Strong Wheels but still pretty fast!!!!
Hi all
As a big fella (18st) I give my wheels a pounding. I ride with a mate and we average 18-20mph on most of our 30-50 mile rides. My Allez wheels are knackered now and need truing everytime I ride (Alex Rims). Can anyone recommend a srong whell that is still pretty fast and within a £200 budget please, I would also like something that has a good look too!!!(the poser in me!) Thanks one and all.
As a big fella (18st) I give my wheels a pounding. I ride with a mate and we average 18-20mph on most of our 30-50 mile rides. My Allez wheels are knackered now and need truing everytime I ride (Alex Rims). Can anyone recommend a srong whell that is still pretty fast and within a £200 budget please, I would also like something that has a good look too!!!(the poser in me!) Thanks one and all.
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I would strongly suggest a pair of Mavic Open Pro rims built onto either Ultegra (£160ish) or durace (£210ish) hubs....these will last a lot of longer than something like Fulcrums IME, a Fulcrum 3 rear (which are much more costly) wheel lasted me 2 years before the hub knacked
i know what you mean about the alex rims that come with bikes like the allez, i got similar ones with my first road bike and they lasted two months before spokes repeatedly popped and I got sick of them....wheels are always the weak point with such bikes0 -
Thanks, that sounds like something for me to look at. I really dont know what to do for best ands I know my budget isnt very big either so its a tricky one!!!0
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I'm going off my open pros.
I've gone through 4 ceramic rims and one normal rim in 2 and a bit years. The normal version hardly get used so hence the reason for the low "rim" count. I tried two different wheelbuilders and still I pull the wheel apart at the rear. The new rims are just too soft
I have numerous wheelsets. If you can stretch your budget a little I would reccommend the Bontrager Race-Lites. I've battered mine and apart from a spoke working loose I've never had a moments issue with them. Reviews would suggest otherwise but mine have not missed a beat. Pretty fast wheel as well
Just picked up a set of Mavic Askiums , while I wait for my ceramic to be rebuilt, and these seem to be okay for the money. Not a fast wheel and the front has a little flex in it. But for the price you can't really complain. I will use these as a winter wheel
I also have a set of Pete Matthews. 36 spoked and very strong but not a quick wheel and very heavy. Got them, tried them and now currently reside on the cross bike.
I'm 16st, knock out a few watts and seem to break most things!Paul0 -
cycleworld.co.uk
they seem to have some mavic cosmos wheelsets for £180
i've found these to be as tough and robust as any,
i'm actually thinking about listing a pair on ebay, in excellent condition,
put them in a search engine and read the reports, hope this helps
scurry0 -
Hi chaps
Andy here from Kinetic-One. We sell lots of these: http://www.shop.kinetic-one.co.uk/2008-rodi-airline-evo-wheels-for-road-time-trial-triathlon-bike-253-p.asp
Weight wise they are over 1900g's a pair but they are tough and stay round, have 105 (5600) hubs, bladed spokes, spin well, and look really nice.
They are in same sort of price range as Mavic and Fulcrum entry level wheels but in terms of rider weights they are streets ahead.
cheers0 -
Biggins wrote:Thanks, that sounds like something for me to look at. I really dont know what to do for best ands I know my budget isnt very big either so its a tricky one!!!
I'm on a budget and replace the knackered wheels on my winter bike with the Mavic 'Open' rims buits around the 'Tiagra' hub - 50-odd quid for the front wheel.....
Spring!
Singlespeeds in town rule.0 -
Thanks Aero Blob, they certainly look the part. I am a little worried about the lack of aspokes for someone with my weight (18 stone) . How about you do me a deal and then I can report back my findings on here? I have a Allez tripple at the mo, will these be suitable for me? Cheers!!!0
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just over budget ..mavic cosmic elite ...totally bombproof & quite bling looking
if not a well built pair of open pro's or NIOBIUM 30's ( both 32h )0 -
For a heavier rider, and for wheels which are not exactly light but completely bombproof, the Quest Comos are excellent choice. At only 60 quid a pair, they are excellent quality too. Smooth and robust. And cheap!
http://www.questbikes.co.uk/acatalog/Wheels.html0 -
I vaguely remember cycling plus testing the quest como and they received top marks at a bargain price. if you want i could hunt the test out and report back more details, let me know, scurry0
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thanks ascurrell, if yu can find it that would be great. Has anyone used the rodi airline evo wheels recommended by aero blob? They do look nice and if they are strong enough for my lardy body, I could be tempted, but if the quest cosmos are the kiddies at half the price, again, it seems to make sense!!! I hate not knowing what to do, but i am easily swayed by something that looks cool too!!0
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Here you are from this very site. Same review as from C+ magazine group test btw.
http://www.bikeradar.com/road/gear/cate ... como-108460 -
Thanks giant mancp, they look good value for moneY dont they???
Not the lightest but it would be easier for me to lose acouple of pounds than worry about that i guess? Trouble is , THE MRE I RIDE THE HUNGRIER I GET!!!!!0 -
pm'd you Biggins0
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Biggins wrote:Thanks, that sounds like something for me to look at. I really dont know what to do for best ands I know my budget isnt very big either so its a tricky one!!!
slagnola Khamsins....come in shimano if you want
80 quid a pair"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0 -
PJM - What is going wrong with the Open Pro rims? Eyelets pulling through? Spokes losing tension?
The strength of a wheel is in its spoke tension. The Open Pro maximum specified tension is 900N, which is not tremendously high. They will take more in practice, but only upto a point, as too much leads to problems with rim cracking and eyelets pulling through. Your wheelbuilder most likely builds to the recommended tension, or maybe doesn't know what tension they build to. I have Open Pro rims on XT hubs on my Audax bike, tensioned to 1200N, and they are still fine after thousands of Km. I'm 15 and a half stone, so do give them a workout.
As to the original question, I would suggest that you start with a nice strong hub - a sealed bearing Hope for example, and have some wheels built with 32h DT RR 1.1 double eyelet rims, which DT specify can be tensioned to 1200N.
Find a wheelbuilder who builds with a tensiometer and sepecify that's what you want. If they can't or won't, or are arrogantly dismissive as some LBSs can be, find another wheelbuilder.
Better still learn to build them yourself, then you know they are right.0 -
Hi Biggins,
Giant Mancp, had the exact test report i was talking about,
the test was carried out in feb 07 titled sub £200 wheels,
Others which did ok were,
Campagnolo Khamsin 10/10 fairly light, very strong build and a fantastic price £89
Shimano 105 R561 9/10 well made,smooth rolling but lack a little handling precision £150 [can be found a lot cheaper]
mavic aksium 9/10 look and feel of muchmore pricey wheels, better sealing would warrant a 10 £115
Planet X [a57 pro rims] 10/10 brilliant we have a winner ! £169
Wilkinson 700smvv 8/10 a bit heavy, pretty good value for money, very strong
£130
prices were at the time of report sure some have come down, don't know anything about the wilkinsons but the report started " boy are these wheels strong ! They felt so tough and stiff in use that we decided to give them a bit of a bashing , and the Mach 1 versus RS rims simply didn' move",
hope this helps, scurry0 -
Well i was nearly 20 stone when i started 36 hole open pro's with double butted sapins on all 3 of my bikes and they are completely bomb proof even opn our shitty lanes. Have one set on 105 one on ultegra and my hack has veloce hubs. Had one of the sets for about 18 months and they have never even needed straightened since the build. Get them done by a good wheel builder and get them spoke locked before you start and 18 stone will be no trouble. As for those saying they are heavy - totally irrelevant at your weight! Get some good quality tape tyres and tubes and they will never let you down. Im 16.5 stone now and completely shredded a set of kyserium elites - might as well have burned the cash! When ive lost another stone ill get some ceramic 28 hole open pros built and im sure they will serve me just as well. Unbeatable for the chunky monkey! (Oh and at £160 for the ultegra set you cant whine!)0
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giant mancp wrote:For a heavier rider, and for wheels which are not exactly light but completely bombproof, the Quest Comos are excellent choice. At only 60 quid a pair, they are excellent quality too. Smooth and robust. And cheap!
http://www.questbikes.co.uk/acatalog/Wheels.html
I can vouch for the robustness of these wheels - a chap I did the Paris-Roubaix Sportive was using a pair that he had been riding all last Winter. The wheels completed this test with no problems at all!0 -
PJM - What is going wrong with the Open Pro rims? Eyelets pulling through? Spokes losing tension?
Watts and weight........ not a good combination for the wallet.Paul0 -
Around the spoke holes on the drive side. The material fails and the rim tears. I counted 4 places this time but then again I was giving the wheels a bit of a hammering by chasing everything that moved in the group over a 120km hilly training ride.
Now I think about it I'm not sure if I've had four or five rims. I've lost count. One was due to an accident when I snapped a stem and went head first down the road. The wheels are 32 spokes built on Tune Mig and Mag hubs which have been bomb proof and possibly the reason why the rear keeps getting rebuilt rather then thrown. I've never had a problem with the front.Paul0 -
Too much spoke tension in that case, or (more likely) a poor build with uneven tension. I hate to break the news to you, but it isn't your power that's pulling them apart.
Try some DT RR 1.1 double eyelet next, built properly to 1200N.0 -
Mavic replaced this rim FOC after seeing a section. This rim been on since April 2008.
My current wheel guy uses a spoke tension meter and wanted me to go with the DT 1.1 on the rebuild. The first guy didn't and over stressed them to combat my riding. I actually prefer the first wheel builder set as I find these flex which is noticable on my current frame (Colnago Extreme Power).
I wish it was but the breakage on the rear wheels are minor. In 3.5 years I've broken 5 frames - 4 carbon / 1 cross bike (road riding). 1 pair of forks. 1 handlebar (will not use carbon anymore). 1 stem (will not use 2 bolt anymore). 3 chains ( now only use top end chains). 1 seat.....hmmmmm. More Spinergy rear wheel parts then I wish to remember.Paul0 -
Nor anywhere near Monmouthshire are you?0
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brownbosh wrote:Well i was nearly 20 stone when i started 36 hole open pro's with double butted sapins on all 3 of my bikes and they are completely bomb proof even opn our shitty lanes. Have one set on 105 one on ultegra and my hack has veloce hubs. Had one of the sets for about 18 months and they have never even needed straightened since the build. Get them done by a good wheel builder and get them spoke locked before you start and 18 stone will be no trouble. As for those saying they are heavy - totally irrelevant at your weight! Get some good quality tape tyres and tubes and they will never let you down. Im 16.5 stone now and completely shredded a set of kyserium elites - might as well have burned the cash! When ive lost another stone ill get some ceramic 28 hole open pros built and im sure they will serve me just as well. Unbeatable for the chunky monkey! (Oh and at £160 for the ultegra set you cant whine!)
they only do OP ceramics in 32h
i got a pair built on tune hubs with CXray ...bombproof0 -
Hampshire.Paul0
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not according to wiggle - 36's!!!!
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/Mavic ... 300006023/0 -
brownbosh wrote:not according to wiggle - 36's!!!!
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/Mavic ... 300006023/
i meant not that low ....i was after a 28h when i built mine for the front 0 -
Oh i see - apologies! Its still lighter than a 28 on a normal rim though so same effect????0
