£200 - £300 wheels

spezial

What would people recommend in this price bracket?

Looking for something nice and light but strong enough to withstand the heavily potholled roads of mid sussex.

Currently got a pair of Shimano R500s on my Kuota Kharama, which I'm lead to believe are a bit rubbish, so anything that can outperform them would be great. Anything in an even lower price bracket would obviously be a bonus!

Also, VERY silly question, is it possible to modify a Campagnolo wheel to fit a Shimano cassette, as there are some very tasty looking wheels by them in this price bracket?

Thanks in advance for any comments

danowat

I've got Easton EA70's, tick all the right boxes for me.

davidcambridge1

I have Ultegra 6700 wheels. I have had no problems with them, and they are tubeless compatible, which I am yet to take advantage of.
http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/WPSHUL6700/shimano-ultegra-6700-tubeless-wheelset

JesseD

+1 for eastons

guilliano

Can't go wrong with either Easton EA50 SL or Ultegra. Either is going to be superb.

TommyEss

If you like Campagnolo but run Shimano, then have a look at Fulcrum's.

I managed to pick up some Racing 3s from Germany for £286 delivered last year... www.jedisports.de or similar.

spezial

That's a real steal on those Fulcrum's Tommy, but that link just goes through to a poker site now by the looks of things.

Those Easton's look great. Seen a few reviews that say they are a big tough to get tyres on to, is tis true? I run on Continental GP 4 seasons so punctures are a rarity (tempting fate, will get one @ the weekend now!) so this won't be a massive issue hopefully if it's true.

With the Ultegra's, is there much difference between the various model types? Ribble have 6600, 6600 SL's & 6700 SL's.

guilliano

Ignore the rubbish people spout about getting tyres onto wheels. It's poor technique, simple as that!

danowat

guilliano wrote:

Ignore the rubbish people spout about getting tyres onto wheels. It's poor technique, simple as that!

+1, they are a little tight, but no problem to get tyres on.

stokepa31

+1 EA70s. love em

spezial

Thanks for all the tips.

Looks like the Easton's are the front runner. Are the EA70's worth the extra £100 over the EA50's?

TommyEss

Spezial wrote:

That's a real steal on those Fulcrum's Tommy, but that link just goes through to a poker site now by the looks of things.

Those Easton's look great. Seen a few reviews that say they are a big tough to get tyres on to, is tis true? I run on Continental GP 4 seasons so punctures are a rarity (tempting fate, will get one @ the weekend now!) so this won't be a massive issue hopefully if it's true.

With the Ultegra's, is there much difference between the various model types? Ribble have 6600, 6600 SL's & 6700 SL's.

Whoops - think it needed a hyphen - try here

The 2010 version are €350 currently (my deal was on the '09 version) - they've got other wheels too - of course, the euro's not as good for us at the moment as it used to be - so do your maths, but it could work out.

I found them through a post on bike radar, and although a little concerned about using a german shop (i.e. abroad, nothing against the germans per se!!) they were delivered very quickly - service was as you'd expect from Wiggle/PBK/Chain Reaction, only the price was better!

spezial

Yep, that's better, thanks!

They do work out cheaper than UK prices, but your 2009 deal looks better still, might have to wait for another drop in the Euro, roll on EU economic doom!

TommyEss

Haha... Yeah, the pound's rubbish right now - just make sure you add on the shipping - the tax is fine thanks to the EU - you pay the German tax so you don't pay UK VAT or import duty. Simples - (and they had some EA50s and Campag Sciroccos to tempt you too!)

amaferanga

Pro-lite Bracciano

These get good reviews and at only 1450g for £249 seem to be a hell of a bargain.

danowat

I was looking at those Bracciano's, but according to some reviews, they aren't all that strong, which was one of my criteria.

But yeah, for the price, they look good.

spezial

Those Pro-Lites look good, but the roads round by me have so many craters in after the winter that any mention of lack of strength would put me off.

Shipping to the UK is 30 Euros on that German site Tommy mentions, but their price on the Eastons isn't as good as their price on the Fulcrums. Just found some Easton EA70's on Chain Reaction for £300 which is very tempting.

One of these days I'll buy something at the lower end of the price bracket I set myself!

TimoH

TommyEss wrote:

If you like Campagnolo but run Shimano, then have a look at Fulcrum's.

I managed to pick up some Racing 3s from Germany for £286 delivered last year... www.jedisports.de or similar.

Salden sells them for 339 euros (+ shipping).

http://www.salden.nl/default.asp?pid=53 ... catid=3180

That's a very good price for very good wheels.

danowat

I think I read it here.......

When buying wheels, you can select two of the following.

STRONG....LIGHT.....CHEAP

haggisinlondon

Been reading up on wheels in this price bracket for ages, I think you can read too much, so going to take the plunge and buy a set by the end of the week.

Mavic Elites vs. Fulcrum 3 vs Easton E70..... decisions decisions

spezial

Let us know which ones you go for Haggisinlondon and give us an update on what they're like.

I'm down to Easton EA70's v Fulcrum 3's v Shimano 6600 Ultegra's.

nickwill

I just bought a pair of these.
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/components/wheel-sets/product/xr-210-wheelset-09-34095
First ride out yesterday and they rode really well.

Recess

Out of interest, why did no one comment or suggest the Mavic Ksyrium Equipes?

I'm in exactly the same position as the OP - wanting to upgrade from some R500's to something lighter and faster. Got around £300 - and local bike shop suggested Equipes.

Are they not as groovy as they were described?

J

Lochy

Like th OP (and other numerous threads) i had the same quandry and had considered all wheels currently mentioned, but in the end i opted for a pair of hanbuilts (open pro's, DB spokes and Hope III hubs) because of the lousy roads and me being a bit chunky!!

They were going to be my 'best' wheels, but they'll be on for good now. Seeing as the RS10's that they were replacing had hairline cracks in the rear drive side.

I can't fault them and noticed the difference instantly. I just need to get used to the 'clicking' freehub now.

Monty Dog

Lochy wrote:

Like th OP (and other numerous threads) i had the same quandry and had considered all wheels currently mentioned, but in the end i opted for a pair of hanbuilts (open pro's, DB spokes and Hope III hubs) because of the lousy roads and me being a bit chunky!!

They were going to be my 'best' wheels, but they'll be on for good now. Seeing as the RS10's that they were replacing had hairline cracks in the rear drive side.

I can't fault them and noticed the difference instantly. I just need to get used to the 'clicking' freehub now.

Probably as much to do with the appalling state of the roads around the Fylde - couldn't believe the potholes in some places when I was driving through recently

Lochy

Monty Dog wrote:

Lochy wrote:

Like th OP (and other numerous threads) i had the same quandry and had considered all wheels currently mentioned, but in the end i opted for a pair of hanbuilts (open pro's, DB spokes and Hope III hubs) because of the lousy roads and me being a bit chunky!!

They were going to be my 'best' wheels, but they'll be on for good now. Seeing as the RS10's that they were replacing had hairline cracks in the rear drive side.

I can't fault them and noticed the difference instantly. I just need to get used to the 'clicking' freehub now.

Probably as much to do with the appalling state of the roads around the Fylde - couldn't believe the potholes in some places when I was driving through recently

Yep, the roads in places are a disgrace - hence why i went for the handbuilts. Although it had been speculated that the spokes may have been over tensioned? Possibly when i had the old wheel re-trued by an LBS.

spezial

In case anyone's interested, I went for the Easton EA50SL's in the end, actually sticking to the cheaper end of my budget for once. First impressions that they are a really classy product. Only been on a couple of short rides with them thus far, but you certainly notice the difference, silky smooth and they're so much lighter than my old wheels.

I noticed people on various forums and product review sections commented that it's hard to get tyres on and off the wheels, this is slightly mystifying, as I noticed no difference whatsoever to other wheels.

WIth these being my first pair of new wheels, I did make a bit of a beginner's mistake though, in my excitement I forgot to put rim tape on them, popping 2 tubes in the process. Ah, so that's what that tape is for!

I'll report back when I've gone on some proper long rides.

danowat

Spezial wrote:

In case anyone's interested, I went for the Easton EA50SL's in the end,

I noticed people on various forums and product review sections commented that it's hard to get tyres on and off the wheels, this is slightly mystifying, as I noticed no difference whatsoever to other wheels.

Nice, I love my EA70's

That thing about the tyres almost put me off, I had no more trouble getting tyres on with the Eastons than I do with my Mavics

spezial

I was a mouse click away from the EA70's, but held back and went for the 50's instead, thinking that these would still be a massive improvement on the Shimano's that were on there before.

Not sure what to make of the tyre thing, it sounded like exactly the sort of problem that normally affects me when I'm doing anything to my bike. My Continental folding tyres have a les solid bead than other clincher tyres, which might make a difference, but people were talking about using metal tyre levers and scratching the rims before sending the wheels back for a refund. Very strange.

spezial

Oh dear, it was all going so well.

Decided to pop some new tyres on my new wheels, and they won't fit. No worries I thought, the old ones did, so I'll just pop those back on. The back one won't go on now! They went on so easy the first time round I was surprised to hear so many people had problems, but now I can see where they are coming from.

Think they're gonna have to go back to the shop if I can't find a solution. Any advice would be great.

danowat

Cant figure out how you could get them on first time round, but not the second time? :?