FarSports 38mm Carbon Clincher Review Thread, The

[random101]

Hi all,

I have a question about Farsport rims (already posted this in the other FS thread though it's more suited to 38mm so I'll post again here)

So I normally ride Enve 1.25 (crashed) and 6.7's tubs & I'm looking to replace the 1.25's with Farsport 38mmx23/25 was originally going to go get Enve 3.4's but then decided I might as well go a cheaper training clincher wheel (and race the 6.7's)

Anyhow, I got a few quotes from kyle and a 38mmx25 is about $900 delivered with DTswiss 240 hubs, for a similar price you can get FF wheels & a two year crash replacement warranty.

Two questions;

1. Is it worth going DTswiss 240s? I have both campy and Sram running gear so I like to be able to be able to interchange the freehub easily as I currently do.
*Note; Wouldn't be much more to just get two rear wheels one campy and one sram. In fact it would probably be cheaper with their hubs.

2. I can't decide between the widths either 23 or 25mm... Honestly I only want the 25mm because it will mean less adjustment of the brakes when I put on the 6.7s as they are pretty wide.

But I would use the 38's in the hills when training so I would prefer them to be lighter (I am about 71kg) hence I'd rather the 23mm U shape?

Is there any other benefit to go with 25mm wheels?

[Beancouter]

I have the ED hubs on mine with a spare campy freehub (about $40). It's really easy to change them. That said, just switched to sram 11 speed and shimano/campag /sram cassettes are cross compatible so will be using shimano 11 speed cassette with my bike built with . campag.

[random101]

I guess there really is no point paying the $300 premium to go DTswiss?

[pushstart]

In general I have had good experiences with Bitex hubs (Ed are Bitex), though I will note that the Ed hubs on my 50mm Farsports would make the occasional pinging sound, seemed to be when wheels were torqued laterally, so am guessing there might have been a pawl alignment issue in those cases; that hub is super lightweight. I was around 75kg at the time, no slipping or any real problems, though. I would definitely buy Bitex again. I have a set of their disc hubs on my commuter that have 15k miles without any maintenance.

For the width, the wider rims should give the tire more of a u-shape rather than lightbulb, which is supposed to help with cornering stability (makes sense) and perhaps with aerodynamics and contact patch shape / rolling resistance (less sure on that). The suggestion is that pairing wide rims with latex tubes and nice rim-width tires gets you close to the ride of a tubular. I feel like cornering confidence is something that can be perceived with the wider shape, but that may be in my head. I like running 25mm tires on my 24.5mm-wide rims, though. I am pretty sure that any weight difference would be very hard to perceive on the bike. And if there is indeed an aero advantage to the wider rims, that would probably negate the difference in grams. So I would vote wider for more (wider) tire flexibility. Of course, you could extend the aero argument and vote for deeper wheels too -- even in the hills, but without actual wind tunnel data one can only speculate so much.

[random101]

Another silly question,

If I'm running 11speed, I wouldn't need to readjust my rear derailleur for wheels with different hubs? Or are the spacings slightly different?
In which case I will go the DtSwiss?

Anyone have any experience with Bitex RSPR Straight Pull Rear Hubs?

[eric]

My experience with the Bitex/Edhub is that their cassette positioning is pretty good. I don't often have to make adjustments when going from bitex to white ind. to edhub or any combination. I am running 10sp cassettes and mostly 10sp freehubs but that should not make a difference. If there is an adustment it's a click or two on the cable tension.

[random101]

Pulled the trigger on 38x25 clinchers with Dtswiss hubs...

Farsports please don't disappoint!

Note; The only other carbon wheels I've had are Enve's.... No pressure or anything Farsports

[upside]

I have been looking at Light Bicycles/Farsports for some rims to build. They both tell me that there is a 10-15 timeline before they are shipped and another 5-7 for shipping. Is anyone recieving theirs earlier or is it just because of the time of year.

[LanterneRouge14]

Anyone have any experience with Farsports' http://www.wheelsfar.com/38mm-50mm-x-20-5mm-fse-360-disc-clincher-wheelset.html ? I haven't been looking at their line in months, and just stumbled across them since I'm shopping for a wide (17mm inner width), U-shaped road wheelset for a disc 'cross bike. I searched several forums, but didn't see anything.

Features:
Claimed 360g disc hubset
25mm outer width / 18mm inner width
Sapim CX-Ray spokes (24F/24R)
Semi-toroidal U-shape clincher rims
Mixed rim depths: 38mm F / 50 mm R
Claimed 1450g weight (+/- 30g)
List price $681 USD (w/o shipping)

Comparing weights, a DT 240 disc hubset is spec'd at 375g, and Zipp 303 disc clinchers are spec'd at 1680g. So to get a wide and aero clincher disc wheelset, that's about as light as I've seen.

[trex021]

I've been using the blue pads the the last couple years. Tried the black "ceramic" pads recently and they did not equal the blue pads in braking power. So I ordered some more blue pads from FarSport.

These new pads don't work as well as the old ones or the Reynolds blue pads from a couple years ago. They squeal like crazy on both the new "high temp" braking surface and the older basalt. The older ones did not squeal especially on high-temp. Braking power is not as good as my used old pads but its the squealing that makes me hate these pads.

The new pads fit looser in the pad holders (EE) than the old ones. I wonder if the looser fit has something to do with the squealing.

Hey eric,

I'm experiencing the same squealing with the new Farsports blues on my rear wheel. You mentioned the Reynolds blue pads from a couple years ago were better. Does that mean you've tried the latest Reynolds blues and found them lacking? I need to find some other solution. I do have a set of Farsports black "ceramic", which I haven't tried yet, but giving up braking power doesn't excite me.

[eric]

My Renolds pads are from a couple years ago. I think they'd be the same now but I thought that about the FarSports blue pads and was wrong.

There's a new 2014 Reynolds blue pad with a larger braking surface, 6 slots instead of three, and new price- $70!

[trex021]

eric, thanks. BTW I'm using standard Ultegra pad holders with the set screws. So it's not your EEs.

[addictR1]

Eric, when you got your u shaped rims.. did you hear popping sounds from your spokes? I've only out about 50 miles on mine and I still hear popping sounds from time to time when it's just sitting there. Could it be spoke tensioning still settling in?

[russianbear]

Why do they offer the 2:1 lacing option? Does it make for a stronger build?

[trex021]

To make the wheel stiffer during hard efforts