Strongest, lightest and most robust wheel set for £400 or less if poss – Generally 1-4 hours of typical road riding – Shimano Hub, Std diam and width etc. Can have a bit of carbon but ultimately metal rim 🙂 I have some Mavic Aksiums from 2004 and will prob swap them for my old campag ones from my commuter bike next year but will service them first to see if they run better 🙂

Thinking Ultegra, Campag Neutrons, Ksyriums?

I’d get the new stans rims and then go tubeless (revolutions on the front) rotating weight being the most important and all.

Never riddin them of course!

I think for the Road, Shimano wheels are some of the best value out there, and quite a lot of them are tubeless ready.

I got some Ksyrium Es for sale,Shimano freehub, i want £350 plus £10 post or you could collect from Staffs, they are very good condition with tyres and bags, best road wheels out there

Ultegra and open pros…

Cheers flip – not gonna buy them until the new year – just doing some background 🙂

I’d either go for some custom made such as those suggested by traildog, or the best you can get for your budget from Fulcrum, really liking their wheels at the moment. I have heard that Shimano wheels can be a nightmare to get spares for (spokes in particular).

Like those Stans ones if they are cheap as they say and yes the Fulcrums (think the Fives or 7s are in my price range) get good reviews 🙂 I’ll waif for the reviews on those Stans as I am really happy with my 355’s on my HT 🙂

edit: Hmm some reviews of the Stans arn’t good?

I’ve used Campag wheels for over 10 years now and never had a problem with them. Currently using Neutron (09) and Eurus (06) wheelsets.
The 2Wayfit wheelsets are tubeless ready as well, if that floats your boat.

I have been recommended neutrons from a few people 🙂

Open Pros handbuilt onto your hub of choice.

Had most of the above wheelsets and done loads of miles and races on them, they are all very good however the Dura Ace 7850 SL and superb, jewel like quality, strong as well as very light, the T1TS !!!
£425.00
http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/Bike+Shop/Wheels/Road+Wheels/Factory+Road+Wheels/Dura+Ace+7850+SL+Wheels+-+Pair_1780.htm

Fulcrum Racing 3 cheap as chips..

http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/WPFUR3C/fulcrum-racing-3-clincher-wheels

hmm those fulcrums look good value but the Dura’s are v bling 🙂

Not very bling, but you can get Hope Hoops on Open Pros. Not the lightest, but certainly robust and your not limited to weird spokes etc in the future if you do break a rim.

Yeh mate has those and very happy with them I think 🙂

http://www.triandrun.com/bikes/wheels/pro-lite-merano-wheels.html

bargin!

Have a look at WHeelsmith.co.uk. SOme othe standard builds with the IRD rims look very good – could get a super light “standard” wheel for that sort of money

Buying wheels is/would be a simple weight (esp rim weight) vs price equation, as long as you can get spares for the hubs (I’d go shimano anyway)

dobo’s post looks good – 1.67kg (claimed) for £140 – lighter than ultegra/stans at £320! That wee bearing on the DS rear looks weak though.

£425 for dura ace, saves 200gm.

Blimey open pro/ultegra is 1.85kg! (weightweenies)

Neutrons are a popular racers choice here. Though I like the Ultegra/Open pro combo, but then I like my throwback technology.

erm 1550gm for £325 bargain?

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=38244

Hmm sooo many choices – the Dura ace do appeal – I presume the spokes are easy to get from madison?

Planet X Model Bs 1650g £120 the pair, they are not as stiff compared to 32h open pro on ultegra but are 200g lighter.

I rather like my Ksyrium Elites from 2009 (they are the newer version). Light and stiff, which is all I need.

So the question is would I appreciate any diff in stiffness on any of these over my 2005 Aksium Race wheels?

Pro-lite wheels are very good. I’ve got a set of Luciano so model down from Merano. Hubs look the same and the wheels are very strong and run on normal spokes (though bladed) so spares easily available. Hubs are well sealed and after last winter and whole summer of riding they are still straight and spin super smooth. Easy to do a quick service, but use a cassette with a carrier as my freehub body got marked when I had a cheapo cassette on, put Ultegra cassette on and no problems. They were used on my road bike/commuter do it all bike and I can vouch for their strength as I weighted 18st + backpack when I got them, now weight 14st and the wheels are still straight 😛 Also the claimed weights are without QR`s, when I weighted mine they were almost spot on the claimed weight.

I had some Ksyriums before and the Mavics look much nicer, however striaght pull spokes are a pain, mate waited something like 2 weeks for spokes and rim for his wheels.

It all depends on how much bling do You want to put on Your bike, but Pro Lite wheels are really well made and strong.

You will appreciate the weight saving 😉 so lighter wheels at same stiffness = quicker acceleration. I had Shimano r500 wheels, claimed weight around 2kg, then the Ksyriums Equipe, claimed weight close to 1900g, now my Lucianos are 1760g and my bike feels much faster and lighter than it really is (9.3kg). Depends what tyres You’ll put on as well but lighter wheels are always good and quite a big weight saving for not that much £££

Hmm – Mega bling is not necc. Just want something decent that will last a fair while and be lighter (than I already have) and stiffer (than I already have) – don’t really want to go over the £400 apart from those Dura ace’s – I have only broken 2 spokes on my Mavics as I used to use them for commuting (train tracks and low kurbs) and sourced them easily from Ukbikestore IIRC 🙂 I run GP 4 seasons at the mo and am very happy with those?

Also depends on the road bike You have. For example buying DA wheels will be much much more than £425. You will probably buy more bling to match the wheels in the end spending loads 😉

I would try a bike with stiffer wheels or borrow a set first to see whether there is much difference. There was significant difference between R500 and Ksyriums but almost zero between Ksyriums and Lucianos.

However if You want and can afford DA then go and treat Yourself to some nice wheels 🙂 Fortunately for me I can’t afford anything with Dura Ace on it (maybe gear/brake cables) but I think I’m too slow anyway and roadies would overtake me and point fingers at me laughing and stuff. Ultegra will have to do for me.

foxy why are you concerned about stiffness? A flexy wheel won’t make you any slower, though you may feel the flex (and it should actually be more comfortable)

LOL @ mieszko – I have a Ribble Sportive Carbon with Ultegra Gp set and very happy with it. I just get the impression when out the saddle that the wheels arn’t very stiff – or maybe its the bike frame 😉

Cynical – maybe its an excuse to spend money 😉 Only joking, perhaps I should just keep my Aksiums then? I know it will not make me any faster but the wheel flex to me is getting more noticable the more I road ride (the less I MTB 🙁 )

If flex is a problem try putting 1/4 turn on each of the spokes, it worked for my R-550’s, when I got them they rubbed on the brake blocks under power. Added a bit of tension and they’ve been fine ever since.

For the money you have, if you don’t have a clear favourite in mind I’d go to a good wheelbuilder and have a set made – that way you’ll get what you want and know what to expect in terms of replacements. If you pick the right builder you’ll also get them trued up for nothing on a regular basis.

If flex is a problem try putting 1/4 turn on each of the spokes

True 🙂

For riding about on all kinds of surfaces I don’t think you want a really stiff wheel at all. A conventional shallow rim is much less harsh to ride.

Light weight is nice, obviously, but low spoke count wheels tend to have stiff and unyielding rims, plus if you do break a spoke they go almost unrideably out of true and spares can be a right pain to source.

I’ve just gone back to regular handbuilts – in fact they were only delivered yesterday and I haven’t been on them yet (nipping out in a minute to get some rim tape). I went for Open Pro CD (I like the colour of CD!) on 105. I did the unthinkable and unspeakable and ordered from Dave Hinde, because the price is pretty much unbeatable – they arrived bang on time and seem absolutely fine – true, round, even tension etc. £157. Spend the rest on something else – Open Pavés are fearsomely expensive for example.

Hmm – Maybe I’ll try a 1/4 turn (having built MTB wheels before)