Hey All

After commuting daily along the canal path my rear wheel has finally packed it in so I'm on the hunt for a new pair of wheels.
Any advice or suggestions?
I want a nice pair that will suit the bike and not set me back too much! Worried that vintage wheels might not last too long so maybe new is the way to go??

Bike is here

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...-upgrades.html

Thanks !

[MENTION=391432]radwilko[/MENTION] - what is "packed it in" mean?
1. Out of true?
2. Broken spokes?
3. Damaged rim?
4. Failed hub bearings?

Means dead. Haha It's out of true and they've already been fixed twice. So I think it's overdue that they were replaced

If the hub is in good shape why not just rebuild the wheel with new spokes and rims? It looks to me like you could use Mavic Open Pro rims and the look wouldn't be that different. Document the lacing of the current spoke pattern so it can be duplicated and the same notches in the hub flange used again. There are several good books on wheel building out there and many coops, etc offer classes.

Open Pros are (I'm guessing, haven't bought one for several years) ~$70 each. Spokes might cost you $50. $10 for rim strips. You can build the wheels yourself. (Stick to the original spoke pattern and your clumsiest efforts won't hurt the hub at all.) Building wheels, once learned, is a lifelong skill like riding a bicycle, is fun and saves a lot of money. Wheel building tools you will need: A good spoke wrench that matches your spokes. Stick to the excellent Wheelsmith or Swiss DT spokes and you will use the black handled Park spoke wrench. ($8?) A truing stand is nice but quality really doesn't matter. I have been building first class wheels for 30 years on a really cheap stand. A $150 Park would be a pleasure but wouldn't improve the wheels I've built. Or you can build the wheels using your brake pads for reference. I raced on wheel built that way. If you do not get a really high end stand, a $25 dishing tool is needed (or you can make you own out of wood or metal and nut and bolt).

So $70 X 2 + $50 + 10 (rims, spokes and rimstrips) + $8 + $50 (a cheap stand) + $25 = $283 for your first two wheels. Next wheel: $100. (I am assuming you have already spent the $5 for a suitable bicycle grease to lube the threads and rim eyelets. The Park green, Campy and a whole lot of others work just fine.) And with good work, you will be able to replace rims worn out from braking or that have seen bad things by simple taping the new rim to the old, swapping over the spokes and truing. $70 for a wheel that rides like brand new.

Ben

I've put these on three bikes so far. Very good value. Can't imagine how they sell these so cheap. Only thing I don't like is the alloy quick release lever on the skewer. Usually just put the old steel quick releases back on. ..............

WheelMaster 27" Road Wheel Set - Sun Cr18 Rim, 36H, 5/6/7-Speed FW, QR, Silver

[MENTION=391432]radwilko[/MENTION] - are you up for wheel building? I know that's not what you asked, but it can be fun. I learned from the book called The Wheel by Jobst Brandt. After about 8 wheels I took a 3 day class, which taught me some more specifics & fine tuned my skills. Anyway I ended up unlacing my 27" wheels, using the original hub & laced to 700c rims and they look appropriate to the bike.

If not, then you can check places like Niagara bikes for vintage-y wheel sets.

I am with Ramzilla's suggestion. If your commuting (are these trails paved or just hard packed dirt?) a good set of 36h box section rims will give you a good ride and be pretty durable.

Sun/Shimano CR18 Wheel Set 700c Silver

BTW nice commuter.

I had a custom set built by this company and am very happy with it:

CUSTOM HAND BUILT BICYCLE WHEELS Built By Professionals - Prowheelbuider.com

I like Mavic rims, because of the history. However, Velocity makes some great rims. We have a Velocity Chukker 48h in 622 (700c) on our tandem, and its probably the strongest bicycle wheel ever built. Certainly the strongest that Peter White has ever used and he specializes in touring/tandem wheels. I have a 48h 27" Velocity Dyad on my vintage Cannondale now.

I prefer 630 (27") rims on my vintage Cannondales. There is nothing inherently "better" about the 622 (700c) size over 630 (27"). Its like the 650b resurgence. If you talked about going from 622 to 584 in that language instead of saying going from 700c to 650b, half the conversions wouldn't happen. For large frame sizes over 58cm, it makes no sense to downgrade the wheel set from 630 (27") to 622 (700c). I have big bikes and I hate how small the wheels look even with the 630s.

Back in the day most non-racing bikes were spec'd 36h in the front and 40h in the rear. While spokes have gotten much better rims were good back in the day already (Mavic Module and Super Champion). For a commuter hard on wheels you can't get more rim than a Velocity Chukker. However, I'd stick with 630 if that is what the bike originally fit.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but more important to me is the issue of availability of high quality tires. Much more to choose from in 700c.

rims are a consumable, like tires, tubes, cables
a good hub will outlast many many rims
lace up a new set of quality 700c rims on your old hubs
repack the bearings,and keep on riding,