Enve 4.5 Clinchers

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Flyfishing3
Posts: 46
Joined: Wed Oct 23, 2013 6:58 pm
Location: Western Pa

by Flyfishing3

Anybody ridden these yet?

kode54
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by kode54

too soon to tell.
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by Weenie


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Bukes
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Feb 13, 2012 12:33 am

by Bukes

I just picked mine up yesterday - there does appear to be a textured braking surface. Haven't ridden them yet - I'll post a mini-review once I've got some miles on them.

drewb wrote:Do we know if the brake surface is the same as the 3.4 or 6.7? Is the construction method the same too? (i.e. are these essentially the same as the older wheels except for the shape?)

Many thanks :beerchug:

petromyzon
Posts: 781
Joined: Mon Apr 05, 2010 4:14 pm

by petromyzon

Interesting that they have changed the braking surface, improved the weight relative to the depth and widened the stance. Should be a fantastic set of rims but you would be annoyed if you bought 3.4s and weren't told about the running update to the technology! Fairly prohibitive price-wise in any market, not just the US!

pharmboyflo
Posts: 16
Joined: Sat Feb 07, 2015 11:02 pm

by pharmboyflo

Got my eves 4.5 ses couple days ago with kings hubs on them, so far so good they ride really smooth.I'm still talking to enve as of now to figure out why the tension on the spokes on the back wheel is a bit off more than normal, their claim is that they are using a dt swiss tool to measure tension and my park tool is not correct.
Image

IchDien
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Joined: Mon Nov 05, 2012 12:23 am
Location: Veneto

by IchDien

What size tires are you running on them?

zsommer79
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Mar 26, 2015 4:14 am

by zsommer79

I swapped out my 3.4s for 4.5s and I love them. The 4.5s seem to hold speed easier and don't really notice the extra weight in the hills. Probably going to sell the 3.4s because I can see more people wanting the 4.5s in the future and 3.4s not being worth as much.

pharmboyflo
Posts: 16
Joined: Sat Feb 07, 2015 11:02 pm

by pharmboyflo

IchDien wrote:What size tires are you running on them?

I'm using 23mm schwalbe one, the old contis gt 4000s did not fit on my front wheel, was rubbing against the dura -ace caliper

zsommer79
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Mar 26, 2015 4:14 am

by zsommer79

How much sidewall do you have with the 23mm schwalbles on them? I was told that Enve does not recommend using 23mm tires on the 4.5s. I am sure things are fine on the 23mm if you have smooth roads and a light rider, but I don't have the benefit of either.

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dlcrep
Posts: 83
Joined: Tue Dec 03, 2013 5:05 pm

by dlcrep

pharmboyflo wrote:Got my eves 4.5 ses couple days ago with kings hubs on them, so far so good they ride really smooth.I'm still talking to enve as of now to figure out why the tension on the spokes on the back wheel is a bit off more than normal, their claim is that they are using a dt swiss tool to measure tension and my park tool is not correct.

I too received a set of 3.4 SES from Enve that were out of true. My rear wheel had higher tension on the NDS. Front wheel wheel wasn't as bad as the rear. The hubs also arrived with noticeable play. I'm amazed to hear these issues after hearing so many stories of Enve's staying true since day one so I'm hoping this is due to the release of the 4.5.
The 4.5's look great on your Trek! I was debating on getting them since I mostly climb. I'm shocked to feel zero crosswind with the Enve vs the HED Ardrennes. Not that the Ardennes gave me issues but I use to feel some wind moving thru.


zsommer79 wrote:How much sidewall do you have with the 23mm schwalbles on them? I was told that Enve does not recommend using 23mm tires on the 4.5s. I am sure things are fine on the 23mm if you have smooth roads and a light rider, but I don't have the benefit of either.

Either will work, but everyone at Enve still recommends to use a 23c over a 25c tire (aero wise).

robinsonrodriguez
Posts: 2
Joined: Fri Apr 17, 2015 3:40 am

by robinsonrodriguez

I have the Enve 4.5 clincher laced to White Industries T11, they were built by fairwheel bikes. They have well over a thousand miles and so far I love them, I have been riding them here in Texas going over cattle guards and chip seal and so far they are still round and true as the first day I got them. I had the Zipp 404 firecrest and I can tell you that this wheels are night and day better than the Zipp's, I cannot tell you that they are faster but for my riding style they are more robust, stable and stiffer. Where I live there's a lot a rollers and I ride a lot out the saddle (I like to dance with my bike) and the enve's don't rub against my brake pads and are very stable in cross winds. The zipp's felt like wet noodle, always rubbing the brake pads when out of the saddle, the hubs creaking and I had to adjust the hubs basically after every ride, worst wheelset in cross winds I ever owned, you feel you gonna crash if you are turning in cross winds. Maybe for a triathlete going fast in a straight line the Zipp's are perfect but for a road biker going up and down and turnig the Zipp's are CRAP.
I honestly believe that the Zipp's brakes a tad better than the Enve's, I'm using the enve's brake pads because that's what Enve recommends and with the Zipp's I was using the Swisstop Black Prince, so probably the brake pads will make the difference. Nothing brakes better than aluminum brake surface wheels
Somebody commented about the tire size with the Enve's if you look at Enve's website they did the aerodinamics and stability tests with 22 and 23mm tires and that's what they recommend and that's what I'm using and so far so good.
Now these are my go to wheels and if it's raining my other best wheels are my Dura Ace C50.
I strongly recommend the Enve 4.5, I also have the 3.4 with WI T 11, the Fulcrum Racing Speed XLR, C50, Easton, Pacenti with WI T11 and the 4.5 beats them all.

dunbar42
Posts: 191
Joined: Tue Jan 07, 2014 9:20 am

by dunbar42

Thanks for the ride report. That's an impressive list of wheels you own there. I was between the 4.5 and 404's but ended up finding 404's for 25% under list price and pulled the trigger. The 404's can be a handful in gusty crosswinds but the front wheel is deeper, so probably more aero, so it's a tradeoff for sure. I have not noticed any rubbing on my rear 404 FC with the V9 hub, and 2X lacing on both sides, and I run the brakes pretty close to the rim. But I weigh <150lbs. If street prices were close/the same I think I'd go for the 4.5 just to get the better hubs.

stanseven
Posts: 63
Joined: Thu Feb 28, 2013 4:25 am

by stanseven

robinsonrodriguez wrote: Where I live there's a lot a rollers and I ride a lot out the saddle (I like to dance with my bike) and the enve's don't rub against my brake pads and are very stable in cross winds. The zipp's felt like wet noodle, always rubbing the brake pads when out of the saddle, the hubs creaking and I had to adjust the hubs basically after every ride, worst wheelset in cross winds I ever owned, you feel you gonna crash if you are turning in cross winds.


How much do you weigh?

Also the Zipp 404s are a little worse in crosswinds because they are deeper. A more realistic comparison is the 303s. In a comparative test of wheels they rated the 303 as slightly better than the Enve 4.5 in crosswinds.

robinsonrodriguez
Posts: 2
Joined: Fri Apr 17, 2015 3:40 am

by robinsonrodriguez

I'm 5'11 and weight 160 lbs.
My Zipp 404's had the 88/188 hubs so probably that was the reason they were rubbing against the brake pads.
A friend of mine has the 404's and 303's custom made laced to DT Swiss 240 hubs and those ones don't rub at all, they are very stiff and stable going down hill, feel completely different than the factory built ones but still feels more affected by cross wind than the Enve's, the Enve's behave much better.

dunbar42
Posts: 191
Joined: Tue Jan 07, 2014 9:20 am

by dunbar42

robinsonrodriguez wrote:I'm 5'11 and weight 160 lbs.
My Zipp 404's had the 88/188 hubs so probably that was the reason they were rubbing against the brake pads.


It's the 2014+ (V9) Zipp 188 rear hub that is better. The V9 hub is 25% heavier and they did away with the silly radial lacing on the drive side of the rear wheel and went to 2X on both sides.

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