Suggestions for new wheels please?

[Titanium22]

I've been looking for a wheelset for a new bike, for weeks and can't decide and just go round in circles, after one person tells me the opposite of the other.

Requirements;

Alloy clinchers under 1500g if possible, (this is weight weenies after all)
Rim brake & 11sp shimano.
I weigh 70kg.
General club rides, and sportives. Fairly hilly rides usually 4-5000ft in 40-50 miles.

Looked at and been told;

Mavics, Harsh at my weight and can be problematic, with rim failure's common.
Fulcrum / Campag, Similarly very stiff and harsh for lighter riders.
Dura Ace, RS81 C24's, comfy, fast and light, rims prone to delamination, and don't last long in the wet UK (4000 miles).

I'm now thinking of custom build, I could push the boat out, and get Chris King R45's, (I have ISO on my MTB, and they have been flawless), but what rims? Pacenti, Archetype's or maybe Flo? spokes? sapim Laser or the expensive CX?

If not CK hubs, Hope? Dura Ace? DT? Tune? Bitex?

My budget really is about £500, I think the CK wheels would be around £700, maybe more depending on rims.

Is a £500 custom build, likely to be better than a factory £500 wheelset?

Thanks, I look forward to suggestions, as I'm getting nowhere!

[aussietim]

A set of handbuilt Pacenti would pretty much tick all your boxes.

New generation Pacenti SL23 24f/28r with Hope Mono RS hubs and Sapim laser spokes would be pretty much bang on 1500g. It would be a great all round wheel set, you could probably go to 20/24 at your weight but for a slight weight penalty 24/28 would be much more robust. I think it would come in close to £500 as well. Personally I can't comment on the hope road hubs but have them on my CX bike and they are great. I wouldn't bother with CX rays, you don't save any weight and some aero studies have shown it is ~3w over the laser.

If you wanted to go lighter you could get BHS or novatec hubs. If you ordered the rims your self from BHS you could get the hubs in the same order. Which would save you about £100 and 100g (~1400g) but wont hold up to the UK weather as well.

[ross]

DA9000 C24s and a cheap pair for winter eg RS10

Keep an eye on Planet X, Ribble, MerlinCycles, Wiggle and buy when there is 10% or more discount available

[NealH]

You can get a very custom wheel built by your favorite renown builder.....and it very likely still won't be as nice as the 9000 C24's. And whoever told you they are prone to delimitation told you a big wives tale.

[Svetty]

Thing about the DA C24s is that they are great wheels for summer use when the roads are clean. In a UK winter however, rim wear is likely to result in them quickly being worn out - and you can't economically re-rim them.

Therefore if you envisage year round use I'd go for handbuilts - Pacentis on Hope or DA would be 1500g and you can re-rim them when necessary. Sorted!

[bm0p700f]

Difficult to make the archetype or the heavier flo rims in wheels weigh under 1500g without using very light hubs.

Pacenti rim on white industries t11 or da 9000 hubs will be that weight or under but so will a build with the lighter miche primato hubs which to be honest are quite decent and alot cheaper.

And yes the above builds will be at least as nice as the c24's i think you will like them more as the wider rim will make a difference. They are also stiffer.

[BikeAnon]

Vuelta Corsa Lites from Nashbar. When they are on sale, and you combine the common 20% off discount! they can be had for $200 a set.

Yes, they meet ever one of your requirements. Yes, they really only cost $200 a set (US shipping, don't know UK price).

When you get them, peel off the stickers to save 8 grams.

[milkbaby]

At 70 kg, you could run lower tire pressure in 25mm tires on Mavic or Campy/Fulcrum wheels so they wouldn't ride too harshly. I'm 61 kg and run 72/84 psi front/rear in 23 mm tires on a set of Fulcrum Zero without issue. However, I don't ride through many pothole-ridden roads, so that may play a role in how low you're willing to go so as to avoid pinch flats or bottoming out to the rim.

I just bought some handbuilt Archetypes 20/24 front/rear spokes laced to Bitex hubs and believe they were advertised as around 1600 grams with rim strips installed. I haven't put them on the scale yet to check the actual weight though. You should be able to build a nice set of wheels around 1500 grams for £500-750.

[Multebear]

Pacenti rim on white industries t11 or da 9000 hubs will be that weight or under but so will a build with
the lighter miche primato hubs which to be honest are quite decent and alot cheaper.

Are you sure about this, bm0p700f? Miche lighter than T11 or DA??

[Titanium22]

Pacenti rim on white industries t11 or da 9000 hubs will be that weight or under but so will a build with
the lighter miche primato hubs which to be honest are quite decent and alot cheaper.

Are you sure about this, bm0p700f? Miche lighter than T11 or DA??

Perhaps he means Miche also do a heavier hub, so in context he was saying the lighter miche hub, rather than its lighter than DA or WI.

Fast Forward F2A wheelset, Dt240s hubs, and what looks like a DT Swiss Rim? can be had for under £500 and weigh 1470g. Are they any good? Better than the custom builds mentioned? Probably have a narrow non aero rim.

[Harmitc]

Similar weight to you, live in the UK and ride similar terrain. Ridden Campagnolo Neutron Ultras and Shamals for years. Totally reliable, smooth riding wheels, the tyre and pressure will have a big effect on ride quality.

[Titanium22]

I'm considering the usual Factory wheelsets,

Ksyrium, SLS or R-SYS (non exalith), is it worth paying more for better spokes and hubs?

Fulcrum Zero's, cost more and are heavier than Mavic SLS ???

HED SL or FR, Rims are highly rated, but how good are the hubs?

Handbuilts, Proably Pacenti SL23 on DA Hubs with laser spokes 20/24, Maybe CK R45's but +£200 over DA.

Anyone got advice, on Ksyriums approx 1400g & 20mm wide vs HED Ardennes at 1500g & 25mm wide?