Originally Posted by 12XU
In total agreeance...except for the last statement, which I can refute with the Bontrager XXX Lite wheels, the strongest rim/wheelset in the line-up and utterly bombproof for racing and training alike; I doubt they've been put through a bunny hop test however. Where some Zipp rims and wheels are flex city and wouldn't be fit for anything but racing, some are actually engineered with miles of training in mind.
Bontrager's carbon rims aren't really the bee's knees that they say they are, especially for practical riding. Zipp's no better at all. If you actually did put those Bontrager XXX Lite's through a bunny-hop test, how do you think they'd fare? Poorly. And if you tacked on a poor landing? Carbon rims don't taco. No indeed. They break.
Furthermore, if any part of the rim or hub got a scratch on it that went past the clear coat, it would, as is the case with just about any other carbon fiber product out there, compromise the entire product's structural integrity. Why do you think Bontrager sells 'em with wheel bags?
I'll admit openly that I'm not a fan of Bontrager. In my personal opinion, which I don't hope to foist on anyone, they tend to use corporate clout and "technological advancements" to compensate for a lack of real workmanship. But they put out product, and whatever, I've got no problem with anybody riding their stuff on a velodrome track, or on the pristine roads of the Tour, or anything like that. But if you're riding on the road-road, carbon rims are a baaaaad idea. Plus you have to sell your firstborn to get them. But this thread is about brakes, so I'll hijack no more.