Why buy Mavic R-Sys over Ksyrium SLSs?

bol

Lookin for a tough, light set of road wheels. I can get a good deal on Mavics, and rather like the look of the R-Sys. Looks aside though, an extra £300 for carbon spokes and 45g less seems quite a lot. Are they a lot better?

pippi_langsamer-2

I've been a Ksyrium advocate for years, and recently got some R-Sys wheels on a Parlee Z5 I acquired. Was never overly keen on the whole carbon spoke thing, especially after the earlier recalls.

But....I do believe they are stiffer than regular Ks, especially where short, sharp gradients are met.

I like.

northpole

Some say that the hollow carbon spokes are unhelpful with their lack of aero profile.

I have a pair of R-Sys wheels. Objectively, they roll very well and I have not experienced problems with them however, after the problems with the spokes when this wheelset was first introduced, unfortunately subjectively I have retained a lack of confidence in the durability/ safety offered by the carbon spokes. That's critical for me and I wouldn't buy them again when due for replacement.

Peter

ugo.santalucia

Be practical, when Mavic next year changes something in their carbon spokes engagement mechanism what are you going to do? Chase Madison to see if they have any old stock Mavic carbon spokes?
Not that the rest of the range is more friendly in that respect, but at least they work on a tension rather than compression principle, which is a starting point if you want to have them fixed.

FatTed

I love this blog from Bike Snob
http://bikesnobnyc.blogspot.co.nz/2009/ ... ps-on.html

giant_man

Bad idea from the beginning imo, perhaps why they had so many problems, would be Ksyrium SLSs for me. You're not going to notice that 45g. Seems to me the only reason for the R-Sys is the lower weight, but reliability is an issue.

Anonymous

Have there been any reliability issues on the new version then?

I'd say if you like the look of them and have the cash, then buy them.
They are better wheels and whether or not they are £300 better is subjective.

People on here love to knock things that they do not have, so the R-SYS are going to get a rough time lol

northpole, isn't it a bit silly saying that safety is 'critical' if you are still riding around on them?

spasypaddy

the rsys wheels are absolutely gorgeous!

i'd say get a pair otherwise you'll only regret it!

TOM14S

I went for the sls over rsys because of price, minimal gains, didn't fancy the Exalith brake surface which requires special pads and can be noisy.
I don't think you'd regret choosing sls they're one of the best wheels I've ridden.
I read somewhere the r-sys give a smoother ride. Id be surprised if it's noticeable.

smidsy

TOM14S wrote:

I read somewhere the r-sys give a smoother ride. Id be surprised if it's noticeable.

I'd be surprised if anything did not ride smoother. The Ksyrium wheels are renowned for their 'direct feedback'.

IME any low spoke count wheel tends to feel quite harsh compared to something with 32+ spokes.

ugo.santalucia

smidsy wrote:

TOM14S wrote:

I read somewhere the r-sys give a smoother ride. Id be surprised if it's noticeable.

I'd be surprised if anything did not ride smoother. The Ksyrium wheels are renowned for their 'direct feedback'.

IME any low spoke count wheel tends to feel quite harsh compared to something with 32+ spokes.

It's not the number. Some Mavic wheels have a harsh feel because they use large bladed spokes, which have very little in the way of resilience. Radial lacing pattern enhances the harsh feel and of course they have that too.
Some people like it, until they sign up for Paris-Roubaix, of course...

northpole

northpole, isn't it a bit silly saying that safety is 'critical' if you are still riding around on them?

Yep. I only use them for my commuting which is over fairly flat terrain in the city. Still leaves me feeling a bit silly as they are far far too good for slogging around London on. Very much a case of buying before thinking it through/ being aware of the issue.

If you don't have any confidence issues with the carbon spoke technology, they really are lovely wheels. For me though, I just can't bring myself to blatt down and round corners in the Surrey Hills on them.

Peter

ugo.santalucia

northpole wrote:

northpole, isn't it a bit silly saying that safety is 'critical' if you are still riding around on them?

Yep. I only use them for my commuting which is over fairly flat terrain in the city. Still leaves me feeling a bit silly as they are far far too good for slogging around London on. Very much a case of buying before thinking it through/ being aware of the issue.

If you don't have any confidence issues with the carbon spoke technology, they really are lovely wheels. For me though, I just can't bring myself to blatt down and round corners in the Surrey Hills on them.

Peter

I am supposed to do a full service on a set of R-SYS in the weekend, so we'll see how serviceable they are.. :?

sloppyschleckonds

What does a service involve? I asked my LBS if they could check mine and was given the raised eyebrow treatment. Or may be it was the astonished look.

TheSmithers

I'm looking to upgrade my wheels in a couple of months when bonus time comes around. The R-Sys SLRs have been on and off my wish list so many times. I love the look of them and they would look the dogs on my Cannondale SS ! They're super light, at least according to Mavic's figures and would really suit the kind of hilly terrain I ride. But I've heard so many nightmare stories about them, lack of serviceability, spoke failures etc etc. I'm just not sure any more.

I shall be keeping an eye on this thread, but I'm leaning more towards a set of hand built wheels from Wheelsmith now, either the Race 23s on Chris King, or something a bit different like a set of Gigantex 50mm carbon clinchers on Chris King.

ugo.santalucia

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

What does a service involve? I asked my LBS if they could check mine and was given the raised eyebrow treatment. Or may be it was the astonished look.

Apparently they are not true and need new bearings, so the all lot, we'll see

TOM14S

smidsy wrote:

TOM14S wrote:

I read somewhere the r-sys give a smoother ride. Id be surprised if it's noticeable.

I'd be surprised if anything did not ride smoother. The Ksyrium wheels are renowned for their 'direct feedback'.

IME any low spoke count wheel tends to feel quite harsh compared to something with 32+ spokes.

Before buying these wheels my biggest concern was the harsh ride that's been described in some reviews. Personally, it's a road bike, it's stiff, it's not going to ever be a smooth ride on british roads, I can noticed more difference in smoothness by changing the pressure by 10psi than I can swapping between the SLS and lets say my Ritchey DS wheels I throw on sometimes for the worst conditions.

The wheels sound great when wound up spinning fast, they kinda hum.
Cartridge bearings aren't my favourite
The rear hub is noisier than I like, but not as loud as some.... just keep pedaling.
The paint on the spokes seems to chip too easily!
Now people will not nesessarily agree with this comment due to their lack of aeroprofile and light weight but I find on the flat they spin really well and easy to hold high speeds up. I can often get in the top 10 on high speed segments on strava with these. I've actually sold the deep section wheels I had as I wasn't seeing any significant benifit from them
1500 miles and they're still perfectly true.
I love hills = great wheels
Would I buy again... yes
would I consider Dura ace... yes due to bearings and quieter free hub. I'm not particulary heavy so I'm not concerned about flexyness.
Hope this helps some 8)

TOM14S

ugo.santalucia wrote:

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

What does a service involve? I asked my LBS if they could check mine and was given the raised eyebrow treatment. Or may be it was the astonished look.

Apparently they are not true and need new bearings, so the all lot, we'll see

Ugo,
I just googled your insignia as my latin aint quite up to scratch.. don't think i was paying attention in that class.
you have a whole page / discussion dedicated to it...

http://latindiscussion.com/forum/latin/ ... ant.16609/

Bar Shaker

TOM14S wrote:

smidsy wrote:

TOM14S wrote:

I read somewhere the r-sys give a smoother ride. Id be surprised if it's noticeable.

I'd be surprised if anything did not ride smoother. The Ksyrium wheels are renowned for their 'direct feedback'.

IME any low spoke count wheel tends to feel quite harsh compared to something with 32+ spokes.

Before buying these wheels my biggest concern was the harsh ride that's been described in some reviews. Personally, it's a road bike, it's stiff, it's not going to ever be a smooth ride on british roads, I can noticed more difference in smoothness by changing the pressure by 10psi than I can swapping between the SLS and lets say my Ritchey DS wheels I throw on sometimes for the worst conditions.

The wheels sound great when wound up spinning fast, they kinda hum.
Cartridge bearings aren't my favourite
The rear hub is noisier than I like, but not as loud as some.... just keep pedaling.
The paint on the spokes seems to chip too easily!
Now people will poo poo this comment due to their lack of aeroprofile and light weight but I find on the flat they spin really well and easy to hold high speeds up. I can often get in the top 10 on high speed segments on strava with these. I've actually sold the deep section wheels I had as I was getting slower times using them... goes against theory I know so I'm not going to debate.
1500 miles and they're still perfectly true.
I love hills = great wheels
Would I buy again... yes
would I consider Dura ace... yes due to bearings and quieter free hub. I'm not particulary heavy so I'm not concerned about flexyness.
Hope this helps some 8)

Yep I'd have some in a heart beat.

I'm surprised about your comment regarding their speed on the flat, looking at the race scene, that just doesn't ring true. On the hills though, well these are the wheel of choice. They are uncompromising technology and are in a different class to your Sunday club social ride wheels and I would hope that all of the comfort has been designed out of them in the pursuit of power transfer efficiency.

If I wanted a soft comfy wheel, I would probably get Ugo to build me some. If I wanted an all out sprint/climbing wheel, it would be a set of R-SYS.

blablablacksheep

I have elites and been told that there are issues with all ksyrium wheels in relation to spoke tension and where the spokes insert into hub.
Funny enough my rear wheel is currently at mavic... Due to my spoke sheering off from hub and a chunk of hub missing...

When i showed lbs he admitted he seen this many times as either people overtightened the spokes or the hub is FUBAR from the start and stress fractures form over time (ticking time bomb comes to mind)

Given this would I buy them again
HELL YES!
They awesome wheels

ugo.santalucia

blablablacksheep wrote:

I have elites and been told that there are issues with all ksyrium wheels in relation to spoke tension and where the spokes insert into hub.
Funny enough my rear wheel is currently at mavic... Due to my spoke sheering off from hub and a chunk of hub missing...

When i showed lbs he admitted he seen this many times as either people overtightened the spokes or the hub is FUBAR from the start and stress fractures form over time (ticking time bomb comes to mind)

Given this would I buy them again
HELL YES!
They awesome wheels

I thought that problem, common to Ksyrium and Aksium had been resolved... it was a pre 2010 issue, the design of the rear flange has since changed

Bar Shaker

That's correct. The 2011/12 hubs are completely different.

A straw poll of my club mates showed over 50% using Ksyrium wheels. None had ever had a problem.

sloppyschleckonds

ugo.santalucia wrote:

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

What does a service involve? I asked my LBS if they could check mine and was given the raised eyebrow treatment. Or may be it was the astonished look.

Apparently they are not true and need new bearings, so the all lot, we'll see

What bearings did you use? I'm about to sell my R-Sys wheels so will probably get them serviced first.

alexjones5

I got the R-Sys SLR's 2012 and interestingly they only have the rounded carbon spokes on the non-drive side on the rear wheel. The drive side and all the front spokes are the bladed aluminium spokes. Mavic seemed to have changed these on the 2013 model, not sure why??
The wheels are great and really good for climbing as people have said. One word of warning on these is that the flat blade spokes can cause problems in cross winds which i found unusual for a shallow section box rim. Wasn't funny at 40+mph on a long descent!

Crozza

alexjones5 wrote:

I got the R-Sys SLR's 2012 and interestingly they only have the rounded carbon spokes on the non-drive side on the rear wheel. The drive side and all the front spokes are the bladed aluminium spokes. Mavic seemed to have changed these on the 2013 model, not sure why??
The wheels are great and really good for climbing as people have said. One word of warning on these is that the flat blade spokes can cause problems in cross winds which i found unusual for a shallow section box rim. Wasn't funny at 40+mph on a long descent!

you sure you don't have the Ksyrium SLRs?

the R-Sys have bladed zicral spokes on the drive-side rear, but round carbon spokes at the front and NDS. The Ksyrium SLRs have the same rear as the R-Sys but bladed zicral spokes at the front (iirc)

alexjones5

you are right, I am stupid, nice wheels though ;-)