what makes my wheels so pants???

gasgas

hi, i purchased my Cannondale CAAD9 Tiagra 18 months ago and the salesman said that it was a good all round package but i may want to upgrade the shimano R500 wheels soon.

I have been using the bike almost every day during the summer and have raced in 5 triathlons on it and i haven't noticed anything wrong with the wheels!

out of curiosity i have been looking around at wheel upgrades and most of the wheelsets are around the same weight (1885g) or even heavier! they do however look better!

what is the main reason for chainging wheels is it all about weight?

your thoughts will be much appreciated.

Wirral_paul

Nearly 1900g is a fair bit of weight really - a lighter set of wheels will spin up to speed faster and generally feel a lot more lively and responsive. Its rotating weight thats the most important and so is the best place to lose weight to improve the performance of a bike. If you fitted a pair of 1500g wheels and lightweight tyres then you'd almost certainly notice the difference - especially when going back to your current wheels.

As its the rotating weight that you should be looking to lose, rims and tyres rather than lighter hubs are the way to go.

Aero wheels also make quite a difference too. I went from American Classic Aero 420's (around 1580g, 32mm rim) to a 58mm full carbon clincher (around the same weight (1550g - 1600g) and saw an immediate 1mph average increase over the same route (pretty undulating roads). Tyres were swapped between wheels - Schwalbe Ultremo ZX so it was down to the wheels (and possibly a bit of psychology with me thinking i should be faster)

Some RS80's are about 1520g and around £330. Look very good for the money

http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/road-track-bike/RS80-24mm-Carbon-Laminate-Clincher-Wheels-Pair/SHIMWHFR385?utm_campaign=Googlebase&utm_medium=organic&utm_source=Googlebase

desweller

<shrug> He/she probably wants to sell you some more wheels.

R500s are generally good wheels for the money, although the build quality varies; it helps if you are handy with a spoke key.

Bobbinogs

I am not sure decent wheels made me any faster but they certainly make my bikes feel a lot more responsive and nimble. Also the ride experience is nicer in that decent wheels spin lovely and smooth and just seem to make me smile a lot more. They also help me climb a bit better as they are stiffer and so flex less.

RS80s would be a good choice or some nice handbuilds but you need to budget about £300+ for the next jump up, IMO.

keef66

3 reasons usually quoted for replacing stock wheels:

i) reduce overall weight / reduce rotating weight
ii) improved aerodynamics
iii) Bling


I'd just ride the things till you wear out the rims, then think about an "upgrade"
I've got RS10s on my bike and they weigh about the same as yours, and I think they are just fine. Depending on what you currently have, lighter tyres & tubes would be a more cost effective way of reducing rotating weight & making the bike a bit more sprightly.

However, if you have a few hundred quid burning a hole in your pocket, RS80s come well reccommended.

hulla the hulla

What's the recommended max rider weight for RS80's ?

twotyred

i have been looking around at wheel upgrades and most of the wheelsets are around the same weight (1885g) or even heavier! they do however look better!

Then I'd suggest those aren't upgrades.

There are plenty of wheels out there at 1500g which would be a proper upgrade. Also weight is only half the story. Better wheels will be stiffer as well which will be noticeable. The Fulcrum Racing 1 I use are incredibly stiff which feels great for out of the saddle efforts and makes that bike's handling feel sharper somehow.

Also good wheels do make a nicer sound when you get them up to speed- and yes I'm so sad that makes me smile

rolf_f

twotyred wrote:

Also good wheels do make a nicer sound when you get them up to speed- and yes I'm so sad that makes me smile

I think that only happens if you have deep rims (and deep in not necessarily equal best). And really, they just make a noise. Whether you like the noise is another matter.

rafletcher

hulla the hulla wrote:

What's the recommended max rider weight for RS80's ?

What makes you think there is one - and that it has any basis in fact if there is? Unless you're hugely obeseyou won't break them.

hulla the hulla

rafletcher wrote:

hulla the hulla wrote:

What's the recommended max rider weight for RS80's ?

What makes you think there is one - and that it has any basis in fact if there is? Unless you're hugely obeseyou won't break them.

reason is that "people" (internet forums are wonderful places for misinformation and supposition) have said that certain wheels are unsuitable for heavier riders which kind of makes sense to me.

I am in the market for some new wheels, RS80's and Ksyrium Elites are on the short list but I'm 100kgs+ and want to know if I go and spend £400+ on some new wheels if they are going to collapse on me like liquorice.

keef66

OK, so 5 reasons for upgrading wheels. Apart from the following, what have the Romans ever done for us??

i) weight
ii) aerodynamics
iii) bling
iv) stiffness
v) sound quality

timmyturbo

rafletcher wrote:

hulla the hulla wrote:

What's the recommended max rider weight for RS80's ?

What makes you think there is one - and that it has any basis in fact if there is? Unless you're hugely obeseyou won't break them.

just built a bike up for somebody 14.5 stone ish , he has clocked up nearly 400 miles on them , not even 0.25 mm out . i reckon 17 stone would be fine ( at a guess )

hulla the hulla

timmyturbo wrote:

rafletcher wrote:

hulla the hulla wrote:

What's the recommended max rider weight for RS80's ?

What makes you think there is one - and that it has any basis in fact if there is? Unless you're hugely obeseyou won't break them.

just built a bike up for somebody 14.5 stone ish , he has clocked up nearly 400 miles on them , not even 0.25 mm out . i reckon 17 stone would be fine ( at a guess )

cheers Timmy, yours plus other comments have made my mind up. Off the give the CC a spanking and piss the wife off yet again…..("WHAT!! You've bought more bloody stuff for your bike…!?!?!? What about our unborn child !?!?!?……..") etc etc yada yada

hulla the hulla

timmyturbo wrote:

rafletcher wrote:

hulla the hulla wrote:

What's the recommended max rider weight for RS80's ?

What makes you think there is one - and that it has any basis in fact if there is? Unless you're hugely obeseyou won't break them.

just built a bike up for somebody 14.5 stone ish , he has clocked up nearly 400 miles on them , not even 0.25 mm out . i reckon 17 stone would be fine ( at a guess )

cheers Timmy, yours plus other comments have made my mind up. Off the give the CC a spanking and piss the wife off yet again…..("WHAT!! You've bought more bloody stuff for your bike…!?!?!? What about our unborn child !?!?!?……..") etc etc yada yada

porker33

I wouldn't say your wheels are pants...they are ideal to use over the winter months, with rain,grit and pot holes around, they may in fact be the perfect wheel for that application.

sketchley

One man’s lighter and more responsive is another man’s flexible and inefficient. I'm 17.5 stone and destroyed a pair of RS20's in about 6 months and 2,500km; spokes were pulling through the rim. The original stock wheels on my bike went the same way too. I now have a pair of hand built wheels that weigh 500g more for the pair than the RS20s did making them come in at around 2.3kgs. The bike no longer feels "light and responsive" like it did with the RS20s, and in fact feels heavier and slower. However, when looking at GPS data I'm quicker all round including acceleration, top speed, climbing, moving average etc. The reason for this is that what felt “light and responsive” was for me at least the RS20's flexing under my weight and the power I was putting down. The new wheels are stiff as anything so every bit of the extra power I put down due to my weight hits the road.

All this is irrelevant if you are 55kgs as you won’t get a light wheel to flex, but if you are chunky cyclist stiff wheels are as important if not more important than light wheels. Of course best thing would be very stiff and very light but good luck with that if you weigh a bit. If you are serious about this speak to a good wheel builder rather than believe the marketing hyperbole around factory wheels.