Originally Posted by jfmckenna
For those who saw my truing wheel post before you know that my GF got a set of Shimano R550 wheels. She got this set as a replacement set for a Lemond Poprad. The Poprad has Bontrager Select wheels with CX tires. So she wants a set of road wheels to make changing her CX set up to road a lot easier. I had suggested to her that she get another set of Selects to ensure that swapping out the wheel will be a smooth transition as far as derailleur adjustment is concerned. The guy in the LBS said this is not true. Then I talk to some one else that said it can be an issue. So are hubs/wheels/cassette of one brand wheel interchangeable with another or should one stick to proprietary wheel sets for the best transition. Thanks.
In the ideal world there would be absolute interchangability. It often does not work that way in the real world. There are variations from manufacturer to manufacturer as well as tolerance variation even with the same manufacturer. Your best chance of having no issue is stick with same brand and type. I'm also sure lots of others will tell you about mixing brands with no problem,but it's more a matter of luck than than because it was meant to be that way.