Experience with AX Lightness Ultra 24 Road Tubular?

[kfreytag]

At sub-800g, these Ultra 24 Road Tubulars are really attractive.



I am, however, having a hard time finding any reviews other than a guy who works at Competitive Cyclist.

Has anybody had real-world experience with them? I'm running some ENVE 1.25s w/ DT190s now, and these are quite a bit lighter. Are they flimsy? Do they actually stop?

[HammerTime2]

If nothing else, at least buy them for the weigh-in.

[kfreytag]

That's an expensive weigh-in.

[2old4this]

I only have a front. Use it only to save weight compared to LW Ventaux. With extralight hub, it came out to be 345 gr.

I think AX at the front feels at least as stiff ax Ventaux and more tolerant with side winds (based on my buttometer alone ). However, I cannot vouch for the AX as a climber wheel set since I do not have the rear wheel (I think one has to try it under load to see if it is stiff enough.) Plus, I am ~160 lbs so I do not know what a 200 lb rider would say about the AX either.

And finally, I have no idea about the durability of the AX Ultra yet. But it sure is light...

[kfreytag]

Wow. 345g. That's just insane.

FWIW, I weight ~155 lbs (trying to get back down under 150).

[mrgray]

At 800 g for a set and indicating OK for a 100 kg load (rider plus bike inclusive i assume) is this not something extraordinary?

as Lance Armstrong would say, extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.

where is the review(s) saying that these things don't fold up first pot hole you hit? (if weighing say 210 lbs)

how is that AX lightness is making LW wheels look old hat?

will LW wheels become used for aesthetics and nothing else? i mean, why buy them when these things exist?

[kgt]

These wheels cannot be that stiff. But if you 're a lightweight climber then I guess it is ok.

[kgibbo1868]

I have had this wheel set for around 6 months now. I race them once a week and occasionally take the out for a training ride. Mine have tune mig 45 / mag 150 hubs instead of the cyber hubs but I would describe the wheels as very nice. They are the lightest wheels I am aware of. I weigh around 74kgs and can generate a reasonable amount of power for short climbs or sprints and I have never noticed any brake rub. They are really a beautifully made rim and the braking surface works very well, much better than my old Reynolds DV46ULT's. Riding in crosswinds has become much more enjoyable!

I have rode enve 25s a few times and these wheels feel very similar with a better braking response. They are also much prettier as the carbon weave is really very nice.

I have probably put 2k KM's on the wheels and they are still perfectly true and have no visible issues.

[F45]

They use known hubs with regular spokes, a reasonable number of spokes, and a 200gr carbon rim which is not crazy light. I'd ride them.

[multy74]

ax lightness Ultra 24 Road Tubulars are really perfect.
If you're going to climb a lot of mountains
would be the best choice

[964Cup]

Holy thread resurrection, Batman! (perhaps he needs the posts for the WW discount?). Anyway, ride report and real-world weights for AXL Ultra 24 here: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=139732

[UpFromOne]

I build high-end custom wheels. Prior to getting AX rims in my hands, my fav rim was Edge 1.25 (not the newer Enve).
Some of my Edge rims were as low as 199 or 198g. Some were as high as 225g. Alot of variance FWIW. But good rims.
When Enve took over they upped the layup to a real world 280g or so.

The AX Ultra series are the best road rim I've ever seen. The standard version (Premium) tubular is about 220g. But the Ultras are spot on at 195g.
I got ahold of a Premium and an Ultra, and built up a set of road disc wheels. The Ultra 24h rim is on the front, with the Extralite Cyberfront disc hub (customized for a 9mm through axle), and Sapim Superspokes (= the 15 guage version of CX-Rays). The rear 215g rim laced 24h and mated to the Extralite Cyberrear disc hub, with CX-Ray spokes.
It's the finest wheelset I ever made, and just one pair for moi.

OK, so compared to Edge and Enve rims, you can almost stand on an AX-Lightness rim by itself. Much stiffer than Edge.
AX layup and vacuuming and finish all looks superb - no bubbles, no flakes.
BTW, Edge used a dry process that caused some reports of delaminations. I still have used Edge rims on my hooks just to educate folks about how the delaminations looked and occurred. But the AX build quality is the best I've seen. And I pay for every AX product in my hands. I can't speak for other components, but these rims, as well as 77 Composites (also out of Germany) are state-of-the-art. I have no qualms with their strength.

The one issue I cannot comment on is the rim braking, as my wheels are disc.

And because both companies do their best to sell finished wheels only, it is cost prohibitive to disassemble and re-build with customer-chosen components. I have only been able to get 2 standalone AX rims, and have tried to order 77 standalone rims, but gave up after 6 months of no delivery.

For MTB, the cost-weight ratio varys wildly, and other makers have better rim profiles than AX, and offset spoke holes, which AX does not yet do. (AXel, where are you on this?)

[kfreytag]

I'd never heard of 77 Composites before. That's a light rim @ ~198 for the 25 tubular. They claim a built set @ 760g. Who's gonna be the guinea pig on this one?

[mrgray]

received ax ultra 24's today (shimano hub). 788 g. i'm impressed they managed to hit the weight. looking forward to gluing them up tonight and seeing how they spin.

[mrlobber]

received ax ultra 24's today (shimano hub). 788 g. i'm impressed they managed to hit the weight. looking forward to gluing them up tonight and seeing how they spin.

Nice! What's your weight? Do not hesitate to review these here, will be much appreciated Built on Extralite Cyber SP hubs?