[Closed] Wheel opinions please

hope hoops are generally a good deal, when i bought mine (dt4.2) i could'nt get the parts and build myself for anywehere near the price. 6montsh decent use and running true, mine seem to be pretty good.

What sort of price we looking at? Any other opinions. With the hope pro2 hubs, can you change between 20mm, 15mm or QR easily? Or do you need a new hub? Where do hope on dt4.2s lie in terms of weight and riding style? XC/all mountain or what ever the other preclaimed "styles" of riding are.

Depends on your weight and typical riding but I would've thought Pro 2 on Stans Flow rims which give a good width rim without the weight of a 5.1 and you can now buy them on straight pull hubs as well.
I've heard some reports of 5.1s being barstewards to fit certain tyres (search on here).

Gives you the opportunity to put on wider tyres without them feeling like they'll roll off.

Thinking of getting some myself.

Hope Hoops here
http://www.wheelpro.co.uk/

4.2 are more xc, but i'm no lightweight and there are some fair sized chunks of granite around here and they have lasted well. i paid £196 for mine last year from wiggle, they had 20% off deal on wheels and a few wiggle vouchers helped as well.

if you want something beefier i'd look at the stans flow version as was already suggested by danti.

hoops come with qr as standard but you also get a 20mm adapter in the bag, don't know about 15mm.

Had hoop hoops pro 2 on to EX 5.1 thought they were very good and easy to get spare spokes etc. Never had any prob fitting any tyres. Had wheel set for over 2 years never changed bearings and lots of riding (no jet washing tho)! Mashed chain into back of cassette and popped cassette off free hub, but complete strip & assembly vid on Hope site. Simple!

NorthCounrtyBoy whats with the second blank msg?

So I'm really looking at Hope hubs with either ex5.1 rims or the stans flow rims. Any other opinions. I don't need anything hardcore. Whats a good price for the above two options? looking at that link "uplink" gave me it's near enough £300 quid for the stans. That's probably a little expensive. I was looking for closer to £200 with a little room for more.

And what are all the different mavic rims what's the differences between them? theres 317 521 729 blablabla. Which would be equivalent to ex5.1s?

"had bearing changes once since I got it about 9 months ago and the rear (475) is now feeling grindy and loose again! I've stopped jet washing them because I thought it was that"

Proper jetwash or a little bike specific one?

Anyhow, shimano hubs are designed such that as the bearings wear out you adjust them up a bit more. I'd have a go at that first. I've ended up retightening mine every 6 months

What ever you choose,lay off the jet wash. My Hope rear hub is on it's second bike and it's still running smooth. Haven't replaced bearings,or done any work on it.and I ride year round in all conditions.
However,I'm thinking of having a P7 for winter and sticking allmy old stuff on it. Thinking of sticking Goldtec hubs/Stans rims on the 575.

Was a karcher jetwash but I stopped after the first time bearings were changed. They feel like they're going again. I'll tighten them up again and see how they go. But still interested in something bit more durable and reliable.

And what are all the different mavic rims what's the differences between them? theres 317 521 729 blablabla. Which would be equivalent to ex5.1s?

717s? or 719s?

You could go a lot further wrong than ringing the guys at [url= http://www.life-cycles.co.uk/wheel%20builds/ ]Life Cycles[/url] in Bolton up and having a natter with them. I have their wheels on both my mountain bikes, and the missus's - and I've never touched them. I have two pairs of Hope hubs / Mavic 321 rims and they rebuilt my Hope Pro 3 SP's onto some nice white Syncros rims when the cheesy DT4.2 rims from th Hoops package dented.

I've just checked and you'd get 321 on Hope Pro II for about £250 the pair. They're usually good on price, and though they may not be the absolute cheapest, you'll be more than pleased. Defo 2nd on the 'no jetwash' thing, though the seals on the Hope Pro II hubs are just a touch better than on the Deore / 475 ones - totally different construction.

If you want 'fit and forget' wheels, get them built on Pro IIs and get them built in Bolton. Reet. 🙂

The 321s? Where do they sit in the range? Im havin trouble understanding mavics range. I'm browsing their website now. Cheers

Letters are what rim is intended for for example XC717 is mavics best quality cross country rim able to take a maximum tyre size of about 2.3 and weighs about 350 grams XM719 is mavics highest quality all mountain rim able to take a tyre up to a size 2.5 and weighs about 400 grams per rim. EX321 is mavics bombproof but heavy rim for freeriding bit over the top for most riding in Britain.

First number is the quality ie 1 lowest 7 highest and 8 is UST tubeless secound and third number eg 17 is width between rim flanges in mm.

I would personally go for XM719 rims on Shimano XT hubs from Merlin should cost you about £150 ish the rims are tough enough for anything short of pro downhill and if you give them regular TLC the XT hubs can last for years.

Shimano XT hubs if £££ matters: the £100-odd saving over Hope Hubs on a complete wheelset buys you the cone wrenches and enough grease and ball bearings to last a century or two! Servicing takes <1hr and is easy 🙂 The only downside is the inability to cater for different axles, but with the £100 saving you could always buy another wheel!

re. rims, the XM719 can accomodate 2.1 to 2.3 tyres, according to Mavic.

I never knew that, pantsonfire - thanks for the info. I'll look at Mavic rims in a whole new light now! I've found that the 321s are a touch heavier and a touch cheaper than the 717, but also a little tougher - I guess that comes from the 4mm extra width (from my new found knowledge!)

It sort of reminds me of how old car reg plates used to have the 2 character code from where they were from - eh, when I were a lad.

Someone's probably going to say they're still like that now, and I'll look an arse... 😉

Ahh I'm with you on the mavic rims now. Hmmmm yeh merlin have 719 on pro 2s for a quid under 250. And as you say 135 quid for XT hubs hmmmmmmmmmmmmm That is a big difference. Anyone else offer any opinions in the difference. Worth the extra dosh for Hope pro 2s? Cheers for all this guys. Helps me not rush into anything

Generally 717s are 400g have an internal diameter of 17mm (hence 717) and are suitable for tyres upto 3* their rim width 51mm = 2.1"

719s and 819s have the same inner profile save for the drilling and are 460g and 500g(including eyelets) respectively. The increase in width by 2mm is equatable to 6mm extra tyre diameter which make about 2.3-2.35 your max.

You can of course use bigger tyres than are recommended, but you'll ruin the tyre profile and it may roll offof the rim.

I'm not convinced that Hopes are worth the extra. Easier to service if you're doing it youreself but if a bike shop is doing it anyway, XTs will be as cheap and as reliable.

I have nothing against Hope hubs I have mates who swear by them its just the ****in noise clackclackclackclackclack from the freehub its like those chavs who fit a 12 inch diameter exhaust on there citroen saxo

110 quid is a lot of extra money for hubs. Any people are mostly saying it's not worth it. If there are any big advantages of paying the extra I will however if not I'll go for the XTs

pantsonfire hahaha

(Hides saxo keys)

Haha, not really, I've got a van

I've had the Pro2's-wouldn't go there again.They do not last if you ride a lot IME(between me and my son we have trashed or had to get rebuilt 5 in 6 months!) Have swapped to XT and or Deore hubs on the Merlin wheel builds. Fraction of the price and so far have proved far better.For about £60 for a complete Mavic rim/XT hub you can't go far wrong

I swear by CK hubs, They just keep on going. Do a 5 min service twice per year and they'll last forever. I'm pretty sure one of my sets is about 7 years old.

I'm suprised people dont have praise hope pro 2 hubs. Thought they were a quality manufacturer. The japanese will be getting my money then. are shimano japanese???

Hope are (AFAIK!) very good. However, Shimano aren't exactly rubbsih either, and when there's such a saving to be had, well...

Hope's warranty and backup can't be faulted, but I've seen and heard of a few failures recently - all fixed but....

I also can't stand the noise.

Be aware that when buying wheels with XT hubs from Merlin, they're the "older" M756 hubs, and not the newer M775. Not that it matters: AFAIK the only real difference is a slightly quicker engagement, and the M765 is proven and reliable.

Waiting for my Roval Traversee's to arrive at the end of the month. Not cheap, but DT Swiss internals in the straight pull hubs

Do XT come with an adapter for 20mm maxle or 15QR? Is one available?

I gave up with XT hubs a few years ago as the freehubs were always failing after about 6 months. Completely negated the price saving over Hope. Anyone know if the shimano freehubs are better/longer lasting these days?
With Hope, I find they really are fit and forget. Took 4 years before I needed any work doing on a Hope Sport rear hub, just needed new freehub bearings from memory, and the front has still not been touched 3 years later.
Not impreseed with DT 4.2 rims compared to 717's though. As others have said, they dent and scratch at the slightest fying flint/rock stike. Only cosmetic, but disappointing in my view.

XT hubs, AFAIK, cannot be changed to suit different axle types, thus no adaptor is available.

Had hope Pro 2's since they came out, and before that Bulb's - never had a problem, not had to change bearings, and love the noise. You can get adaptors for QR, 20mm & 15mm.

Mavic en521 rims at 540 grams are pretty much indestructable, and a bit lighter than 321's.

have a look at Merlin cycles - their wheel builds are generally cheaper than you can buy the seperate parts:

http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/?fn=category&categoryId=97