Wheel rims comparable to Alex S500?

sarajoy
sarajoy Posts: 1,675
edited March 2010 in Commuting chat
These were the wheels that came with my Spesh - one of which has now been buckled.

I gather they ain't the best but they served me fine and I'm after a straight replacement as one of mine got buckled in a collision today - but can't seem to find many places selling them online!

Other detail: sleeve joint, CNC sidewalls, 32h apparently - though I'm not sure what that means...

Cheers!
Sara
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Comments

  • Cafewanda
    Cafewanda Posts: 2,788
    Watching this with interest as I have the same wheels.
  • Jamey
    Jamey Posts: 2,152
    By straight replacement, do you mean you want rims that look identical so that they match the remaining good rim?

    If so then obviously the only answer for an exact match is to get another Alex S500.

    However, if you don't mind a mismatch then pretty much any 32h 700c rim will suffice tbh.
  • will3
    will3 Posts: 2,173
    Sara - hope you're OK after your "collision"

    are you planning to re-use the hub (presumably) and the spokes (probaby best not if it's been collided)

    The 32H refers to the number of holes in the rim ie the number of spokes and the number of holes in the hub. Commonly these are 32 or 36 holes.
    As to a replacement, I can't find any spec for the S500 even on the alex website. If you're not re-using spokes, then it doesn't really matter and any 700c (it is 700c isn;t it?) rim will do so long as it is 32H. If you are re-using the spokes you need to find a rim with the same or similar ERD (effective rim diameter) which is the diameter that the spoke nipples sit in: eg a deep section rim would have a smaler ERD than a single wall shallow section rim.
    Sleeve joint or pin joint, probaly won't make a lot of difference for you.
    CNC side walls give better braking performance, particularly in the wet.

    FWIW I haven't been able to find a UK supplier of alex rims either.

    HTH
    W
  • amnezia
    amnezia Posts: 590
    If you have a choice, don't get those wheels again, they are pretty poor.

    Its hard to get a direct replacement as you only get those wheels on specific factory built bikes and they don't tend to sell them individually.

    You could buy the S500 rims and a hub and get them built for you but that really would be a waste of time and money.
  • RufusA
    RufusA Posts: 500
    +1 for ditching the S500 rims. They are OEM so you won't find a direct replacement. Depending on the vintage, the spokes on the Sirrus may have been from a below par batch and are not worth saving.

    When my rear rim came to end of its life (after a few replacement spokes and a rebuilt), I went for an M:Wheel branded/built Mavic Open Pro rim with Shimano 105 hub. The front is still the Alexrim!

    Not as good as getting a wheel hand built, but I managed to get a cracking price from my LBS, and trusted M:Wheel a little better than their mechanic which is a shame!

    Rufus.
  • Jamey
    Jamey Posts: 2,152
    edited March 2010
    This thread is on the verge of becoming a "recommend me a new wheel" thread, in which case I should like to proffer some additional advice...

    You're about to find out that getting a wheel repaired is often more expensive than just buying a whole new wheel (depending on which brand / model of new wheel we're talking about, of course).

    So why should you bother repairing it if it's cheaper to just buy a new wheel? That's a very good question. There are some answers but to be perfectly honest with you none of them are likely to be as persuasive as the money argument in favour of a whole new wheel, but nevertheless I'll mention them anyway...

    1) It's a bit poor to just throw a perfectly good hub into the bin. You could keep it as a spare but if you're not into building your own wheels then you're unlikely to ever use it. You could also sell it on eBay but then you'll need to dismantle the old wheel and you might not feel comfortable doing that.

    2) If you get the old wheel repaired with a new rim then you'll effectively be getting a hand-built wheel into the bargain, because there's no way for a machine to repair a wheel... Of course this doesn't necessarily mean it's a good wheel as the quality can vary depending on who you get to perform the repair / build, but if you decide to go this route you should get a good wheelbuilder to do the job otherwise you'll be throwing money away.

    If you build your own wheels (or want to learn) then all of the above goes out the window as there are no labour costs involved beyond the time it will take you to do the job, but that shouldn't be underestimated as building a wheel is at least half a day's worth of effort really, plus you've got to spend time measuring things and calculating the spoke length.
  • sarajoy
    sarajoy Posts: 1,675
    Well to be honest I'm not bothered how it looks, only that it won't cost me much more!

    I daresay the LBS where I'll wheel it this afternoon (just about wheels OK if I undo the brakes and loosen the mudguard) will be able to find me something - happy to know that 'just about any' will do (yes, 700C).

    Thanks for your help chaps - I suspected they were some form of OEM wheel/rim.

    What kind of price do you think I am looking at for something fairly bog-standard?
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  • RufusA
    RufusA Posts: 500
    A full rebuild of a wheel with new good quality spokes is likely to cost you £30 - £40 PLUS the cost of a new rim (£10 - 30). So you might just get change from £40 if you smile very sweetly and look poor!

    A comparable factory wheel will start at around £50 for a front, a bit more for the rear, cheaper options are also available but probably worth avoiding.

    A friendly LBS may have something they can offer you at a discount from a customer upgrade on a new bike!

    You will also need to swap over the cassette on the rear (an LBS should do this for free), and you may need to budget for rim tape, and a new tyre / tube depending on the nature of the accident. So another £20+

    Rufus.
  • sarajoy
    sarajoy Posts: 1,675
    Fair do's. Thankfully husband of the sidewalling woman gave me their numbers and said it was best not he gave me a fixed sum in case it turned out closer to £80 than £50 - so looks like we'll be good to go.

    Cheers Rufus :)
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  • elcani
    elcani Posts: 280
    Planet X Model C wheelsets are £99, as are the Model B's. The B's are lighter with fewer spokes, so may be less suited to the daily grind and broken roads of commuting.

    I've used both B's and C's and they are great value wheels. Searching these forums will show lots of others like them too.

    http://www.planet-x-warehouse.co.uk/aca ... s_279.html

    Cheers
  • Roastie
    Roastie Posts: 1,968
    What Jamey said, a shame to toss good hubs.

    Rim wise, perhaps replace with something basic like Mavic CXP22 or Open Sport. I'd go with new spokes as a matter of course. Depending on your local shop, you might be able to get away for <GBP100?