Focus Izalco Max Rim (4.47 kg / 9.85 lbs)

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VTR1000SP2
Posts: 930
Joined: Tue Nov 05, 2013 8:21 pm

by VTR1000SP2

Those wheels are so very light. Looking forward to your feedback on them.


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Focus Izalco Max - 4.84kg without pedals
Cervélo Áspero - 8.28kg
Trek Madone SLR Rim - 7.73kg
Standert Triebwerk Disc - 8.47kg

reedplayer
Posts: 816
Joined: Sat Nov 14, 2015 10:10 am

by reedplayer

VTR1000SP2 wrote:
Wed Nov 24, 2021 12:37 pm
Those wheels are so very light. Looking forward to your feedback on them.


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+1!

by Weenie


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scant
Posts: 270
Joined: Fri Apr 30, 2004 2:05 pm
Location: S.Wales UK

by scant

impressive build & exceptional wheel weights!

jpeterson1012
Posts: 258
Joined: Fri Dec 20, 2019 10:06 pm
Location: Chicago

by jpeterson1012

OtterSpace wrote:
Sun Oct 31, 2021 7:39 pm
I removed the rubber rings from the cassette saving a bit more weight after seeing jpeterson1012's post. :beerchug:

Saved 7.8g from the 11-32 red22 cassette.
Eyyyy, great to know I helped someone :beerchug:

Also, impressive. You managed to beat my wheelset weight by 11g! Are those the same reynolds rims, just rebuilt with berd spokes and extralite hubs?

OtterSpace
Posts: 224
Joined: Sun Mar 08, 2020 6:28 am
Location: California Silicon Valley

by OtterSpace

jpeterson1012 wrote:
Sat Jan 15, 2022 1:38 pm
OtterSpace wrote:
Sun Oct 31, 2021 7:39 pm
I removed the rubber rings from the cassette saving a bit more weight after seeing jpeterson1012's post. :beerchug:

Saved 7.8g from the 11-32 red22 cassette.
Eyyyy, great to know I helped someone :beerchug:

Also, impressive. You managed to beat my wheelset weight by 11g! Are those the same reynolds rims, just rebuilt with berd spokes and extralite hubs?
Currently I have three tubular wheelsets and plan to reduce down to two once the dust settles. All of these are used with some purchased locally and some from eBay.

The reynolds rims with 20/24 white industries hubs are my backup wheels and have vittoria corsa control 25mm tires.

Over the past two years I aquired two sets of Tune skyliner with 20/24 mig 45 mag 150 with 23mm vittoria corsa speeds. Most of my miles on this bike in 2021 went into these wheels.

One of these wheelsets has been reworked with berd spokes and the extralite hubs. I think the rims were 219g front 220g rear before the build up. That plus the internal nipples and scale difference probably account for the 11g. If I like the first set I will rework the second set and then sell the reynolds.

On another note now that the holiday season is over it is time to focus on the bike again so the time has come to get the berd wheels running.

OtterSpace
Posts: 224
Joined: Sun Mar 08, 2020 6:28 am
Location: California Silicon Valley

by OtterSpace

The berd wheels with black 23mm tires are mounted. These black vittorias corsa speeds are a bit heavier than the tan version in the n=3 black and n=3 tan that I've weighed.

I also weighed the full bike, including pedals and bike computer, as shown below with two different bike scales one came in at 4.545 kg (converted) / 10.02 lbs the other 4.49kg / 9.90 lbs (converted).

I'll let everyone know how the wheels feel after I get at least a few weeks of rides in on them.
Berd.jpg

Scott2017
Posts: 161
Joined: Sat May 20, 2017 11:40 am

by Scott2017

.

Scott2017
Posts: 161
Joined: Sat May 20, 2017 11:40 am

by Scott2017

OtterSpace wrote:
Sun Jan 30, 2022 2:40 am
The berd wheels with black 23mm tires are mounted. These black vittorias corsa speeds are a bit heavier than the tan version in the n=3 black and n=3 tan that I've weighed.

I also weighed the full bike, including pedals and bike computer, as shown below with two different bike scales one came in at 4.545 kg (converted) / 10.02 lbs the other 4.49kg / 9.90 lbs (converted).

I'll let everyone know how the wheels feel after I get at least a few weeks of rides in on them.

Berd.jpg
Hi, any updates on this excellent project? Very curious how those Skylines run now with the Berd/Extralight upgrade.

OtterSpace
Posts: 224
Joined: Sun Mar 08, 2020 6:28 am
Location: California Silicon Valley

by OtterSpace

Scott2017 wrote:
Mon Nov 28, 2022 1:26 pm
Hi, any updates on this excellent project? Very curious how those Skylines run now with the Berd/Extralight upgrade.
Sorry for the late updates. For me this bike is fully dialed with nothing remaining worth changing so I havent checked in on this thread for ages. I view this as a forever bike fully in maintaince mode now. Thankfully a lot of time on this bike can give a better review of the berd wheels I detailed previously.

Overall I would rate the berd wheelset as 8/10 with only two reasons for me not giving them a 10/10. These two detracting reasons might not apply to other people or can be learned from and applied when starting a berd wheel build from scrach for road use to get your build up to 9/10 or 10/10.

All of the weight related positivies are obvious for acceleration and I've had no durability issues for the approximately year and a half of ownership. I like them so much that I duplicated this wheelset around 8 months ago to properly maintain this forever bike.

What stood out to me most when first running the berd wheels is how much road buzz is reduced. I really liked how twitchy the focus was but also like the comfort that these wheels bring. I dont see changing these wheels for anything else but it did signifincatly change the character of the bike in a way 99% of people would like but I had to make peace with this change. Handling is as snappy as ever but it is more settled while riding along.

Many people wont believe me but with measured 22mm tires these berd wheels are more comfortable than a focus izalco max commuter I built up with measured 37mm tires on reynolds atr carbon wheels.

I also had to open my rear caliper a quater turn due to rear wheels rub. Radially the wheels seem as stiff as before however laterally they are less stiff. After adjusting the rear brake the quarter turn I haven't changed anything but this reduced lateral stiffness is an inherent difference with berd wheels. I have not noticed any lateral stiffness issues for the front wheel but also I am sub 60kg.

If I were starting a berdwheel build from scrach and you are lightweight I would do a 16/24 build instead of my 16/20 if sourcing of light weight tubular rims isnt an issue. If you are heavier I would consider going up in spokes further to mittigate the reduced lateral stiffness of berd wheels.

If anyone has additional questions please feel free to ask and I'll answer much faster as I have a new build to keep me engaged now that this project is in maintaince mode.

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VTR1000SP2
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Joined: Tue Nov 05, 2013 8:21 pm

by VTR1000SP2

OtterSpace wrote:
What stood out to me most when first running the berd wheels is how much road buzz is reduced. I really liked how twitchy the focus was but also like the comfort that these wheels bring. I dont see changing these wheels for anything else but it did signifincatly change the character of the bike in a way 99% of people would like but I had to make peace with this change. Handling is as snappy as ever but it is more settled while riding along.
Could you elaborate on what change you had to make peace with? Is the bike less twitchy now and more settled therefore it’s a lost character that you miss.
Focus Izalco Max - 4.84kg without pedals
Cervélo Áspero - 8.28kg
Trek Madone SLR Rim - 7.73kg
Standert Triebwerk Disc - 8.47kg

OtterSpace
Posts: 224
Joined: Sun Mar 08, 2020 6:28 am
Location: California Silicon Valley

by OtterSpace

VTR1000SP2 wrote:
Wed Jul 05, 2023 2:33 am
OtterSpace wrote:
What stood out to me most when first running the berd wheels is how much road buzz is reduced. I really liked how twitchy the focus was but also like the comfort that these wheels bring. I dont see changing these wheels for anything else but it did signifincatly change the character of the bike in a way 99% of people would like but I had to make peace with this change. Handling is as snappy as ever but it is more settled while riding along.
Could you elaborate on what change you had to make peace with? Is the bike less twitchy now and more settled therefore it’s a lost character that you miss.
Yes thats exactly it. Berd wheels are like running 1/3rd less pressure in terms of comfort impact which is a very noticable change with no rolling resistance loss.

The handing is the same in terms of inputs and how the bike reacts but how settled it is while riding along is significantly different.

Running 22mm tires I came to metally correlate bouncy tires and road buzz with speed so getting used to more comfort at the same pressure and tire setup was strangely hard to do.

With more spokes and higher lateral stiffness this change might reduce a bit, but the lateral stiffness reduction from berd wheels also might have an impact in overall speed or turning confidence.

edit: also this should go without saying but berd wheel spokes are less areo due to their shape. However I'll be building up a mid or deep section set of berd wheels sometime in the next year for my commuter which I'm interested to see how they feel due to the higher radial stiffness of deeper section and sorter section of berd spokes.
Last edited by OtterSpace on Wed Jul 05, 2023 2:50 am, edited 1 time in total.

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VTR1000SP2
Posts: 930
Joined: Tue Nov 05, 2013 8:21 pm

by VTR1000SP2

OtterSpace wrote:
VTR1000SP2 wrote:
Wed Jul 05, 2023 2:33 am
OtterSpace wrote:
What stood out to me most when first running the berd wheels is how much road buzz is reduced. I really liked how twitchy the focus was but also like the comfort that these wheels bring. I dont see changing these wheels for anything else but it did signifincatly change the character of the bike in a way 99% of people would like but I had to make peace with this change. Handling is as snappy as ever but it is more settled while riding along.
Could you elaborate on what change you had to make peace with? Is the bike less twitchy now and more settled therefore it’s a lost character that you miss.
Yes thats exactly it. Berd wheels are like running 1/3rd less pressure in terms of comfort impact which is a very noticable change with no rolling resistance loss.

The handing is the same in terms of inputs and how the bike reacts but how settled it is while riding along is significantly different.

Running 22mm tires I came to metally correlate bouncy tires and road buzz with speed so getting used to more comfort at the same pressure and tire setup was strangely hard to do.

With more spokes and higher lateral stiffness this change might reduce a bit, but the lateral stiffness reduction from berd wheels also might have an impact in overall speed or turning confidence.
Thank you for sharing. If the road bike that eventually replaces the Focus has the same feeling, I may switch the wheelset on the Focus currently to Berd spokes. Really appreciate the detailed review.


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Focus Izalco Max - 4.84kg without pedals
Cervélo Áspero - 8.28kg
Trek Madone SLR Rim - 7.73kg
Standert Triebwerk Disc - 8.47kg

poulhansen
Posts: 298
Joined: Wed Nov 25, 2020 12:49 pm
Location: Danmark

by poulhansen

Hello. Inspired by this thread I just bought a Focus Izalco Max, instead of the Cannondale HiMod I have trying to find at a reasonable price.

But I wonder. You wrote "The frame with FSA BB is 741g" and mine is 768 without BB in a size 54. Is there really so much difference between a 48 and a 54?

I assume a BB is about 100 g.

My frame is red which apparently is 20 g heavier than grey but still without BB: 641 g versus 748 g.

PS: I just removed paint from a Vison fork and found that the paint could be softened by paintremover but a paintscraper was much more efficient and it didn't bite on the carbon, so it was easy to avoid all damage to the carbon.
Cannondale Super Six HiMod 2017 6.7 kg
Cannondale six13, 2004, 5.50kg
Focus Izalco Max, 2023 4.418 kg

OtterSpace
Posts: 224
Joined: Sun Mar 08, 2020 6:28 am
Location: California Silicon Valley

by OtterSpace

poulhansen wrote:
Mon Sep 11, 2023 8:24 pm
Hello. Inspired by this thread I just bought a Focus Izalco Max, instead of the Cannondale HiMod I have trying to find at a reasonable price.

But I wonder. You wrote "The frame with FSA BB is 741g" and mine is 768 without BB in a size 54. Is there really so much difference between a 48 and a 54?

I assume a BB is about 100 g.

My frame is red which apparently is 20 g heavier than grey but still without BB: 641 g versus 748 g.

PS: I just removed paint from a Vison fork and found that the paint could be softened by paintremover but a paintscraper was much more efficient and it didn't bite on the carbon, so it was easy to avoid all damage to the carbon.
Nice I'm sure you will have fun with the project.

I took photos which remember better than I do now. Attached is one pre and one post sanding. From what they show I had the derailleur hanger off the bike with the metal chainstay protector on in both pics.

I don't have photos of the BB weight but I recall something like 75g when I replaced it later.

Paint can add up to 200g and in general the closer to white the thicker the coat needed is. Mine started off with minimal paint so I removed 27g from the frame with red you should be able to remove at least 50g in paint.
Attachments
IMG_20200307_171750.jpg
IMG_20200430_183348.jpg

poulhansen
Posts: 298
Joined: Wed Nov 25, 2020 12:49 pm
Location: Danmark

by poulhansen

Thank you for your time.

I just hope that it's below 768 as I only have the sellers word for it. I expect it to be here in 5 days.

I really don't want to remove the beautiful paint. The fork I scraped is so ugly, I might have to paint it, just hoping that doesn't get it over an important threhshold :-)
Last edited by poulhansen on Fri Sep 15, 2023 11:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Cannondale Super Six HiMod 2017 6.7 kg
Cannondale six13, 2004, 5.50kg
Focus Izalco Max, 2023 4.418 kg

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



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