mavic akisium or fulcrum 5

wpdoolan

I am looking for a new set of wheels for my road bike
it will be used year round for training, club races and time trials
I am heavy at 13stone and roads around arent great
want a strong pair of reliable wheels and don't want broken
spokes after reynolds pair they are replacing

Thanks for advice

tenor

Fulcrum 7's and Campag Khamsins are reckoned to be the equal of the Akisium's, so F5's (or Vento's) could be considered an upgrade (?). All good.

chrisw12

I know you didn't list as an option, but someone always says it when asked about wheels, so I'll go first.

Handbuilt. something like ultegra hubs on open pro rims. :roll:

scooterboy

chrisw12 wrote:

I know you didn't list as an option, but someone always says it when asked about wheels, so I'll go first.

Handbuilt. something like ultegra hubs on open pro rims. :roll:

He he he

robbie the roadie

I have some fulcrum 5's and have been very pleased with them. Have had them about 18 months and only needed a slight re-trueing once. Oh and on a good day I weigh 12 1/2 stone. hope this helps.

aarw

have heard a couple of good reports on the fulcrum 5's from guys who train on them. i imagine they would ride a lot nicer than the askiums which would feel a little dead in comparison.

I also suffered from many a broken spoke this year on Reynolds Alta Races (and i'm also 12.5 stone, well - when it's not xmas!). i had a pair of campag khamsin's which i train on and used them a for a few races when the reynolds were being repaired. the difference between the two was very noticable ,the reynolds felt much much quicker, especially when trying to get up to speed. i suspect this is down to the weight diff (around 500g). this would also push me towards the fulcrums over the askiums which i suspect would feel very similar to the khamsins....

good luck

wpdoolan

thanks for feedbacl will look at hand built as well although leaning towards fulcrum 5
only thing that turns me off them is some reviews say they are a bit flexy???

aarw

what reynolds wheels were you using? i found the alta races had flex when pushed, i would imagine the fulcrums would be stiffer... but i'm guessing.

what about campag vento or scirocco?

s_r_shaw

I was in the same boat, and decided to go for the fulcrum, because they were just a bit more money, but a bit lighter (about the same as the same as the slightly more expensive mavic ksyrium equipes).

I bought them for winter training use, and initially because they were so nice I was reluctant to use them, but there getting nicely mucky now.

I thought about custom wheels, but they seemed quite expensive in comparison (although I suppose they are a little less 'disposable' if something should happen to them.

richardjallen

s_r_shaw wrote:

I was in the same boat, and decided to go for the fulcrum, because they were just a bit more money, but a bit lighter (about the same as the same as the slightly more expensive mavic ksyrium equipes).

I bought them for winter training use, and initially because they were so nice I was reluctant to use them, but there getting nicely mucky now.

I thought about custom wheels, but they seemed quite expensive in comparison (although I suppose they are a little less 'disposable' if something should happen to them.

Depending on which factory wheels you get I suppose the hubs are not always readily available but other than that why should they be less disposable? Factory built wheels still have the same components. Don't Mavic make a wheel with open pro rims? Handbuilts also seem to have 32 or 36 spokes. While do doubt strong they seem a bit utilitarian so what's all the fuss all about?

chrisw12

If you have suffered with broken spokes in the past then wouldn't it be a better idea to get a set of wheels with more spokes and with spokes/parts that are readily aailable?

I have imo a poor lbs, but who does build a good set of wheels. To get normal rims takes them an age, I dread to think how long it would take him to get more specialist rims . For that reason I'm biased to handbuilts.

Lagavulin

A few months back I bought a set of Aksiums with the intention of getting me through the winter on them.

While they're far better than the rubbish that came with bike (Alex rims on Spesh hubs) and were decent value for money (£110) they'are a bit lifeless compared to my best wheels (DT Swiss 1850's).

I had the Fulcrum 5's recommended to me by several persons on here when I initially started my search for a decent set of wheels, and for the £150-160 price
tag they seemed a steal. I orignally wanted Campag Zondas but faced with a freehub swap, until I decided on spend £350+ on DT Mon Chasserals or 1850s, it was the Fulcrums 5's I was going to buy.

One of the Wilier Izoards I've got my eye on comes with Fulcrum 5's. Depending on the drivetrain I end up getting, I'll have my 1850's converted to suit (if required) and the F5's would be my back-ups. I'll likely keep the Aksiums in their Shimano 9-speed guise for the Allez and winter/crap weather.

s_r_shaw

Depending on which factory wheels you get I suppose the hubs are not always readily available but other than that why should they be less disposable? Factory built wheels still have the same components. Don't Mavic make a wheel with open pro rims? Handbuilts also seem to have 32 or 36 spokes. While do doubt strong they seem a bit utilitarian so what's all the fuss all about?

My understanding is that its less easy to replace parts from factory buillt wheels than from custom wheels, which use pretty readily parts such as the hubs, spokes and rims. If I break a spoke on my fulcrum 5, I'm sure it will it be harder to replace than on my other wheels, which has ultegra hubs, standard db spokes and mavic cxp30 rims.