What Wheels?

[no.one.knows]

you and me both. i am a student and therefore dont have either! ha ha ha ha!

[TheYak]

Now if there was a big toy room, filled with all the latest and greatest for us to try, it might make it a lot easier to choose!

[BikeMax]

One very good option would be to chat to Johan B and get him to hand buld you a custom set of wheels around decent hubs and to suit your needs & budget. He makes great wheels, and build qulity is a very big contributor to ride feel and satisfaction.

[TheYak]

Sounds like a good option, Is Johan on the hub? Or how do I contact him?

[BikeMax]

 

Sounds like a good option' date=' Is Johan on the hub? Or how do I contact him?

[/quote']

 

He is but here is his cell;

 

082 308 6847

 

[goofs]

Sounds like a good option' date=' Is Johan on the hub? Or how do I contact him?

[/quote']

 

Post something outlandishly technical and he will contact you.

 

But I hear he does very good work.

[TheYak]

Sounds like a good option' date=' Is Johan on the hub? Or how do I contact him?

[/quote']

He is but here is his cell;

082 308 6847

 

Is he Johan Bornman, Yellow Saddle Wheel builder and Beer taster, (From his profile!)

[The Saint]

Hi Yak...I have not read the whole post but here is my 2 cents worth. Firstly if you are a maar gat like me at 62 Kg's deep section wheels do not do you any good in the mountains or in the strong winds of Cape Town.

I ride a set of deep sections in JHb and a cross wind is a real bugger to deal with nevermind coming down a mountain at 65Km's with a cross wind. Overheating of a carbon rim with hard braking is also an issue you need to consider.

 

If you are a heavy then you need to check the weight limit of ANY wheel you would like to purchase. For an all round good buy I would suggest the Easton Ascent you cannot go wrong with those babies.

 

[Johan Bornman]

  sanip snip snip....

 

clinchers are slightly heavier' date=' they also have more rolling resistance, but only slightly.

 

[/quote']

 

This is a common misconception perpetuated on forums like this and  by bicycle magazines.

 

Clinchers have a lower rolling resistance (all other things being equal, such as size and pressure) than tubbies, unless the tubbies are glued on with hard glue such as old-fashined French shellack.

 

If soft glue such as contact glue is used, there is squirm between the tyre and rim, evident from the black aluminium oxide on that surface, which reduces rolling resistance.

 

I know of no-one that still glues tubbies with shellack, as this is time-consuming, having to source, catch and boil thousands of shellack beetles in  order to make this type of glue.

 

Therefore, embrace the 21st centurty and get clinchers. Tubbies are a silly relic from the past.

 

JB

 

 

Johan Bornman2007-11-04 10:33:27

[Christie]

Sounds like your priorities could be 1. low mass 2. aerodynamics 3. stiffness

I would recommend that you seriously consider some deep section tubbies for race wheels. To spend a lot of money on clinchers does not make a lot of sense imo, because the performance increase over your current clinchers wont be massive. Carbon tubbies will be much lighter, tubbies can be pumped to a very high pressure, so are less puncture prone, and a deep section rim will give a small aerodynamic power saving.

 

Look around for some 2nd hand Zipp303s or 404's(easier to find) Easton Tempest 2 tubbies.

Have a look at these:

https://www.bikehub.co.za/forum_posts.asp?TID=18371

https://www.bikehub.co.za/forum_posts.asp?TID=18346

 

Im not sure if either of them are very light, best to check the mass on the web.  Look for a set weighing between 1200 and 1300 grams. 

[TheYak]

Hi Yak...I have not read the whole post but here is my 2 cents worth. Firstly if you are a maar gat like me at 62 Kg's deep section wheels do not do you any good in the mountains or in the strong winds of Cape Town.

I ride a set of deep sections in JHb and a cross wind is a real bugger to deal with nevermind coming down a mountain at 65Km's with a cross wind. Overheating of a carbon rim with hard braking is also an issue you need to consider.

 

If you are a heavy then you need to check the weight limit of ANY wheel you would like to purchase. For an all round good buy I would suggest the Easton Ascent you cannot go wrong with those babies.

 

 

My race weight comes in at about 65Kg's, so you comments about the deep sections fit right in with my "fears" about them.

 

Do you know Easton EA90 SLX's and would if so, how would you compare them to the Ascents?

 

I see there is a pair of Ascents on sale in the clasifieds....

TheYak2007-11-04 10:41:04

[TheYak]

Hi Johan,

As the "expert" wheel builder, what kind of wheel would you build me for a set of budget race wheels in the range of R5000

[BikeMax]

 

  sanip snip snip....

 

clinchers are slightly heavier' date=' they also have more rolling resistance, but only slightly.

 

[/quote']

 

This is a common misconception perpetuated on forums like this and  by bicycle magazines.

 

Clinchers have a lower rolling resistance (all other things being equal, such as size and pressure) than tubbies, unless the tubbies are glued on with hard glue such as old-fashined French shellack.

 

If soft glue such as contact glue is used, there is squirm between the tyre and rim, evident from the black aluminium oxide on that surface, which reduces rolling resistance.

 

I know of no-one that still glues tubbies with shellack, as this is time-consuming, having to source, catch and boil thousands of shellack beetles in  order to make this type of glue.

 

Therefore, embrace the 21st centurty and get clinchers. Tubbies are a silly relic from the past.

 

JB

 

 

 

You are correct about the lower rolling resistance of the best clinchers, but tubular rims give a significant weight advantage, tubulars puncture far less frequently and also handle better. On top of that a punctured tubular stays on the rim and you in turn on the bike.

 

For a race wheel and tyre combination I would choose tubular rims and wheels over clinchers 100% of the time.

 

[The Saint]

I think the best guy to ask about Easton wheels would be Delgado he is currently online. He swears by these things as the best wheels ever produced an even has them on both his Colnago's (Fancy that).

[Johan Bornman]

You are correct about the lower rolling resistance of the best clinchers' date=' but tubular rims give a significant weight advantage, tubulars puncture far less frequently and also handle better. On top of that a punctured tubular stays on the rim and you in turn on the bike.

For a race wheel and tyre combination I would choose tubular rims and wheels over clinchers 100% of the time.
[/quote']

 

Hi Peter

 

From measurements I've seen, just about any quality clincher of the type that anyone would fit to a bike will give lower rolling resistance than a soft-glued tubbie.

 

I don't understand your puncture claim though. The two tyres and their tubes are essentially the same construction, materials and thickness and both will puncture equally easily given the same puncture object. There's nothing inherent in a tubbie that makes it more resistant to penetration.

 

Weight advantage I'll grant you... "significant" I'll arm wrestle you for.

 

Better handling???? I don't understand. Both handle the same and an unglued tubbie in the case where you just punctured and replaced it, rolls off in corners.

 

I believe the only reason tubbies still exist is because it is still difficult and expensive to make an all-carbon clincher rim and tubbies give the manufacturers a cheap way out. As long as the myth of the superiority of tubbies exist, they'll ride it to the max.

 

The pro peleton is rife with superstition and myths and tubbies are one of those who just seem to stick no matter what.

 

Besides, tubbies are a dog to repair by anyone's standards.

 

JB

 

 

 

 

[javadude]

 

Difference between the Ascents and EA90 SLX is the new hub obviously, and the SLX's are about 50 grams heavier. The SLX's also have regular spokes with an elbow joint, instead of being threaded straight into the hub. The rear rim also has the spokes laced in the center of the rim instead of offset.

 

If you are looking for a more regular and easily serviceable wheel go for the SLX.

 

What i don't understand is that after all the marketing hype from Easton about the marvelous threaded spokes on both sides and how an elbow joint is the achilles heel of a wheel, their latest generation wheel is about as straight forward a wheel can get and does away with all the fancy stuff. I bet this new wheel costs about half as much to produce though.

 

velo2007-11-04 11:59:20