Evening all,

I’ve always been a form believer in lighter wheels on the mtb making a difference.

What do people think about this on road bikes?

Running a Trek Emonda SL5 with standard bontrager wheels.

How much would it have to pay for something substantially better that I’d notice the difference when riding?

Are carbon rims the way forward?

I’m considering keeping the oem wheels with gatorskins on for the winter months then having a set of nice wheels and tyres for the summer months but I have no idea about road kit and what’s good etc?

Any advice on where the costs become diminishing returns etc?

Is there a standard go to good set that a lot of people run (equivalent of hope hubs with stans rims on mtbs) sort of level?

Aero > Lightness (but preferably both)

Other than that I don’t have much to add as I’m still trying to justify an upgrade myself

You’ll notice a deeper section carbon rim being a little bit faster on the flat. But you’ll also notice that braking isn’t that nice, better on some carbon rims than others but not as good as alloy – and I think I’d find them a bit tiresome for anything but racing. People also say they’re not good in cross winds but I think it partly depends how nervous you are as to whether you worry about it or shrug it off when it happens.

How much do your stock wheels weigh?

I’ve had a nice set of alloy wheels (Race 23? or Race 24?) from Wheelsmith and currently have the Cosine 32mm alloys which are sub 1500g and are nice and tight. I have friends who swear by Shimano RS-81’s and Campag Shamals for more money.

I’m currently looking at a set of Syntace wheels at a bit over 1300g. Alu, 450ish euros including tyres and tubes.

I have an Emonda – steered clear of deep section carbon rims as I don’t race. I already had a decent set of hand builts – DT 240 hubs on DT 440 rims and some Conti GP 4000. Lighter than stock (which are OK) and they improve the bike a bit. Horses for courses though. I simply wanted a reliable, relatively light wheel set. Reliability was definitely my main focus.