Mid- Level 650c Race Wheel Sets

[CCrew]

@TDB 13105 wrote:

This seems like a dumb question but there are no dumb questions, just dumb people. That being said, is there a reason not to mismatch front and rear wheels? I can’t imagine the weight imbalance from front to rear would have a significant impact but I am curious, as finding used wheels is often a one-at-a-time venture.

TDB

No reason, other than it just totally trips the OCD trigger in some of us

[elcee]

@TDB 13105 wrote:

… is there a reason not to mismatch front and rear wheels?

In certain cycling sub-cultures, this might actually earn you style points.

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[TDB]

I’m not sure I want to join that gentleman’s sub-culture.

There are some nice sets on ebay that get close to my price range, such as the Apexes…
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ROLF-Prima-Apex-650c-clincher-/250973404326?pt=Cycling_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3a6f2e3ca6

…and this Vuelta set…
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VUELTA-ROAD-BIKE-WHEELSET-650C-WHEELS-SEALED-BEARINGS-/200592929416?pt=Cycling_Parts_Accessories&hash=item2eb4453288

…but after having to buy tubes tires and cassette these get to be a bit more than I’d like, so it looks like I’ll be keeping that perpetual craigslist tab open on my browser until 1 or maybe even a set of decent wheels shows up.

TDB

[CCrew]

Dunno your size, but the paired spoke design of the Rolf is not good unless you’re a very light rider. Bontrager made a wheel similar and found that out quickly.

[TDB]

Thanks for the heads-up, I weigh around 155 before clothing and gear and whatnot, dunno if that falls under the very light category.

TDB

[CCrew]

@TDB 13128 wrote:

Thanks for the heads-up, I weigh around 155 before clothing and gear and whatnot, dunno if that falls under the very light category.

TDB

You could get away with it under #175.

Due to the design they’re not very laterally stiff, and tend to crack the rims at the spoke eyelets, so unless you can see and touch them before you buy it’s not a wheel I’d ebay. The later Bontrager’s solved the issues but not before they got a really bad rep. I have a set of the Bontrager Select Discs in the same design, and I’m 170, and they’ve held up although I have two friends the same size that have both had issues. Still a bit noodly though.

[TDB]

I found a gentleman willing to part with a set of Corima carbon tubulars with a few spare tires for 200. While I am unsure about moving to tubulars, as well as needing to have different brake pads for training / race wheels, the price seems pretty hard to beat. From my research Corima seems to be of fairly high quality, but there are of course all of the obvious downsides of cost and inconvenience to repair tubular flats. As race wheels I don’t think they would flat very often, but it is a hard thing to weigh. Pictures are below, any and all input is thoroughly appreciated.

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[DaveK]

@TDB 13768 wrote:

I found a gentleman willing to part with a set of Corima carbon tubulars with a few spare tires for 200. While I am unsure about moving to tubulars, as well as needing to have different brake pads for training / race wheels, the price seems pretty hard to beat. From my research Corima seems to be of fairly high quality, but there are of course all of the obvious downsides of cost and inconvenience to repair tubular flats. As race wheels I don’t think they would flat very often, but it is a hard thing to weigh. Pictures are below, any and all input is thoroughly appreciated.

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I don’t know those specific wheels, but Corima as a brand is pretty good and carbon tubies for 200 bucks is insane. Jump on it if they’re in good shape.

[TDB]

I believe I will be taking him up on this offer, which includes 3 spare tires, the associated brake pads (though I cant tell if he has enough for both front and rear brakes), and a used 9speed ultegra cassette (tacked on for an extra 30). All in all nothing to shake a stick at.

[CCrew]

Just an FYI of you weren’t aware. Carbon wheels bring the absolute suck to stopping in the rain. As in they don’t. At all.

—
I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=39.176187,-78.116252

[TDB]

Thanks for that tidbit Ccrew, I look forward to learning that one firsthand.

I met with the seller of the Corimas today and everything looked great, especially the relatively small pile of tender that left my pocket. I still need to find a good set of carbon rim brake pads to accompany the one pair he included, but slapped the wheels on for a quick photo shoot anyway.

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The unplanned color coordination is pretty amusing. All in all another successful expedition into DC craigslist bikes.
Thanks for all the advice on this thread, it was all very useful in my research. On that note, can anyone recommend brake pads for carbon rims? From my preliminary looking it sounds like swiss stop yellow guys are pretty snazzy, but on amazon and other sites I do find somewhat cheaper pads from reasonably reputable brand names for less. I have come to the conclusion that I just don’t trust using pads that advertise usability on both aluminum and carbon, so I’m in the market for some solely-carbon-rim pads to alternate with my current aluminum-intended pads. As always, many thanks.

TDB

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