Alu clincher wheel dilemma

[plpete]

Im in the process of building a 2017 black anodized CAAD12 as my race bike. I've decided that I want to throw on some nice decently light (not looking for uber light here) aluminum clinchers with the black breaking surface. The type that won't wear off. I'm setting the budget at $1k max (I'll be able to get a deal through team pricing). The wheels will serve as a hilly race set and for when I hit big climbing rides. Wide rim is good but not necessary as I have a 1500 gr. set of H+S wheels that I can use for wet or gravel rides. I weigh 158lbs now and drop to 154 or so during race season. I have narrowed it down to two, maybe three wheels sets and looking for some opinions.

Mavic Ksyrium Pro Exalith SL - seems like they are a new offering from Mavic and very similar to the R-Sys wheels with a 60gr. penalty probably due to lack of carbon spokes on the front wheel and slightly heavier bearings. Weight is 1355gr. claimed which is good in my book. They have the new Exalith2 breaking surface and new updated more rounded rim profile that is said to be very light. Less rotational weight. Good as well. They also come with tires which is nice. They are not as wide as the other wheels. I usually ride 23c tires and would mainly ride them on the road so running low pressures would not be a must. Again, I have the H+S wheels for that. I know Mavic has had a bad rep for shitty hubs in the past. Would this still be the case with these 2016/2017 wheels? A teammate of mine (and a mechanic at LBS) is riding the R-Sys and has had 0 hub related issues. I'm very mechanically capable and work and service all my gear regularly and am fine with maintaining them. Aesthetically, I think they would look fantastic on the black anodized frame. Can get the 3 year warranty from Mavic. https://shop.mavic.com/en-int/ksyrium-p ... r0708.html

HED Ardennes Black - heavier than Mavics at about 1460gr. and pretty close to what I already have with H+S wheels. The rim is heavier but very wide which is nice. Breaking surface is supposed to be very good as well and doesn't require specific pads. Hubs and bearings are supposed to be good on those as well. Come without tires and I would either try to run a pair of Vittoria 23c tires I have or need to purchase 25c ones for the very wide rim. I might be able to get them for about $200 less than the Mavic wheels but If I add tires to that the difference becomes $100. Tubeless ready if I ever want to try that. Aesthetically I think they look great as well although not as good as Mavics, IMO. Warranty is 1 year I assume. https://www.hedcycling.com/ardennes/ard ... nnes-black

DT Swiss PR 1400 DICUT® OXIC - claimed weight is 1435gr. New offering from DT Swiss so not many reviews on them yet. The surface is supposed to have their new treatment that will not wear off and is smooth, unlike Mavic and HED wheels. Site says they come with specific pads although not sure if those are just the blue DT Swiss pads. Hubs are solid and essentially DT240s. Come with tubeless valves and are tubeless ready like the HEDs. Seem like a solid set and I also dig the overall stealthy look. Looks wise I like them as much as the Mavics. Warranty is 1 year I believe. https://www.dtswiss.com/Wheels/Road-Whe ... DICUT-OXiC

Thanks in advance for any opinions!

[Multebear]

I think Mavic hubs are fine, if you don't expose them to really bad weather. If they are going to be your race wheels and good weather wheels, then I don't se any problems there. Besides that, it sounds like, those are the ones out of the three mentioned, that you'd prefer. Just go for them. And then you have your H+S for bad weather, winter rides etc.

Only drawback is the changing of pads, when you chance wheels, which is really a PITA, since some wheels don't have the same brake track hight, which means, that you have to adjust brakeshoes as well, when you change wheels. But it looks like you have several bikes, which may solve the problem.

[AJS914]

A Mavic freehub will last a lot longer with some maintenance. It's super easy to take off, clean, and regrease.

[alastairb]

Was going to suggest the DT Swiss. What about Fulcrum Racing Zero Nite?

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[plpete]

Definitely looked at the Fulcrum wheels. Solid hubs. The weight is up there with my H+S wheels though and not sure how I feel about the rear G3 lacing on the rear wheel on a shimano or sram bike. I know, I'm picky haha

[Clean39T]

Colorado Cyclist has the Exalth for $799 right now.


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[mpulsiv]

In case you haven't seen this. The selection of wheels with black brake track is up-to-date viewtopic.php?t=131819


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[F45]

For racing, I'd pick something easy to find parts for. That immediately rules out anything Mavic.

[bm0p700f]

why black brake track it narrows options. If you want black brake track then go with carbon tubular rims.

[alastairb]

Definitely looked at the Fulcrum wheels. Solid hubs. The weight is up there with my H+S wheels though and not sure how I feel about the rear G3 lacing on the rear wheel on a shimano or sram bike. I know, I'm picky haha

Fulcrum don't use the G3 pattern; that's Campag.

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[plpete]

@mpulsiv - thanks for the link!
@F45 - I get what you're saying. Although I have two other wheel sets at my disposal and 3 shops that deal and work on Mavic within a 10 mile radius so it's not a deal breaker at all, in my book.
@alastairb - I saw they use 2:1 lacing in the rear which I guess looks similar and had me confused
@bm0p700f - it's mostly for aesthetic reasons to be honest. I like the look. I thought about tubulars but with good tires and latex tubes I get 98% of ride quality of tubs. I'll also ride these on long climbing rides with friends far away from shops and traffic. In event of a flat I want to be able to change a tube and go. Their overall weight is good for me as well at 1355. Wonder how much the rim weighs....

[Multebear]

Black braketrack on alloy wheels is just a shitty solution. As mentioned in other topics, eventually it will wear of. Many, including myself, have been in your situation, but have just acceptet, that even though silver braketrack doesn't look as good, you still get excellent braking. And if you want black braketrack that stays black, then buy carbon wheels. It doesn't have to be tubs. With e.g. Zipp 202 clincher, you get a wheelset at 1450 grams, but you are still way more aero than the Mavics. And aero trumps weight in most situations even when climbing. I think the Zipps would be a faster wheelset for you than the Mavics. And they are very easy on the eyes.

[Ltoddokc]

I've been on Fulcrum Zero Nite's for over a year and while they're very nice, I'm hesitant to ride them in the wet bc of reports of the brake track coating rubbing off and Fulcrum/Campy not covering it under warranty. Plus I've always wanted to try tubeless tires. I hadn't heard about the DT Swiss PR1400 until I read the OP's post yesterday. Wider than the Fulcrums, tubeless compatible and DT specifically mentions all weather riding multiple times so I'm hoping they won't suffer the same fate as some of the Fulcrums. Assuming that's true, they sound like the perfect winter wheel for me so I just bought a set from Bike-discount for $810 shipped to the US. Also got a set of IRC RBCC 28mm tubeless tires that I've heard so much about, really looking forward to trying them out. I'll update after I've had a chance to ride them.

[AJS914]

I don't understand this idea that black brake tracks shouldn't show wear. I've had wheels with black brake tracks going back to the Mavic MA40. The expectation was that the anodizing would eventually wear off. Nobody every complained in the past.

[kgt]

+1
Black brake tracks always looked sexy. The thing is that in the case of handbuilt wheels whenever the rims wore off one would just replace the rims. Now one has to replace the whole wheelset and that's not that cool.