upgrade wheels

paultrueman

Had my bike for around 8/9 months now and really getting on with it, its an Orbea Aqua (105) has carbon rear stays and forks. Im really enjoying long distance weekend rides of about 80-100 miles and was wondering, if i had say £250 what would be a good wheel set to upgrade to that would make a noticable improved difference to my av speed and is there anything else I could chuck at the bike that could help aswell.

Cheers

Paul T

sicrow

Loads to choose from, my LBS recomends these

Xero lite XR210 £250 ish

http://www.parker-international.co.uk/1 ... n=pid10844

Ive not used them but there are quite a few who have mentioned them

alternatively for £250 or just a bit more you could geta decent set of handbuilt Open Pros from someone like Paul Hewitt (one of the best wheel builders in the country) (my chioce)

RedJohn

Second the handbuilt option. You get a lot more for the money in terms of quality and weight. I have Campag Record hubs / DT Swiss RR1.1 rims / DT Swiss d/b s/s spokes - cost £245, and they weigh about 1450g for the pair (on kitchen scales).

I built them up myself, but if you don't want to then there's often (not always) not a lot extra to pay from a wheelbuilder as they also make a profit on the components.

pianoman

Wheels are a very good starting point, especially with stock bikes. For a 105-equipped bike try the Fulcrum 5's saving you a bit of money......which you could then spend on some superlight tyres eg Schwalbe Ultremo's. Tyre choice is much cheaper, much over looked but often just as important.

Wheels and tyres are rotating mass - you'll see much bigger gains in straight line speed from reducing weight here than on seatposts. stems etc. But also remember that aerodynamics and stiffness are more important on flat roads than saving a few grams. All of which points to.....the Fulcrum 5's.

(but don't say that to Paul Hewitt )