Road Cycling - World's Lightest Wheels?

what are the lightest non-prototype wheels? I've found zipp Z2's at 985 grams/set. Anyone seen any lighter than that?

oh, and the lightest non-limited edition wheels? i know zipp 202s are 1040, reynolds' cirro kom's are 1050 or so. anyone know of any lighter? i've got a weight conscious friend for whom a wheel weight limit is not an issue. thoughts?

How much body weight could your friend afford to lose?

How much body weight could your friend afford to lose?

pretty much none--she weighs around 100 pounds or so. she's got someone trying to sell her xxx lites. i already told her there are lighter wheels out there (currently she's got some deep section Lew's but wants shallower profile ones), and mentioned the zipps, but wanted to present some other options.

pretty much none--she weighs around 100 pounds or so. she's got someone trying to sell her xxx lites. i already told her there are lighter wheels out there (currently she's got some deep section Lew's but wants shallower profile ones), and mentioned the zipps, but wanted to present some other options.

i found this - has side by side comparison of many wheels and links their sites.

http://weightweenies.starbike.com/listings/components.php?type=roadwheels&sortby=claimed

hope this helps a bit.

i found this - has side by side comparison of many wheels and links their sites.

http://weightweenies.starbike.com/listings/components.php?type=roadwheels&sortby=claimed

hope this helps a bit.


although i think the zipp's are lighter than anything on here, so it may not help too much.

i found this - has side by side comparison of many wheels and links their sites.

http://weightweenies.starbike.com/listings/components.php?type=roadwheels&sortby=claimed

hope this helps a bit.

great site. thanks. i particularly like the "claimed" weight vs actual. i noticed the 'tragers were 70 grams heavier than they advertise...

edit (to reply): yeah, i noticed they didn't have the 202's or Z2s on there. still, good information for those of us not in the market for $1500 wheelsets.

Tubulars or Clinchers?

Tubulars or Clinchers?

either. lightest overall. my experience is that tubular wheels are lighter, but i'll listen to reason.

American Classic make a clincher rim that weighs 350 grams called the American Classic 350 (creative name).

Here's another weight list. It's a bit old, it needs updating, I'm sure most of you already have it, but it's got a LOT of gear listed.

http://www.geocities.com/kwanseng/weight.html

American Classic make a clincher rim that weighs 350 grams called the American Classic 350 (creative name).
Bill Shook also has a magnesium 300g clincher rim out. I personally think that a 300g clincher rim is getting to the point of "stupid light" but if you're all for it, I can't see why it wouldn't be the best option. link (http://www.amclassic.com/Mag_300_Wheels.html)

Anyways, weight weenies has a thread going about the lightest weight tubulars here (http://weightweenies.starbike.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1421&highlight=magnesium)

or you could custom build your own crazy light wheel as this guy did. (http://weightweenies.starbike.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1546&highlight=lexan)

things don't get much lighter (or more expensive) than ADA (http://www.ada.prorider.org/carbonwheel.html). i hope she's prepared to wait.

what are the lightest non-prototype wheels? I've found zipp Z2's at 985 grams/set. Anyone seen any lighter than that?

oh, and the lightest non-limited edition wheels? i know zipp 202s are 1040, reynolds' cirro kom's are 1050 or so. anyone know of any lighter? i've got a weight conscious friend for whom a wheel weight limit is not an issue. thoughts?


What is the intended use for this wheelset? Race only? If so, 202s should fit the bill and are way cool in person (the rims have a reddish/purple tint to the carbon). Add some 195 gram Tufo tubbies and you're good to go.
In all honesty, once you're under 1200-1300 grams, they all feel the same IMO. I have 303s (1150 grams) with 215 gram Tufo S3 Lites as race only wheels and I doubt I'm any faster on them than my King/Ritchey OCR/Revolution wheelset that weighs in at just under 1400 grams and has Veloflex Pave clinchers. Don't get me wrong, the Zipps are fantastic but light wheels are only as fast as the rider and unless your friend is at the top of the sort, it's just for bragging rights.

With all that being said, my next set of race only wheels will be something from the Reynolds line. They're unbelievably good. They took the LEW design, perfected it, and now turn out the best wheel on the market (the same cannot be said about the LEWs).

I forgot to mention that the American Classic 350 has a 200 pound rider limit as does their magnesium wheel, those other light rims as well as others that are even heavier have a 180 pound limit. Assuming A.C. is correct then weight weenies can get a light weight rim that is also strong enough for most road race applications. But for the 350 is about 1/2 the price of the magnesium and you only gain about 2 grams per wheel; that seems to be a lot of money for 4 grams total weight savings!

What is the intended use for this wheelset? ... Don't get me wrong, the Zipps are fantastic but light wheels are only as fast as the rider and unless your friend is at the top of the sort, it's just for bragging rights.
With all that being said, my next set of race only wheels will be something from the Reynolds line. They're unbelievably good. They took the LEW design, perfected it, and now turn out the best wheel on the market (the same cannot be said about the LEWs).

she's at the top of the sort. well nearly, anyway--trying to move from 3rd to 1st in the world. sounds like 202's might be the way to go. certainly better/lighter than the bontrager xxxlites.

incidentally, what's wrong with LEWs? i might buy hers off her if she gets some new ones, and don't want to buy a lemon.