Triathlon - Blackwell Research 100's--any experience?

Starting to kick around the idea of some race wheels, and was wondering if anyone has experience with the Blackwell 100mm wheels. They seem like a worthy competitor to the Zipp 1080 and cost a lot less. Any info would be appreciated....

There's not a lot of real world data being posted on any of the boards but I did find the following post to be interesting...
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First, both are great wheels and both do perform exceptionally well aerodynamically. And both companies stand behind their product. We have tested our wheels against other brands on the market and there are slight differences when looking at wheels of this caliber. A Hed to a Zipp to a Blackwell will all show huge improvements over stock wheels and slight differences among the most aero in each product line. There are other factors to consider: Can I easily contact the manufacturer? What is the warranty? Can the wheels be trued? Which ones perform best in certain race conditions? Which wheelset looks cooler on your bike? etc.

Dave

Dave Bunce
dbunce@blackwellresearch.com
www.blackwellresearch.com
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I also saw a handful of posts that said the Blackwell's are about $500 less expensive than Zipps...fwiw.

Not sure if that helps.

Well, I'll add to this thread in a couple weeks--I just ordered a pair. :D

They are, in fact, $800-1000 less than the Zipp 1080's, the most similar wheel out there, and after interacting with them they seem like a really good company. So we'll see--can't wait to try them out!

Post this to the slowtwitch forum and you'll get a more comprehensive response.

Maybe not...I spent a while searching on ST and there wasn't a lot of real-world experience about these wheels.

any idea when the clincher verision will be available?

They are, in fact, $800-1000 less than the Zipp 1080's, the most similar wheel out there, and after interacting with them they seem like a really good company. So we'll see--can't wait to try them out!

Just read that the company is going out of business.
http://www.slowtwitch.com/News/Blackwell_Research_on_the_brink_513.html

Too bad if that's true. I hate too see any business not succeed. If it is the case however, everyone keep their eyes open in case they start to unload wheelsets at reduced cost...And let us know, at least after you've bought your discounted set:thumb:

I've talked with Hed about the super deep wheels that are on the market, mainly the BR 100 and PX 101. They think that because the company is limited to a 20mm rim width(remember there is a patent on rims wider than at the brake track) you lose the ability to keep air laminar for the duration of the rim. So while a 100mm rim without the torroidal shape does well in low yaw angles, it suffers at yaw due to the above mentioned reasons.

Realistically, they are good wheels. Personally, I'd take a set of Stinger 90s for cheaper any day of the week, but the BR 100s offer good quality for sure.