Alloy braking Surface, Light, Semi-aero Rim

[Lelandjt]

Please help me find a unicorn rim. On my travel bike I prefer an aluminum braking surface but my current wheels feel pretty heavy and un-aero compared to my race bike's wheels so I want to build a new set. My criteria for the rims are:
Reasonably light
Some aero shape
External width no greater than 23mm for use on an older frame with 25mm tires (GP5000s)

[Singular]

I think they measure 24mm externally, but Kinlin 31 is everything you need.

[Lelandjt]

I think they measure 24mm externally, but Kinlin 31 is everything you need.

I might also be swapping to a modern frame so that should work.

[Multebear]

Reasonably light

What kind of numbers are you looking for? Below 450 grams? Or below 500?

[calleking]

Sorry for hijacking the thread but are there any EU based wheelbuilders that can build with a Kinlin 31 rim?

I have always been very impressed with Zonda C17 but though I'd try something else.

[Multebear]

Sorry for hijacking the thread but are there any EU based wheelbuilders that can build with a Kinlin 31 rim?

I have always been very impressed with Zonda C17 but though I'd try something else.

There are several in UK. Google is your friend.

[calleking]

Thanks but UK is not part of the EU. Customs and VAT are added. I guess you could have googled it.

[RyanH]

I remember seeing aero data on Hed Belgium and it really wasn't much of a difference. They performed much better than box sections and only a small amount worse than 35mm rims.

[bobones]

deleted

[Lelandjt]

Reasonably light

What kind of numbers are you looking for? Below 450 grams? Or below 500?

So I was thinking of a slightly deeper rim like the Kinlin 31, but then saw the weight difference by going with their shallower option. Then I found the even lighter and slightly narrower DT 411 (410g). I suspected the aero difference wouldn't be much and the above post about Hed Belgiums kinda confirms that so I'm happy with my choice of the lighter rims. Wheelbuider.com is lacing them with CX-Rays 24f radial, 28r 3x to 350 hubs. This looks to be an ideal wheelset for my work bike that I use to guide tours in Europe, New Zealand, and Tahiti. Here I am this morning unloading bikes from the ship we chartered in Bora Bora.
https://m.facebook.com/LelandJT/posts/p ... ments_list.[10161265291923572%252C10161265300258572%252C10161265326213572]%253Astory_location.4%253Astory_attachment_style.album%253Athid.812253571%253A306061129499414%253A2%253A0%253A1638345599%253A2669534977058504820%253A%253A%26__tn__%3DEH-R%26cached_data%3Dfalse%26ftid%3D&mdp=1&mdf=1

[Matt28NJ]

What about a Hed Jet + ? Alloy, reliable, and highly aero.

[Lelandjt]

What about a Hed Jet + ? Alloy, reliable, and highly aero.

At first I was thinking of something like this. I love the aero of the full carbon rims on my race bike but my work bike gets used on some gnarly descents that I'm sometimes not familiar with so I like an alloy brake track. A long time ago I built up some Spinergy rims that were carbon with alloy brake track (nipples sat in the carbon). I ended up deciding to go lighter and cheaper this time at the cost of aero but maybe with better crosswind stability. In the end I'm not chasing KOMs with these wheels, just doing spirited rides in far flung places. On Hed's website I can't find rim weights. Do you have an idea what their shallowest carbon/alloy rim weighs? The nipple sits in the alloy so the carbon is non-structural, just an aero fairing, right? Does anyone make a modern shape carbon/alloy 40mm-ish deep rim with nipples on the carbon?

*These rims seem a little wide for me at 20mm internal. I run 25mm GP5000s and the frame is from 2015 so not tons of clearance. The DT 411s I chose are 18mm internal, which I think will be a good width for me.

[Matt28NJ]

At first I was thinking of something like this. I love the aero of the full carbon rims on my race bike but my work bike gets used on some gnarly descents that I'm sometimes not familiar with so I like an alloy brake track. A long time ago I built up some Spinergy rims that were carbon with alloy brake track (nipples sat in the carbon). I ended up deciding to go lighter and cheaper this time at the cost of aero but maybe with better crosswind stability. In the end I'm not chasing KOMs with these wheels, just doing spirited rides in far flung places. On Hed's website I can't find rim weights. Do you have an idea what their shallowest carbon/alloy rim weighs? The nipple sits in the alloy so the carbon is non-structural, just an aero fairing, right? Does anyone make a modern shape carbon/alloy 40mm-ish deep rim with nipples on the carbon?

*These rims seem a little wide for me at 20mm internal. I run 25mm GP5000s and the frame is from 2015 so not tons of clearance. The DT 411s I chose are 18mm internal, which I think will be a good width for me.

Sooo...
1. I don't have accurate weights for the Jet+ series, but these are NOT ultralightweight rims. They do produce excellent aero numbers and have a reputation for quality. And of course, meet your alloy brake track requirement - I too love my alloy brake tracks when doing huge climbs, and in the wet.
2. The fairing is NOT structural, HED advises not to hang the wheels by the fairing
3. On my HED wheelset (Belgium+, same structure as the Jet+) with 20mm internal width, a 25mm GP5k runs to under 27mm wide on my calipers. with the old GP4000 it was closer to 27.5mm wide.

[CustomMetal]

A force 33

[jfranci3]

Data shows the width and tire fit matter as much as the depth. Get the widest alloy rim you can get away with. If you're running a 23c front, get something thats 24mm wide.

radsport-rennrad-de did an aero test with just about every iteration of DT Swiss lineup and the ugliest non-aero wheels on the market. They tried clean hubs, common hubs, wide rims, narrow rims, deep rims, and shallow rims with a 25c GP5K. Takeaways are the depth doesn't matter if the rim isn't wide enough, shape is more important than depth.

These were all 22mm external-ish except for the deep wheel. Going wider to 25mm external saved 1w; 27mm saves another 1w @35kph - so width is more important than depth.

https://www.radsport-rennrad.de/test-te ... raxistest/
https://www.radsport-rennrad.de/test-te ... icut-test/

So you're looking at Boyd Almond, Hed, Hunt (Kinlin), VIsion (trimax 30)
https://www.slowtwitch.com/Products/Thi ... _7204.html