New Wheels - Advice Hand built or boutique?

[dylankeyter]

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=17152

 

CXP33 claimed weight 470g.

 

[dylankeyter]

 

For something a little different have a look at these:

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/components/wheel-sets/product/ardennes-wheelset-08-32321

23mm box rims' date=' built to withstand the cobbles. Weigh 1400g

[/quote']

 

Jason, I quickly scanned this article and found this gem without looking to hard.

"While we don?t have any independent scientific data to verify HED?s claims of improved aerodynamics and lower rolling resistance, we can comfortably say that they don?t feel any slower yet offer a much-improved ride quality, a smoother feel overall and vastly improved grip. At under 1400g a pair, they are also some of the lightest non-carbon clinchers we?ve encountered."

I won't believe a word I read on this website. They're simply re-printing press releases under the guise of product reviews.  I like the "feel" part but I think the "vastly improved grip" is a close contender for the biggest nonsense written this year.

 

I wonder how they tested this incredible grip these wheels offer. Don't forget, we're talking rims here, not tyres.

 

 

 

 

 

Johan, do you know what ever happened to the production of the ceramic Mavic Open Pro rims? I heard they were exceptional.

 

[GoLefty!!]

Thanks for the input Johan. Funny enough I have a pair of the exact wheelset you describe but on my girlfriends bike!!! Maybe I should simply get her a cheaper set and lift the CXP33/Record wheels from her bike...

 

 

 

I will never ever use the DT rims again. They crack. I had a pair during my silly Powertap years and I cracked two rims on the rear. I weigh 76kg so it's not as if I am a lard arse.

 

 

 

Are there any real alternatives to the CXP33? It's a pretty heavy rim. And the Record hubs, although bomb proof are not exactly light.

 

 

 

I've scratched the R-sys off the list, those spokes are too fragile.

 

 

 

RacerX your build sounds interesting. Where would I get those bits?

[Johan Bornman]

Johan' date=' do you know what ever happened to the production of the ceramic Mavic Open Pro rims? I heard they were exceptional.
[/quote']

 

Dylan, I have no idea if they still make it or not. Either way, this rim is irrelevant in SA. It was designed specifically for cities like Seattle (rains 300 days a year, yet with lots of bike commuters) and crappy places like London, Birmingham and other hell-holes.

 

In SA we don't know what rain is about nor what cycling in the rain is about. In some of these cities the riding groups wont even let you join if you don't have mudguards, or fenders and some of them call it. In such conditions rims don't last long. The grit in road water quickly abrades the braking surfaces of the rim to the point where the tube pops out the side - usually 50 kms from home.

 

Mavic engineers at that time sat on their brains and designed a rim with a very, very hard braking surface. The problem was that braking surfaces wore down, so the solution was to put something akin to diamonds on there in the form of ceramic. It does the job and the rims last much longer in wet conditions. Unfortunately ceramic is a very poor braking surface and hitting the brakes in the wet makes you feel like you're wearing a pair of ice skates down Ou Kaapse Weg.

 

In the dry they're even more perceptive. Ceramic is a poor conducter of heat. So the weels act like carbon wheels. They brake and suddenly the rubber reaches melting point and the braking diminishes dramatically, leaving the unsuspecting rider with a wet shammy.

 

Stick to Open Pros or, if you're not a label bunny, DRCs. DRC ST17 rims look like open pros but are better and much, much much cheaper - R308 each. I sometimes think if I charge R600 each I'll sell more of them.

 

 

[Tumbleweed]

snippety-snip? or' date=' if you're not a label bunny, DRCs. DRC ST17 rims look like open pros but are better and much, much much cheaper - R308 each. I sometimes think if I charge R600 each I'll sell more of them.[/quote']

 

we sell a lot of those in the shop. there are oft-recommended by paul, the wrencher! got two sets at home

[Racer X]

Hi Tim,

 

The hubs you can get through www.sportsdirect.co.za, the site is being reconstructed but you can still just mail them.

 

The spokes and nipples should be available through your LBS, alternativley I can possibly help you out with those Pillar spokes that we discussed in the "other" build.

 

If you aren't keen are the DT rims check out these guys from Sun Ringle' - http://www.sun-ringle.com/contentpages/road/rims.php5, if your LBS can't get them PM me and I'll see what I can do.

 

 

 

 

[AndreZA]

Johan, You've never had problems with the DRC ST17 rims being bigger then other rims? I struggled to fit tyres to mine.

 

[straatvark]

Johan' date=' You've never had problems with the DRC ST17 rims being bigger then other rims? I struggled to fit tyres to mine.

 

[/quote']

 

My DRC ST17 wheelset (build by myself under the supervision of JB ) is also is a "tight" fit.

 

But luckily the best tyre levers ever made is making a comeback to the LBS shelves in SA again: (I bought 3 sets immediatily when i saw them again at WE)

http://www.tenerife-training.net/Tenerife-News-Cycling-Blog/2007/12/bike-review/michelin-the-worlds-best-tyre-lever/

 

[Johan Bornman]

Johan' date=' You've never had problems with the DRC ST17 rims being bigger then other rims? I struggled to fit tyres to mine.

 

[/quote']

 

I've heard that complaint before and I accept what people say, but I can't figure out why it is a tight fit.

 

I just went out and lay a Ksyrium rim I have here against a DRC ST 17. They have exactly the same outer diameter. I even clamped them togeter, standing upright on a smooth table in order to exaggerate any diameter difference by 2 - no difference.

 

I don't know if the Ksyrium is the right gold standard but that's all I have new and loose. Also, rims are never round and I didn't try all permutations of the two ovals.

 

I often get my wheels back for repairs or tune-ups and usually they come in here with tyres on. I haven't had any tight-fit ones yet.

 

Perhaps you should just buy cheaper tyres.

 

 

 

 

[turtlek]

those DRC st17 rims are legendary i would buy another set for myself if i had hubs for them but if you looking for a slightly deeper section rim you could also look at the DRC st24 speed rim they are build very very similarly to the mavic cxp33 rims and are just as bomb proof and they come in black to match any bike hehehe and as johan says you are getting an awesome rim for an awesome price

[turtlek]

the hook part of the rim is slightly wider on the DRc rims

[Red Zone]

Slight Hijack

 

Why are tubbies lighter than clinchers?

[GoLefty!!]

Johan, who makes DRC ST17? This sounds like a fantastic option since I think "Aero" wheels and rims are just marketing hocus pocus.

 

Thanks Racer, I'll check out the site for the hubs?

[Johan Bornman]

Johan' date=' who makes DRC ST17? This sounds like a fantastic option since I think "Aero" wheels and rims are just marketing hocus pocus.

 

Thanks Racer, I'll check out the site for the hubs?

[/quote']

 

They're made by an Italian company called DRC - nothing to do with Josef Kabilla. Their website is at www.drc.it  but don't hold your breath. These Italians are not big on web marketing.

 

At present you can only get black rims, silver is out of stock and the importer doesn't know when he'll bring in the next container.

 

I have one of their catalogues here: The ST 17 is an Open Pro knock-off, with double eyelets (sockets), machined rim brake surface etc. Just like Open Pro. The claimed weight is 520 grams.

 

They also have an aero option without eyelets, the ST 24 (580g) and a semi aero without eyelets ST 18 (490g).

 

You shouldn't pay more than R310 each. They have the same ERD as an Open Pro, making it an ideal replacement rim for cracked Open Pro wheels.

 

Although the catalogue says you can get it in 28/32/36 drilling, my experience with the importers is 32 or nothing.

 

I like the look of a 20-24mm aero rim but then it must be designed so that there are no fancy nipple requirements such as extra long nipples, upside down nipples and such. I agree that the "aero" moniker is just marketing speak. However, an aero rim is a stronger beam than a box section and is the only suitable shape for spoke counts below 28.

 

[Johan Bornman]

Slight Hijack

 

Why are tubbies lighter than clinchers?

 

Are they lighter? Do they compare the entire tubbie to the weight of just the clincher without the tube?

 

I know tubbie rims are lighter because there's less metal in there thanks to the absense of the clincer-gripping sidewalls.

[turtlek]

i have just sold a set of the st 24rims to one other hubber they were 36 hole i did however get them earlier in the year when they had just landed