Craft Racing wheels - carbon spokes 1180g

[toxin]

If a lot of them are out there and this thread is pretty quiet the owners probably don't have enough to complain about to post here.

[BikeTyson]

Still riding mine, I think I have one of the first sets. Without a doubt the best wheels I have, still trouble free. My opinions haven't changed since the first impressions. Too busy riding to keep posting about them

Pretty much my exact feelings. Lightest and best set of wheels I own. No issues for me. They're super stiff and responsive. Got mine Aug 2, have around 3,000 miles on them. Great wheels. Zero complaints.

[MarcFaFo]

Still riding mine, I think I have one of the first sets. Without a doubt the best wheels I have, still trouble free. My opinions haven't changed since the first impressions. Too busy riding to keep posting about them

Pretty much my exact feelings. Lightest and best set of wheels I own. No issues for me. They're super stiff and responsive. Got mine Aug 2, have around 3,000 miles on them. Great wheels. Zero complaints.

My concern on these wheels is, because they are stiff, whether the comfort level will be insufficient. I like to race and are fully happy with 25-26 mm tires.

[calleking]

I don't own these wheels but have the Hyper D67 and raced on them last season setup tubeless 28/25mm GP5kTR. The D67 are 68/60mm with carbon spokes. I previously raced Enve 4.5 SES (latex setup with 28/25mm GP5K) and you can definately feel that the carbon spoken creates noteable stiffer wheel compared to Sapim CX Ray for example. It's not bonejarring by any means but not optimal if you're into long easy rides on crappy pavement. For racing I would say that there are more pros than cons at least on my roads where I live (Scandinavia).

[MarcFaFo]

Still riding mine, I think I have one of the first sets. Without a doubt the best wheels I have, still trouble free. My opinions haven't changed since the first impressions. Too busy riding to keep posting about them

[MarcFaFo]

I don't own these wheels but have the Hyper D67 and raced on them last season setup tubeless 28/25mm GP5kTR. The D67 are 68/60mm with carbon spokes. I previously raced Enve 4.5 SES (latex setup with 28/25mm GP5K) and you can definately feel that the carbon spoken creates noteable stiffer wheel compared to Sapim CX Ray for example. It's not bonejarring by any means but not optimal if you're into long easy rides on crappy pavement. For racing I would say that there are more pros than cons at least on my roads where I live (Scandinavia).

Thanks, roads here in NL where I mostly ride are not so crapy.
But I do ride now and then in the Belgium Ardennes, well thats another story.

[Bikingwino12]

I assume you have put considerably more miles on your crw 5060s since this posting. How are they? I've been tracking the posts for a while and have had my eyes on these wheels, except for the guys in my riding group and at my local shop recommending I go with traditional steel spoke from enve or zipp, just given how rough the roads are in Northern California wine country.

Aside from the aesthetic shortcomings already detailed, my only negative criticism of my 5060s is that they are a little less stable in the wind than my CLX1. However, I've been experimenting with different tire pressures and finding that a higher than average-for-me front pressure mitigates this to some extent. I need more time in the wind to confirm these findings.

I've continued to PR some regular segments since I've been testing them. Multiple reasons for that, but the wheels aren't slowing me down.

I too ride some treacherous NorCal roads. I'm getting a jump on Winter with about 78kg fwiw. The 5060s don't make any troubling creaks or crackling popping sounds. Using the trusty brake rub test, there is near-zero rub under load. My Enve4.5 rub like mad in comparison, and my CLX1 have always creaked crackled and popped when out of the saddle. These are all subjective measures for sure, but they indicate to me that these 5060s are solidly built and strong. Regardless of durability, the stiffer qualities of these wheels will reward the user who chooses the smoothest path. I don't mean to make it sound like they are bone rattling uncomfortable, they aren't, but they are notably stiffer than my other wheels.

The big question that none of us can answer is "will they prove to be reliable over time?" -- Too soon to tell.

I think there are reasons to debate carbon vs steel spokes, but I don't think durability should be the primary reason.

Thank you for the detailed feedback. Cross wind stability is something I am considering as well. I currently ride my dogma f w hunt aerodynamicist wheels which are quite stable and can take the beatings on the patchwork of rough roads, and my riding mates are saying I should look more towards the mainstay brands and have suggested SES 4.5 or the zipp nsw 454s as suitable upgrades. But the cs5060s are at such a lower price point plus so much lighter; a full 200 grams lighter than my wheels and though not quite as good at carrying speed as the enve's the feedback is that they aren't bad. The pragmatist in me is saying I should go with the big brands but I am leaning towards the crw's:-)

[Bikingwino12]

Still riding mine, I think I have one of the first sets. Without a doubt the best wheels I have, still trouble free. My opinions haven't changed since the first impressions. Too busy riding to keep posting about them

Pretty much my exact feelings. Lightest and best set of wheels I own. No issues for me. They're super stiff and responsive. Got mine Aug 2, have around 3,000 miles on them. Great wheels. Zero complaints.

Wow already 3,000 miles- that's great. How rough are the roads in your area and what kind of riding do you do - flat or climbing? Want to know how stable the wheels are in cross winds and on descents, as well as is the stiffness bearable on the roughest of roads? It seems like there is a big difference between the carbon and sapim spokes, in this regard. On the fence between the big brands and the cs5060s. Interested in feedback from both of you, given the how many miles/km's you've covered so far.

[hannawald]

I have pretty much the same concerns. Is there something like too light?:) I mean they might be good at accelerating but what about carying speed? How easy are they at keeping speed above 30 km/h? Are they more affected by cross winds because of the front wheel lightness? Are they less comfortbale than steel spoked wheels or this is mitigated by less spoke count?

[BikeTyson]

Still riding mine, I think I have one of the first sets. Without a doubt the best wheels I have, still trouble free. My opinions haven't changed since the first impressions. Too busy riding to keep posting about them

Pretty much my exact feelings. Lightest and best set of wheels I own. No issues for me. They're super stiff and responsive. Got mine Aug 2, have around 3,000 miles on them. Great wheels. Zero complaints.

Wow already 3,000 miles- that's great. How rough are the roads in your area and what kind of riding do you do - flat or climbing? Want to know how stable the wheels are in cross winds and on descents, as well as is the stiffness bearable on the roughest of roads? It seems like there is a big difference between the carbon and sapim spokes, in this regard. On the fence between the big brands and the cs5060s. Interested in feedback from both of you, given the how many miles/km's you've covered so far.

My normal local roads are in pretty good condition. I did do a week in California and the roads were atrocious. I did wish I had some bigger volume tires then but it's hard to say if that had anything to do with the wheels being stiff or just that the roads were absolutely garbage. I've done pretty much all terrains with them. I did a day with a 7,000 foot climb in California and loved the weight loss. Around me it's rolling terrain with lots of wind and I've never felt unstable. I have the 4045s though so the deeper ones might be a little different. Less spokes should help though as well as the wider front on the 5060. These are the stiffest wheels I've ridden and love that about them. Super responsive. I run 28s and they're comfortable enough for me to do 5-6 hour rides. In CA I probaby could have used like 30s, but again, it's hard to say if that was the wheels or the roads, I didn't have any other wheel to compare.

I do have some Farsports 58 depth carbon spoke wheels coming soon. I wanted something deeper and managed to get these for $800 on Black Friday so literally half the cost of the Craft. I also wanted wider wheels and picked the 24int/30ext rims. Farsports has a lot more customization.

[dnb72]

Got my CRW 50/60's a week ago and finally got the chance to try them out on my supersix evo 3 today, replacing a set of knot sl 45's which were previously on the bike. I've set them up with 28 gp5000 clinchers and ridenow tpu innertubes.

Have to say I'm very impressed with them from a first ride, definitely feel faster and stiffer than the knot wheels while being surprisingly comfortable! I was bracing myself for these to be a fair bit less comfortable than the knot's especially as they were setup with 30m g5000 str's at 60psi and i'm pretty light rider at 60kg but there wasn't much in it even with higher pressure and using innertubes.

I live on an island just off the south of the uk so crosswinds are a pretty big concern i.e. 15-20 mph winds with gusts at 30mph are pretty normal with 40+ gusts not unusual. Today's first ride with the wheels was pretty short but they felt good in the crosswinds, probably nearly as good as the knot's if not on par. They did catch one big gust but was very easy to handle and a suprise as they'd been so good up to that point!

Overall very impressed with them for a first ride and will enjoying riding with them a lot more once the weather's better here!

[pushpush]

I crossed the 1k mile mark on these wheels.

Overall I'm impressed. My Rapide CLX set will be for sale in the next couple of days. I think that says everything that matters.

Compared to RapideCLX1, the 5060 are:
Marginally lighter
Marginally quieter
Notably stiffer
On par for handling in the wind. I had some initial concerns about this, but I found that increasing the front tire pressure closed the disparity between the two sets.

Time will be the ultimate judge. For now, I'll be riding the 5060s.

[neorc]

Overall I'm impressed. My Rapide CLX set will be for sale in the next couple of days. I think that says everything that matters.

Compared to RapideCLX1, the 5060 are:
Marginally lighter
Marginally quieter
.....

Thank you so much for your information. How many grams are the Craft Racing wheels lighter?

[pushpush]

Thank you so much for your information. How many grams are the Craft Racing wheels lighter?

CRW 5060
F: 582g
R: 720g

RRCLX1
F: 665g
R: 755g

Difference:
F: 83g
R: 35g
T: 118g (CRW lighter than RRCLX1)

Weights are bare wheels + tape, no stems, no cassette, no rotors, no tires

[neorc]

Thank you so much for your information. How many grams are the Craft Racing wheels lighter?

CRW 5060
F: 582g
R: 720g

RRCLX1
F: 665g
R: 755g

Difference:
F: 83g
R: 35g
T: 118g (CRW lighter than RRCLX1)

Weights are bare wheels + tape, no stems, no cassette, no rotors, no tires

Thank you!!