luckydog125

Hi and thanks for taking a look at my post. I am riding a Pinarello ROKH and riding lots of hills in the Santa Monica Mountains in Southern California. I have had the bike a little over a year and want to upgrade the wheels. I am so confused (and not very knowledgeable) about the differences between carbon clinchers vs. all the other options out there. My current (stock) wheel set weights 1665 and want to find something in the 1300/1400 range to help me up the hills!! So with that said, I want to make sure that braking isnt impacted and fixing a flat doesn't become too complicated. I was considering the Shimano Dura Ace C35's seem to be a good option, but curious what else is out there. Any help is much appreciated!

trailflow1

The 'tubular' version of the Shimano Dura Ace C35 are made from full carbon fiber and require tubular tyres.

The 'clincher' version of the Shimano Dura Ace C35 wheels have an aluminium brake surface with a carbon fairing. So braking and changing tyres will be no different to your current set up. They are much safer than full carbon rims as the aluminium dissipates the heat better from braking. They will also not suffer from delamination or bulging if the rim get too hot. Do a google image search on 'carbon wheels delamination'

Changing tyres on full carbon clincher rims is also no different to alloy. Though lots of manufacturers will recommend against using latex inner tubes. As the heat build up can potentially cause the tube to fail.

The difference between full carbon wheels and alloy wheels is mostly weight. Carbon fibre can be shaped into different aerodynamic profiles much easier than aluminium can be extruded. So for the same rim shape,depth, carbon is much lighter. Also deeper = more aero.

As for rim shapes - 'u-shaped' rims are considered to be faster in the wind tunnel and to be the best all-rounder. Whilst older 'v-shaped' rims are more likely to be affected by sidewinds more.

The latest full carbon rims from the mainsteam brands are reported to brake well with good carbon specific brake pads. My old chinese carbon rims braked very well in the dry and good in the wet.

Alot of the latest carbon wheels have wide rims (23mm+ outside diameter) while alot of factory wheels/alloy rims still use narrow 19mm or less widths. Wide rims improve comfort,grip and stabilty when combined with bigger tyres (25/28c). There is also less potential for snake bike punctures due to the tyre profile. ie more rounded and less lightbulb shaped. There are also plenty of wide aftermarket alloy rims available if you decide to go the custom/handbuilt route.

Lastly there is also the real danger of a full carbon rim delaminating if it gets too hot. The carbon/resin can fail catastrophically if you brake hard and long enough. Some manufacturers claim to use 'high temp' resins hopefully adding some protection. Others do not.

I retired my chinese carbon wheels because the 'basalt' brake surface started to quickly eat through my pads after 1k miles. So i would try to steer you away from those.

Rook24V

If you're concerned with weight and climbing, the C24 Dura Ace wheels are lighter than the C35, and a lot less money. I just got a set shipped for $760ish from Merlin Cycles in the UK. So far, I love them, but only have about 100 miles on them so far.

cthenn

I'm so ready to buy a set of these...I had an opportunity several months ago when some of these UK sites were selling for under $700, but didn't pull the trigger. Now they are in this price range (closer to $800) and have backed off a bit. BTW, did you pay brokerage fees or duty for these when they were shipped to you?

Silvercivic27

Mavic R-Sys SLR Wheel System | Competitive Cyclist

tmh657

I am looking at these as well. I have been monitoring ebay for a deal. It's not there. These seem to be very popular and sell on the bay for close to $700 slightly used. Maybe a little less without the original skewers.

Shimano Dura Ace WH 9000 C24 11SP Clincher Wheelset | eBay

Rook24V

Not yet! I've been told I might be assessed on later on, but this by a friend, not by Merlin. So far all I've paid is the purchase price which included freight. They arrived in less than 72hours. I was amazed. They're beautiful wheels too. Very light, I love the meaty look of the front hub, the rear hub is whisper quiet, and they mounted my 700cx25mm Vittoria Rubino Pro Slicks without any tire irons. They roll very well and are significantly more comfortable over bumps than the Vuelta Corsa Lite wheels they replaced.

Man, thats $710 for used wheels with freight. I got mine for $760 brand new. I'm not made of money but the extra $50 seems like a good investment to make sure they weren't abused first.

Dave Mayer

You have to understand the tradeoffs. Carbon will be lighter, but more expensive and feature worse braking performance than alu. No matter what calipers or pads you choose. I have 3 sets of carbon rims, and I do worry about heat buildup on long descents.

High profile wheels are more aero, but will be heavier. Since much of my riding is accerations/starts/stops, I like the lower mass of low-profile rims.

Clinchers will be about 150g heavier per wheel than tubulars - this is inescapable due to the construction of clincher rims. For this and safety reasons, all competitive road and cross riding at the elite/pro performance level is done on tubulars.

cthenn

OK, can you update the thread if you do get charged, (or if you don't after several weeks). I am so confused on when they charge this stuff, seems totally random and therefore bullshi+