Hub and spokes...

               

              Good luck with your search...let us know what you end up getting and how what your thoughts are.

              snapa55


                Finally got my wheels last week.  I went with Velocity A23's, Bitex hubs, and CX-Ray spokes, built by Psimet.

                 

                The acceleration on them is insane.  I'm seeing a .5MPH improvement overall.  The downfall from the lighter set seems to be that they don't keep their speed quite as well as my old rims.  A minor detail as it's easier to spin up to 18-20MPH and tackling hills is much easier now.

                5K: 18:43 (12/13) 10K: 42:50 (12/12) HM: 1:30:10 (3/14) M: 3:34:46 (5/14)

                Slo


                  Nice!

                   

                  For the price you can't go wrong with the A23's. They should hold up well too.

                    Damn, where the hell was I when this thread happened? I just happen to have a set of Mavic Krsyrium SL's with very low miles that I would have sold to you. They came on my F15 when I bought it and I only used them when I raced a triathlon as I felt I was a bit too heavy for them to train on. I have a set of Flo's for my tri bike now so I don't use them at all. Maybe I'll have to start riding them again.

                     

                    I'm also looking for a set of wide rimmed training wheels like the A23's. The set you bought sounds like a nice set of wheels, how much did you pay for them?

                     

                    Finally got my wheels last week.  I went with Velocity A23's, Bitex hubs, and CX-Ray spokes, built by Psimet.

                     

                    The acceleration on them is insane.  I'm seeing a .5MPH improvement overall.  The downfall from the lighter set seems to be that they don't keep their speed quite as well as my old rims.  A minor detail as it's easier to spin up to 18-20MPH and tackling hills is much easier now.

                     

                    The pain that hurts the worse is the imagined pain. One of the most difficult arts of racing is learning to ignore the imagined pain and just live with the present pain (which is always bearable.) - Jeff

                     

                    2014 Goals:

                     

                    Stay healthy

                    Enjoy life

                     

                    zoom-zoom


                    rectumdamnnearkilledem

                      I love hearing these positive reviews of the A23s.  I'm getting a set of blue ones essentially at cost, since they are supplying them to our local JDRF ride team (Velocity is somewhat local).  The Aksiums that are on my road bike currently will go on my CX bike...which will be a HUGE step up from the absolute garbage Kore wheels that are on it now and won't stay true.  DS will likely be inheriting that bike soon, as he doesn't have a real go-to bike that fits him, anymore (he outgrew his Redline Conquest 24) and I'm eyeballing a Felt F65X.

                      Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

                      remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

                           ~ Sarah Kay

                      snapa55


                        @Burnt Toast - I got them for $514, built by Psimet.  I've since moved to California and the lighter wheels have definitely made climbing a lot easier!  They've held up on all of my ascents/descents, so I'm pretty happy with them.  I have about 600 or so miles on them so far.  P.S. - I think I need to invest in a white saddle, ha.

                         

                         

                        5K: 18:43 (12/13) 10K: 42:50 (12/12) HM: 1:30:10 (3/14) M: 3:34:46 (5/14)

                        zoom-zoom


                        rectumdamnnearkilledem

                          Finally got my new "shoes."  Can't wait to take them out for a spin, though it probably won't be until Sunday.

                          Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

                          remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

                               ~ Sarah Kay

                          Slo


                            Yeah Baby!

                             

                            Let me know what you think of them Zoomy. Factory Laced I take it...

                            zoom-zoom


                            rectumdamnnearkilledem

                              Yeah Baby!

                               

                              Let me know what you think of them Zoomy. Factory Laced I take it...

                               

                              Yup. Big grin

                              Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

                              remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

                                   ~ Sarah Kay

                              snapa55


                                Zoom-zoom, you'll love them!

                                 

                                Let me know if you think your descending speeds have been lessened by the rims.  I feel like that's really the only drawback of these rims.  Since they're so light, they don't get the same "pop" on the descents.

                                5K: 18:43 (12/13) 10K: 42:50 (12/12) HM: 1:30:10 (3/14) M: 3:34:46 (5/14)

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