Road wheels – handbuilding options -help me spec!

So, after having broken yet another spoke in the rea4r of my factory built Xero XCR1s, I’ve decided maybe I’m a little too powerful/heavy* for a 24 spoke wheel.

I could go down the Ksyrium route (probably Elites – they’re £320 at CRC) but, for a similar price, could have some light and strong handuilts made up.

So, I’m contemplating whether to have some Hope Pro 3s built onto….

Help me out on the rim, spoke and spoke count choices people..!

Cheers

OMITN

*delete as applicable 😉

Hope do a good value set ready built. Pro 3 hubs on DT R1.1 rims dt spokes, £330 from memory. ride a lot nicer than my far more expensive wheels tbh, have stayed tight and have not been a problem at all.

DT Competition & 32H open pro, all you need IMO

36H if you’re fat (I deleted powerful)

yeah, open pro’s rock 😉 seriously though, they’ll last ages if well built.

I’m just having some Ambrosio Excellights built up on 28h Pro3s with DT spokes by Paul Hewitt. He had the Pro3s on offer and they’re coming in at £375. Open Pros would be cheaper though and may come in on budget. Give him a ring – he’s a good source of knowledge and will help you spec them to suit weight/style/price etc.

Ksyrium Elites – cheapest 2009 price I’ve seen is £350. Maybe you were looking at the older version, as 09 at CRC are £419+ ? The 09 is essentially a new wheel, and looks very swish in the flesh.

I should add that the weight is moving downwards (a mere 12.5 stone these days…).

I have some 36h Open Pros with 105 hubs as my commuter/winter wheels, so this would be an option to have something lighter (I’m riding the Étape in July) and also strong enough for a spot of road racign later in the year (when I finally shake off this virus and get in shape).

Any view as to whether the DT rims are vastly better/lighter/stiffer than Open Pros?

Any other rim recs.?

What about spokes – DT? Sapim?

reggie – our posts crossed. I must have seen an older Elite at that price…

Have seen Mr Hewitt in action building wheels (before he then spent a morning measuring Mrs North for a frame – she’s tiny; so’s her frame).

Have been offered Pro 3s on Rigida Zenith rims with DB spokes for £250. Ambrosio rims a step up from that?

So, after having broken yet another spoke in the rea4r of my factory built Xero XCR1s, I’ve decided maybe I’m a little too powerful/heavy* for a 24 spoke wheel.

Unlikely to be anything to do with your weight/power – broken spokes mean wheels that arent’ built tight enough. Heavy riders tend to bend/break rims – spokes should pretty much never break unless directly damages (chain/stick in spokes).

Anyway, as above, 28hole open pro rims with DT Revolution spokes and then a light hub will build up into a light wheel at a lot less cost than Ksyriums, etc.

I’ve also used the DT rims and I can’t say that they’re any better than open pros – maybe a touch lighter but nothing significant.

I can’t see past mavic rims myself, don’t know what else is lighter, but light wheels do not aways eman light rims, which is what matters.

Both DT and sapim are fine, anyone saying different is talking b*********

oh and absolutely no need for 36 hole for anyone under 17 stone!

I have a DT 1.1 on the front, OP on the rear. I find that the OP has a better braking feel (smoother) than the 1.1.

oh and absolutely no need for 36 hole for anyone under 17 stone!

*clears throat*

*clears throat*

Which is exactly how I know that they’re fine 🙂

Surely you need to decide what you want in a wheel before speccing it? Comfort/stiffness/speed etc..

Surely you need to decide what you want in a wheel before speccing it? Comfort/stiffness/speed etc..

Good point. These are going to be summer wheels and while they need to be reasonably all round, speed and stiffness are the key requirements.

Cheers all – much appreciated..!

The Ambrosio rims do have a good rep, but as I said, they are more expensive than Open Pros so might stretch the budget a tad far.

I’ve not used DT road rims so can’t comment personally, but one comment is that the double-eyelet version is only available in 32h, which is a bit odd. And there are reports of the single eyelet version having problems.

But I agree, below £300 the best option must be handbuilt IMO. What price is Paul offering on Pro3 hubs, Open Pros and DT spokes? That must be a strong candidate.

Note: Paul tends to run a thicker/stronger spoke on the rear driveside (DS) to even out the tension eg. DT rev on the non-driveside and DT DB on the driveside. He also sometimes runs different nipples too, again to get good tension in the wheel, which is the main thing and why handbuilts have so many fans.

Speed comes at the expense of comfort, as I’m sure you know. I’d not recommend Open Pros then as they are a comfort rim and not that fast. You want something deeper section I’d say.

molgrips, I’d argue that unless you’re a very good racer open pro is not going to be any slower than something deeper unless you’re talking serious money and 30mm+ carbon.

I don’t agree – deeper section rims in alu are much stiffer than Open Pros (my LBS showed me how much they flex un-built compared to deep rims, and my experience on the built up wheels was similar – open were much comfier), and stiffness helps with the speed doesn’t it?

depends on whether he’s racing them surely….

if they are just for riding around on then OPs are fine.

Yeah but he wants speed and stiffness. If that’s what he wants then fine. Doesn’t matter if he’s racing or if he’s good or not, does it?

molgrips – you make good points (again – is it cos you’re a Welshist? 🙂 ). They don’t have to be out and out race wheels – I’ve got to climb mountains with these things, too, so something that remains light is a good thing.

At my price range, I can probably do stiff and fast, but won’t get light….

I’ll be using a friend to do the build – he’s already done me a nice set of training wheels (Open Pros – v comfy) – rather than Paul Hewitt, although do accept that Hewitt is one of the accepted masters at wheelbuilding.

so what do you reckon molgrips? CXP33s?

stiffness helps with the speed doesn’t it?

That really depends. If you’re honking out of the saddle, grinding a big gear then it undoubtedly does. If you’re spinning circles, even at pace, and riding long distances, far, far less so.

For something like the etape, unless you’re pretty clueless, it’s obvious which way you should be riding and therefore which will suit.

you make good points

Oh you charmer 8)

I dunno much about brands and all though so can’t recommend… just go for something a bit deeper than an Open Pro. That might push the weight up a bit too tho – maybe you can go fewer spokes with a deeper rim.

If you haven’t got a decent roadie LBS you could give Cyclopedia in Cardiff a call (029 2037 7772) they know their stuff.

For something like the etape, unless you’re pretty clueless, it’s obvious which way you should be riding and therefore which will suit

Whether I know what I’m on about is a mater of debate… I’ll be twiddling away up the climbs. Interesting session on a computrainer last night – twiddling at a decent (95+) cadence on anything uphill does generate good power.

If you haven’t got a decent roadie LBS you could give Cyclopedia in Cardiff a call (029 2037 7772) they know their stuff.

Got a v good road shop that I use – Rick Green Cycles in Handforth, near Manchester.

But seated spinning will generate ‘good power’ that’s in line with the wheel rather than trying to bend it side to side which is where a stiffer rim helps…

Yep, got that Clubber – that’s what I was trying to illustrate after last night’s experience.