Wheelset recommendations ~£500

colm_gti

Looking at getting a new racing wheelset for myself for xmas, must meet the following criteria...

£500 budget
Shimano compatible
Stiff!! (I'm 90kgs of PURE muscle)
Relatively light (ideally sub 1500g)

I'm currently swaying towards a pair of wheelsmith race 23's, but have the option of a pair of DA 7850-sl's for very cheap also, if they're worth it? Is there anything else I should consider. They're mainly for racing (cat 3) so handbuilts have the upper hand in the case of a crash...

Just looking for opinions and suggestions from those of you in the know.

ugo.santalucia

The race23 are fine, but talk to Derek and get them specced for you differently. 24/28 and stronger spokes at the rear. The beauty of buying from an artisan is that you don't have to buy a fixed product.

maddog 2

I have the 7850-SLs and have been very happy with them. I run them tubeless with Hutch Fusion3s. I also have some 'equivalent' handbuilts but the 7850s perform better.

The latest DA C24 wheels (7900 and 9000) are a tad over budget but look very nice.

northpole

I reckon the DA's are hard to beat in this price range. Great wheels.

Campag Shamal Ultra's are also fab wheels if you can find a bargain, but not sure that sticking a campag wheel in a shimano set up is quite right!!

Peter

ricky1980

There is a set of brand new mavic krysium elite with tyres and all for 275 in for sales. Its a bargain!! Get that and save yourself 225 quid

napoleond

You will find the DAs too flexy, I did.

If going the factory route then if suggest some mavic Ksyrium Elites.

But have a talk with Derek from Wheelsmith first, a pair of his wheels would be perfect.

My powertap wheels are IRD road rims built up with CX Ray spokes (24/32) with an Extralite hub on the front and a powertap Pro rear. The total weight is 1650g. They'd be approx 1300g if I had a 28h Extralite rear hub instead!

They are stiff as anything, well impressed!

ratsbeyfus

ricky1980 wrote:

There is a set of brand new mavic krysium elite with tyres and all for 275 in for sales. Its a bargain!! Get that and save yourself 225 quid

Link please.

ricky1980

Just went back to the thread it read equipe >.<

Doh!

But elites can be got for around 400 newish in ebay

colm_gti

Thanks for the replies folks!

Have sent Derek an email, it will be interesting to see what he can offer.

On a similar note, there is a wheel builder local to me (Dublin, Ireland) that I'm told is absolutely fantastic, but can't offer much in the way of advice for performance wheels as he has mostly built ultra reliable 32/32 open pro on dura ace rims for tourers and commuters, but if I can supply the materials, he would be more than happy to build them up, if anyone can offer any suggestions? This would be ideal for me as it would be much handier for aftermarket support, should a spoke break or the wheels go out of true...

I have looked into the ksyrium elites, a couple of lads in my club have them and are very satisfied with them, but I would be considerably taller, and presumably a few kgs heavier than them, and not sure how they're fare up with regard to stiffness?

I trained and raced last season on a pair of Aksiums, which were bullet proof, and haven't gone remotely out of true in ~8000kms (5000 miles), so if I could get wheels that were as reliable as these but that rolled faster for racing, I'd be over the moon. I'll be keeping the aksiums for training, and the new wheels will purely be for racing, so I'm not opposed to the idea of tubulars too...

napoleond

Ksyrium elites are super stiff, much more so than aksiums. I was riding the earlier this year at 100kg (down to 86 now) not a jot of flex.

But see what Derek says...

colm_gti

NapoleonD wrote:

Ksyrium elites are super stiff, much more so than aksiums. I was riding the earlier this year at 100kg (down to 86 now) not a jot of flex.

But see what Derek says...

Interesting, my LBS has some fantastic deals on 2012 ksyrium elites and SL's.....

I will wait and see what Derek says before jumping to any conclusions though.

Also, anyone care to comment on campagnolo zondas or fulcrum racing 3's?

ugo.santalucia

colm_gti wrote:

NapoleonD wrote:

Ksyrium elites are super stiff, much more so than aksiums. I was riding the earlier this year at 100kg (down to 86 now) not a jot of flex.

But see what Derek says...

Interesting, my LBS has some fantastic deals on 2012 ksyrium elites and SL's.....

I will wait and see what Derek says before jumping to any conclusions though.

Also, anyone care to comment on campagnolo zondas or fulcrum racing 3's?

If you have a local builder it is always the best solution... Make sure the feedback comes from someone trusted. I have seen some appalling work

colm_gti

ugo.santalucia wrote:

colm_gti wrote:

NapoleonD wrote:

Ksyrium elites are super stiff, much more so than aksiums. I was riding the earlier this year at 100kg (down to 86 now) not a jot of flex.

But see what Derek says...

Interesting, my LBS has some fantastic deals on 2012 ksyrium elites and SL's.....

I will wait and see what Derek says before jumping to any conclusions though.

Also, anyone care to comment on campagnolo zondas or fulcrum racing 3's?

If you have a local builder it is always the best solution... Make sure the feedback comes from someone trusted. I have seen some appalling work

Aye, the reviews are fantastic, he's very meticulous about his work I hear, and anyone I've spoken to that has had wheels made by him are still happy 12 and 24 months later....but like I said, he's only really made 36/36 touring and commuting rims, so I'd have to supply the rims and hubs....any suggestions?

I've been looking at the stans notubes ztr alpha 340 rims, would i be better off with something stiffer?

napoleond

Yes. Much stiffer. Which isn't hard!

ugo.santalucia

Stick to the Archetype rims... They are very stiff and come in all drillings

colm_gti

Another wheelset to throw into the mix, have an offer of a set of WH7801 50mm tubular wheels, with evo cx tubs and a cassette for below budget, only 600km done since new....from what I can find out online these are quite light and stiff?

Anyone able to offer any insight?

hazy_day

I'm getting a set of wheels built by Bee Cycles,Dublin.They are 28 front and rear,Velocity A23 rims and DT Swiss 190 hubs.You are welcome to see them when built.Send me a PM and I'll keep you up to speed on progress. Hazy

dmclite-3.0

Have a look at fuerte bici, good carbon wheels built up by a small company in suffolk. I have a pair of all carbon clinchers 60mm and are very stiff and light, had them for 2 years and are brilliant. I am also round about the 80kg mark so no lightweight either.

ugo.santalucia

colm_gti wrote:

Another wheelset to throw into the mix, have an offer of a set of WH7801 50mm tubular wheels, with evo cx tubs and a cassette for below budget, only 600km done since new....from what I can find out online these are quite light and stiff?

Anyone able to offer any insight?

Yes, the problem is always the same... A wheelset with no warranty that cannot be repaired, not without going through quite a journey anyway... It is a risk

Captainlip

dmclite-3.0 wrote:

Have a look at fuerte bici, good carbon wheels built up by a small company in suffolk. I have a pair of all carbon clinchers 60mm and are very stiff and light, had them for 2 years and are brilliant. I am also round about the 80kg mark so no lightweight either.

Why on earth are you giving people such bad advice like that? Mavic is what you need dont listen to this censored .

bernithebiker

Captainlip wrote:

dmclite-3.0 wrote:

Have a look at fuerte bici, good carbon wheels built up by a small company in suffolk. I have a pair of all carbon clinchers 60mm and are very stiff and light, had them for 2 years and are brilliant. I am also round about the 80kg mark so no lightweight either.

Why on earth are you giving people such bad advice like that? Mavic is what you need dont listen to this censored .

WTF?!

cycleclinic

Sorry but the above statement is poor. Mavic is what you "need"! The OP needs a wheel that fits his needs a Mavic wheel may do that but so will many other inlcuding many handbuilt options. Also handbuilt wheels have the advantage of being cost effective to service rebuild in the event of crash. Many factory options from Shimano, Campagnolo/fulcrum and others can also fit the OP's needs.

How about some Dura ace hubs 24F/28R on H+ plu sons archetype rims with Sapim CX-rays ~1540g. Lighter hubs would drop the weight further. I am sure your local wheelbuilder that you trust can do these or something similar.

The velocity A23 is another rim option but the H+ sons archetypoe rim is a bit stiffer which helps if your are a powerful rider.

I would at your weight shy away from the lightweight rims like the Stans alpha 340. the newer Stan's 400 might be alright though but I have never tried it to know. Also the light weight offerings from DT Swiss like the RR415 especially on the rear would be to flexy and more importantly the rim would be operating at the limit of its design load so durtability would be an issue. I use a DT RR415 on my rear wheel but I weight 79kg and that I consider to be the practicle rider weight limit for this rim from a durability point of view.

The dura ace hub (7900 perhaps but 7800 hubs are still available in some drillings) have the advantage of wide flange spacings and a good drive side to centre spacing (~20mm) on the rear hubs. This lead to a stiffer wheel build and better tension balance. Other hub options from the like of DT Swiss like the 240 are excellent light weight hubs but flange spacings on the rear are a bit narrower resulting a less stiff wheel (laterally by a little bit) and poorer tension balance. Using a hub like the DT swiss 240 just means a stiffer rim needs to be used. Very good wheels can be built with them. There are of course light weight hub options that cost alot less from the like of Novatec. There A291 and F482 hubs are really very good and are less than 1/3 the price of DT 240 hubs and only 18g more. Bearings seems durable as well. Best of all worlds.

Lots of choice other than Mavic. So many options a serious discusion with a builder is needed.

colm_gti

Thanks for all the input guys, has all been taken on board and I have been in contact with a local, highly regarded wheel builder about getting a set built up.

I'm going to go for 20h/24h h plus son archetypes built up on A291/F482 hubs with brass nipples, following a conversation with the above wheel builder.

Unfotunately, these have now been put off til early next year as I ended up splashing out on a new TT bike :shock:

EKIMIKE

Mavic is fine until something needs replacing. Then Mavic are the last wheels you want in your hands. Although the same goes for 80% of factory built wheels, not just Mavic. Just so you know, i own a pair of Ksyrium Elite's so i'm not just a speculative doubter. I'd never buy them again. Not because they're poor wheels. Just painfully expensive (in all respects). Fine if you're loaded.

See what you can get handbuilt for the price of Mavic's. Like i said, they're awfully expensive nowadays. Plus they're not the most innovative things. It's essentially been the same design for 10+ years now just refined (true, if it's good why change it). However, you won't find a 23mm wide alu rim from Mavic or any other of the big factory names.

ugo.santalucia

EKIMIKE wrote:

However, you won't find a 23mm wide alu rim from Mavic or any other of the big factory names.

Against my interest, but HED started the all thing... shame their rims cost like a second hand car

EKIMIKE

True, but i was thinking more along the lines the wheels people normally buy: Mavic; Fulcrum; Campag; Shimano; Pro-Lite. The one's that don't cost as much as a second hand car! You won't find any 23mm wide rims there. I suppose it's only one factor though...

ugo.santalucia

EKIMIKE wrote:

True, but i was thinking more along the lines the wheels people normally buy: Mavic; Fulcrum; Campag; Shimano; Pro-Lite. The one's that don't cost as much as a second hand car! You won't find any 23mm wide rims there. I suppose it's only one factor though...

I guess they're all waiting for their rim supplier in the far east to change the die at the end of the extruder for a wider one... :twisted:

cycleclinic

Enjoy yopur new wheels when you get them. Those archetypes look so nice.