My new wheels

moscowflyer

So having decided on some Ksyrium Elites, I then did a u turn having seen the good feedback given to Ugo on here and decided to go down the handbuilt route. My budget was only £400 so Ugo recommended some H Son Archetype 23mm rims with Hope Pro 3 hubs, 28 spokes on both wheels (DT revolutions on the front and DT competition on the back, I think I've got that the right way around...). I spent a lot of time wondering whether to go for black or silver spokes and black or blue hubs. In the end I went for black spokes and blue hubs and am pleased with the outcome, although with the wheels on, I think silver spokes and black hubs would have worked just as well.

Yet to ride on them yet but thought I'd get some pictures up. I may go back to 23mm tyres now I'm on 23mm rims but I'll see how I go with the 25s. And yes, I know my bars are in a weird position and the valves aren't in the right place, but I think the writing looks better at 6 o'clock...

Will report back once I've ridden on them.

Calpol

Very nice - they do look smart. Just don't brake and spoil the black anodising! The blue hubs also look really cool on that frame. Look forward to hearing how they ride as they are still on my shortlist.

thefd

They look good - but your bike would look better if you turn your stem round and angle your bars down!

moscowflyer

The bars have since been taken care of, I flipped the stem a while back but may well put it back down again. This actually made me realise how awful the bike looks like that. I need a bike fit...

ellj22

Nice looking set of wheels! Should be super durable. Not many people build with brass washers anymore because the machining for spoke heads is a lot better these days in most hubs but should still help to reduce fatigue a little more.
Might need to build up some of these rims on my hope hubs once my Open Pros are shot. Would be interested to know how you find the braking on the anodized finish and the alloy once the finish has worn off.

TheHound

Very nice. The blue hubs look sexy.

Quick question though, do you not find it hard to undo the quick release levers with them lined up along the forks and chainstays? I had mine the same for ages then realised I couldn't get a decent grip on them.

moscowflyer

No, I've got a knack to it now. I think they look a lot tidier like that.

pride4ever

Dont do much for the bike IMHO.

moscowflyer

pride4ever wrote:

Dont do much for the bike IMHO.

Anything in particular or just the wheels in general?

These were the original standard issues.

thefd

The white tape has really discoloured when you see the original picture!

moscowflyer

TheFD wrote:

The white tape has really discoloured when you see the original picture!

Yep, I need to get some Cif on it!

I've changed the final picture in the first post, I've been sorting out my position all afternoon and am finally there. Much better...

thefd

MoscowFlyer wrote:

TheFD wrote:

The white tape has really discoloured when you see the original picture!

Yep, I need to get some Cif on it!

I've changed the final picture in the first post, I've been sorting out my position all afternoon and am finally there. Much better...

Yes....looks much better. Would be interested in what it feels like on a ride.

ugo.santalucia

pride4ever wrote:

Dont do much for the bike IMHO.

They allow torque to be converted to forward propulsion... That seems enough of a job to keep them on...

moscowflyer

An update on these - Finally got to ride them this week and have done a few shorter, sharper efforts of 10-11 miles and a slower commute today. In short, I love them already. The first ride I think I spent too much time trying to find the positives from them and didn't really appreciate them, but from then on I just forgot about them and got on with it and appreciated them a lot more.

Stiffer, more responsive, acceleration is MUCH better and cornering is good. I've even got two KOMs in the past 24 hours on them which is unheard of for me 8) I'd highly recommend Paolo (Ugo) if anyone's looking for some hand builds, a very patient bloke, knows his stuff and can certainly build a wheel...

Unrelated but I also got rid of the white tape and went for some black, some lizard skin tape. And some new 3T bars just for good measure. Looks a bit better now I think.

goonz

Thats a beautiful looking bike, i actually thought it looked better with the white tape to give it some contrast. Is that Di2 you have? How do you keep the bike looking so clean? therehardly seems to be any grime on the rear cog at all? I guess you never take it out in the rain?

moscowflyer

goonz wrote:

Thats a beautiful looking bike, i actually thought it looked better with the white tape to give it some contrast. Is that Di2 you have? How do you keep the bike looking so clean? therehardly seems to be any grime on the rear cog at all? I guess you never take it out in the rain?

You're probably right re the tape, I think the white looks a tad better as well but only when it's actually white... It gets really dirty very easily so I thought I'd just go with the black for the time being. Re the cleanliness, the cassette and chain are pretty much brand new on, but even so, you're right, this doesn't see the light of day if there's so much as a puddle on the road. That's what I've got the Boardman for!

goonz

MoscowFlyer wrote:

goonz wrote:

Thats a beautiful looking bike, i actually thought it looked better with the white tape to give it some contrast. Is that Di2 you have? How do you keep the bike looking so clean? therehardly seems to be any grime on the rear cog at all? I guess you never take it out in the rain?

You're probably right re the tape, I think the white looks a tad better as well but only when it's actually white... It gets really dirty very easily so I thought I'd just go with the black for the time being. Re the cleanliness, the cassette and chain are pretty much brand new on, but even so, you're right, this doesn't see the light of day if there's so much as a puddle on the road. That's what I've got the Boardman for!

Ha! What do you do if its starts half way through your supposedly dry ride? Hide under a tree and call the missus?

Calpol

Bike looks great. Thanks for posting the wheel review. What wheels did you upgrade from? Also do you know what weight the wheels came in at?

jgsi

Calpol wrote:

Bike looks great. Thanks for posting the wheel review. What wheels did you upgrade from? Also do you know what weight the wheels came in at?

These are mine and I have no hesitation in recommending these guys for service and vfm
http://www.justridingalong.com/custom-h ... lsets.html

The hubs on mine Chris King R45s

moscowflyer

JGSI wrote:

Calpol wrote:

Bike looks great. Thanks for posting the wheel review. What wheels did you upgrade from? Also do you know what weight the wheels came in at?

These are mine and I have no hesitation in recommending these guys for service and vfm
http://www.justridingalong.com/custom-h ... lsets.html

The hubs on mine Chris King R45s

Oooh, you got the Chris Kings! You have far too much money, not that I'm jealous... :P Actually, I like the sound of the Hope's and am pleased with what I've ended up with, especially for just over £400.

The wheels came in at just over 1600g from what I recall, something like 970 for the rear and 650 for the front I think. The wheels I had before were the standard issue DT Swiss ones, CSW RA Race 2.0 that came with the bike (see pic above). About a 40g difference in weight so nothing worth talking about there, but performance is a lot better as you'd expect over basic standard issue wheels.

goonz wrote:

Ha! What do you do if its starts half way through your supposedly dry ride? Hide under a tree and call the missus?

Nope, I just start to cry knowing that my pride and joy is getting wet and muddy. I did that once before, took it out and it got caked in crap, never again... I've had this since October and it's still done less than 500 miles. And yep, this is Di2.

curium

Hello

Love your wheels. I also have a Cube but mine is the Peloton Race, decent bit of kit for the price.

I do love the look of your wheels and am considering a similar set but with red spoke nipples and red hubs.

My question is; does the finish on the rims wear off through braking and is it silver underneath. This is probably a question for someone who's done a few more miles on their archetype rims but I thought I'd ask anyway.

smidsy

Yes the black will wear off on the braking surface. This may take a while or be fairly quick depending on a variety of factors.

But it will rub off and show aluminium under it. Why this is a problem I am not sure, many wheels have uncoloured aluminium brake track from the start and it does not put people off.

ugo.santalucia

curium wrote:

Hello

Love your wheels. I also have a Cube but mine is the Peloton Race, decent bit of kit for the price.

I do love the look of your wheels and am considering a similar set but with red spoke nipples and red hubs.

My question is; does the finish on the rims wear off through braking and is it silver underneath. This is probably a question for someone who's done a few more miles on their archetype rims but I thought I'd ask anyway.

Yes, eventually the black wears off revealing silver alloy. You should thn again re. The nipples... Red anodised nipples are very weak and they seize on the spoke, rendering the wheel impossible to re true if needed... They are a very bad idea

moscowflyer

curium wrote:

Hello

Love your wheels. I also have a Cube but mine is the Peloton Race, decent bit of kit for the price.

I do love the look of your wheels and am considering a similar set but with red spoke nipples and red hubs.

My question is; does the finish on the rims wear off through braking and is it silver underneath. This is probably a question for someone who's done a few more miles on their archetype rims but I thought I'd ask anyway.

Yep, the brake track will rub off eventually. I'm sure Ugo will tell you the disadvantages to using coloured nipples...

The Peloton Race is a lovely looking bike, as it goes.

moscowflyer

ugo.santalucia wrote:

curium wrote:

Hello

Love your wheels. I also have a Cube but mine is the Peloton Race, decent bit of kit for the price.

I do love the look of your wheels and am considering a similar set but with red spoke nipples and red hubs.

My question is; does the finish on the rims wear off through braking and is it silver underneath. This is probably a question for someone who's done a few more miles on their archetype rims but I thought I'd ask anyway.

Yes, eventually the black wears off revealing silver alloy. You should thn again re. The nipples... Red anodised nipples are very weak and they seize on the spoke, rendering the wheel impossible to re true if needed... They are a very bad idea

There you go, he beat me to it

curium

ugo.santalucia wrote:

curium wrote:

Hello

Love your wheels. I also have a Cube but mine is the Peloton Race, decent bit of kit for the price.

I do love the look of your wheels and am considering a similar set but with red spoke nipples and red hubs.

My question is; does the finish on the rims wear off through braking and is it silver underneath. This is probably a question for someone who's done a few more miles on their archetype rims but I thought I'd ask anyway.

Yes, eventually the black wears off revealing silver alloy. You should thn again re. The nipples... Red anodised nipples are very weak and they seize on the spoke, rendering the wheel impossible to re true if needed... They are a very bad idea

That's good to know but puts a slight downer on things I was concerned that with the red accents on my bike the plain black wheels may look too plain but I don't want seized nipples!

I'm not really concerned about the brake track being silver but am a little concerned that the wheel will look a bit ragged during the 'transition'. Perhaps they should just leave the track silver to start with.

Anyhow, here's a pic of my new toy.


2013-03-19 at 15-22-23 by curium, on Flickr

seanorawe

TheFD wrote:

They look good - but your bike would look better if you turn your stem round and angle your bars down!

If hes comfortable on it who cares what it looks like?

moscowflyer

seanorawe wrote:

TheFD wrote:

They look good - but your bike would look better if you turn your stem round and angle your bars down!

If hes comfortable on it who cares what it looks like?

To be fair, the bike looked awful in the picture he originally saw...

smidsy

Is everyone who owns a Cube 7 foot something?

moscowflyer

smidsy wrote:

Is everyone who owns a Cube 7 foot something?

7 foot 3 here

goonz

MoscowFlyer wrote:

smidsy wrote:

Is everyone who owns a Cube 7 foot something?

7 foot 3 here

:shock: