Upgrade to Planet X wheels?

passout
passout Posts: 4,425
edited May 2009 in Road buying advice
Hi

I run some fulcrum racing 7 wheels at the moment which are basically fine - perhaps a tad heavy.. Planet X are doing their model B wheels cheap (£100). Is it worth upgrading to these wheels which get good reviews and are a couple of hundred grams lighter?

I don't race & generally ride with friends but like going fast & climbing. My bike is Ribble Nero Corsa with Ultegra and I'm 12 and a half stone with my boots on!

What do you think: waste of money or golden opportunity?

Cheers
'Happiness serves hardly any other purpose than to make unhappiness possible' Marcel Proust.
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Comments

  • kingrollo
    kingrollo Posts: 3,198
    A wheel upgrade is the best upgrade you can make for a bit of extra speed. Those planet x wheels have a good weight for the price - however you may want to check the weight of fulcrum 7's against these. - Think the fulcrum 7's only cost about £100 here - so the question here is are these wheels an upgrade over the existing ?
  • maddog 2
    maddog 2 Posts: 8,114
    £100 is cheap

    the 7s are 1855g according to this website http://www.totalcycling.com/index.php/p ... ING_7.html

    so the model Bs at 1650ish are quite a bit lighter

    Xero do some pretty light wheels - around 1550g but they are closer to £200

    so for the money/weight the Bs are hard to beat
    Facts are meaningless, you can use facts to prove anything that's remotely true! - Homer
  • doyler78
    doyler78 Posts: 1,951
    Great wheelset and significantly lighter than your current wheels so well worth the upgrade. You don't get skewers which flatters the price a bit however they are still significantly cheaper despite that. Just use the skewers on your current wheels to save a bit of money if you are looking to save a bit.

    I paid £175 (inc delivery) for my 2nd set so this is a complete bargain so far as I'm concerned. I would get myself another set if both my sets were not so new.
  • blongers
    blongers Posts: 19
    i paid £160 for my planet b's and i would buy another set if they were actually £100.
    great for training and i used them all winter.

    only problem is getting replacement spokes!!!
  • flasher
    flasher Posts: 1,734
    doyler78 wrote:
    You don't get skewers which flatters the price a bit however they are still significantly cheaper despite that.

    I've had two sets and they both came with skewers :?

    For a 100 quid I'll probably get myself another set, absolute bargin :D
  • mooker
    mooker Posts: 6
    quick question are the model B's compatable with shimano 9 speed cassette? website says not anyone know for sure?
  • andyrr
    andyrr Posts: 1,823
    Will be 8, 9 and 10 speed compatible. ONLY compatability issues are with a limited age of Shimano hubs, think only certain d/a and Ultegra ones. I have a pair of Ultegra pre-built wheels which will not take a 9 cassette which is a bit of a pain but I got them at a good price so can't complaint too much.
  • doyler78
    doyler78 Posts: 1,951
    Flasher wrote:
    doyler78 wrote:
    You don't get skewers which flatters the price a bit however they are still significantly cheaper despite that.

    I've had two sets and they both came with skewers :?

    For a 100 quid I'll probably get myself another set, absolute bargin :D

    That's what their email said so if in any doubts contact Planet X directly. They have pretty good customer service as I'm sure you must know.

    As regards price well I think the second part of that quote says I agree with you :wink:
  • passout
    passout Posts: 4,425
    Hmmm...tempted.
    Thanks chaps.
    'Happiness serves hardly any other purpose than to make unhappiness possible' Marcel Proust.
  • joeyhalloran
    joeyhalloran Posts: 1,080
    i have to just taken the plunge and got myself a set :S / :D
  • pud77
    pud77 Posts: 144
    edited April 2009
    Are these a decent worthwhile upgrade from my Shimano R550 wheelset ? If I sold my old wheels it would be a pretty cheap change of wheels, but is it worth it ?

    edit: now ordered, we'll see how they go :)
  • Courage Monsieur
    Courage Monsieur Posts: 534
    Don't forget the P+P adds £17 or so to this purchase.

    I've ordered a set...
  • dboden
    dboden Posts: 349
    Ok..... A set of Shimano U ltegra SLs at £300ish
    or PX ModelBs at £117 inc p&p..... hmmm
    Similar weight, big price difference????
  • dboden
    dboden Posts: 349
    There is also the compatibility problems with shimano cassettes I keep reading about...
    Should I be worried?
  • Courage Monsieur
    Courage Monsieur Posts: 534
    Dboden - from what I've read on this forum the answer is yes, depending on what you are running. Certain 10 speed cassettes not so great, as andyrr says above. Perhaps this is why they are reduced as P-X were getting too much feedback about it.
  • doyler78
    doyler78 Posts: 1,951
    Courage Monsieur wrote:
    Dboden - from what I've read on this forum the answer is yes, depending on what you are running. Certain 10 speed cassettes not so great, as andyrr says above. Perhaps this is why they are reduced as P-X were getting too much feedback about it.

    So far as I'm aware it isn't a Planet X issue but a general problem with Shimano Cassettes eating into the alu bodies on the hubs - it is even an issue on the very expensive Powertap hubs using the same bodies. Basically the cassette can eat into the softer, but lighter, bodies making them difficulty to get off. I'm sure someone will correct me if that is wrong.
  • joeyhalloran
    joeyhalloran Posts: 1,080
    anyway to avoid such a situation?
  • giant_man
    giant_man Posts: 6,878
    Just ordered my set of campag ones for 100 notes. Great light wheelset for the winter bike I reckon. I'll give them a whirl .....
  • GEPC
    GEPC Posts: 123
    I have been in contact wtih Planet X direct and they do have some older 9/10 compatabile wheel sets in stock too. When you place your order in the Special deliver instructions box state that you want these ones.

    I have ordered mine this afternoon.
  • joeyhalloran
    joeyhalloran Posts: 1,080
    why? are the old ones more durable and less likely to be worn by the cassette? Would using a sram cassette help? Basically, i have one 9 speed bike with s sram cassette and a 10 speed with a shimano, i don't mind which bike they go on as i have another pair of decent wheels, which should i put the planet x's on for the longest durablility?

    Thanks.
  • doyler78
    doyler78 Posts: 1,951
    JoeyHalloran wrote:
    why? are the old ones more durable and less likely to be worn by the cassette? Would using a sram cassette help? Basically, i have one 9 speed bike with s sram cassette and a 10 speed with a shimano, i don't mind which bike they go on as i have another pair of decent wheels, which should i put the planet x's on for the longest durablility?

    Thanks.

    No expert just telling you what I heard in case anyone thought this problem was something peculiar to this wheel.

    Here's a couple of threads that discussed the issues.

    http://www.bikeradar.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=15135721

    This one has links at the bottom to other threads

    http://www.bikeradar.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=15213718
  • Higs
    Higs Posts: 105
    I've ordered a set of these. It going to lead to a shuffle about of wheel in our house.

    I'll be geeting the PX on my good bike. My current Fulcrum 5s will go on the wife's. Her Tiagra/OpenSport set will go on my winter bike meaning I can ditch the 'wheels of steel' currently on it.

    Three bikes upgraded for £100 - happy days.
    Higs
  • joeyhalloran
    joeyhalloran Posts: 1,080
    so as far as i understand the chewing of the thread is only a problem for 10 speed cassettes, i can put my 9 speed sram on the 9 speed compatible planet x wheel and keep the 10 speed ultegra on my mavics (made of harder stuff) and i shouldn't have any problems? if someone could clear this up i would be most grateful.
  • UnworthyPapaLazaru
    UnworthyPapaLazaru Posts: 422
    Higs wrote:
    I've ordered a set of these. It going to lead to a shuffle about of wheel in our house.

    I'll be geeting the PX on my good bike. My current Fulcrum 5s will go on the wife's. Her Tiagra/OpenSport set will go on my winter bike meaning I can ditch the 'wheels of steel' currently on it.

    Three bikes upgraded for £100 - happy days.

    Are these really better than Fulcrum 5s for 100 notes??
    Cannondale F500
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  • bunnerscj
    bunnerscj Posts: 396
    I have a set of Bontrager SSR wheels on my Trek 1.7
    Are the Model B's a better wheel set and worth the change ?
    Thanks all.
    'We go up we go down, this is bull sh*t yar'
  • dboden
    dboden Posts: 349
    When I spoke to planet x, (this is how I understand it) he reckons, with a 10speed it will slightly dig into the freehub, but then thats it, you will not notice any difference whilst riding etc..... Only when you come to take the cassette off, you will probably have to give it a helping hand..
    In my eyes, for me its a worthy low budget upgrade. as I will get them on, and ride it until the day I need to take the cassette off, then worry about it then.

    If you are the type of person that strips everything down regularly, then this would not be exceptable...
  • Higs
    Higs Posts: 105
    Higs wrote:
    I've ordered a set of these. It going to lead to a shuffle about of wheel in our house. I'll be getting the PX on my good bike. My current Fulcrum 5s will go on the wife's. Her Tiagra/OpenSport set will go on my winter bike meaning I can ditch the 'wheels of steel' currently on it.

    Three bikes upgraded for £100 - happy days.
    UnworthyPapaLazaru wrote:
    Are these really better than Fulcrum 5s for 100 notes??

    They are a little lighter even taking into account weights quoted with/without skewers etc. So if they're as durable that I guess they're 'better' than the Fulcrums.

    Having said that, the other two changes (wife's bike and my winter bike) will be much more noticable upgrades.

    I have toyed with the idea of keeping the Fulcrums on my bike and putting the PX on hers (coincidentally a PX Superlight) but she's on 9sp and the PX wheels are shown as 10sp only.

    Lookswise the Fulcrums suit my bike better and the PX wheels would suit her PX bike better but nobody worries about looks do they???
    Higs
  • gavinf
    gavinf Posts: 7
    I have had the planet x wheels on one of my bikes for about 9 months.
    Done around 3000 miles on them.
    Nice light wheels which spin up well, bit too much flex on rear for my liking.
    I have posted previously about problems with freehub, I honestly think I would struggle
    to get the cassette off now, but do not intend to remove cassette if possible.
    Have broken 1 spoke and ride usually in poor roads and weigh around 84Kg.
    For my weight and road conditions I will not buy them again (I did pay £170)

    For a lighter rider, riding reasonably good roads - I would say they were a good upgrade at £100.
  • giant_man
    giant_man Posts: 6,878
    Did you get the Shimano ones or Campag? You obviously have 10 speed anyway?
  • pud77
    pud77 Posts: 144
    Mine arrived today, will get them fitted up with my new Krylion tyres tomorrow. I was surprised to find skewers in the box as the original offer email said skewers not included. Did everyone else get them ? Another added bonus, thumbs up Planet X :)

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