Road Cycling - Question: Need advice on buying wheels

A friend of mine needs advice on buying wheels, because we are both beginning riders and have limited knowledge on bike parts. My friend is considering buying the following and would like to know if these wheels are good and how would you folks on the board rate these wheels:

I hope I word this correctly, the items are: a Campagnolo wheel set --Zonda

So, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being very good, how does this wheel rate? And what is the purpose of having less spokes on a wheel? I saw a wheel at the store with 16 or so spokes on it.

I very much appreciate everyone's time to answer my questions. Thanks a lot.

Fewer spokes mean less weight, less inertia to overcome to get up to speed, and less wind turbulence generated by the revolving spokes-- spokes create a tremendous amount of drag as they spin through the air, sometimes called 'the eggbeater effect'. I personally have no experience with the Zondas, I'm sure someone else can chip in.

Dave

This may help....

http://www.roadbikereview.com/Wheelsets/Campagnolo+USA/PRD_287114_2490crx.aspx

55/Rad

Thanks guys, it makes a lot of sense. We will check the website.

g'day,

Mid priced wheels from a quality manufacturer.They will do the job they are designed for. Good training wheels, a tad 'heavy' for racing or climbing, but pretty good for the price,

cheers,

Hitchy

A friend of mine needs advice on buying wheels, because we are both beginning riders and have limited knowledge on bike parts. My friend is considering buying the following and would like to know if these wheels are good and how would you folks on the board rate these wheels:

I hope I word this correctly, the items are: a Campagnolo wheel set --Zonda

So, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being very good, how does this wheel rate? And what is the purpose of having less spokes on a wheel? I saw a wheel at the store with 16 or so spokes on it.

I very much appreciate everyone's time to answer my questions. Thanks a lot.

I'll chip in here with my thoughts. Low spoke count wheels do indeed reduce wind resistance, and they are marginally lighter then 32-spoke wheels. I don't believe however that their benefits matter at all to self-proclaimed "beginner riders". Low spoke count wheels do have a downside -- if you break a spoke a long ways from home, you're going to have a tough time getting home as that wheel will have a major wobble in it. If you break a spoke on a 32-spoke wheel, you can just open the brakes a bit more and then you just ride on home. Any bike shop anywhere can fix a broken spoke in a normal 32-spoke wheel; low-spoke count wheels tend to have "funky" spoke lengths, and they can be much harder to true up.

My recommendation would be to forget about low-spoke boutique wheels and just get your bike shop to build you a set of 32-spoke wheels. Mavic Open Pro rims. They will be cheaper then any boutique wheel, they will be more repairable and they will be extremely reliable.

My recommendation would be to forget about low-spoke boutique wheels and just get your bike shop to build you a set of 32-spoke wheels. Mavic Open Pro rims. They will be cheaper then any boutique wheel, they will be more repairable and they will be extremely reliable.
And they will be good, solid performing wheels.

55/Rad

As you can see in my signature I have them on my colnago :)

I love them, really cool looking wheels. The research I did before buying them showed that the rear wheel was bulletproof (I thought that was good since that's where most of my weight is) and the front wheel is lighter but not fragile by any means. The weight is decent enough that climbing in them wont kill you (low profile version was 20 grams less than these which are medium profile) and the next step up (for 465$CDN) is about 165 grams lighter...if thats worth it to you I just couldn't do the extra cash, I had them upgraded from the mavic's that were supposed to come on the bike.

Oh and as a bonus you get wheel bags with them :)


Chad

http://fastcomp.ath.cx/bike <---they are on my bike there...I think they look amazing :)

I'll chip in here with my thoughts. Low spoke count wheels do indeed reduce wind resistance, and they are marginally lighter then 32-spoke wheels. I don't believe however that their benefits matter at all to self-proclaimed "beginner riders". Low spoke count wheels do have a downside -- if you break a spoke a long ways from home, you're going to have a tough time getting home as that wheel will have a major wobble in it. If you break a spoke on a 32-spoke wheel, you can just open the brakes a bit more and then you just ride on home. Any bike shop anywhere can fix a broken spoke in a normal 32-spoke wheel; low-spoke count wheels tend to have "funky" spoke lengths, and they can be much harder to true up.

My recommendation would be to forget about low-spoke boutique wheels and just get your bike shop to build you a set of 32-spoke wheels. Mavic Open Pro rims. They will be cheaper then any boutique wheel, they will be more repairable and they will be extremely reliable.

So true. I was riding with a friend last weekend and he broke a spoke on his Mavic Ksyrium SL's rear wheel and I had to go back and get the car as there was no way he could of made it back. I think if you race and have support real light wheels are great but if you do long rides out in the country you better have well made wheels that are strong or a cell phone and hope somebody is home.

I have Mavic Ksyrium Elites. Put about 4500 miles on them no questions. (I am about 230# and do not ride them gingerly.) Well, I popped a spoke yesterday at the 54 mile mark. I was able to complete the century, with only a mild wobble. At least I can say they made it through.

Matt