reliable wheels for winter riding - advice please

le_boss

looking for a new set of wheels for winter rides. preferably with sealed bearings as had nothing but bad luck with shimano hubs.

max budget of £150. so basically its a choice between planet x model b, mavic aksium or fulcrum 7s - unless someone can recommend any alternative?

which is best value for money and which will be the most reliable?

cheers

snowy lowey

I've got some aksiums and fulcrum 7s and out of the two I prefer the aksiums, simply because I prefer the quiet freehub as opposed to the louder freehub on the fulcrums. Other than that there really isnt anything between them!

Hope this helps.

Wirral_paul

Stretch a little to some Fulcrum Racing 5's??

http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/road-track-bike/Wheels-Factory-Road-Triathlon-Fulcrum-Racing-5-Wheels-Pair/FULCWHFR180

MikeWW

I bought some Shimano R500 wheels from Merlin for £70. Not sealed I know but have been faultless-not sure you can go wrong with them for the money

Old Tuggo

If you do not put a hospipe or even worse a pressure washer near the Shimano hubs they will last quite a few winters (mine have lasted for years).

le_boss

Old Tuggo wrote:

If you do not put a hospipe or even worse a pressure washer near the Shimano hubs they will last quite a few winters (mine have lasted for years).

guess you have been lucky.
i had a set of r500s which didnt get through 1 winter riding last year and replaced them with rs10s (all i could really afford at the time) and same issues with the hub & bearings.

thanks for the responses. did look at the fulcrum 5s but for training wheels i think they are a bit too much.

think im going to go with the fulcrum 7s. only read positive reviews and with sealed bearings hopefully i wont have to face the issues i have had with the shimanos.

Chris James

Or you have been unlucky?

I have some Tiagra hubs that have seen out five winters with only one regrease in that time! They are still fine. maybe the 'groupset' hubs have better seals?

i also have had some RS30s for 18 months (mostly dry miels though) and they are fine.

BrianTrousers

You can get Fulcrum 5's from Merlin for £150 but they appear to only have the Campag hub in at the moment.

MichaelW

Shimano hubs are sometimes under-greased for winter use. I like to pack a lot of grease in to keep the crud out. Ive used unsealed Shimano hubs with no issues at all. There is apparently, some disadvantage to a packed hub, maybe in terms of racing efficiency.
There are tales of stock cartridge bearing systems being undergreased and running almost dry.

ugo.santalucia

It seems a bit late to think about winter wheels... in three weeks we might be out of it.
For bad roads riding, whether it's winter or spring, I suggest a set of traditional wheels with 32 spokes. The quality of the hubs will determine how much you spend. Your budget is tight, but I am confident something decent can be built.

Among those you mention, none fits the winter wheel requisites, the Aksiums are possibly the sturdiest, but I wouldn't call them reliable wheels (and yes, I have had a pair of Aksium)

t5nel

just my experience but...

I have commuted through the winter on my 2011 aksiums and they have been faultless.
I am mid weight at 72kg. Not great roads, not cleaned often enough either.

For the money I am totally satisfied with them

BruceG

I abuse the Hell out of my aksium winter trainers and they are just fine, though I have rum Shimano R500 in the past without any problem either

Mark Alexander

Campag Sirocco G3 they're bomb proof. well car proof anyway ( tested all too well)

bourne1

You can get 105 hubs on open pro rims at dave hynde for your budget i would take them over the acsiums any day i have no experience of the other wheels.

Old Tuggo

Mark Alexander wrote:

Campag Sirocco G3 they're bomb proof. well car proof anyway ( tested all too well)

In my previous experience with campag rims I found great difficulty in getting tyres on and off.