Zipp 2020

[FlatlandClimber]

1304g with valves, rim tape and end caps:
https://www.bikeradar.com/news/zipp-353 ... lideshow=1

[playsted]

I picked up the 303 firecrest recently and had some regrets when I saw the leaks but at $4000 these seem very expensive in comparison to sub $2k firecrests.

[ms6073]

interesting they switched to J bend. now 303s and FC are also J bend. i wonder whats the shift in design philosophy

I am guessing it hinged on j-bend spokes being more readily available and maybe SRAM/Zipp is trying to move away from the bad PR after the rear hub flange issues from several years ago. At least that is why I no longer ride Zipp wheels, well, that and the silly US $4000 price tag!

[TobinHatesYou]

The pricing is pretty whack. $2500-2800 and it falls in line with the competition. There’s a huge gulf between the $1900 303FC and $4000 353 NSWs. There’s enough room for a hypothetical $2500 303 FC+ And a 303 NSW at $3500. Bonkers.

[Ypuh]

interesting they switched to J bend. now 303s and FC are also J bend. i wonder whats the shift in design philosophy

It's not a bad thing right? One of the things I like most about Zipp is that they're some of the most serviceable wheels out of the top brands (more than Enve for example). Traditional spoke holes, outside nipples, regular Sapim spokes, easy to service hub bearings etc. J-bends make it even easier than straight pull, although it's not much of a difference (more spoke patterns, less spoke-twisting, easier available). Only downside (correct me if I'm wrong) might be looks, but I don't find straight pull that much better looking to be fair.

I picked up the 303 firecrest recently and had some regrets when I saw the leaks but at $4000 these seem very expensive in comparison to sub $2k firecrests.

If you like the FC series, you obviously are attracted to the NSW's as well. They're in a different price league though and you can't really compare them. If you want a fair comparison, you should look at wheels like Lightweight, Bike Ahead, Enve etc.

I paid around €1.350 for my 404 FC's from 2019. The 454 NSW's will set you back at least €2.899. Altough I'd love to own them, it'll be though to notice any benefit.

[ryanw]

Ordered a set of 353s and should have them by the weekend. Looking forward to seeing real world weights.

[ome rodriguez]

LBS has 4 sets. No weights though

[jas0nt]

The pricing is pretty whack. $2500-2800 and it falls in line with the competition. There’s a huge gulf between the $1900 303FC and $4000 353 NSWs. There’s enough room for a hypothetical $2500 303 FC+ And a 303 NSW at $3500. Bonkers.

They're obviously selling based on their name. Who'd pay such an amount for some pretty mediocre hubs is beyond me.

[RideRunSwim]

The weight for the 353 is comparable to a pair of 303 FC with dt swiss hubs. Your basically paying $2k for the cool looking saw tooth profile of the 353 and worse performance if you believe the reviews from intheknow cycling of the previous gen sawtoooth profile Zipp wheels.

The 353s are status symbol wheels.

[Ypuh]

They're obviously selling based on their name. Who'd pay such an amount for some pretty mediocre hubs is beyond me.

I don't know about the updated Cognition hubs, but are you still referring to the hubs that were introduced nearly 10 years ago that broke? The 77/177 hubs have performed fine for the last 5 years or so.

[rudye9mr]

Even wider int width from zipp and bontranger...

Gotta do thumb ups now!

[ichobi]

The weight for the 353 is comparable to a pair of 303 FC with dt swiss hubs. Your basically paying $2k for the cool looking saw tooth profile of the 353 and worse performance if you believe the reviews from intheknow cycling of the previous gen sawtoooth profile Zipp wheels.

The 353s are status symbol wheels.

Slight difference is that the 303 FC is 40mm deep. For aero gains, depth is everything although they are just mere 5mm differnce. Probably not that big of a deal. Would prefer something like 50mm still.

[ms6073]

The 353s are status symbol wheels.

Sure, but hasn't that pretty much been the case since the Firecrest lineup was introduced?

[RideRunSwim]

The 353s are status symbol wheels.

Sure, but hasn't that pretty much been the case since the Firecrest lineup was introduced?

The new hookless 303 FC is pretty reasonably priced. The main issue with the 353s though is that reviews of the whale shaped rims have been negative, so you don't even get a marginal performance gain for your cash.

[Scott2017]

The 353s are status symbol wheels.

Sure, but hasn't that pretty much been the case since the Firecrest lineup was introduced?

The new hookless 303 FC is pretty reasonably priced. The main issue with the 353s though is that reviews of the whale shaped rims have been negative, so you don't even get a marginal performance gain for your cash.

Every review I've seen from reputable sources of the 454s has been very good, so I'm not sure what you're referring to there.

Solid reviews from: Cycling Tips, Bike Radar, Cyclist, Cycling News, Cycling Weekly, Velo News, Feedthehabit, Aerogeeks, etc.