Road Bike Wheels

[Mr Gear]

Twice in a short space of time, I have had a spoke go pop on the front wheel of my road bike. It's not been due to bumps, it's been when I have got up on the pedals to start climbing a hill.

I've now lost faith in the wheel, and I think it needs all the spokes pulling out and a complete re-build with different spokes. I will get around to that eventually, because I could do with a second set of wheels, but in the meantime, I want to buy a new set altogether.

The bike is only a £600 machine, so I don't want to over-spend on it. I'm thinking that £200 is a reasonable budget...

There are some great deals on ebay, but is this asking for more trouble? Or can I get a perfectly good set from Evans for under £200? Something like this looks good:

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/miche/race-roa...

or

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/mavic/aksium-2...

[itsnotarace]

What make/model are your current wheels? How many spokes up front?

I am almost certainly going to suggest handbuilt for your budget with plenty of spokes. These seem pretty good value with Ultegra hubs http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/article/racing-bike-whe...

[Mr Gear]

itsnotarace said:

What make/model are your current wheels? How many spokes up front?

I am almost certainly going to suggest handbuilt for your budget with plenty of spokes. These seem pretty good value with Ultegra hubs http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/article/racing-bike-whe...

The current wheels are Rodi Racing Stylus, and the front wheel (which has been the one causing problems) has only 20 spokes in total. The problem is, it looks like an expensive wheel... but it isn't.

EDIT: is the Mavic Open Pro wheel you linked to a pair? It's the wheel that Cycling Active magazine recommended as an upgrade on a £2,000 Pinarello, and they said it was a £500 investment...

Edited by Mr Gear on Monday 17th October 10:11

[Rouleur]

http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/Bike+Shop/Wheels/Roa...

Bargain!

[itsnotarace]

The one I linked to is a pair

Parkers do the wheels individually and you can choose your colour preferences

Front: http://www.parker-international.co.uk/15723/Hand-B...
Rear: http://www.parker-international.co.uk/15724/Hand-B...

The next step up would be DT Swiss 415 rims which would save some weight over the Open Pros

http://www.parker-international.co.uk/17251/Hand-B...
http://www.parker-international.co.uk/15735/Hand-B...

[anonymous-user]

Rouleur said:

http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/Bike+Shop/Wheels/Roa...

Bargain!

+1 On mine and much better than the bike/rider rather than the other way round.

[Mr Gear]

Great tips, cheers. I think the Mavic open Pros are perfect. You can get them even cheaper with Tiagra hubs.

[MadDad]

I have just invested in a set of Shimano RS30's from Ribble (along with 2 x friends), not the lightest wheels in the world (1900g with skewers), but much better than the Mavic/Felt stock wheels. I have only put about 300 miles on them so far but am VERY happy with them, free running, much better than the old wheels into a headwind, very responsive and they look great (imho).

I picked them up for the sum total of £143 (rrp £250-ish) and they were delivered the following day!

http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/road-track-bike/S...

[Rocksteadyeddie]

Mr Gear said:

Great tips, cheers. I think the Mavic open Pros are perfect. You can get them even cheaper with Tiagra hubs.

You can do but would be better spending the extra. Those Open Pros on Ultegra are all the wheel you'll ever realistically need. I still ride my 20 year old Open Pros and they're still buttery smooth and rock solid.

[Mr Gear]

Rocksteadyeddie said:

You can do but would be better spending the extra. Those Open Pros on Ultegra are all the wheel you'll ever realistically need. I still ride my 20 year old Open Pros and they're still buttery smooth and rock solid.

If the bearings on the Ultegra hubs are higher quality, I agree, it is probably worth it. Then you have a weight saving to consider too.

[dubbs]

I've got an Aksium on the commuter and that's a nice solid wheel at a good price.

I've got Krysium Elites on the race bike but would love to get some Zipp/SRAM/HED aero wheels when I can afford them (turbo purchase first, upgrade the engine before the bike!)... but that's going OT...