Carbon Clinchers

shortfall

My take on the wheel thing is go the handbuilt route from a domestic builder with a long track record and a good reputation. If you know what you're doing and choose to buy Chinese imports you'll probably be fine and save a few hundred quid. If however you don't have a firm idea of what you need, what you want, and what the intended use is then this is where being able to actually speak to (or open an email exchange) with an experienced wheel builder comes into it's own and could save you money in the long run. For example, if you're not particularly heavy then a set of 400 quid imports will probably serve you reasonably well. If however you are on the heavy side or you can generate a lot of power or you regularly ride on badly surfaced roads, then you might discover the hard way that you actually needed a higher spoke count wheel with a steel axle with larger flanges on the hub, or a wider rim that can accept larger tyres without them ballooning etc etc etc. The other advantage in buying handbuilt is after sales care and ease and cheapness of getting them repaired . Advice based on anecdotal evidence from random internet "experts" may be well meaning but it isn't always the best. Caveat emptor.

w00dster

I don’t think Hunt deny using Novatec, also other suppliers. They also don’t deny using Kinlin Alu rims.
On Road CC at the moment Hunt have gave a really detailed and interesting response to the review of their Cx Gravel 35mm Carbon wheels.
I’m no Hunt fan, but I do have their Alu aero disc wheels. For the money though I’m happy enough with them, weight is pretty much as advertised. I have no issue with Novatec hubs. Think I paid £279 for my wheels, so for a winter set of disc wheels at approx 1600 grams, can’t complain.
I’ve also used PX 50mm tubulars many many moons ago, pretty good I thought at the time. They weren’t light though even for a tubular.
I really rate my current wheels, Reynolds 60mm clinchers. Rrp is approx £1200, weight is pretty good for the depth and I’d say they are just as good as much more expensive wheels I’ve had.

shortfall

Imposter wrote:

Matthewfalle wrote:

they are over priced, using exactly the same parts - hubs, spokes, rims, tape - and built in the exactly the same factory as carbonzone, farsport, wiggle, planet x, selcof, etc by the same person

Obviously you can prove all this. So let's have some links...

Must be proving difficult to track down.

Matthewfalle

if you search "hunt wheels" there are 167 "finds", most aren't complimentary.

#giveusachancefella

Matthewfalle

viewtopic.php?f=40042&t=13079693&p=20500717&hilit=hunt+hubs+factory#p20500717

warrior4life, March 27th

#levoila

Matthewfalle

as before, if they weren't massively overpriced they would be as good as anything else because they are exactly the same as everything else, just twice the price.

#don'tbeamug

shortfall

Matthewfalle wrote:

https://forum.bikeradar.com/viewtopic.php?f=40042&t=13079693&p=20500717&hilit=hunt+hubs+factory#p20500717

warrior4life, March 27th

#levoila

An unsupported statement from a bloke using a pseudonym on the internet isn't really evidence for your claims about Hunt wheels

"using exactly the same parts - hubs, spokes, rims, tape - and built in the exactly the same factory as carbonzone, farsport, wiggle, planet x, selcof, etc by the same person - but they charge twice as much for them."

I'm with you that they charge a lot of money for wheels built from components that can probably be sourced much cheaper elsewhere, but Imposter challenged you to support the quite specific claims you made and I'm not sure the link you supplied does this.

Edited.

rwoofer

redvision wrote:

If you are dead set on another brand though, you can get the roval clx 50 for £200 more than the CL50s you mention. Definitely worth the extra if you can find a way to stretch the budget.

Depending how desperate you are for them, it may be worth hanging back a little as wheelsets are often reduced quite heavily at the end of the season, notably around black Friday.

Would love to know where you can get a CLX 50 pair for £200 more. £500/£600 difference is what I have seen.

redvision

rwoofer wrote:

redvision wrote:

If you are dead set on another brand though, you can get the roval clx 50 for £200 more than the CL50s you mention. Definitely worth the extra if you can find a way to stretch the budget.

Depending how desperate you are for them, it may be worth hanging back a little as wheelsets are often reduced quite heavily at the end of the season, notably around black Friday.

Would love to know where you can get a CLX 50 pair for £200 more. £500/£600 difference is what I have seen.

https://www.certini.co.uk/58505/product ... gIwBfD_BwE

dannbodge

Right so in the end I've gone for the Rovals.

They are the ones I wanted and I had the money so decided if I didn't get them I'm probably regret it and keep wanting them.

bradsbeard

Can't rate Lightbicycle highly enough.

I had my wheelset within 3 weeks. Communications 1st rate.

46mm carbon rims, Sapim nipples, Sapim CX rays and DT Swiss 240s Thru Axle hubs. Also specified the finish and graphics for the rims.

Saved about £450 against comparable build in the UK.

w00dster

OP has made his decision, so for this thread its no longer relevant, but I guess still could be interesting to other people in the future. (A wise decision as well OP, enjoy the new wheels)
Bradsbeard, what was the full cost (inc local taxes) for the lightbicyle wheels you purchased? Hard to work out what the saved £450 means in real terms.
I did a very quick costing on Lightbicycle, website wasn't great on my works laptop was taking a while to change screens. Came up to $648.20 without tax. £540 excluding taxes. Lightbicycle 45mm carbon clincher using a Novatec hub, Sapim spokes, included valve stem, tubeless tape and brake pads. A service fee of $30 per wheel was added. Tax pre-paid delivery is $155, or EMS delivery is $78 and you still have to pay import duty.
As a very crude estimate, using Google exchange rate, total cost of similar wheels would be $801 dollars delivered to the UK - £669. This is approx £180 cheaper than the Hunts. (Not like for like - but reasonably close)
I'm not trying to be argumentative, just think it is worth displaying real data. Back in the day it was possible to get far eastern imports for approx £500, but I don't think thats possible anymore. Planet X was always around the £400 to £450 mark - but I'm talking way for that price.

bobones

w00dster, I refer you to my post earlier in this thread

1465 g, 50 mm deep, 25 mm wide, Novatec superlight straightpull hubs, Sapim CX Ray spokes, ceramic pads included for £545 next day delivery, 2 year warranty, fulfilled by Amazon

1361g 50s for £615

Matthewfalle

equiv. Primes are £499.99 if that helps muddy the waters.

Novatek hubs, Sapim spokes, most probs exactly the same rims.

#decisons

bobones

The cheaper Primes are over 1600 g and have J bend spokes and hubs. The equivalent Primes are probably RP-50 or Black Editions which are still over 1500 g and are being sold for over £700.

rwoofer

That is a great price. Unfortunately I have just purchased a pair of CLX 32s!

mr_mojo

A bit late now but you should have had a look at Caden wheels https://carbonbikewheels.com.au/eu

I was going to get a pair but picked up a pair of Zipp 202’s at a great price.

daniel_b

bradsbeard wrote:

Can't rate Lightbicycle highly enough.

I had my wheelset within 3 weeks. Communications 1st rate.

46mm carbon rims, Sapim nipples, Sapim CX rays and DT Swiss 240s Thru Axle hubs. Also specified the finish and graphics for the rims.

Saved about £450 against comparable build in the UK.

These look pretty good - any pics of yours with decals etc?

Do I also see it that they offer some kind of textured braking surface for rim brake wheels?
Not as good as Exalith I assume, but presumably with enhanced braking performance in mind?

Gonna struggle to better my 1370g Mavic shallow rims though.

dannbodge

Mr_Mojo wrote:

A bit late now but you should have had a look at Caden wheels https://carbonbikewheels.com.au/eu

I was going to get a pair but picked up a pair of Zipp 202’s at a great price.

I did consider them as they look like great wheels.

philbar72

Franco di Banco wrote:

Shipley wrote:

Matthewfalle wrote:

Dannbodge wrote:

(I do not want Hunts).

these are the wisest words anyone apart from MF has typed on here in ages.'

As a matter of interest.....what’s the problem with Hunt wheels ??

There's nothing wrong with Hunts wheels. MF doesn't like them for no apparent reason so misses no opportunity to shout his mouth off, just like every other topic. He is very boring with his self important comments. But every forum has it's idiot.

watch for sealing issues and corroded bearings. the seals I have had are flaky at best.

bobones

philbar72 wrote:

watch for sealing issues and corroded bearings. the seals I have had are flaky at best..

To be fair, most of the Taiwanese hubs (be they Novatec, Chosen, Bitex, Powerway, etc.) are poorly sealed, although this can be mitigated against by using high quality cartridge bearings and applying grease copiously. Nevertheless, if you use these hubs in the wet then expect to be replacing the bearings relatively frequently if you want them to feel smooth and have no play. I don't think Hunt are any worse than the competition in this respect; the problem I have is they charge a lot more for what amounts to a pretty website, smart logos, nice packaging and a few spare spokes: a triumph of marketing over common sense.

Matthewfalle

bobones wrote:

. I don't think Hunt are any worse than the competition in this respect; the problem I have is they charge a lot more for what amounts to a pretty website, smart logos, nice packaging and a few spare spokes: a triumph of marketing over common sense.

he's right you know, 100%right.

#don'tgetmugged

Matthewfalle

philbar72 wrote:

[

watch for sealing issues and corroded bearings. the seals I have had are flaky at best.

this dude is right as well.

#don'tgetmugged

dannbodge

So I took delivery of the Rovals on Wednesday and got them on the bike yesterday.
Very happy with them so far. Quality is great and they are super light (1452g including rim tape).
Only issue at the moment is that the freehub is a bit quiet and the QR skewers are horrible.

matt_n-2

Dannbodge wrote:

So I took delivery of the Rovals on Wednesday and got them on the bike yesterday.
Very happy with them so far. Quality is great and they are super light (1452g including rim tape).
Only issue at the moment is that the freehub is a bit quiet and the QR skewers are horrible.

DT internals on Rovals isn’t it?

The star ratchet systemisn’t super loud but you can swap it out to the 36t for some more noise and quicker engagement.

Some Rovals come with 36t or 54t standard though.

dannbodge

Matt_N wrote:

Dannbodge wrote:

So I took delivery of the Rovals on Wednesday and got them on the bike yesterday.
Very happy with them so far. Quality is great and they are super light (1452g including rim tape).
Only issue at the moment is that the freehub is a bit quiet and the QR skewers are horrible.

DT internals on Rovals isn’t it?

The star ratchet systemisn’t super loud but you can swap it out to the 36t for some more noise and quicker engagement.

Some Rovals come with 36t or 54t standard though.

Yeah basically a 350 hub. It's got the 18t in at the moment so I'll be looking at changing it for a 36t at some point ( I always wanted DT hubs anyway)

Matthewfalle

Dannbodge wrote:

and the QR skewers are horrible.

these are well light, look really nice, are a good price and work perfect if you want new skewers. very recommended.

remember that black ones are faster.

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/WSPXTISTQ ... bon-levers

dannbodge

Matthewfalle wrote:

Dannbodge wrote:

and the QR skewers are horrible.

these are well light, look really nice, are a good price and work perfect if you want new skewers. very recommended.

remember that black ones are faster.

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/WSPXTISTQ ... bon-levers

I've only heard bad things about those ones so I'm looking at these instead.
https://www.wiggle.co.uk/token-tk221-ro ... cut-skewer

siddy1972

I have Parcours Passista, and they’ve been great- although again, I think they’re probably along the same lines as the others here, but at least you have UK contact / warranty.
I did have Hunt 50mm carbon wheels, and after having 1 rebuild and 2 replacement rear wheels, got my money back. The rear NDS spokes flat refused to stay tight after every single ride- an issue I’ve never experienced on any other wheel. Wouldn’t buy them again- but maybe I was just very unlucky...

Matthewfalle

siddy1972 wrote:

I have Parcours Passista, and they’ve been great- although again, I think they’re probably along the same lines as the others here, but at least you have UK contact / warranty.
I did have Hunt 50mm carbon wheels, and after having 1 rebuild and 2 replacement rear wheels, got my money back. The rear NDS spokes flat refused to stay tight after every single ride- an issue I’ve never experienced on any other wheel. Wouldn’t buy them again- but maybe I was just very unlucky...

he's right you know.

don't get mugged guys .......