LW Gipfelsturm Front/Meilenstein Rear - Anyone?

[toiyuet]

I have Gipfelsturm and Obermayer, love the Gipfelsturm front and Obermayer rear combo, windy day or not.
Rear Obermayer ride faster in ascending, flat, decending, rough, any condition you name it, but the front design is rubbish, more flexible than front Gipfelsturm, tiny CS bearing cannot last long in rainy day.
Compare to Obermayer, riding Gipfelsturm just feel harsh.
My two cents.

[853guy]

I have Gipfelsturm and Obermayer, love the Gipfelsturm front and Obermayer rear combo, windy day or not.
Rear Obermayer ride faster in ascending, flat, decending, rough, any condition you name it, but the front design is rubbish, more flexible than front Gipfelsturm, tiny CS bearing cannot last long in rainy day.
Compare to Obermayer, riding Gipfelsturm just feel harsh.
My two cents.

Hi toiyuet,

Thanks for the reply.

Hmm. See, that was my initial thinking… I’d be faster in more conditions with a Gipfelsturm on the front and a Meilenstein on the rear. The problem is that where I live it’s not just that it can be windy, it can be really windy (gusts of 79 km/h right now). And after KCookie’s posts, and riding the last week in real-world conditions (which can also be totally stunning), I’ve all but abandoned the idea of a Meilenstein - I just don’t see it getting much use.

However, I hear you on the harshness thing. My understanding is the Obermayer is much flexier (and more forgiving) than both the Gipfelsturm and the standard Meilensten. So when you say “compared to Obermayer, riding Gipfelsturm just felt harsh” do you mean riding a pair of Gipfelsturms feels harsher than a pair of Obermayers (which makes sense to me), or simply that the Gipfelsturm feels harsh irrespective of whether it’s used as a front or a pair?

I guess I should add that the bike they’ll be paired with will be steel (and probably XCr in “classic” diameters). So perhaps in my case the “harshness” of the Gipfelsturms will be somewhat ameliorated (combined with 23/25mm 320 TPI tires).

Thanks again for the response.

853guy

[sungod]

i've had no problems with obermayer front bearings, and the current set have had a lot of wet rides and cleaning wth a hose since 2014, still super smooth, the rear main bearings are also fine

i also had a set of the previous generation, again no problems at all

the vulnerable point is the freehub body, it's a dt swiss 180s fhb, the bearings are tiny, and the sealing just isn't as good as on the main bearings, on the current set the fhb bearings failed at just 18 months (of course a lot of wet rides/hosing down), at the cost of a few grams you can swap it for a 240 fhb which has better bearings

the obermayers are a comfortable ride, while retaining great lateral stiffness, mine are also on xcr, it's a great combination

[853guy]

i've had no problems with obermayer front bearings, and the current set have had a lot of wet rides and cleaning wth a hose since 2014, still super smooth, the rear main bearings are also fine

i also had a set of the previous generation, again no problems at all

the vulnerable point is the freehub body, it's a dt swiss 180s fhb, the bearings are tiny, and the sealing just isn't as good as on the main bearings, on the current set the fhb bearings failed at just 18 months (of course a lot of wet rides/hosing down), at the cost of a few grams you can swap it for a 240 fhb which has better bearings

the obermayers are a comfortable ride, while retaining great lateral stiffness, mine are also on xcr, it's a great combination

Hi sungod,

That's a nice data point re: the Obermayers on an XCr frame, thanks.

Truth be told I’m kinda conflicted.

Yes, we get a fair amount of wind for six months of the year (peak wind gust today forecast to be between 67km/h and 91km/h), so a pair of Meilensteins are simply out of the question.

At the same time, most of the riding around here is hills and mountains, with a lot of climbing/descending, and I do very little flat riding. Once into the mountains, it’s actually fairly sheltered, and there’s only the occasional plateau and exposed ridge that experiences anything that would pose a problem in terms of handling safety. A Gipfelsturm on the front and a Meilenstein Obermayer on the rear is therefore a possibility, would be lighter overall, and possibly more comfortable than a pair of Gipfelsturms.

In other words, for the type of riding I do, on paper at least, a Gipfelsturm/Obermayer seems to be the ideal combination.

The greatest variable though is still real-world riding conditions. How much the rear Obermayer will be problematic (given my weight and size) in the type of gusts we occasionally experience isn’t something I can answer ahead of time. I’ve reached out to a LBS (who are pro the idea of the Obermayer), and the logic suggests taking a demo ride to see whether the compromise should be greater comfort and reduced weight (the Gipfelsturm/Obermayer combo) versus reduced wind susceptibility (the Gipfelstuems as a pair). Practice beats theory, right?

Thanks again for the data point, it’s appreciated.

Best

853guy

[sungod]

fwiw i usually spend about 4-5 weeks cycling in lanzarote, which tends to be windy, steady wind of 30-40kph is 'normal' and days at a time of 40-50 common, gusts can go much much higher 60-90kph

i'm c. 77-80kg, i only take the obermayers with me, most years there're no days i can't ride, but there are some routes i avoid on the windier days - those with exposed twisty descents as the combination of speed, strong wind around sharp corners, and changing yaw angle makes it too risky with traffic around, also there're are some locations with a 'wind tunnel' caused by the terrain

if i were a lot lighter, i think the obermayer on the front would be hard to handle

it's almost all about the front wheel, the one exception i came across was on a short sharp hill... i gunned it going up and as i went over the top the road dipped sharply and i caught air for a few metres, just as a strong side wind started to flip the bike out from under me, i fortunately wrestled it back to vertical before touching down, that was a nasty surprise!

[853guy]

fwiw i usually spend about 4-5 weeks cycling in lanzarote, which tends to be windy, steady wind of 30-40kph is 'normal' and days at a time of 40-50 common, gusts can go much much higher 60-90kph

i'm c. 77-80kg, i only take the obermayers with me, most years there're no days i can't ride, but there are some routes i avoid on the windier days - those with exposed twisty descents as the combination of speed, strong wind around sharp corners, and changing yaw angle makes it too risky with traffic around, also there're are some locations with a 'wind tunnel' caused by the terrain

if i were a lot lighter, i think the obermayer on the front would be hard to handle

it's almost all about the front wheel, the one exception i came across was on a short sharp hill... i gunned it going up and as i went over the top the road dipped sharply and i caught air for a few metres, just as a strong side wind started to flip the bike out from under me, i fortunately wrestled it back to vertical before touching down, that was a nasty surprise!

Hey,

Wow, what a beautiful place to ride. Or, just, y’know, do… anything.

Like you say, steady predictable wind is one thing, but it’s those sudden shifts in wind direction or speed, combined with the terrain that can cause problems, especially when descending. I’m around the low 60’s in term of weight, so tend to perhaps be (overly) sensitive to it, but the reality is of all the variables involved - wind conditions, the descents, my mass and wheel choice - only the last one is really within my control to change, hence my prevarication.

And yes, I agree it’s mostly about the front wheel. A Gipfelsturm on the front seems mandatory, irrespective of what ends up on the rear.

Thanks again for sharing your experience.

853guy

[tadrums]

I have sets of both Gipfelsturm/Meilenstein and due to area strong winds rarely use front Meilenstein.