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Planet X Pro Carbon - the wheel options.

4AM4AM Posts: 13
edited May 2016 in Road buying advice
Hi Gang. Recently got back into cycling after a few years off the saddle and having been bitten by the bug again, have considered treating myself to a new bike. Was considering the Pro Carbon with 6800 Ultegra, but looking at the buying options, I don't know enough to pick which wheels will suit. The options are: -
    Campag Khamsins Fulcrum Racing Sport Shimano RS330 Vision Team 35.

The others are all a bit pricey as an upgrade to the point where I could just buy some better wheels elsewhere, like Superstar for instance.

Not been able to find many reviews on these relatively low budget wheels apart from the Fulcrums, which seem pretty good, if a bit heavy. I'm about 88kg and at the moment am only riding for fun/exercise, between 25-50 miles at a time.

Can anyone give me some real world feed-back on these or tip me off on any horror stories!

Posts

  • darkhairedlorddarkhairedlord Posts: 7,180
    4AM wrote:
    Hi Gang. Recently got back into cycling after a few years off the saddle and having been bitten by the bug again, have considered treating myself to a new bike. Was considering the Pro Carbon with 6800 Ultegra, but looking at the buying options, I don't know enough to pick which wheels will suit. The options are: -
      Campag Khamsins Fulcrum Racing Sport Shimano RS330 Vision Team 35.

    The others are all a bit pricey as an upgrade to the point where I could just buy some better wheels elsewhere, like Superstar for instance.

    Not been able to find many reviews on these relatively low budget wheels apart from the Fulcrums, which seem pretty good, if a bit heavy. I'm about 88kg and at the moment am only riding for fun/exercise, between 25-50 miles at a time.

    Can anyone give me some real world feed-back on these or tip me off on any horror stories!
    At 88kg, 200g on wheels is not going to make any difference.
  • drlodgedrlodge Posts: 4,826
    You can lose 100g just by using thinner inner tubes.
    WyndyMilla Massive Attack | Rourke 953 | Condor Italia 531 Pro | Boardman CX Pro | DT Swiss RR440 Tubeless Wheels
    Find me on Strava
  • 4AM4AM Posts: 13
    The weight issue isn't my real concern. I'm more interested in the longevity of the bearings, how easy spares are to locate, do they stay true/break spokes etc etc. Thought that you good people on here may be able to volunteer some useful experience.
  • drlodgedrlodge Posts: 4,826
    IMO the wheels you're suggesting fall in to the bracket of "cheap entry level factory wheels", you'd be better off spending a bit more on hand built wheels. For example, take a look at the BORG22s on thecycleclinic web site, costing from £254 you get Miche hubs, J-bend spokes, tubeless compatible rims with an asymmetric rear. Good, solid, reliable and easy to repair wheels with readily available spares. Fit a set of IRC Roadlite tyres and you'll certainly feel a difference.

    If you want to stick with factory wheels, the Zondas are generally regarded as the best value factory wheelset at a reasonable price. http://www.wiggle.co.uk/campagnolo-zond ... -wheelset/ @ £270.
    WyndyMilla Massive Attack | Rourke 953 | Condor Italia 531 Pro | Boardman CX Pro | DT Swiss RR440 Tubeless Wheels
    Find me on Strava
  • trek_dantrek_dan Posts: 1,366
    For cheap and easy to maintain I'd go Shimano.
  • darkhairedlorddarkhairedlord Posts: 7,180
    Get the khamsins, put them in the shed for winter, buy some quattros or 5's.
  • bigmatbigmat Posts: 5,134
    My Khamsins have been rock solid, done thousands of miles including a couple of Paris-Roubaixs and haven't needed trueing. Only issue was after P-R1 last spring when the freewheel got a bit noisy but that just needed re-lubing I think, LBS sorted it in about 5 minutes. Not sure if the Fulcrums you mention are the Fulcrum version of the same? Campag wheels on non Campag bikes always seems wrong somehow, although you could always de-sticker them! At that price point I don't think handbuilts can touch them personally, you need to be spending more for it to be worth the cost of rebuilding a wheel.
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/41991871@N ... otostream/
  • ugo.santaluciaugo.santalucia Posts: 28,025
    Is this thread slowly building up and then turning into a Planet X bashing/Superstar hyping type of thing... I can sense it... :-)
    left the forum March 2023
  • drlodgedrlodge Posts: 4,826
    Apologies, l I should have read your original post more carefully.

    I don't know much about the 4 wheels suggested but the Khamsins have had 2 nods so get them...then use them and wait until you're in a position to now what "better" wheels you really want. Then you get the better wheels and use for best, and use the Khamsins for winter use.

    I've never bought a pair of factory wheels as (a) my budget is > £300 and less than this doesn't get you a decent wheel IMO (b) hand builts offer so many options and ease of rebuild/maintenance/spare parts etc. With hand builts starting at around £250-£300, I just don't see the point of factory wheelsets.
    WyndyMilla Massive Attack | Rourke 953 | Condor Italia 531 Pro | Boardman CX Pro | DT Swiss RR440 Tubeless Wheels
    Find me on Strava
  • bigmatbigmat Posts: 5,134
    Depends what you mean by a "decent" wheel. The Khamsins spin pretty freely, stay true, aren't massively heavy. They do a pretty good job all in all. Main downside for me is the internal rim width although I think more recent ones are a bit wider, mine are quite narrow so not ideal for 25mm+ tyres.

    I'd love a pair of the Superstar wheels but they never seem to have Campag hubs in stock - maybe someone with knowledge of Superstar but obviously no affiliation to them could let me know how easy it is to covert their hubs to a Campag freewheel?!
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/41991871@N ... otostream/
  • ugo.santaluciaugo.santalucia Posts: 28,025
    BigMat wrote:

    I'd love a pair of the Superstar wheels but they never seem to have Campag hubs in stock - maybe someone with knowledge of Superstar but obviously no affiliation to them could let me know how easy it is to covert their hubs to a Campag freewheel?!

    Impartial enough? :-)

    As easy as converting a Novatec 482, seeing they're the same thing... Cycleclinic should have all the freehubs, caps and paraphernalia... obviously if you are 11 speed you don't even need to do that
    left the forum March 2023
  • MikeBrewMikeBrew Posts: 814
    edited May 2016
    ugo.santalucia wrote:
    Is this thread slowly building up and then turning into a Planet X bashing/Superstar hyping type of thing... I can sense it... :-)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxn2A1oYqvs :lol: By the size of that wooden spoon you're brandishing, I'm guessing that you're off to make a cake, perhaps ? Tuesdays can be a little slow can't they :wink:

    Back on topic :
    The best VFM upgrade that PX appear to offer with that bike are the Shimano RS81 C24 @ £250, which is a genuine £100 off of what they retail at(£150 off of what PX retail them at). That takes the bike to £1200, so you're then only £75 quid away from a 2016 Cannondale Evo from Epic cycles, which equates to a massive frame upgrade. Wheels, you can upgrade ant time.
    viewtopic.php?f=40042&t=13042198&start=500
  • darkhairedlorddarkhairedlord Posts: 7,180
    MikeBrew wrote:
    ugo.santalucia wrote:
    Is this thread slowly building up and then turning into a Planet X bashing/Superstar hyping type of thing... I can sense it... :-)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxn2A1oYqvs :lol: By the size of that wooden spoon you're brandishing, I'm guessing that you're off to make a cake, perhaps ? Tuesdays can be a little slow can't they :wink:

    Back on topic :
    The best VFM upgrade that PX appear to offer with that bike are the Shimano RS81 C24 @ £250, which is a genuine £100 off of what they retail at(£150 of what PX retail them at). That takes the bike to £1200, so you're then only £75 quid away from a 2016 Cannondale Evo from Epic cycles, which equates to a massive frame upgrade. Wheels, you can upgrade ant time.
    viewtopic.php?f=40042&t=13042198&start=500

    You just can't help yourself can you?
    back to the topic

    Campag Khamsins
    Fulcrum Racing Sport
    Shimano RS330
    Vision Team 35
  • OfficerDigbyOfficerDigby Posts: 110
    Usually you can phone them and spec whatever wheels you want. Subject to stock.

    Often the options are just put for a particular deal or what they want to get rid of.

    Alternatively just get Khamsins
  • MikeBrewMikeBrew Posts: 814
    My Little Troll(y) wrote:
    You just can't help yourself can you?
    Absolutely right. I actually think about what I believe is the best value for money for the person about to spend their hard earned cash, and answer accordingly every time. You, on the other hand, don't appear to.


    Here's a few first-hand experiences of the Pro carbon frame. viewtopic.php?t=13042590
  • SemantikSemantik Posts: 537
    To the OP

    There are far better offerings out there than the Pro Carbon. I guess you have just got into cycling and ,in your view, any carbon frame is a step up from what you ride now.
    But be aware that this frame has been around for nearly ten years. The bike world has moved on.
    the frame is worth about £150. add price of groupset, £75 for wheels and another £50 for finish kit and that is what you are getting for your money basically. So if it's an Ultegra model pay no more than £700. Can't be bothered to look on their website to see what they are asking for this bike but guess it is more than that. If so, suggest you look elsewhere.
    I have nothing against PX as such but seriously they must have bought millions of these frames for peanuts to be still selling them after this length of time when technology has moved on and other online retailers are replacing their models every couple of years.
  • zefszefs Posts: 484
    MikeBrew wrote:
    My Little Troll(y) wrote:
    You just can't help yourself can you?
    Absolutely right. I actually think about what I believe is the best value for money for the person about to spend their hard earned cash, and answer accordingly every time. You, on the other hand, don't appear to.


    Here's a few first-hand experiences of the Pro carbon frame. viewtopic.php?t=13042590

    I started that topic and I can say that after owning the frame for 5 months it's great value for money (I got it on a discount for 380€ shipped. No issues at the moment. I also tested a 2000€ carbon bike (Cube Agree GTC) of a friend and it has similar behaviour as the one I was describing on my other topic so I guess it's just the carbon behaviour and it isn't some defect, the pro carbon is just not as stiff as todays frames I guess.

    I have the Fulcrum Racing Quattro wheels on it but would recommend the Fulcrum Racing 5 for the OP to save some weight on them, have done over 6000km and they didn't even need to be true (I am 64kg but roads here are rough). So can't go wrong with Fulcrum's.
  • antonyfromozantonyfromoz Posts: 482
    Semantik wrote:
    To the OP

    There are far better offerings out there than the Pro Carbon. I guess you have just got into cycling and ,in your view, any carbon frame is a step up from what you ride now.
    But be aware that this frame has been around for nearly ten years. The bike world has moved on.
    the frame is worth about £150. add price of groupset, £75 for wheels and another £50 for finish kit and that is what you are getting for your money basically. So if it's an Ultegra model pay no more than £700. Can't be bothered to look on their website to see what they are asking for this bike but guess it is more than that. If so, suggest you look elsewhere.
    I have nothing against PX as such but seriously they must have bought millions of these frames for peanuts to be still selling them after this length of time when technology has moved on and other online retailers are replacing their models every couple of years.

    I don't mean to start another one of those thread arguments and I have no opinions regarding this bike but as i have been reading threads about the pro carbon I have noticed a lot of these types of comments - especially about the frame not being a few years old and that the bike world has moved on - but nobody has offered any observations about what updates this frame is missing to make it competitive with more modern frames. It might help the OP in this and other threads if the missing updates were pointed out so that they can guage the pros (pardon the pun) and cons of the frame against other options. The fact that the design is old does not, of itself, impact on the value or quality of the bike. Many bike frames, especially at the lower end of the market, are merely given a colour/pattern change each year so that purchasers who simply must have the latest model know that they are getting the newest offering - and the bike companies can then keep their prices up. I don't see anyone criticising other manufacturers for doing this and using it as a reason not to buy a particular bike. Other changes to bike frames might be designed to make a frame a bit lighter or a bit stiffer etc but the absence of these incremental changes does not mean that this frame is a bad one - prospective purchasers just need to take all these factors into account when evaluating it against other bikes - and there appear to be many happy riders around.
  • 4AM4AM Posts: 13
    MikeBrew wrote:
    ugo.santalucia wrote:
    Is this thread slowly building up and then turning into a Planet X bashing/Superstar hyping type of thing... I can sense it... :-)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxn2A1oYqvs :lol: By the size of that wooden spoon you're brandishing, I'm guessing that you're off to make a cake, perhaps ? Tuesdays can be a little slow can't they :wink:

    Back on topic :
    The best VFM upgrade that PX appear to offer with that bike are the Shimano RS81 C24 @ £250, which is a genuine £100 off of what they retail at(£150 off of what PX retail them at). That takes the bike to £1200, so you're then only £75 quid away from a 2016 Cannondale Evo from Epic cycles, which equates to a massive frame upgrade. Wheels, you can upgrade ant time.
    viewtopic.php?f=40042&t=13042198&start=500

    Can't see an Evo for less than £1,350 on Epic's site and that's with Tiagra and other component compromises that are no better than the bike I have. Besides, I have a bit of a chip on my shoulder about "Cracknfail" from my MTB days. Having had 2 frames from them in the past that broke, I swore I'd never touch them again. Anyway, geometry wise, the Evo looks to be more race orientated than endurance. I don't intend to race or compete and would much rather go for all day comfort, which the Pro Carbon angles and measurements suggests it is.

    All that said, I hear what people are saying, outdated generic open mould frame design etc. So, if I were going to drop £1,200 or so on a new bike that suits my "comfort first/speed second" ethos, what would people suggest?
  • MikeBrewMikeBrew Posts: 814
    @4AM You need to ring Epic and ask their "Every day fair price" on whichever bike you're interested in. In this case it would be the Evo 105 "Standard Edition". The "Epic edition" is more expensive. The Standard edition is as from Cannondale factory spec
    Mate of mine recently did this and got Evo 105 for £1275.

    Functionally the 105 is as good as Ultegra, albeit a tad heavier (under 200 grams IIRC). Alternatively Pauls Cycles do the 2015 and 2014 Evo's for £999
  • RobinB2RobinB2 Posts: 111
    I've got some Khamsins on my commuting bike and for the price, they are pretty good. The only downside is that the bearing life isn't brilliant - I got about 2.5 years (approx 4000 miles) out of the initial set
  • arlowoodarlowood Posts: 2,561
    4AM wrote:

    All that said, I hear what people are saying, outdated generic open mould frame design etc. So, if I were going to drop £1,200 or so on a new bike that suits my "comfort first/speed second" ethos, what would people suggest?

    Just to throw a bit of first hand experience into the mix. I bought a Pro Carbon frame back at the "New Year sale" at Planet X. Got it for £260. Probably overpaid if Mike Brew is to be believed but I am more than satisfied with it so far. Built it up with 105 5800 (£300) and fitted some handbuilts from Cycleclinic (Archetype/Miche Primato - £300). Total cost with the other finishing kit was probably a shade under £1K.

    For that money I've got a bike that rides well, is faster than any of my previous bikes and is comfortable despite the claims that the design is outmoded and outdated. Also I liked the idea of a standard BSA bottom bracket rather than gambling with any pressfit design.

    However if the OP is looking for an alternative to the Pro Carbon and doesn't like the aggressive geometry of the Cannondale Evo frame then one option to consider is the Giant TCR Advanced 2

    http://www.rutlandcycling.com/318647/pr ... Ap0L8P8HAQ

    The lower specced TCR Advanced 1 recently won a shoot out review in Cycling Plus
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