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  • Carbon Road wheels: Clinchers vs Tubs
  • Stoner
    Free Member

    As a surprise 10th anniversary present for Mrs Stoner I want to get her some race wheels for her triathlon bike.

    Not to put a too finer point on it, but her cycle craft isn’t amazing and I’m cautious about putting her on carbon rims for braking reasons.

    PX bundle carbon pads with their carbon tubs, but even so they’re not going to be quite as good as using the aluminium braking surface on the carbon clinchers are they?

    Is it a real world problem or a marketing invention? Im sure she’d really like to roll on some 150psi+ carbon tubs, but will the braking be an issue?

    (and anyone know what the CSN Superleggera XL50 at Ribble are like? PX prices arent compelling on their own)

    njee20
    Free Member

    They vary significantly, in the dry most rims are fine, but in the wet some can be genuinely scary. They’re not good if she’s a ‘brake dragger’ and doing long descents.

    Trouble with aluminium/carbon rims is that they’re bloody heavy, if she’s only going very flat courses she’ll be fine, but they’ll be a real chore when the road goes upwards.

    For a race wheelset then I’d go tubs – if you get a flat in anything but an Ironman (and possibly a half) your race is done anyway, carbon tubs are far lighter than clinchers.

    How heavy is she as well? Whilst deeper wheels are more aero, they’re more of a handful in crosswinds. If she’s not a confident rider, and she’s light, they may be pretty miserable.

    For my money I’d get a set of these, or the 50mm equivalent. Either are lighter than all but the most lightweight alu clinchers.

    Stoner
    Free Member

    I was aiming for 50mm max to minimise cross wind issues. However if the weather is really up then I just will send* her out on her training wheels. I can make the same call if it’s hissing with raining.

    This is solely for sprint and regular triathlons so for the most part they are relatively flat runs. No big draggy descents to deal with.

    Have you bought from far wheels?

    * Im her “mechanic” so I can make these decisions for her 😉

    geetee1972
    Free Member

    As ever Nick is spot on with his suggestions. The only other consideration would be the Shimano DA9000 perhaps a C35 front and a C50 rear. They are certainly heavier than the other suggestions but they are excellent if what you wanted was something she could use outside of just competition. Doesn’t sound like that’s the case though so Nicks suggestion of carbon tubs is spot on. You’ll need to get proficient at changing them if you’re not already and find someone who can repair them as they’re expensive items to throw away if they puncture soon after fitting.

    One other thought is Stradas Rail which is 50mm but a clincher rather than a tub. You can get them for about £1000 hand built here in Sussex.

    SamB
    Free Member

    I think it depends what Mrs Stoner’s mentality is. If she’s gunning for a podium and if she doesn’t get that then the race is over, then yeah I’d say go tubs.

    If on the other hand she just wants to place “well”, clinchers are a hell of a lot easier to fix on-course. IMO the weight penalty (maybe 200g) is worth it to be able to finish the race.

    On the carbon vs alu side – if you’ve got a backup wet-day wheelset that you’re happy to use, then go full carbon. I’d probably go 50mm front / 80mm rear – the rear makes much less difference in terms of handling, so you should just go as deep as possible to maximise benefits.

    Stoner
    Free Member

    no, these will be sunny race day wheels. So they dont have to be versatile. Ive never dealt with tubs before so I will have to do some learning too. Fortunately there’s a few places round here I can use for repairs too.

    OK, I think it looks like 2x 50mm ish carbon tubs. Chinese worth the gamble?

    TBH even if she were to puncture out on the course in clinchers I dont see Mrs Stoner getting back to transition in anything but the broom wagon anyway.

    warton
    Free Member

    For a race wheelset then I’d go tubs

    I’d probably agree, but even pro teams are going back to clinchers on TT bikes. the newest breed of TT specific clinchers have less rolling resistance than TT specific tubs. Conti supersonic with supersonic tube will rival tubs for weight as well…

    geetee1972
    Free Member

    Tub tape is your friend Stoner! I’ve always hankered for a set of tubs as I was never allowed them when I raced road as a juvenile. My brother currently runs a set of Nemesis on CK R45s that he had built up specifically for the Paris Roubaix sportive and he loves them. By all accounts they don’t puncture as much for some reason.

    bikebouy
    Free Member

    I’d add:
    If the intention is to also train on the Carbon Rims then I’d go clinchers, tubs are PITA to fix if out for a spin’ette.

    Stoner
    Free Member

    but even pro teams are going back to clinchers on TT bikes. the newest breed of TT specific clinchers have less rolling resistance than TT specific tubs. Conti supersonic with supersonic tube will rival tubs for weight as well…

    always one spoiling the party! 🙂

    before abandoning tubs for clinchers then, last quick Qu on tubs – how do you deal with deep rims for valve lengths of stock tubs being only 42mm?

    njee20
    Free Member

    Valve extenders, I used Conti ones, but plenty out there.

    AFAIK (and I could well be wrong) there’s one team who were using (tubeless) clinchers for TTs in the last couple of years – OPQS, and you could argue that’s motivated by sponsors. Supersonics may get close on weight, but the durability is truly laughable – I had some GP Supersonics and they were down to the carcass in about 500 miles, I got several thousand out of Conti Competition tubs. You’ll still only get to 200g for tyre and tube too, so you gain c30-50g on a much more durable tub, and you’re giving away thrice that on the rims.

    For race use it has to be tubs for me still!

    Stoner
    Free Member

    popped into echelon (LRoadieBS) today to have a chat about what they stock and the main man there says he’s recently gone back to clinchers from tubs for racing. As you say, he also says that the supersonics are a bit to flyweight and he uses the Conti TimeTrial competition clinchers for events. He had some nice reynolds on special but £1000 is a bit toppy. The Mavic cosmics were £750. Might consider them.

    njee20
    Free Member

    Cosmics are too heavy for the money IMO, but they do have reliable braking, in fact the posh ones with Exalith are meant to be the gold standard for road braking, once they stop squealing!

    back2basics
    Free Member

    +1 for clinchers

    aracer
    Free Member

    I have a set of quite old but in very good condition (been sitting in a bag for the last ~15 years) tubular Zipp 440s here if you’d be at all interested in s/h? You’re welcome to borrow them to have a try if you’re at all interested.

    Definitely tubs for the weight (it’s the rims which are much lighter even if the tyre/tube are similar), and that’s what my current TT wheels are, though I use clinchers on my road race bike. Oh and as for braking I have some Corima cork pads which help a lot (in the wet, dry is fine), though I think there are better options around now.

    mtbmatt
    Free Member

    Normally I would say tubs are a waste of time and money, but if its just for racing triathlon and no training, then I would go for them.

    40 front, 60 rear is a good combo

    sq225917
    Free Member

    Unless you are using the very best tubs that Veloflex or FMB offer then you can comfortably match them, for weight and rolling resistance with the best of the current clincher crop.

    An alloy clincher rim will add a couple of hundred grams over a carbon tubular aero wheel, and unlike carbon alloy buckles. You can’t really buckle a carbon rim, you can bend the spokes it is laced with though or damage it with too much heat if you drag your brakes.

    Carbon tubulars are great for race day, but a lot of the carbon race wheels with deep section hubs simply ain’t built for everyday use.

    njee20
    Free Member

    Unless you are using the very best tubs that Veloflex or FMB offer then you can comfortably match them, for weight and rolling resistance with the best of the current clincher crop.

    As said though, particularly in carbon the rims are a chunk lighter.

    You can’t really buckle a carbon rim, you can bend the spokes it is laced with though or damage it with too much heat if you drag your brakes.

    The end result being exactly the same… An unbuilt rim (carbon or otherwise) has so little stiffness it’s irrelevant that you can’t actually bend the rim, give a carbon wheel a whack and it will go out of true.

    aracer
    Free Member

    Why wouldn’t you for raceday wheels? Veloflex on mine – the wear on the back was quite horrendous when I was using them regularly, but still only costing me a pound or two an event, which isn’t really so bad.

    shedbrewed
    Free Member

    Stoner, where are you? If near ish to me (Newport SWales) you’re welcome to look and try a set of Hope RS5.0s, a set of chinese carbon 38mm narrows and a set of chinese carbon 38mm U sections.

    Stoner
    Free Member

    cheers for the offers guys. I think for my peace of mind (as I can look after them better) Im going to aim for clinchers. The Cosmics did seem heavy by numbers for the price. The reynolds looked nice but were v pricey.

    Ive been tipped to these guys as well:
    http://www.shop-yishunbike.com/wheels/carbon-road-wheels?dir=asc&order=price&p=2

    aracer
    Free Member

    Probably a good call. Tim (at Echelon) knows his stuff.

Viewing 22 posts - 1 through 22 (of 22 total)

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