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Upgrades. What would you do?

by Stephanos
Mon, Jan 17, 2011 07:50
6

My bike is a Giant TCR0 from 2007. Aluminium frame with full Ultegra componentry. I'm in a dilemma. I want to upgrade the wheels - I've got the Giant Iou 555 that came with the bike, and I feel that it's the bike's week spot. The strongest contestants are the Ksyrium Elites. The thing is that I'm thinking of upgrading to a carbon bike as well (in a year or a year and a half). Should I go for the wheels and then buy a carbon frame and stick everything up there? Or should I just wait for another year and buy a brand new complete bike?

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6 comments

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Stephanos | 14 years ago
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Thanks for your advice Dave. Much appreciated.

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dave atkinson | 14 years ago
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Well Giant think the Elites are good enough for the Advanced SL2, which is the middle of the Advanced range, not counting the money-no-object SL0. So by that logic they'll probably fit right in 1

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Stephanos | 14 years ago
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Probably a Giant TCR Advanced.

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dave atkinson | 14 years ago
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Make no mistake, the Ksyrium Elites are a great quality wheelset. I guess it depends how high-end you're looking to go with your carbon frame 39

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Stephanos | 14 years ago
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Hey Dave, thanks for the reply. I live in Cyprus and unfortunately we're not spoiled for choice here. I really wanted to try the 7850s as well. The fact is that I can probably get hold of any of the wheels you suggested - even from on-line sellers - but there's not much support or service here. The dealer/distributor for mavic is the same one I got my bike from, and the service is second to none (I get e free bike service every six months). So, even though I'm sure there are very good wheels out there - maybe even a bit cheaper that the Ksyriums I think I'll stick with those for the service. I just want to make sure they will make justice to the carbon frame I'll be upgrading to. Are the Ksyrium SLs worth the price difference? 65grams lighter, rims are the same, spokes are 'zicral' as opposed to stainless steel, hubs have some carbon bits, and that's about it.

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dave atkinson | 14 years ago
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If you're going to get a carbon frame and you're going to swap all the bits over then you'll probably notice the weight in the wheels even more at that point. If you're going for it then think about the hoops fitted to your upgraded carbon frame rather than your current Giant. Ksyrium Elites are great quality wheels, you can get significantly lighter sets if you spend a bit more though. I'd also look at wheels such as the Dura Ace 7850 CL24 and the C4 CA2.2SL, both of which are a fair bit lighter for not that much more, and the Pro-lite Gavia SLs which are a fair bit lighter for a bit less...

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