Upgrading my standard scr2 wheels, is it worth it?

emaichael

I don't know what my wheels are for my giant scr2 atm, cus i'm a bit of a div when it comes to remembering names.

but... i've been looking for that edge.. weight wise, but i can't afford a carbon fiber bike.

So i was wondering - Is upgrading wheels to a lighter brand (carbon fiber ones of some sort) going to make a difference? When i lift my bike now i feel weight, but upgrading the wheels, is that going to give me an edge, and take allot of the... drag..? away.

Or is it worth just keeping the standard alloy wheels that can take pot hole after pot hole. And instead, i'd do better saving and investing in a carbon fiber bike in 6months time (give up on the weight issue until you get the dream bike basically)

one more thing.... i don't know if it was my local bike shop trying to get my money. but the shop keeper understood i didnt have 1000pounds to get a carbon fiber bike, and i had 300pound to play with, his words Quote: ''Put some nw wheels on that giant, and watch it fly''
looking for advice... any would be fine, thx.

redddraggon

Wheels would definitely be a good upgrade for the Giant, nout wrong with alloy frames.

You could get some Fulcrum Racing 3s, or a top quality set of handbuilts for around the £300 mark.

doktorsteve

Your SCR probably weighs about 9.5kg. Really good wheels might take 400g off that i.e. about 5%. Where you should gain is in the stiffness and power transmission(I cannot speak from experience as I am still trying to figure out whether to upgrade and to which wheels). You should also gain in reducing the moment of inertia. Having said that your Alex DA22 rims weigh the same as Mavic Open Pros according to the specs on the net.

Try upgrading the tyres first. Moving from those wire beaded 26mm Kenda Kontenders to a kevlar beaded 23mm Vittoria Rubino Pro saved me 100g per wheel. My guess is that is 25% reduction in moment of inertia. And the extra grip and comfort will give you more confidence.

cumbriamike

Hi hope this helps

I have had my SCR2 for the past year & looked at upgrading to full carbon. In the end decided to upgrade the wheels & tyres knowing that eventually I would find the money for a new bike. My LBS reccomended basic Mavics (aksium) & with so much rain here in the Lake District I went for Conti Ultra GatorSkin tyres for better grip.

I did that just before my first sportive in April & its been well worth it, the bike feels more 'stable' particulary when descending & no punctures yet!

topdude

Hi, i think this whole "you need better wheels" thing has gotten out of hand.
I have used a pair of wheels from a Giant SCR and overall they were fine. Ok, they were a bit flexible with fairly low spoke tension but i didn't break any spokes or have any problems with them.
In fact i sold them on Ebay and fitted some Shimano R500 "Tiagra" wheels just to see what difference it made. The R500s are about the same weight but much stiffer due to higher spoke tension and the ride is firmer (less comfortable). I suspect Akasiums would be much the same.
Go with the advice from doktorsteve above and get some good tyres and tubes, this will give you the biggest improvement for the least money.

gkerr4

on the other hand....


if you fancy a new set of wheels for your bike then go and get them!

never mind trying to justify it through performance gains and other such practical affairs - sometimes we just 'want' something and thats OK - you don;t have to justify it to us

- you probably work hard for your money and you can't take it with you to the other side - so if you fancy a set of wheels and you can afford them - then go and get them and make sure you put some pics up of your new improved steed!!

emaichael

thx for all the advice,
i work on a minimum wage job, so am not sure i will get new wheels after all... as a carbon fiber bike normally comes with a nice set:) thx again.

DonDaddyD

I own a SCR 3, same wheels and tyres as the SCR 2 (I think) I ride around London and have gone through 4 inner tubes in 3 days.

When I mentioned upgrading wheels and components at my local bike store the guy said, "honestly a frame like this you shouldn't go mad". The SCR 3 has the same frame and fork as the SCR 2, 1.5 and 1 which retails at £850. He did recommend wheels like Fulcrum 7's (£120) and Continental GP 4000s (£40 or £22 at www.ribblecycles.co.uk).

In the next few months that is what I'm going for.

allezscotia

DonDaddyD wrote:

I own a SCR 3, same wheels and tyres as the SCR 2 (I think) I ride around London and have gone through 4 inner tubes in 3 days.

When I mentioned upgrading wheels and components at my local bike store the guy said, "honestly a frame like this you shouldn't go mad". The SCR 3 has the same frame and fork as the SCR 2, 1.5 and 1 which retails at £850. He did recommend wheels like Fulcrum 7's (£120) and Continental GP 4000s (£40 or £22 at www.ribblecycles.co.uk).

In the next few months that is what I'm going for.

What happened was it the ground you were riding over or something else?
What kind of rim tape are you on?
If it's the plastic band that comes with the wheel then you wan't to get rid of it and buy some velox tape. The bands have a habit of nicking the tube when inflated.

DonDaddyD

I ride on the roads of South London, the most diverse set of roads.... seriously there are some fantastic flat smooth surfaces and then on the same stretch of road there is a section that could literally shake the bike apart.

However, it was the tyres that were the bane of my rides they are beyond shocking. Those Kenda stock tyes pick up stones, glass etc like they were covered in glue, I think the roads I've ridden on are a little bit cleaner due to my tyres...

Every inner tube I have has a puncture facing towards the tyre where something has penetrated it and the tyre itself (back tyre) has numerous holes where stones and things have pierced it.

They just are a cheap quality tyre.

I have GP 4000s as of today, as on the way to work I had yet another puncture and decided to throw the tyres away, and the performance difference alone is enough to simply purchase new tyres when buying the bike new.