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New Wheels - Flo?

by notfastenough
Fri, Oct 17, 2014 13:05
9

Hey folks, I'm in the process of ebaying a few bits so I can buy some new wheels. I'm hoping to have around £350 to spend, and have been looking for something stiff, up to around 1600g and, call me shallow, but something that looks cool. I like the idea of a little extra top end speed above 25mph, so a little deeper than a box section rim would be good. That said, I'm not sure I can be doing with the wet weather performance of carbon braking surfaces.

So far the choices seem to be either box section OR aero, and the aero stuff is almost all V-profile, which supposedly is susceptible to crosswinds (I don't know how much of this is just marketing though).

Buying chinese is out. I happen to be part Chinese, but that doesn't make me want to find out on a fast bend that some bling carbon wheels haven't been QA or stress tested!

So currently it looks like the Flo 30 alu clincher. Rounded cross-section, alloy, tubeless ready, just over 1600g. I was pointed towards them by Olic on here (although he's not set up for PMs so I can't ask him any further questions). Another alternative is that Swiss Side have said they will be releasing different rim depths of the Hadron alloy-with-carbon-fairing wheels, but no details available yet, and may be too expensive anyway.

Any other options?

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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9 comments

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Dropped | 10 years ago
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Pro-Lite A27 Braccianno - Wiggle £330 @ 1412g (shot peened black Shimano free hub). Triple the price and you might get lighter. Weight for £'s unbeatable and very well made.

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Metjas | 10 years ago
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Have you considered H Plus Son Archetype rims? Strong, durable, good looking, have wear indicators and you can choose hubs/spokes based on your budget. I have one set for winter riding and my other best wheelset uses the same rims built up with White Industries T11 hubs. Perfect for UK roads!

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notfastenough | 10 years ago
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@Scrufftie - indeed, I quite liked the idea of a pair of victory 30's, and the branding would suit my Trek Madone quite well. However, looking around online there's a lot of talk about lack of stiffness, which is quite high on my list of priorities.

@abudhabichris - I can only see them for $900 a pair - as turboprannet says, that sounds like £300 per wheel?

@Drmatthewhardy - perhaps I could have worded my post better, I agree entirely that weight isn't everything. There's others I could get that are lighter, but having felt the difference when losing 5kg of body weight (decent, but it's hardly night and day), I can't see that losing a few hundred grams more (and sacrificing stiffness) is worth bothering with.

@The_kaner - nice! I quite the look of Swiss Side, although I fancy a slighter deeper rim.

@Olic - thanks for getting back to me. I PMed someone else who did have them switched on but he didn't receive it either, so I'm not sure it makes much difference anyway. By anodising, you just mean that you were left with a silver brake track right? Takes me back to my Mavic Open 4 CD SUPs in the 90's!

Do you find the hubs good? I ask because while noticing that ordering seems to be a faff (they're ramping up for another batch now apparently), I do note that the rims themselves are in stock, and a couple of forum threads questioning the hubs. So I'm wondering:
Rims £100 (plus duties? Don't know how much)
Sapim cx-ray spokes x 44 £88

Thoughts?

Cheers for the contributions everyone.

That would leave me having to spend more for hubs, skewers and build cost (I'm not that skilled!), but it's an option.

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olic | 10 years ago
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Hey sorry I've not got PMs on, not sure how to do that!

I ended up going with them because after no end of reading I realised the whole weight saving thing was a bit pointless for everyday use and the time saving up a big climb for 100-200g is minimal.

One downside I would say is that the anodised braking track will shed away after a couple of hilly rides in the wet! I was descending white down lane once and I heard a horrendous squeal and the lovely black coating was gone 2 it doesn't affect performance though and I did a lot of riding around the Pyrenees on them this year

The other thing I like is that they sell all their wheels individually - I've got a 60/90 set as well which I save for the good weather and you can always switch in a 30 front when it's windy. Ordering can be difficult though as while they're ramping up production they can still sell out really fast

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The _Kaner | 10 years ago
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Well I've just taken delivery of a set of Swiss Side Franc. £275/€350...I've only ridden 70km on them so far, but they are far and away much better than the 2011 Fulcrum 5's they replaced. Definitely stiffer, but not in a boneshakingly harsh manner. A good deal lighter, but not in the on trend wider rim that seems to be the popular flavour right now. I guess it's more of a personal choice...white wheels at this time of year may not be the greatest idea.

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matthewn5 | 10 years ago
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Fulcrum 2014 racing 5, just over 1640g and only £138 on Wiggle at the moment in Campag flavour.

But if you must spend £350, Fulcrum Racing 3 are outstanding, 1550g.

Remember, there's more to wheels than weight.

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KirinChris | 10 years ago
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You can get front and rear HED Ardennes CL Plus (the wider profile rim) for 350 quid.

Around 1600g, but spend another 50-100 and you'll get down to 1500g.

Absolutely the best value you can get at that price range in terms of performance and reliability, from one of the best wheelbuilders on the planet.

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turboprannet replied to KirinChris | 10 years ago
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abudhabiChris wrote:

You can get front and rear HED Ardennes CL Plus (the wider profile rim) for 350 quid.

Around 1600g, but spend another 50-100 and you'll get down to 1500g.

Absolutely the best value you can get at that price range in terms of performance and reliability, from one of the best wheelbuilders on the planet.

I've only ever seen them retailing at that range per wheel - where are they £350 a pair?!

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Scrufftie | 10 years ago
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Have you looked at the American Classics range? I think they are great value even tho they're not that well known over here.

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