Road Cycling - Wheels for big guys

I have trouble keeping my wheels true (27 inch 36 spoke araya rims), likely because of my weight (around 260). I am curious what wheelsets have worked well for other heavy riders.

I am thinking of getting a new bike, and have been reading a lot of posts. In the tandem section there was talk about bontrager aero lite tandem wheels. They apparently work for 400 plus pound crews. I certainly don't weigh anywhere near that much. Are the regualr aero lites this good?

Are some of the other deep rim, few spoke wheels offered on stock bikes any good? I have been looking at bikes like the motobecanes, the merciers, the scattantes and the performance bikes. I have also looked at several LBS bikes. Do any manufacturers do a particularly good job of picking wheels for their stock bikes? Are any particularly bad? It certainly would be better to pay a couple of hundred extra to find a bike line with good wheels rather than pay an additional $300 for aftermarket wheels.

What size tires are you using and what psi are you pumping them? I was just reading an interesting series of posts under Uncle Al's Rants at Roadbikerider.com, suggesting that many people pump their tires too hard, that 85-95 is adequate rolling resistance and snakebite prevention and that lower pressure is easier on wheels because it absorbs much of the shock that would otherwise be pounding the spokes and rims. For larger riders 25 or 28 mm (1" in 27" world) be considered minimum. I run 25 mm on my road bikes and 28 on my singlespeed and fixed gear. After reading the articles at rbr I have also reduced my pressures from 115-120 to 90-95.

27x1 1/8 @95psi are my current tires. If I get a new bike, thenI get the tires which come with it. If I had a 25 mm tire I would bump up the pressure to 100-105, because of the narrower contact. 25.4 mm = 1 inch, although maybe not in the tire world.

For a big guy a handbuilt wheel by a guy who knows what he is doing is a good choice. For prebuilts the Shimano WH-R540 is tough. One of the guys that works here is 240+ and has boken four frames in two years(Including a Surly Instigator), and busted numerous wheels, but he has ridden the earlier 535 shimano wheel for over a year and we have only had to touch up the true once.

I'm 220. Been using Velomax Orion on my Litespeed Tuscany. So far, so good.

Are ya joking me.. I run my tires at 125PSI, 700x20c

Originally posted by WorldIRC
Are ya joking me.. I run my tires at 125PSI, 700x20c

The above quoted Uncle Al's rants make sense, no joke. Read them.

I call BS on "Uncle Al."

I ride 700x23c tires pumped to 120psi. Every day. Rain or shine. I haven't had to take a spoke wrench to either of my wheels in months, except after my new rear wheel had broken in, and I haven't touched that one since (and that was in December). I only got a new wheel because I've converted to riding fixed-gear.

If a wheel is built properly there should be no reason for it to have to be trued very often.

My track/race wheels are 700x20c pumped to 155psi, and they're looking just fine.