What would you do... wheel choices

[bikerboy337]

So... planning to get a "deeper" dish wheelset for a few tri's im doing next year.... and i'm really in a quandy as to what to do... i've come to two basic options right now and looking for any opinions...

Option 1) New set of Campy Bullet USB 50mm clinchers
Option 2) Lightly used set of 60/88mm tubular wheels
Otion 3) Lightly used set of no-name Full Carbon Tubulars, 50mm

My concern, I've never done tubular and not sure i'm ready for that switch...I'm also a little worried about 60/88 as thats really deep and i wouldn't get much use other than in the races... with the bullet 50s, they could be used pretty much year round, and put on my caad9 for the few tri's i'm planning...

Any thoughts would be great...

[Pete Mckeon]

I have not used Tubulara for Tri so I would say try them first and also know some about Tri races and their use,.

ZIPP has a large audience and also MAVIC does, At very hi end CARBON SPORTS LIGHT WEIGHT WHEELs are selling well AND the US importer is a good friend of mine - - so where you live might be able get you a demo in NJ, NY, or other places.

Pete

[oldpotatoe]

So... planning to get a "deeper" dish wheelset for a few tri's im doing next year.... and i'm really in a quandy as to what to do... i've come to two basic options right now and looking for any opinions...

Option 1) New set of Campy Bullet USB 50mm clinchers
Option 2) Lightly used set of 60/88mm tubular wheels
Otion 3) Lightly used set of no-name Full Carbon Tubulars, 50mm

My concern, I've never done tubular and not sure i'm ready for that switch...I'm also a little worried about 60/88 as thats really deep and i wouldn't get much use other than in the races... with the bullet 50s, they could be used pretty much year round, and put on my caad9 for the few tri's i'm planning...

Any thoughts would be great...

No team cars, no real wheel support, if ya flat, ya gotta fix it yourself. Get Clinchers. 50-60mm is a good all around combo. Get a lot deeper, and you run the risk of getting blown around in the wind.

The Campagnolo's have great hubs.

[MattTuck]

I didn't see this on your list, but it may be an option.

rent or borrow.

Either from a friend or there are some companies that do equipment rentals for Tri's.

May be worth investigating.

[slidey]

This is very subjective, and without being you or your coach I find it impossible to make a suggestion.

However, to weigh in on just the tubbies/clinchers...I'd vote clinchers. Deep-dish carbon wheels are an occasional, which means less opportunity to get used to the tubular system.

Also as MattTuck mentioned, look into renting or trying them out from your LBS/team mates, etc.

[bikerboy337]

i know this is very subjective...

I was really on board with the 60/88 wheels, but as i really started to think about it, in NE i wouldn't get any use except for the 2-4 tri's i'm doing next year... so that really got me thinking that 45-60 was what I want... and i'm having similar thoughts on clincher... which is why the bullets have jumped out...

little heavy, but i like the aluminum braking (i've had several carbon clinchers before, and no fun at all in wet conditions)...

i just cant seem to find much info on them... i've loved every campy wheel i've ever had (zonda, scirocco, shamal)... so I'm assuming they'll be great... and for a flat tri... a few hundred grams shouldn't matter...

then I can use the bullets for some fun fast rides as well...

thats my thought for now... but just was looking for any opinions...

thanks so far...

[carpediemracing]

If you haven't done tubulars before and are a plug-n-play kind of rider then I'd stick with clinchers. If you don't mind, say, changing your own oil or swapping out summer tire rims for winter ones on your car, then the tubulars become a bit more realistic.

Tubulars offer three distinct features - lighter weight for a given strength and depth rim; ability to ride pretty fast on a flat as well as the ability to stay upright in case of a sudden tire failure; very low chance of pinch flats.

Remember with aero wheels you can go taller in the back, even in big wind. The front is less forgiving.

Based on my own experiences I'd say that for routes that involve max speeds under 50 mph, a 60 mm front wheel that is okay in crosswinds is fine (and maybe a 32 mm rim that is not optimized for crosswinds; I had problems with a non-optimized 46 mm rim at 45-55 mph). Above that speed I'd personally stick with a much shorter rim, i.e. a non-aero. I use the Ardennes rim up front when I expect to hit 50+ mph on a ride.

In the rear I'd run a 90 mm rim in every event. I ran either an Ardennes rim in the back on training rides or a Jet 9.

[MattTuck]

To give you an idea, you could rent Zipp 808 wheels for a weekend for $165. From http://www.racewheelrental.com

Other sites and/or local places might be more competitive.

Wheels are a lot of money (especially high zoot carbon wheels), and if I were going to spend a lot, I'd want to be able to ride them a lot.

[Liv2RideHard]

I would just be done with it and get 404s. They are deep, carbon and you can get the Firecrest 404 clincher. I rode 404 tubs for some time. They just work, at least they did for me. Light, durable, crosswinds didn't bother me and a profile similar to the Campa wheels you mentioned.

[teleguy57]

[QUOTE=carpediemracing;

Based on my own experiences I'd say that for routes that involve max speeds under 50 mph, a 60 mm front wheel that is okay in crosswinds is fine (and maybe a 32 mm rim that is not optimized for crosswinds; I had problems with a non-optimized 46 mm rim at 45-55 mph). Above that speed I'd personally stick with a much shorter rim, i.e. a non-aero. I use the Ardennes rim up front when I expect to hit 50+ mph on a ride.
.[/QUOTE]

MPH??? You get to play on mountain descents way more than me!:)

[Lovetoclimb]

Go with the Campy Bullets. Better all around use, you could even put cx clinchers tires on in the fall and winter and race that sport if you desired. Just invest in solid clincher tires to compliment your nice wheels, GP4000s, Vittoria Evo SC, etc . . .

[slidey]

Based just on this piece of info, I'd suggest seriously looking into the Dura Ace C50 clinchers. I know that the 7850's had an alloy braking track, but I'm not sure if the 7900 follows a similar trend or not.

little heavy, but i like the aluminum braking (i've had several carbon clinchers before, and no fun at all in wet conditions)...

[bikerboy337]

for the feedback... i've convinced myself that sticking to a set of bullet 50s is the way to go for now,i will get a lot more use out of them as they can be ridden in any weather, condition, course... i guess if i get really into tris, i'll be grabbing a tri specific bike and can get deeper dish at that point...

thanks again for all the advice... these decisions are never easy...

[zap]

I think you made a good choice.

Top clincher tires have less rolling resistance than the best tubulars (if you suck at glueing rolling resistance will be even worse).

[LegendRider]

What's your budget?

If it's high, I'd get a set of Zipp 404 Firecrest clinchers. If not, look for some Dura Ace C50s on eBay or the various bike classifieds - they seem to pop up regularly at good prices.

[bikerboy337]

Cant afford Zipps (bedget is under $900 at most)... and I'm a campy guy, so the shimanos wont work... i'd love to grab a new set of 404s, cant afford those though (or my wife wont allow it) and want to stay married... for the kids sake ;)


What's your budget?

If it's high, I'd get a set of Zipp 404 Firecrest clinchers. If not, look for some Dura Ace C50s on eBay or the various bike classifieds - they seem to pop up regularly at good prices.

[fa63]

You made a good choice; hard to go wrong with Campy wheels :beer: