Got a new Cervelo S3 inbound as a 40th birthday treat to myself and looking at suitable aero wheels to go with. On a (bit of a) budget so no Zipps, Enves, etc.

PX are knocking out the Cosmics for £590, Mavic a known quantity in terms of quality/reliability but if I remember right these wheels are relatively old school in terms of rim shape and therefore prone to crosswinds.

On the other hand, saw a quick review of the Swiss Side Hadrons in CPlus the other month and some internet searching reveals them to be very well thought of initially and testing suggest they’re as good as, if not better, than high end, all-carbon aero wheelsets in performance. They’re about £850 at current exchange rates, weigh up relatively light – c 1640g, and are on-trend wide,toroidal rims/fairings.

Anybody got a set of either and care to add experiences to aid my decision…?

Apologies I don’t have either but I have used quite a few different wheelsets of various depths lately and have researched the various options available. Of those two options you present, I would definitely opt for the Swiss Side for all the reasons you cite. They are a modern design and they certainly present a very technology driven approach to wheel design that gives confidence you’re buying into the best aero benefit currently available.

But two caveats to this. First you don’t say which you’re considering – I wouldn’t go any deeper than the 485 for all round use. You might be OK for the majority of the time on the 625 but having ridden a 60mm wheelset extensively, I can say that they can be a bit of a handful on windy days. These were modern torodial designs as well.

Second, don’t discount handbuilt options. Wheelsmiths and Strada can both offer excellent options for you at your price point and might be able to offer a bit more.

Strada has the all carbon Rail (I’ve stopped worrying about all carbon vs. alloy rim as I never have any problems with my all carbons on my best bike) in both 32mm and 50mm depths. This rim performs excellently based on all the testing data I’ve read and you can build far more closely to your specific needs/weight. Strada can also offer Corima rims which are grand tour winning (Nibali used them in the 2014 TDF).

Wheelsmiths offer Gigantex sourced rims; you can get a complete handbuilt set for £750 I think. Quality might not be quite as good on the finish as say the Rail or Corima, but the design is top notch and very modern. For reference I have both a 60mm Gigantex and 32mm Corima set on the bikes.

Geetee, thanks for the tips and the handbuilt suggestion – something else to look at now…

As for the depth of Hadrons I’d be looking at, the clue’s in the post title – 485… 😆 😉

Strada still doing the Rail? Can’t see it on their website.

As for the depth of Hadrons I’d be looking at, the clue’s in the post title – 485…

Doh!

Strada still doing the Rail? Can’t see it on their website.

I can’t see it either. They might have dropped it in preference for the Ax LIghtness line they now seem to be carrying. Still they would be a good choice also i guess.

Hi Dave!

Long time no see…..

Have you thought about the Superstar wheels? Very impressed with mine.

http://www.rutlandcycling.com/309024/products/use-nano-tech-4-5-700c-carbon-clincher-wheelset.aspx

got mine with a recent £50-off-%500 code, then got some cashback.
Love em.

The Hadrons are very good wheels. I would go for the 625s in most cases though.

Aerodynamics wise they have been tested a fair bit by the Tour mag. I was looking the other day at a test in lots of bike frames and they came out well against 404s, equal on most frames, sometimes a bit better at some yaw angles.

I have put a couple of thousand miles into mine on typically shit uk roads and they have stayed truer than most of my wheels, they look perfect by eye so must be very nearly 100%.

The second best thing about these wheels is their stability in the wind. They are better than anything similar I have tried, including Firecrests which I dont think are anything special.

But the best thing is the noise. They are super loud, some love it some hate it. I think it is awesome.

The only thing is, they dont look super bling. Not in the same league as my other wheels, but then they are a much better value.

If you’re going to consider handbuilts you’d be daft not to look to the east for rims IMO. Just built up some Tune Mig/Mag on FarSports 23mm wide 38mm deep clinchers and they’re 1320g for the pair, and £700 or so.

Finish on the rims is excellent (and you can choose it!), on par with anything vastly more expensive IMO.

+ 1 what njee said I have some LB 32mm built on Extralite hubs, they are lovely.
Njee – did you complete the road build?

Hey John, I’ve been around lurking in the shadows for a while! What wheels do you have from Superstar – are they deep(ish) section…?

Hi Dave

TBH I don’t spend much time in the forest these days, it is way too dull and most of the trails have been harvested over. I guess you have been posted away too!

Wheels – Ikon hubs, 32 at the front 46 at the back. Really nice wheels, good combo of rim depth too. Very little trouble in cross winds.

How’s the braking of the Farsports Njee?

My long term aero wheels have been cosmic SLs, I’ve just “upgraded” to zipp 404s.

-Weight wise there is nothing in it within 50g
-Performance in cross winds – I preferred the cosmics, I found them more predictable, the 404s appear to be grabby if that makes sense
-Braking on the zipps whilst touted as ‘excellent’ is terrifying compared to the cosmics
-Overall speed jury is out, I don’t seem to be posting much faster times. At some point I’ll do some back to back testing with the PM on the same day to see
– and finally, the crux, in 2 years the cosmics stayed solid and stiff and I had no issues. They only needed a spoke key after a pothole at 25mph. The 404s however appear to have lost all tension on NDS inside 250miles and its looking like may need a rebuild.

As for the Hadrons, no idea but based on my experience go for the cosmics….

DT78, disappointing that. I’m often hovering over the buy button on a set of 404 😕

How’s the braking of the Farsports Njee

Faultless in the dry – not tried in the wet. They can squeal a bit if you brake really hard, but not in normal use. Power with Dura Ace 9000 brakes is better than with 7800 brakes an alu rims (using Swiss Stop Black Prince pads).

I’ve been similarly impressed by the performance of the DA9000 brakes. They are incredibly strong and controllable. Like Njee, when comparing the power from my Ultegras on alloy rimmed wheels with Swiss Stop pads, the DA9000s with Corima specific pads are far stronger on my Corima carbon wheels.

Zipp wheels really are at the bottom of my list these days. I would rather ride the Hardons.

But it took me way too long to learn that there are much better options.
My old style 404 broke with very few miles on the clock. However it was a good low yaw option with a narrow tyre. My 808 rear Firecrest the bearings are crap almost from new. My 404 Firecrests just are not anything special and stayed less true than I would expect from a pricey wheel.

When looking for new wheels I settled on Reynolds assaults, some of the German retailers were doing silly prices not so long ago.
The wheels fell great a worthwhile upgrade over my American Classic 350s

Got to say I am disappointed. Might be contacting the retailer to see what they say as given the price it’s not really what I expect. I retensioned the NDS as much as I could without having any awful dish. The wheel rubs at around 400w which basically means I cant standup to climb. I think I might have got a duff wheel tbh.

I havent sold the cosmics yet. I might go back to them