Cero wheels - advice or real world reviews

bsharp77

It’s nearly time to replace my trusty Bontrager Aeolus D3 wheels that have served me so well over a multitude of bikes and currently on my Tarmac SL6.

Looking at the options out there, I’m drawn to the Cero RC35 carbon clinchers which seem to offer a very good spec for a reasonable cost.

For £699 Cycledivision are offering a full carbon 35mm clincher wheelset, coming in under 1300g, uk company with 2 year warranty.

Cero wheels in the past have always had fairly positive reviews which gives me some confidence, they were mainly cheap and cheerful, whereas this seems to be a step up towards the higher end.

I’m not expecting miracles, but just want a really good all round wheelset - these appear to fit the bill perfectly but was hoping for some real world feedback.
My main concern is lateral flex, I’m not a powerful rider, but the Aeolus wheels would flex a lot while standing causing brake rub, so I’m keen to avoid that if possible.

I know there’s a multitude of options out there, but for the price point there’s not much that competes spec wise. I’m just dubious as to why they are not more popular considering what appears to be on offer....

Any views or opinions greatly appreciated.

vince133

Hi. I can’t comment on the RC35’s. However I purchased some AR30’s about 4 years ago so probably done over 10,000 miles on them without an issue. I have found they roll well and not noticed any flex. I weigh 75 kg so not sure if a heavier person might give a different review.

I’ve not used them in wet weather an awful lot. I don’t commute anymore so choose the nicer weather to ride when possible.

When I bought them I went to the shop. We’re really helpful. They did say that they would not consider them as a good winter wheelset.

DeVlaeminck

To be fair I don't think someone buys Cero wheels for brand bragging rights. Their alloy wheels used to have a good reputation in terms of vfm - not heard much about their carbon offerings.

bsharp77

Yes, not really worried about bragging rights - if that was the case i'd be looking at Rovals or Enves!
I'm not going custom built - looked into it and for a carbon wheel build theres nothing under £850 being offered - its just not for me.
Both sets of wheels listed below are easy to maintain and replace any parts when needed which is good enough for me.

I'm now between 2 sets of wheels, both with limited real world reviews but seem pretty decent.

Cero RC35 or 50
Winspace Hyper 35 or 50

I'm now leaning towards the 50mm versions as both these wheels, even in 50mm variant are actually lighter than my current wheels, so hopefully this means increased aero benefits with no weight penalty.

Love the look of the Winspace Hyper wheels and they are very, very light (1349g for the 50mm version) - and a few limited good reviews from what I can scrape around the web - but they are a bit dearer at around £775 (rough conversion from dollars).

The Winspace come with carbon spokes however which are supposed to be stiffer which has caught my interest as I am so, so sick of the flex in my current wheels, so I'm very tempted. (they also come with spare spokes and attach via nipples as normal so easy to maintain).

I still know i'm not going to be any faster really, but I think between the looks, the weight and the promise of stiffness with carbon spokes, I'm really drawn to the Winspace wheels.

daniel_b

I was after new wheels, and did a ton of research, I was tempted by Scribe, but Cero RC50's seemed to be the best value for money, with regards to weight, and reviews in the main seemed to be excellent.

I was all set to order a pair, but then a set of Enve's came up on facebook, so went for those instead.

I did like the look of the FULL (Spokes and all) carbon RC55 wheels, but mysteriously they have dissapeared from the site, so assume there may have been some issues with them.

bsharp77

Thanks Daniel, in fairness it would be hard to turn down Enves if you got a great deal!

Yes Cero overall seem to have a pretty good reputation.
Having UK service is good too and they are cheaper so have a lot of plus points - cheap and cheerful but hitting very good specs.
In your research did you find out anything about the stiffness? Its still the one thing that is pulling me towards the Winspace as I want to try and ensure no flex.

Scribe are getting a lot of positive reviews these days and are local to me in N.I., would be tempted but they are not offering finance as yet and are up near £900 for a set - the Ceros or Winspace just seem to offer much better value.

shortfall

bsharp77 said:

Yes, not really worried about bragging rights - if that was the case i'd be looking at Rovals or Enves!
I'm not going custom built - looked into it and for a carbon wheel build theres nothing under £850 being offered - its just not for me.
Both sets of wheels listed below are easy to maintain and replace any parts when needed which is good enough for me.

I'm now between 2 sets of wheels, both with limited real world reviews but seem pretty decent.

Cero RC35 or 50
Winspace Hyper 35 or 50

I'm now leaning towards the 50mm versions as both these wheels, even in 50mm variant are actually lighter than my current wheels, so hopefully this means increased aero benefits with no weight penalty.

Love the look of the Winspace Hyper wheels and they are very, very light (1349g for the 50mm version) - and a few limited good reviews from what I can scrape around the web - but they are a bit dearer at around £775 (rough conversion from dollars).

The Winspace come with carbon spokes however which are supposed to be stiffer which has caught my interest as I am so, so sick of the flex in my current wheels, so I'm very tempted. (they also come with spare spokes and attach via nipples as normal so easy to maintain).

I still know i'm not going to be any faster really, but I think between the looks, the weight and the promise of stiffness with carbon spokes, I'm really drawn to the Winspace wheels.

Loads under £850 from Mark here https://www.ebay.co.uk/str/spokesmanwheels/Road-bike-wheelsets/_i.html?_storecat=3318804012 You can also knock 6% off the eBay price if you buy from him direct. I have a set of his Carbonal 50mm tubeless with Miche hubs and Sapim bladed spokes and they're fantastic.

Ben6899

I have a pair of RC50s. They're fine. I'm more a fan of handbuilts, but these came in at a decent price and do a job.

dannbodge

Gutted that I missed out on a set of AR30s a few weeks back.

Would have been a great replacement for my Ksyrium Elites

bsharp77

Watched Hambini’s review of the Winspace Hypers last night. Seems a bit too good to be true, but at the very least seem more than good wheels. If the some of the claims made in there are true, then the wheels are surely going to disrupt the whole market.....or it could be a paid review. Either way there has been a surge of orders already based on it which crashed their site.

Just checked and Hunt seem to be offering a preorder on a rebranded set of the exact same wheels with a big mark up.

Could be big news with the start of a new wave of premium Chinese wheels which would certainly be interesting.

bsharp77

I won’t be any faster, I think that’s a guarantee!! :-)

I need wheels anyway as the Bontragers are too flex and at nearly 7 years old owe me nothing.

If I’m going to buy wheels, I might as well get the best I can for the money.

Hambini is calling the 50mm wheels the fastest wheels he’s ever tested....by a long way. Even faster than Enves.....!! He produces a LOT of testing and science to back up the claim, but I’m in no position to corroborate on those figures.

That’s a hell of a claim to be making.

I was interested mainly because of the carbon spokes for stiffness and the low weight, but now I’m just more intrigued as to why these aren’t more popular, or maybe this is the start of a new wave of premium direct Chinese offerings.

bsharp77

That surely means the winspace wheels are above average at the very least?! Feel like they are more than worth a punt given all the evidence.

jameses

I used a pair of Cero RC45 for a few years, no complaints. My average ride speeds did seem to be a bit faster compared to my old alloy wheels, but it wasn't a huge difference. More importantly, they looked good on my bike

Braking was fine in the dry, wouldn't choose to ride them in the wet (not an issue if you're on discs). They were pretty composed in crosswinds - I rode them in 20mph winds with 35+mph gusts a couple of times and never felt more than a gentle nudge. I put about 10,000 (mostly dry) miles on them and the bearings were still smooth, and there was surprisingly little wear to the braking surfaces as well; they were still slightly convex when I passed them on to a friend.

There are almost certainly better wheels out there, but they were decent enough for the £600 I paid

redvision

bsharp77 said:

That surely means the winspace wheels are above average at the very least?! Feel like they are more than worth a punt given all the evidence.

Did you go for the winspace?
If so, have they arrived? How are they?

What was the import tax cost?

Thanks

bsharp77

redvision said:

bsharp77 said:

That surely means the winspace wheels are above average at the very least?! Feel like they are more than worth a punt given all the evidence.

Did you go for the winspace?
If so, have they arrived? How are they?

What was the import tax cost?

Thanks

Morning Redvision,

I have indeed took the plunge and went for the Hyper X 50mm clinchers.
They have had an influx of orders so are running behind schedule, mine are due to be sent out in the next week (ordered 2 weeks ago).

I asked about taxes and they said they can send via XDB which means no tax charged - but takes longer to deliver. I went for this as they are a birthday present to myself for the end of October anyway.

I thought about it long and hard and for the money, at worst they will be decent, but could be really excellent.
The main things for me are the weight and stiffness. They are ridiculously light for a set of 50mm wheels, and I'm fed up of my current Aeolus 3 wheels constantly rubbing the pads when climbing - by all accounts the Hypers should be much better in this regard too.

A few comments over on weight weenies from users complaining about noise from the carbon spokes touching (solved by using some lube). Not sure if the drilling angle of the spoke holes has been updated yet in time for my wheels (they have already changed for the Hunt versions apparently to stop spokes touching).

Communication from WInspace has been great - looking forward to getting them and trying them out.

daniel_b

@bsharp77 - they look like awesome wheels, can I ask what they cost you - circa £700?

bsharp77

Afternoon Daniel,

Using a discount code they cost $990, which translated to £751 off my credit card at the time (approx 3 weeks ago).

Cant wait to get them and give them a test, i'll report back when i've gave them a good try and i'll take some photos too - hopefully they'll be with me in the next couple of weeks.

dannbodge

I got my Cero AR30s today.

Very impressed so far, nice and light (1400g) with no skewers.

They feel well made, tyres were easy enough to put on (Michelin Pro4 endurance). Freehub is loud too which is always good.

Only downside is J bend hubs, if they were straight pull they'd be even better.

redvision

bsharp77 said:

Afternoon Daniel,

Using a discount code they cost $990, which translated to £751 off my credit card at the time (approx 3 weeks ago).

Cant wait to get them and give them a test, i'll report back when i've gave them a good try and i'll take some photos too - hopefully they'll be with me in the next couple of weeks.

Did you get them?
How are they?
What did you get charged by customs?

Thanks