Wheels (really my last post on this I promise)

londoncommuter
londoncommuter Posts: 1,550
edited March 2015 in Road buying advice
I seem to have stupidly drawn up a short list of completely different wheels and have thoroughly confused myself. I promise this is the last wheel related thread I'll post if you all help. Which would you choose for a anorexicly light rider on an aero Scott Foil? Use will be fast club runs with the usual potholes and very few hills.

Campag Zonda

Seem to be loved by everyone as one of the best cheaper factory wheels. Fairly light and slightly deeper than other similar wheels. Standard width though. [£200, external width 20.5mm, internal width 15mm, depth 26/30mm, weight 1,554g]

Mavic Ksyrium Elite

Not an exciting choice but hugely reduced at the moment so worth considering? Fairly light but very shallow brick like rims and standard width. [£260, 19.5mm, 14.7mm, 22/25mm, 1,520g]

Kinlin XC-279/Novatec A291SB-SL/F482SB-SL

Hand built loveliness with nice wider rims and fairly light. Starting to get quite a lot more expensive than the Zondas now though as the (completely reasonable for the skills involved) fixed cost of having wheels built is proportionally quite high at this lower end. [£305, 23mm, 18mm, 28mm, 1,545g]

Shimano RS81 C35

Nice and aero at 35mm depth although still an old fashioned V shape and has a normal narrow rim. Also fairly heavy compared to all of the others but aluminium brake tracks a safer option than the carbon clincher below. [£340, 20.8mm, ??mm, 35mm, 1,631g]

Zuus 38mm carbon clinchers

Carbon clinchers which are a nice depth at 38mm and look good on an aero bike (ignoring the Zipp rip off logo). Still an old V shaped rim though and despite the 23mm width the internal width is actually narrower than all of the others at only 13.5mm. You can't really expect the latest torodial profile etc though at this price and I'm not sure what you get with others until you spend quite a lot more. [£340, 23mm, 13.5mm, 38mm, 1,540g]


In summary:

Weight - all pretty much the same weight apart from the RS81 which are 100g more.
Width - only the Kinlins are properly wide.
Aero - although traditional V shaped, the RS81 and Zuus are a nicer depth at 35mm and 38mm.
Reliability - the lovingly built Kinlins will edge out the rest but only the Zuus are really a bit of a risk.
Price - Zonda's are "cheap" with Mavics in the middle.

Help!

Comments

  • indyp
    indyp Posts: 735
    Where are Ksyrium Elites available for £260 and the Campagnolo Zonda for £200? I've also been looking and that's a v good price.
  • Dam0-MSC
    Dam0-MSC Posts: 21
    Just paid 300 for my zondas from wiggle.
    Naturally I'd say go for zondas but I haven't tried the others.
    Pride and joy
    MSC - Hunter
  • DKay
    DKay Posts: 1,652
    If you can get the Zondas for £200, get those.
    N
    N+1
  • sloppyschleckonds
    sloppyschleckonds Posts: 8,019
    23mm rims would be my preference, with hubs that will be ok in the wet
    I'm sorry you don't believe in miracles
  • londoncommuter
    londoncommuter Posts: 1,550
    SloppySchleckonds wrote:
    23mm rims would be my preference, with hubs that will be ok in the wet

    Sorry, should have said, dry use only as they'll be for my summer best. Means I'm relaxed about any drop in braking performance from carbon rims and from any issues with the superlight Novatec hubs which would seem to have a very short life in the wet.

    Thanks for the votes so far.
  • mfin
    mfin Posts: 6,729
    Dam0-MSC wrote:
    Just paid 300 for my zondas from wiggle.
    Naturally I'd say go for zondas but I haven't tried the others.

    You paid full whack there.
  • Calpol
    Calpol Posts: 1,039
    I would also recommend 23mm rims. they do make a difference.
    I didn't know that Zuus did 38mm wheels - they arent on the website and AFAIK the 50mm, 60mm etc are all "U" shaped. At least that's what Gary said to me when I emailed him a few months ago.
    Given that you have a Scott Foil maybe you should try the Zuus 50mm. they would really compliment the frame and can be had with Dark decals that play down the Zipp aping nonsense.

    It looks like Superstar are sold out of their Pacenti SL23 build which would have been good. The ubiquitous H Plus Son Archetypes are another option.
  • Bobbinogs
    Bobbinogs Posts: 4,841
    I am not sure that this one is ready for a poll as the options vary in price bracket but also the pros/cons. If you want wheels for fast flat rides, for a light rider, then I would pitch this one a different way.

    I can understand why a lot of people like the Zondas but I have found the combination of a narrow rim and ultra stiff wheel to be very harsh and fatiguing, even with 25mm tyres at lower pressures (I can run 80 PSI with my weight). Also, the benefits of a light wheel/shallow rim can be somewhat ignored if you are riding fast and flat, where some extra weight and aero benefits of a larger rim start to come into their own...although if one is drafting another rider then aero has very little effect as the bloke in front is taking most of the air resistance anyway!

    Despite some marketing BS to the contrary, anything less than 35mm offers little aero benefit, IME so I think rims between 30mm and 35mm are just 'heavier' rather than aero.

    I would be looking at RS C35s from the list...but the list needs to have a few more similar wheels to that type.

    Finally, I just don't get some of those prices, Zondas for £200 and only £340 for C35s? Blimey!

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