Fastfwd01

I've got a 2015 Cannondale Synapse 5 Disc 105 (Aluminum) and I'm looking at a second set of wheels. My main interest is in my health probably #1 , but as far as racing - only centuries, gran fondos, etc. (I already asked this in the long distance forum and it didn't go very well). I do enjoy and am motivated by Strava and I've racked up like 4 top 10 placements in the last couple weeks on segments that I cross - which I really like to see.

I really can't see myself making a commitment to expensive disc wheels and not knowing if my next bike if I ever get one will be able to use them. There aren't a lot of disc wheel sets out there right now it seems to me. Which maybe impacts the pricing - they are notably more expensive than their rim brake counterparts and that might be justifiable in the need for a more robust build. IDK.

I don't think my bike is ever going to super light - it could be much lighter I'm sure (riding weight with all the junk I carry is around 25lbs currently). I'm not really interested in carbon wheels. Lighter and faster would be nice, but not for as much money as my bike cost me.

I also recently purchased an indoor trainer and the second set will be handy for that. My current wheels have been popping spokes and they might be done period (some really harsh trails here).

I'm leaning toward a set of the Mavic Aksium Pro Discs. They are fairly cheap, but seem to be fairly well regarded at least for being robust. The Ksyrium Discs go for like $1,250 and that seems a bit steep to me. Any input or other suggestions? The Aksiums are on sale today for like $270 with shipping. I'm ready to just buy them and be done with this.

dtrain

Not a lot of choices just yet (as you say) - I'd go with the Aksiums and be done with it for awhile.

Fastfwd01

If I were willing to step up to the Boyd Altamont Disc Brake Hub Wheel Set for $700 would they really be worth more than twice as much as the Mavic Aksiums? I know very little about wheels frankly. I'm trying to learn. The Boyd wheels use the 'j bend' type spokes - is that a weakness or is it a matter of perspective in the Mavic spokes being difficult to find to replace possibly? They Boyd wheels would be about 300 grams lighter.

dtrain

The weight difference and the wider rims would really be nice. But at 2.6x 'today's price' for the Mavic's...geez IDK? I'd certainly go the Boyd route long before Ksyriums.

Plus, you might not need to spend $270:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Mavic-Aksium...9#ht_44wt_1153

Jiggle

If I were you, I'd look at a wheelset with no fewer than 32 spokes front and rear.

If you're popping spokes on your current set because of harsh terrain, you don't want to be dealing with Mavic for repairs on their proprietary wheelset. You just don't.

You might want to look at builds like this: WTB Frequency I23 29er Tubeless Mountain Bike Wheelset SRAM x9 Hub 6 Bolt Disc | eBay

Stronger than Aksiums, easily available replacement components, reasonable price.

cale

I was thinking along similar lines but the recommended tire width of cyclocross/mtn 29" wheels can be rather high. Assuming the OP want to stick with skinny road tires, he'll need something that can accommodate a 23-25 mm tire width.

cale

I'm guessing that the spoke popping is going on in the rear, not the front. If I'm right then the OP only needs a rear wheel. Something like this... Universal Cycles -- Sram X9/Velocity A23 Rear Wheel

Fastfwd01

I ordered the Aksium One Disc wheels while they were on sale (thanks for the ebay tip though). When my ship comes in (wtf does that idiom even infer?) - maybe I'll drop $700 - $3,000 on a set of bicycle wheels. I think I'll have to settle for these for now though as my second set (if the stock rear can even be fixed - had to take it in to have the bike shop take a shot at getting it true again and check spoke tension for me).

I guess I'll find out about how bad dealing with Mavic might be if I ever need to (hopefully not). I do appreciate everyone's input.

Jiggle

Oh yeah, that is the perfect wheel for this guy. Can't believe he bought the Mavics. Terrible decision.

Fastfwd01

This seems like decent logic to me. I need a second set of wheels and I don't think the marketplace has enough competition for aftermarket road Disc wheels yet for great deals on them and I'm on a budget as they say.