Hi All.

Looking for a new wheelset on a budget of £100.

I’ve seen the following on the net:

* Superstar Slick XC 430 – £100
* Shimano MT15 – £80 (centrelock)so new rotars needed
* WTB Laserdisc XC/Deore M525 hub – £80
* WTB Speeddisc XC/Deore M525 hub – £80
* WTB Dual Duty / Shimano M475 hub – £80

I ride red routes mainly, ocassional black.

What are peoples thoughts on any the above. Any experience with them?

Thanks in advance

I’ve used Superstar wheels and can’t fault them. MT15s seem to get a good press too.

On-one have some cheap wheels. I got a pair of the Fulcrum Red Metal 5’s: they seem OK. They’re Centrelock though and I couldn’t get 6-bolt adaptors (from Superstar) to work so had to buy some Centrelock rotors (cheap) from CRC. All good, really.

On-one have some cheap wheels. I got a pair of the Fulcrum Red Metal 5’s: they seem OK. They’re Centrelock though and I couldn’t get 6-bolt adaptors (from Superstar) to work so had to buy some Centrelock rotors (cheap) from CRC. All good, really.

Yeah I was looking over at On-One. That’s where i saw the WTB’s. The Fulcrums are out of stock.

Read somewhere that the Shimano MT15s needed the hub bearings tweaked/serviced more frequently than most.

Don’t bother with M475 hubs. For the couple of quid you’d save they are false economy. M525 hubs have far better sealing and if looked after, will oulast pretty much anything.

I’d be more inclined to save money on the hubs (M525s are good enough) and spend extra on the rims and spokes as saving weight on the edge of the wheel will have more effect then saving weight at the hub

WTB rims are fine, but if you can stretch to a Mavic 717 and double butted spokes on M525 hubs, you’ll have a nice set of wheels

Personally, I’d be looking for seconhand at that price. There’s always plenty of QR wheels going begging when people upgrade to 20/15mm axles

You should easily pick up a nice secondhand XT/717 or 719 wheelset with DB spokes for less than £100.

Put a WTD on the classifieds and see what’s about.

I’ve got the superstar slick hubs and the AM490 rims. I’m a heavy rider at 18st, ride Cwmcarn/Afan regularly and give the wheels a hammering. They’ve stayed round and true, I’d always prefer to buy new budget wheels than more expensive secondhand, you don’t know the history of secondhand wheels, they might have been used by a big heifer like me!

MT15 is a really nice wheel untill you need to replace the spokes.
I broke 4 last year and there were none in the country. Shimano then preceeded to ship them one at a time at a cost of £5.50 each.
IIRC it took about 4 months and £40 odd quid to get my wheel back on the road…..I soon forked out on some handbuilt wheels with regular spokes 🙂

Thanks for the replies.
Some interesting answers.
Difficult buying something like a wheelset 2nd hand. You’re getting more for the money, but like you say you’re never sure of their history.

Pair Shimano Deore 525 disc hubs built into Sunn rims
Hubs – Shimnao deore 525 6 bolt disc black
Skewers – Shimnao Q/R skewers included
Spokes – Stainless steel silver
Rims – Choice of Sunn Single Track or Sunn Equalizer rims
Single Track – AM use, Equalizer = XC use
£70

From Merlin…
http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/Bike+Shop/Wheels/Mountain+Bike+Wheels/Sale+Wheels/Pair+Deore+525+Disc+Hubs+-+Sunn+Rims_SUNN-WHEELS.htm?

I ordered some MT15s, expecting delivery shortly…

My sons bike has MT15’s and they’ve been no trouble at all – although they’re not light. I’ve got loads of wheelsets with Deore hubs and they’ve been no trouble at all – occasionally need a tweak with cone spanners but nothing more.

With £100 to spend though I’d definitely be going 2nd hand – I’ve picked up Hope XC/X317 wheelsets for that in the past.

I’ve been using the Superstar Slick XC430s for a month now and I can’t fault them. Hubs are super smooth and silent with cartridge bearings. The rims are actually Alex rims but I’ve had them on two bikes and they’ve been fine. The wheels are perfectly true and noticeably stronger and stiffer than the ones they replaced. For £100 I really can’t fault them at all. They were also delivered within one day of ordering.

I’ve run some MT15s for a while on my hardtail. Bought a pair of CL adaptors from Superstar and been really impressed with them. Only sold them due to upgrade to some Hope/Mavic wheels.