After having given a decent road ride a go and really enjoying it, I’ve decided to go further with the bike and buy a few upgrades.

I don’t want to spend too much (already decided on a Planet X Pro Carbon Fork). I’m looking at upgrading the wheels with a few points to bear in mind.

Must be able to take my weight (14 stone 10 pounds)
Reliable
Good value (cheap!)
Compatible with current 8 speed setup.

I’ll most likely also get a carbon seat post of some sort too.

Link to bike.

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/re-purposing-a-ridgeback-genesis-day-01

Suggestions please 🙂

Pretty much anything will. Given your other criteria I’d be looking for a s/h pair of Mavic Open Pro rims on 105 hubs – or maybe Open Sport on RX100 if you want to save a bit more money and can find some (you’re unlikely to notice the difference in performance, but there’s likely to be less around for sale). Probably some other options in Shimano hubs below 105, but I’m not quite up will all the lower end groups they’ve released. Alternative older rims are MA2 or MA3.

Cheers for the suggestions. To be honest, most things will be an upgrade to what’s on there now. I just want to avoid buying “known lemons” really.

I’ve been really chuffed with my Campagnolo Zonda’s. I bought them on a whim when Wiggle were doing them on offer, they had some really good write-ups and I thought ‘what the hell’. They’ve been pretty rock steady and i’m no lightweight at 92kg’s, and use them for commuting to work with a hefty rucksack on my back too. They’re still running true after 18 months on the rough and pot-holed roads around me.

Got some Fulcrum Racing 3s with Conti GP4000S II and tubes for £335 from Merlin a few months ago (were £450 for wheels only). No complaints here.

Hunt wheels are very nice.

Road cc did a review of tubeless ready wheels yesterday (Monday). That might be worth a look as there were some bargain wheels with light weights to be had.

Thanks all for the suggestions. Quite a few options there to consider.

Ultegra @ £240 ish
or Fulcrum 5 @ £160 ish

To me are the best deals out there at the mo.

To be honest, I thought the Fulcrum ones sounded like good value, but wasn’t sure how good they were.

Ultegra wheels look excellent for the money.

I have both, the ultegras are a lot nicer to ride and have a much higher quality appearance – I always think the racing 5 hubs look a bit ‘plastic’.

Just serviced the hubs on my ultegras last night too, really easy with the new adjustment system, I thought it was easier than swapping cartridge bearings in a hub, and less chance of damaging anything.

Forget the seatpost it will make no difference.
Save that budget on decent wheels instead.
Get something with wider rims e.g. hed belgium c2 and run 25c or larger tyres.

How about these? Almost new, leaving more for a carbon set.

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/shimano-r500-road-bike-wheels-with-tyrestubes

What prices do carbon wheels start becoming a consideration?

What prices do carbon wheels start becoming a consideration?

Unless you’re buying for show, £1k ish.

nuts! I say go for those ultegra’s then 😀

BTW superstar have a sale on at the moment:

look in the price ballpark maybe?

http://www.superstarcomponents.com/en/arc-cx-ray-probuild-volta-11speed-clearance-dealx.htm

Hmm one thought… what hub are you going to get as aren’t all new wheels mainly going to be 11speed? Are they backwards compatible to 9 / 10 speed?

Turns out yes they do..:
This hub is compatible with 11 speed Shimano cassettes. With included spacer 8, 9 and 10 speed systems can be used also.

also 25% off with this code even on the discounted wheels:

25XF

Thanks everyone! I’ve gone from wondering what’s decent to having too many to choose from!

My inner tart is liking the Superstar wheels and I’ve had a set of their 26 inch wheels before and liked them.

Sensible head is saying Ultegra though. Hmm, I best get working out how much I wan to spend. Ideally, not too much as the bike isn’t the best, it’s more of a sentimental value.

@lunge….curious if that is just in relation to weight?
I had some unbranded 60mm carbon rims for a bit on my last bike and I noticed a difference at speed, they also were lighter than the wheels they replaced.

Chinese carbon wheels did catch my eye, but they may be a bit overkill for my bike.

I wouldn’t want to get some crap wheels that are more expensive than decent branded alu wheelsets just because aero and carbon.

Happy to be shown otherwise though 🙂

I bought some of the superstar ones .. Replacing r500s – the superstar ones for 200 quid are as light as all others states and easy to repair and maintain.. I think they are a good shout on the type of bike you’ve mentioned.

Right… my Wife is giving me £200 to spend for my birthday and I’ve decided it should go to road wheels.

top contenders at moment

1. Superstar in the link above (with code)
2.Fulcrum 5

Are the Mavic Aksium Elite worth a look?
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/mavic-aksium-elite-road-wheelset-2016/rp-prod140603

Zondas

Zondas are a little out of budget unfortunately. Are they really worth the extra £60ish over the other options?

I do like to look of them 🙂

Fulcrum racing quattros are nice. Ivr had some of the superstar ones and they’re good for the money.

Have you considered hunt wheels?

akira mentioned Hunt wheels, but I think they are a bit too pricey for me at moment. It looks like I’d have to wait till September for cheapest version on their site too.

@akria, The Quattros look good for the money too! They are now a top contender 🙂

Well…

Because no one likes an unfinished thread, I bought the Fulcrum Racing Quattro LG wheels, which left me some over to get some proper road pedals.

I’ll stick some pics up when they arrive tomorrow. Next on the list is a carbon fork! Been looking at the Planet X one for £50.