Fulcrum Racing 7 any good?

JC14

Hey guys just want you opinion are the Fulcrum Racing 7s any good?
thanks.

diamonddog

Wrong section, try it in Buying Advice.

mfin

They are a pretty sturdy entry level wheel.

apreading

Are they any better than R501, which are £59 on amazon at the moment?

ugo.santalucia

apreading wrote:

Are they any better than R501, which are £59 on amazon at the moment?

They are similar, but they use sealed bearings instead of the low quality cup and cone bearings of the 501. The difference is that you can replace and "upgrade" the bearings on a pair of Fulcrum 7, while when they go in the Shimano, you throw everything away. They also use a bearing size which is cheap to buy even as SKF or INA.

They are both excellent value for money and pretty much all the wheel you will ever need. They won't last forever, but at that price do they have to?

cq20

Racing 7s are fine for that part of the market. I've found them robust and trouble-free on my "other" bike. Just watch which you get because there is a recent version - the Racing 7 LG - which has 23mm wide rims. The previous, narrower rim version is available at a good discount (or at least was, the last time I checked).

crescent

Great budget wheel. I've had a pair for over three years and used them all year round in all sorts of weathers on three different bikes. Still true and not a single squeak or rattle from them (I do give them a bit of TLC regularly which always helps). They are quite noisy when freewheeling but this is a known characteristic and nothing to worry about. Ironically, it was while administering the aforementioned TLC that I actually sheared part of the thread off of the hub, entirely my fault though and not a reflection on the quality of the wheel. Will probably buy another set to replace them if I can't sort out a repair for the hub. You can get them for as low as £120 occasionally - a bargain.

d_o_g

I've had a couple of sets, perfectly decent wheels, never had any issues, other than the rims wearing out from extended use!

garyk72

I weigh 80KG's and my rear Fulcrum 7 has snapped 3 spokes in the space of a year. They are now in the bin!!

turbotommy

Very decent wheels for the money in my opinion. I used a pair for commuting for a couple of years and I found them reliable, they stayed true etc.

OfficerDigby

At 90kg I was OK with the ole 24 spoke Fulcrum R7's.

But the new ones (from 2014) have changed to 20 spoke (thought I was buying 24 spokes but got an upgrade!).

And I'm now very waring of where/how I ride on them now or the spokes will pop! (smoother roads/no extra weight etc)

Semantik

Have recently put into service a new (stored) 2009 pair and for 3k miles they have stayed true with no spoke breakages. Cartridge bearings were rubbish tho' and wore out very quickly in not particularly demanding riding conditions. Now replaced the bearings with double sealed ones for less than £8 and running fine now.

JC14

Ok Thanks guys

ai_1

garyk72 wrote:

I weigh 80KG's and my rear Fulcrum 7 has snapped 3 spokes in the space of a year. They are now in the bin!!

I've used a set for 2.5 years in all conditions and on some very poor roads. I weighed over 90kg for some of that time and high 80s for the rest. Never had a single issue. Never broke a spoke, never had to true them. They're still working perfectly, although I must check rim wear.
So you may have had problems but I don't think t's a typical experience.

sparklehedgehog

i have them on my wet weather bike and although they're fine they have a lot of lateral flex when climbing.

other than that they're great value