Pakiwi

I ride a Carbon road bike and have Aksium Race wheelset.
Not very happy with the hubs as I have already had to replace the inner gear housing and pawns as the cassette was rocking. Also they don't roll as freely as my 7 speed ultegra hubs. I know they are cheap and they were second hand to me and I put 4000 miles on them. My current weight is 218 and slowly declining.
So I am looking for a replacement wheelset. Not in any hurry as I am back on the trainer over the colder months.
The tyres I currently use are Maxis Refuse 25. I want to continue to ride centuries and look at 200km and 400km next year.
The roads in PA where I live are generally rough though I do try to dodge pot holes.
Looking for guidance and prefer to stay away from Mavic.
Thanks
Allan

jsigone

budget**********?

Pakiwi

Below $600 that looked like a good price point for good aluminium wheelset.
Allan

bassjones

Deep Vs with White Industries hubs will come in right around that price point. I REALLY like the White Industries hubs. Any rim should work, but I'm a fan of Velocity. You're light enough to use their lighter wheel sets too.

Wilfred Laurier

recommendation
ultegra hubs butted spokes
mid weight alloy rims

jsigone

I like Spingery xaero PBO for outta the box wheels or full custom w/ white industry hubs on some tubeless rims, stans A400 or PL23s

The spinergy's pbo spokes dampen the road chatter even w/ 23c tires, but slower at 25+mph because of the spoke front surface area and even way worse at 35+ sprints. Tubeless runs lower air pressure by 5-10psi which dampens the road chatter but with or w/o bladed spokes is faster at 25+ mph. Con's tires are more expensive at $70 each. No flat tires til the rubber wears out is a good bonus and saves money on tubes and C02.

Both will weigh at around 1500 grams +/- 75grams

bigfred 

Some Ultegra hubs laced to 23mm, 450'ish gram rims?

By the way, when I was riding Re-fuses I found them incredibly puncture resistant and extremely grippy, but, short lived and slow as slugs. If you're at all concerned about speed there are faster rolling tires that are slightly longer wearing while only being a little less puncture resistant.

Pakiwi

Fred,
What are the tires that you went to.
Also I was thinking last night after reading Peter Whites page, should I just weight until I am a real cyclists weight. My weight goal is to get down to 165.
Going to still. Look at the wheels recommended.
Before I asked I was looking at Fulcrum 3s and Shimano c24 RS81
Thanks
Allan

adrien

I rode Ultegra and Deep V for years. Killed the rims after 14,000 miles, rebuilt with new rims. Solid wheel set; now relegated to second back up which means they will be for sale soon.

I'd suggest 32, 3x for the back; front you could get away with something as low as 24 spokes if (that's a big if) you or your builder know what you are doing.

If you want to try a newer, wider rim (allows for more volume on the same size tire), I am a fan of H Plus Son Archetypes. A set of those, on Ultegra hubs (or something more interesting -- white, Paul, King, but now I'm blowing your budget) would be cool. And don't skimp on spokes. They are a HUGE factor in strength and comfort. DT or Sapim.

bigfred 

I've tried a few since then and settled on Conti GP 4 Seasons for now. They seem to offer a balance I find acceptable. Better road feal and speed than the refuses, similiar mileage, lighter and very few punctures. Their one trade off is that I've cut a couple sidewalls.

JerrySTL

I weigh around 215 lbs and we have chip and tar roads around here.

My road bike came with a reduced spoke wheelset using Mavic CXP-21 rims and a no-name hub. Something like 20 spokes in the front and 24 spokes in the back. Every once in a while I'd get the 'speed shimmy' or 'death wobble'. After it happened very badly at 40 mph, I opted for a new wheelset of Mavic Open Pro rims with 32 spokes and Ultegra hubs. Not a problem since. As a bonus the OP wheels were actually lighter by about 20 grams than the original wheels.

On another bike I had CXP-33 rims also with Ultegra hubs. It had 28 radial spokes on the front and 32 on the back. Talk about bullet-proof! Those heavy rims stayed true even with a spoke completely loose. I kept hearing a 'tinking' sound but didn't check the spokes at first as the wheel wasn't wobbling at all.

Pakiwi

I have a set of CXP 21 with Ultegra hubs. I may just run those until I have decided what I want. They were off my steel bike and really aren't bad. Just had to switch out the 9 speed hub and replace it with the 10 speed.
i bought the Aksium because I have had good use out of them, but the rear hub is definitely a weak point. I did read the higher end Mavic's are better but not sure I want to try them again.
Allan

mr_reality

Check out Boyd wheels. Excellent quality and pricing. I put a set on my roubaix and haven't regretted the decision at all.

Boyd Cycling - Handcrafted Revolution

Pakiwi

I think I'm going to hold off at the moment. Still trying to figure out what I want. If I do a 200 and 400 k brevet it may make sense to get a dyno hub first. At least I can use what I have over winter until I have figured out my goals for next year. I did get a pair of hand me down Fulcrum to use if I want them. Though at 215 not sure if they will be suitable.
Allan

Bill Kapaun

IF the rims are in good shape, maybe just get new hubs and probably spokes and build them yourself?

Pakiwi

I have to say at this time that that's a skill I do not have.
im not against trying but would need some good information and guidance.thanks

Allan

bigfred 

A pair of aksiums really isn't worth investing too much time and money into. If the issue can be resolved with some stock industry standard off the shelf bearings, they might be worth it. But, I certainly wouldn't spend much at Mavic's overpriced rates to keep them in service.

If you're interested in learning to build your own I would recommend starting with some new, yet affordable components and go from there.

andr0id

Another vote for Ultegra hubs laces onto some Velocity rims.

You pretty much can't wear out Shimano hubs unless you seriously abuse them.

Jack Lorington

sbyrstall

Please be kind to me, I'm still learning all the lingo.
As I'm getting from reading here (and few other places) that wheels with a higher spoke count should be the first thing to look at. So 28-32 should be the back, and 24-28 for the front?

Bill Kapaun

There are far too many variables to guess what would be good for you.
Your-
Weight
Riding style.
Bike type.
Brake type.
Tire size.
Terrain.

Generally speaking, more spokes makes a stronger wheel.
A quality build can make a HUGE difference in longevity and strength.
Strong and most durable don't always go together.