Road Cycling - Climbing Wheels...Mavic? King?

xxx

Had this discussion with a friend who rides outside of Boulder, so is very similar to what you are describing. We added up the weights of the Open Pro and compared to the Elites and there was a total of about 27g difference. Just less than one ounce between the wheelsets. Unless you are riding a stage race you'll never notice and probably not then. Especially in light of the fact that you are using bladed spokes on the Open Pro rims. I moved from Open Pros to the Elites and find the only noticeable difference in some 10,000 miles of riding is that the Elites are nicer looking (to me). From what you have described your choice is based on looks as they weigh the same.

I want to recommend the Topolinos.. They are light and stiff but (only me?) I've had problems with them...

The company is very responsive and replaced them twice. I hope they will be OK now because they are SWEET wheels for mountain (road) climbing!

The research we did on Open Pro and Elite wheels was based on the manufacturers' listed weights for rims, spokes, nipples and hubs for the Open Pro and the full wheel for the Elites. All this information is available on their respective websites (Mavic, DT, CK, Shimano, etc.). Unlike the motorcycle manufacturers, I have found bicycle manufacturers to be considerably more accurate in their stated weights.

Give the Topolino's a look.
http://www.topolinotech.com/index.html
I know a guy that's been ridin' the heck out of these and loves 'em. Crazy light and strong.

Go to your LBS and talk to their wheel-builder. He/she will be able to provide you with a wheelset that will exactly match your riding needs. In my experience, for the best combination of liveliness, reliability, lightness, comfort, safety, and maintainability, stick with 32 hole hubs/rims (There's a great selection of quality stuff but ask if the hubs require special tools to overhaul) laced X3 with butted spokes and brass nipples (And get a few extra of each length of spokes used and some 14 gauge nipples).
Gruppo

I think if you're really concerned about weight, go with tubulars. You will save 50 to 100 grams per wheel and get a better ride. And go with revolution spokes. Bladed spokes weight the same as 15ga spokes because it is a 15ga spoke flattened. Bladed might be faster on the flats, but you said that was not a concern for you.

The Ksyiums are nice and their the in thing, but if you pop a spoke, they are harder to replace.

If you're concerned about flats on tubulars, check out tufo tires.

prestonjb, i'm curious to know what problems you had with the topolinos. i've heard nothing but high praise for them. they appear to be everything a cyclist could want, light weight, strong construction, maintenance-free design, great company behind them, etc.

i've previously been an advocate of "old fashioned" wheels, such as the ones gruppo describes above. nothing like a set of DA hubs mated with open pro rims with 14 gague butted spokes laced 2X for the front and non-drive rear, and 3x non-butted for the drive rear. solid wheels, easy to maintain, etc.

with wheels on the market like topolinos, ksyriums, eurus, dura ace, neutrons, race xlites, etc, i feel it would be a mistake not to at least consider a set of pre-builts. my next wheelset will most likely be ksyriums or topolinos. recent rides and owner testimonials have really convinced me. even after my wheels have been freshly trued and tensioned, they don't corner like the ksyriums i rode the other day.

FWIW, http://WesternBikeworks.com sells the topolinos for $699.

I think if you're really concerned about weight, go with tubulars. You will save 50 to 100 grams per wheel and get a better ride. And go with revolution spokes. Bladed spokes weight the same as 15ga spokes because it is a 15ga spoke flattened. Bladed might be faster on the flats, but you said that was not a concern for you.

The Ksyiums are nice and their the in thing, but if you pop a spoke, they are harder to replace.

If you're concerned about flats on tubulars, check out tufo tires.

I second the tubular choice if weight is a concern. If you don't want tubulars then I'd suggest these light-weight clinchers:

1. Nimble Spider (basically American Classic)

2. American Classic Sprint 350

3. Zipp 303 (quite stiff)

4. or if you have crazy $$$, Campagnolo Hyperion Ultra Clinchers (ALL carbon)

I use wheels 1 to 3 on various bikes and they all perform admirably.

excel sports' threat wheels (http://www.excelsports.com/new.asp?page=8&description=Threat+Wheelset&vendorCode=EXCEL&major=1&minor=24) are chris king hubs laced to cxp33s for a decent price as far as i'm concerned. the cxp33 might not be the lightest rim out there, but it's definitely one of the strongest.

alternately, the excel sports cirrus wheels (http://www.excelsports.com/new.asp?page=8&description=Cirrus+Wheelset&vendorCode=EXCEL&major=1&minor=24) are dura ace hubs on open pros for an even better deal than the threats. they also build up a wheelset called the "nimbus" that uses ultegra hubs on open pros which is cheaper still.

i'd rather have the king wheels than the ksyriums, just because of the increased number "engagement teeth."

I weight about the same as you and I have the cirrus wheels. they are very good wheels, at a very good price, and now they have 28 hole version, the cirrus light, for the same price.

However, for an ultralight climbing wheelset, I'd go with something like mavic reflex tubular rims, revolution spokes, and chris king hubs on a 28 hole rim and hub. man...that'd be light...maybe too light though.

so maybe a compromise? open pros w/ kings and revolutions? sounds good to me.