Wheel upgrade for scr2

espokes

Hi - I bought a giant scr 2 a year ago. I doubt I'll ever race but I am looking for a quicker ride, possibly even a time trial and certainly a sportive. Love the bike but dislike the heavy rubber hoops it came with and only realised how heavy the Alex rims were on recently mending a rear puncture. Can anyone recommend a sensible upgrade including tyres and a cassette to stay well within £200. A dealer seemed keen on Fulcrum Racing 7's but I also keep hearing about mavic Aksiums? Cheers.

hothead

I have a SCR2 and went for a Fulcrum 7 wheelset as a upgrade. Been a good purchase and think they look a nice wheel. I know a lot of people rate the Mavics and it was between these for me. Go with what you think but I think the mavic's have bladed spokes?

For me I just liked how the Fulcrums looked

simon_e

Have been toying with exactly this idea for my SCR 2.

Fulcrum Racing 5 are not much more than the 7 but quite a bit lighter. I'm sure they can be found for £150 or so online.
Easton Vista SLs caught my eye.

Check they accept 9-speed cassette, most do.

Otherwise check with a builder (Paul Hewitt's name has been mentioned here a lot) for something suitable.

Don't forget to upgrade the tyres and tubes as well.

espokes

Thanks to both of you who replied. Not much other interest. Perhaps I posted in the wrong forum or of no interest to others. Appreciate it.

gkerr4

i think that if you can afford it then the fulcrum 5's are worth pushing out for - the 7's are just another entry level wheel - same as aksums / vento's / 105's etc - but the 5s seem very highly recommended and aren't a lot extra over the 7's

they will make a marked difference to your SCR - couple them with decent tyres and you will have a changed bike.

re. no response - i guess there are a million threads on wheels every week - sorry that you didn't get the responses you were looking for (it has been a little quiet on here this last week or so too) don't give up on the forum it;s a nice place, honest!

simon_e

Wiggle have OE Shimano 105 5600 for a little less than boxed - £64 (F) and £76 (R).

16 & 20 spokes, 1763g for the pair, looks very good value to me.

Yes, wheel upgrade threads are a frequent feature both here and the Road Gear forum. I did most of my reading by using the search page and restricting it to road forums.

Stewie Griffin

I have alex wheels on my Allez and have just purchased their replacements. I got a pair of Mavic Open Pro rims, DT Spokes and Shimano hubs for less than £200 from my LBS, got home looked on the net and have found them for a few pounds less. Nevermind :oops: .

I had been looking at upgrading my wheels for a while and 99% of the people I spoke to said no to changing the cassette unless I was replacing the chain too.
Dont forget then that you will then need a cassette removal tool and a chain whip if you dont already have them.

I havent put the new wheels on yet so no idea what they are like. Friday morning has been setaside to get the new wheels on and take her for a spin :P

milese

After buckling the rear wheel on my SCR 1.0 I too am looking for a replacement / upgrade. I ride for fitness and I'm going to do a couple of sportives this year. I'm unlikely to ever race. I'm overweight and not overly fit. Question is, how much difference are £50 more expensive, or 100g lighter wheels going to make?

I'm thinking about:

http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/productde ... HIMWHFR500
Shimano Pair Wheels R561 (105) Clincher Black - 1820g - £99

http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/productde ... HIMWHFR400
Shimano Pair Wheels 105 5600 Clincher Silver - 1763g - £130

http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/productde ... ULCWHFR250
Fulcrum Racing 7 Wheels Black - 1858g - £90

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=23809
Shimano RS-20 Pair - 1825g - £110

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=19852
Mavic Aksium Wheels 2007 - 1980g - £100

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=23225
Mavic Aksium Wheels 2008 - 1855g - £120

gkerr4

of that selection - i'd go for the R561's - i have a set that i used last summer - lovely wheels, light and stiff feeling - look the biz with their low spoke pattern .

th 5600's are the revised version of the 561' - cool black spokes on silver rims, but i thought they were 10-speed only.

Rs20's are the replacement for the 561 / 5600 series

apparently the 08 aksiums are a big improvement over the 07's but i can't remember why

milese

Thanks for the reply.

Just noticed that Ribble charge £10 for wheel delivery, which might change things slightly.

The 08 Aksiums are lighter than the 07's, see my post above. 10 speed is what I'm after.

What about handbuilds from Ribble, something like these:
http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/productde ... 5000000000

Presumably hand built wheels are of a better quality?

Sorry for the thread hyjack by the way, but I think we're both asking the same question.

gkerr4

i don't have any but from what I can gather, handbuilts quality is all about the builder him (or her)self - some are good some are bad and even the good ones have bad days.

personally i prefer factory built wheels - i prefer the looks of the low spoke counts etc.

I am sure there is more to the aksiums than a weight reduction - they have taken some of the tecnology from the ksyrium range - maybe the bearing sealing method or something

there will be a million people along any second now to tell you why handbuilts are better and why i am an idiot for falling for the low spoke count hype - there always is in these sort of threads...

bigmat

Just upgraded wheels myself for a similar budget, Xero Lite XR1's imported from USA, came to around £150 including postage / duty. Weigh 1,550g . Good price onConti GP4000 tyres on J E James website, new Veloce cassette and lightweight tubes / rimtapes, probably came to about £220 all in but seriously light and look the part - haven't ridden them in anger yet though!

milese

Hadn't thought about importing.

Where did you get them from and how long did they take to arrive?

espokes

Wow! I blinked. Seems I was wrong to suggest lack of interest in the subject. Forgive me if you are all regulars. As a newcomer and wannabee serious cyclist I'm in the right company. Cheers all.

meagain

" Xero Lite XR1's imported from USA,"

I can't recall which model, but when I was building up a carbon TCR a few years ago Xeros were the best £/weight value I found after a lot of research. They were about the only component that I bought new - couldn't beat the value by opting second hand.

bigmat

Do a search on ebay with "international sellers" selected, they are available for $200, plus postage. Delivery took a while as they got stuck in parcel force's depot when they got to UK, but that was probably just my bad luck!