Everyone wants ligher and better wheels. But getting new wheelset 25gm lighter overall doesn't make much sense. What weight improvement(aka reduction) you'd consider as an upgrade?
Obviously, comparing similar sized wheels, aka same width and depth.
Would you consider width increase with the same weight as an important upgrade? i.e. going from 21mm internal to 23mm for example?
What weight decrease you'd consider as an upgrade?
Moderator: robbosmans
His: Orbea Orca OMX
Hers: Cannondale Synapse HM Disc
Hers: Cannondale Synapse HM Disc
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I was mostly refereng to wheelsets, because I can totally people swapping stems for 20-30gm.
His: Orbea Orca OMX
Hers: Cannondale Synapse HM Disc
Hers: Cannondale Synapse HM Disc
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TobinHatesYou
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I went from 1477g, 32mm deep Zipp 202 NSWs to 1336g, 37mm deep Aeolus RSL 37s.
That doesn't paint the whole picture though. I needed a dedicated wheelset for my gravel bike, so the 202 NSWs are filling that role. I needed a new pair of shallow carbon wheels and the Aeolus RSL 37 had the best combination of depth, light weight, hubs, warranty...and they have hooks.
For deeper wheels, I just don't care about weight that much.
That doesn't paint the whole picture though. I needed a dedicated wheelset for my gravel bike, so the 202 NSWs are filling that role. I needed a new pair of shallow carbon wheels and the Aeolus RSL 37 had the best combination of depth, light weight, hubs, warranty...and they have hooks.
For deeper wheels, I just don't care about weight that much.
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To answer the question you need to check what are the trade-off. Aero is one well documented, Stiffness the most overlooked one.
- putting latex-tubes is lighter, W saver, better ride feel, that's a win everywhere
- putting CX-rays on rear wheel drops stiffness by 10+% for few grams saved and a less responsive wheel, not worth at all
- a tubular rim is lighter, roughtly 70-100g per rim, and a bit stiffer too... but impose to go on very fast Tubulars not to drag too much penalty (5w from std corsa to GP5k) so there is quite a tradeoff there.
- width is an interesting question... why would you want to go from 19 to 21 or 23mm IW? if you have the need for wider tires (mean you ride in roads poor enough to drop tire pressure to a level that wouldn't be safe on a narrower tire) then the weight variation is secondary to the benefit they provide. If you look for x-wind stability from the latest wider fron-rims, then that's again secondary to the weight increase you may have.
I always have several pairs of wheels, in the mountain I moved from ex-sky Shimano C24 Carbon (tubular) 1130g with VeloFlex ProTour Race to Hyper50, 1315g w/ Latex equipped GP5000, you take a 250g penalty, the "rolling" is not the same, but I have way stiffer, way more aero, less rolling resistance and more stable braking so totally worth. So again a trade-off question.
- putting latex-tubes is lighter, W saver, better ride feel, that's a win everywhere
- putting CX-rays on rear wheel drops stiffness by 10+% for few grams saved and a less responsive wheel, not worth at all
- a tubular rim is lighter, roughtly 70-100g per rim, and a bit stiffer too... but impose to go on very fast Tubulars not to drag too much penalty (5w from std corsa to GP5k) so there is quite a tradeoff there.
- width is an interesting question... why would you want to go from 19 to 21 or 23mm IW? if you have the need for wider tires (mean you ride in roads poor enough to drop tire pressure to a level that wouldn't be safe on a narrower tire) then the weight variation is secondary to the benefit they provide. If you look for x-wind stability from the latest wider fron-rims, then that's again secondary to the weight increase you may have.
I always have several pairs of wheels, in the mountain I moved from ex-sky Shimano C24 Carbon (tubular) 1130g with VeloFlex ProTour Race to Hyper50, 1315g w/ Latex equipped GP5000, you take a 250g penalty, the "rolling" is not the same, but I have way stiffer, way more aero, less rolling resistance and more stable braking so totally worth. So again a trade-off question.
