Open mold wide profile carbon wheels

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Zigmeister
Posts: 938
Joined: Mon Jan 24, 2011 8:09 pm

by Zigmeister

RobJ, that quote is just for the rims, not a built wheel. That is about typical with the new "wide" toroidal shaped wheels, somewhere around $450 shipped to the US. I paid like $470 for my 40mm aero clinchers from HongFu. Just waiting for Alchemy to get front ELF hubs back in stock to wheel builders since they ran out of axles or something like that.

That 45mm depth looks basically the same as the HongFu...the reason I like that one over HongFu is basically it is the first Zipp 303 Firecrest replica I've seen. My estimated wheel build weight will be for the Hong Fu 40mm clincher:

F-20 spoke, Alchemy Elf with CXRays - 650g
R-24 spoke, Alchemy ORC UL Rear Shimano 10spd hub with CXRays - 797g

Total should come in around: 1447g approx.

That is assuming 480g per rim approx. They claim 480g +- 20g. So they could as heavy as 500g a rim. Would be kind of pissed if they come in at 500g a piece for that depth. I didn't have a scale to weigh them. Will get weights from the builder and post up for the HongFu 40mm.

That is respectable if those come it at 450g for 45mm depth. Since I run Zipp 303 FC tubulars, I would consider selling my Zipps and get a set of those in 45mm tubular for a race day wheel. Get two wide profile wheels build with high-end hubs for a few hundred more than I could sell the Zipps for possibly. Can't go wrong.
Last edited by Zigmeister on Mon Jul 08, 2013 8:23 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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JN2Wheels
Posts: 219
Joined: Sat May 09, 2009 3:03 am
Location: Maryland

by JN2Wheels

coachboyd wrote:I can assure you that we are not using anything the same as any of the rims in this thread. I'm not surprised that similar rims shapes and depths have popped up recently, but all of our rims are made in a very high quality factory in Taiwan. We were actually lucky to get floor space in this factory. You will not find our rims on any other line up and they are definitely not going to be found in the direct from China lines. We spent about 14 months work of work refining the rims, materials, brake tracks, hubs, and brake pads before they were ready to be released.

You may find rims that are similar in shape to a lot of different companies, but that does not mean the quality is going to be anywhere close. You guys can buy these rims cheaper than my cost and I'm placing orders in the hundreds at a time. Depending on how you look at it that can be a good thing or it can be a very scary thing.


Boyd, I'd just like to be clear... I've been drooling over your wheels since you announced the 2013 upgrades. I raced on a team previously that had a sponsorship arrangement with you, and a bunch of my teammates picked up wheels that they are still racing happily! I missed out, and was happy that I did when the new specs came out... But then I switched teams, and no more team deal. To be honest, I'd rather race your wheels than the zipps I can get now. I feel the 44mm depth, light weight, and perfect width (so I don't have to futz with my brakes too much switching from major tom/a23 training setups) is spot on. However, I can be a bit of a control freak, and prefer to build my own wheels, which has served the budget well :) Long story short, I started looking for a similar rim profile as an experiment and a budgetary reality. I commented in here not to try a "gotcha," but more as a complimentary nod towards what I believe are the strengths and versatility of your rims.

Keep up the good work!

RobJ
Posts: 67
Joined: Tue Sep 18, 2012 11:08 pm
Location: D.C. area

by RobJ

@Zigmeister - actually that quote was for the built up wheelset! That's for tubulars though, not clinchers. And I specifically have been communicating with her about the wide/aero versions (AR/UAM line). See her email body to me below. And which rim are you referring to that is the most like the Zipp 303? The one from light-bicycle?

Here's the email from HongFu.

Hello,Rob


thank you so much for your email.


the price:
40mm tubular wheelset:$459(20/24H,UD matte,black hub and spoke,weight is about 1386g)
56mm tubular wheelset:$479(20/24H,UD matte,black hub and spoke,it is about 1467g)
ship cost:$85(one pairs)
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JN2Wheels
Posts: 219
Joined: Sat May 09, 2009 3:03 am
Location: Maryland

by JN2Wheels

Very good images of the Light-Bicycle clincher rims in their flickr photostream (Can apparently have the rim drilled without holes in the tire bed for road tubeless)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/light-bicy ... 219461811/

Zigmeister
Posts: 938
Joined: Mon Jan 24, 2011 8:09 pm

by Zigmeister

RobJ wrote:@Zigmeister - actually that quote was for the built up wheelset! That's for tubulars though, not clinchers. And I specifically have been communicating with her about the wide/aero versions (AR/UAM line). See her email body to me below. And which rim are you referring to that is the most like the Zipp 303? The one from light-bicycle?

Here's the email from HongFu.

Hello,Rob


thank you so much for your email.


the price:
40mm tubular wheelset:$459(20/24H,UD matte,black hub and spoke,weight is about 1386g)
56mm tubular wheelset:$479(20/24H,UD matte,black hub and spoke,it is about 1467g)
ship cost:$85(one pairs)



Ok, I stand corrected then. I would imagine the tubular rims is less expensive. But, surprising they quoted the entire wheel built for what I was quoted for just rims...maybe I missed something on my communications with them and they really meant full built?

velo1990
Posts: 6
Joined: Mon Jul 15, 2013 10:36 am

by velo1990

Hi mate,
Has anyone here try out yoeleo 25mm wide carbon alloy 60 depth?
Personally, I prefer alloy braking than basalt braking. So I am now at the edge of pulling trigger for an 25mm wide carbon alloy.
If anyone could share any experience with wide carbon alloy would be highly appreciated.

allenpg
Posts: 136
Joined: Tue May 20, 2008 5:34 am

by allenpg

I thought I'd post some images and weights of a 56mm wide clincher wheelset I recently got from Carbonzone. Shipping was fast and I was very impressed with the quality of the rims and build. The spoke tension was consistently even on both the front and rear wheels. The rims are about 25mm at the brake track and flare out to 27mm at their widest point.

These wheels are pretty hefty, but I'm rebuilding the rims into a PT wheelset with Sapim CX-Rays. The front rim weighed in at 550g alone, while the rear was 570g. I was surprised for the 20g difference, but these aren't exactly Zipps. Here are photos of the stock build:

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prendrefeu
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by prendrefeu

That weight. It makes me sad. :(
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RobJ
Posts: 67
Joined: Tue Sep 18, 2012 11:08 pm
Location: D.C. area

by RobJ

I'm weighing and taking pictures of mine too that just arrived. Weight should be much better :-)
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allenpg
Posts: 136
Joined: Tue May 20, 2008 5:34 am

by allenpg

prendrefeu wrote:That weight. It makes me sad. :(


Hence, why I rebuilt them... :D They won't be too far from Zipp 404 Firecrests with a PT hub...for about 1/4 the price.

BTW, I just finished the front wheel...20g more than a Zipp 404 Firecrest front.

RobJ
Posts: 67
Joined: Tue Sep 18, 2012 11:08 pm
Location: D.C. area

by RobJ

Just received my 56mm tubulars from DengFu. These are their new/wide aero rims that follow the Zipp-like geometry 25mm/27mm etc. These are built with the CNspoke 424 (pretty close to an X-Ray) and the Novatec 291s/482s hubset. They came it at 580g F / 740g R on my Park scale. That's 60g less than the spec'd 404 FC tubular! Total was $398 plus $65 shipping and a few bucks for Paypal. They shipped on the 16th and I received them today (23rd)! Out of the box they seem quite nice. Straight, spin nicely, spokes seem to have balanced tension. The tire bed is pretty clean versus others I have seen in pictures and the rim is smooth with nice brake track transition. Some pictures below.

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tharmor
Posts: 423
Joined: Thu Jun 03, 2010 6:20 am

by tharmor

I'm very pleased to see these rims finally showing up in his forum. Now let's see some ride reports!!!

allenpg
Posts: 136
Joined: Tue May 20, 2008 5:34 am

by allenpg

So, a quick ride report after 1 training ride and 1 race. Please note that this for the rims rebuilt into my own wheels and not the stock wheels from Carbonzone. The rims were noticeably more stable in crosswinds than my older V shaped 50mm rims. I did a 60 min crit tonight on an old runway with a rough surface and hit a few potholes. The wheels were great. I ran 107 PSI rear and 102 PSI front on Vittoria Open Corsa CX clinchers. At these pressures and rims, they felt like tubulars. I felt very comfortable cornering and was impressed with the ride quality. The rims are a slightly heavier than the 404 FC, but great quality and performance for the $$$.

ItalianJob
Posts: 8
Joined: Sat Jul 27, 2013 11:19 am

by ItalianJob

Hello everyone! I'm going to buy a pair of 27mm wide profile carbon wheels...I spoke with Nancy from HongFu, she said 479$ for 56mm Tubular wheelset...Tony from DengFu told me about the same wheels so mounted 56T rims + CN spoke 424 and nipples + Novatec A291/F482SB hubset...the price is 398$...is it the same product in your opinion? what do you recommend to me? Thank you very much! :thumbup:

RobJ
Posts: 67
Joined: Tue Sep 18, 2012 11:08 pm
Location: D.C. area

by RobJ

@ItalianJob - I have my DengFu's sitting right here gluing up and I did a lot of research and followed the advice here. I don't see how the two aren't the same wheelset and they definitely wouldn't be $80 different enough. Plus I liked DengFu's use of the Novatec hubsets.

I have a set of 404 FC tubulars here too and the DengFu's are pretty close 8).
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