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View Full Version : carbon clincher + disc brake hub = downside?


jimoots
07-29-2014, 06:25 PM
Ok so, background.

I have a reasonable CX bike w/discs that was always intended as a wet weather bike (i.e. road tyres) and a little bit of CX action with knobblies as appropriate.

That reality never really worked out. The bike hardly sees any road miles - at 9kg it's a little bit portly - I have a nasty habit of leaving it behind and favouring my lighter, faster bikes.

As my lighter, faster bikes have got nicer... I am cringing more and more at the wear and tear I'm putting on them by riding in crappy conditions... and I'm revisiting the wet weather bike strategy.

A second set of wheels makes a lot of sense in shaving a fair chunk of weight off the bike, allowing narrower tyres (running 33c at the moment) and also meaning I have a set of wheels for knobblies which will encourage me a bit more to do some CX... changing tyres for a single ride is a PITA.

So what I was thinking was buying a set of carbon clinchers from one of the 'reputable' chinese mobs.

My figurings are that by having disc brake hubs, I am doing away with the issues with carbon clinchers (and carbon rims in general). I.e. there is no heat on the brake track, so no issue with dissipation. And braking performance is obviously unaffected by rim material.

But given that I've never run a carbon clincher before, I thought it might be wise to ask the question... am I missing something? Is there a potential downside of running a carbon clincher with disc brakes in wet weather? Any gripes I should be aware of for day to day use when compared with a light aluminium rim?

Thanks.

krismac23
07-29-2014, 10:03 PM
U nailed it on the head to be honest. If u run disc brake hubs on CCL's you need not worry of wear and tear. That being said be careful on even reputable Chinese repop's. I've seen some bad cracked rims for Cx and off road use because of the obvious terrain element. Off road tends to put way more stress on rims and Etc. Then a pot hole here and there or a gravel road. I would suggest higher than normal spoke count also if u go repop CCL's.

jimoots
07-29-2014, 10:16 PM
Cool. The carbon wheelset will be for commuting and training sealed roads. Keep the heavier wheelset for anything that requires knobbly tyres, then I can just switch wheelsets, rather than tyres off/on/off changes for a single ride.

But was going to go a slightly higher spoke count just so I don't have to think about stuff. Me being 150lbs, I was thinking 28/28.

AgilisMerlin
07-29-2014, 10:36 PM
Richard has nice wheelsets


K

jimoots
07-29-2014, 11:03 PM
Richard has nice wheelsets


K

Richard?

oldpotatoe
07-30-2014, 06:01 AM
Ok so, background.

I have a reasonable CX bike w/discs that was always intended as a wet weather bike (i.e. road tyres) and a little bit of CX action with knobblies as appropriate.

That reality never really worked out. The bike hardly sees any road miles - at 9kg it's a little bit portly - I have a nasty habit of leaving it behind and favouring my lighter, faster bikes.

As my lighter, faster bikes have got nicer... I am cringing more and more at the wear and tear I'm putting on them by riding in crappy conditions... and I'm revisiting the wet weather bike strategy.

A second set of wheels makes a lot of sense in shaving a fair chunk of weight off the bike, allowing narrower tyres (running 33c at the moment) and also meaning I have a set of wheels for knobblies which will encourage me a bit more to do some CX... changing tyres for a single ride is a PITA.

So what I was thinking was buying a set of carbon clinchers from one of the 'reputable' chinese mobs.

My figurings are that by having disc brake hubs, I am doing away with the issues with carbon clinchers (and carbon rims in general). I.e. there is no heat on the brake track, so no issue with dissipation. And braking performance is obviously unaffected by rim material.

But given that I've never run a carbon clincher before, I thought it might be wise to ask the question... am I missing something? Is there a potential downside of running a carbon clincher with disc brakes in wet weather? Any gripes I should be aware of for day to day use when compared with a light aluminium rim?

Thanks.

Nope but you aren't going to save much weight either.

dieonthishill
07-30-2014, 11:37 AM
I really liked using my CLX40 Rovals with disc brakes. I just like the feel of them more than an aluminum wheel.

dieonthishill
07-30-2014, 11:39 AM
I really liked using my CLX40 Rovals with disc brakes. I just like the feel of them more than an aluminum wheel.

Plus they look badass :banana:

jimoots
07-30-2014, 07:37 PM
Nope but you aren't going to save much weight either.

Conservative estimate for the current wheelset is 2kg. Narrowest tyre I can get on there is 30mm. New wheelset will be well under 1500g and allow me to run 23/25mm tyres.

So I grant you that the weight saving isn't crazy, but combined with the reduced rolling resistance/tyre weight I think it should make the bike feel a bit nippier. Which is nice when you just want to get home as fast as possible with the least possible effort.