Any personal reviews for Bora WTO?

[username]

If someone wants a pair of near-perfect 45s, let me know. They're just too fancy for me, and I have other (Campy) wheels that I'm more comfortable riding.

[m_sasso]

Originally Posted by username

If someone wants a pair of near-perfect 45s, let me know. They're just too fancy for me, and I have other (Campy) wheels that I'm more comfortable riding.

I have a next to new set of not so fancy 33's that I am looking to trade that will get you out of those 45's if you are interested: https://forums.thepaceline.net/showp...8&postcount=64

[jmr_santa_fe]

New question for those of you with more experience than me ... how are the rim Bora WTOs when it comes to compliance/comfort? Are these better understood as stiff race wheels, with comfort over 4+ hour rides a potential consideration?

[jamesdak]

Ugh....just read through this whole thread again as I'm considering some used WTO 45's. But then I look at the 45 rim brake wheels from BTLOS and they are lighter and half the price of the used WTO's. Are the Campagnolo's really that much better? Doesn't seem to be a clear cut answer.....

[AngryScientist]

Originally Posted by jamesdak

Ugh....just read through this whole thread again as I'm considering some used WTO 45's. But then I look at the 45 rim brake wheels from BTLOS and they are lighter and half the price of the used WTO's. Are the Campagnolo's really that much better? Doesn't seem to be a clear cut answer.....

Do you want to drive a Porsche or a Honda Accord to work everyday? On US highways both will have no problem doing the speed limit and get you to and fro safely. Your pick.

[shinomaster]

Originally Posted by jamesdak

Ugh....just read through this whole thread again as I'm considering some used WTO 45's. But then I look at the 45 rim brake wheels from BTLOS and they are lighter and half the price of the used WTO's. Are the Campagnolo's really that much better? Doesn't seem to be a clear cut answer.....

Which wheels are the BTLOS? I want Bora's but thinking of nailing a pot hole with an $800 wheel makes me uncomfortable.

[nmrt]

I've owned Bora 35 and 50 ULTRA in rim brakes. I have owned BTLOS in rim brakes as well. I loved the Boras and thought they rode incredibly well, best wheelset EVAH! But if I put on my thinking man's cap, I realize that blindfolded there is no way that I could tell the difference in the ride quality (comfort, stiffness, acceleration) between the Boras and BTLOS.

The Boras did brake really well though with Campy's red pads. But I would be just as skittish descending mountains/hills here in Colorado Front Range in the Boras as in the BTLOS. Rim brakes and twisty and steep mountain descents just make me nervous on carbon rim brakes.

If you're not descending steep/twisty mountains, get the Boras so that you can tell yourself (like I did) that you are riding the best EVAH wheelset.

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

Do you want to drive a Porsche or a Honda Accord to work everyday? On US highways both will have no problem doing the speed limit and get you to and fro safely. Your pick.

[9tubes]

I've nailed a pothole at 30mph with the Bora 45 WTO. Biggest hit I've ever had in 30+ years of racing and riding. My bars rotated down and my saddle was twisted sideways. I nearly went over the bars. The rim didn't notice. Perfectly true, not a mark. Over two years later and no delamination. Still perfectly true.

I suppose you could sell your truing stand to offset the price of the Boras.

OTOH, if the other wheels are half the price and brake just as well, then maybe that is a smarter move. I don't know anything about comparable aero between those two.

[Jdm]

I wonder what the OP ended up buying.

[nmrt]

Funny that you asked. I bought both! Boras Ultra 35 and 45 and BTLOS in rim brakes. But then funnily enough, I sold everything. Moved to discs.

But for discs, I was intensely enamored with the Bora Ultra WTO 45 Discs. But there was no way I was going to pay $3000 for the wheelset. Unless of course, the Ultras had an unmatched ride quality. So, for discs, I bought some BTLOS rims, DT Swiss 180 hubs, and had OldPotatoe lace them. For $1300 I got a wheelset that was a lot lighter than the Bora Ultra discs and if I were honest with myself (based on my time with Bora and BTLOS in th rim brake format), there is no way I could have told the difference between the ride quality of the Bora Ultra WTO 45 disc and my BTLOS disc wheelsets.

Besides, when I bought my BTLOS rims in 2020 (I think), they were 22 mm internal width. Running a 28 mm tire on them was a no brianer. The Bora Ultra discs were only 19 mm internal width.

But of course, finally a few days ago, Campagnolo welcomed itself to the year 2020 by making the Bora Ultras WTO disc to 23 mm internal width. And these new wheels, while they have great specs, have to be really 2-3 times "better" than my current wheelsets for me to be intetrested in them. They seems nice though. Good on Campy for bringing them to the market.

Originally Posted by Jdm

I wonder what the OP ended up buying.

[Hensem]

Hi all. I'll pick up the topic a little. I'm building a new bike and choosing wheels. I really like the Campagnolo Bora WTO Ultra c23 wheels. The way they look, the quality, the name, the three-spoke design of the wheel - all this is incredibly cool. The price is around $2600 and the weight of a 45mm pair is around 1380g.
As an option, I’m considering the option of assembling Farsport wheels with carbon aero spokes on their RD270 hub, weighing 1130g and costing a little less than $1000. Please help me with arguments why Campagnolo wheels will be better.

[tv_vt]

Caution, rant ahead.

When I do a little online research, I see that Campy makes all their WTO wheels in facilities in Vicenza, Italy. No matter what city I see in photos from in China, all I see are monstrous highrises spreading to the horizon. For me, there is just no way I'm going to support a country that authoritarian and that pays its workers next to nothing. All for me to save a few dollars. At some point, the story behind the merchandise begins to matter. At least for me.

[Andy340]

I picked up a set of Bora WTO 45’s rim brake last summer - they ride nicely and I like them but in my use case (32mm tires) they can catch wind compared to lower profile rims with same tires (DT Swiss Oxic 1400 with 21mm height rim).

Also, I got caught out in a brief downpour over the winter and the braking was poor with supplied red pads - this was going down > 10% grades that I ride home regularly. I don’t have much memory of riding in rain as I try to avoid it (which is relatively easy in San Diego, but there are surprises every so often) so the braking may be equivalent to aluminum rims / rim brake in similar conditions. Braking in dry is good (but louder than aluminum rim).

[verticaldoug]

I have the WTO 33 in rim brake. These have been bomber for me over the past several years.

I am normally hard on gear to boot.

D

[huck*this]

This thread needs more photos. I have a set of the Ultra WTO 60 and love them. Very fast wheel with buttery smooth and super easy-to-service hubs. '