Wheelset Recommendations
#1
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 23
Likes: 0
From: Singapore
Bikes: 2019 Giant Defy Advanced 2
Wheelset Recommendations
Hi everyone, Im new on this forum..
Looking for recommendations to upgrade my bike's wheelset..
Riding a 2019 Giant Defy Advanced 2 right now and thinking of upgrading my wheels..I dont do races, just leisure road/park connector cycling distance of about 70-80km at a time but aiming to hit 100km..
Have been looking at Fulcrum Racing 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7 Disc Brakes, a little more incline towards the Racing 4 and perhaps also the DT Swiss wheelsets..however, im not too sure what to look out for..can these fit my bike? What other recommendations are there where pricing are somewhat similar to these few models i have in mind...
Looking for recommendations to upgrade my bike's wheelset..
Riding a 2019 Giant Defy Advanced 2 right now and thinking of upgrading my wheels..I dont do races, just leisure road/park connector cycling distance of about 70-80km at a time but aiming to hit 100km..
Have been looking at Fulcrum Racing 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7 Disc Brakes, a little more incline towards the Racing 4 and perhaps also the DT Swiss wheelsets..however, im not too sure what to look out for..can these fit my bike? What other recommendations are there where pricing are somewhat similar to these few models i have in mind...
#2
Senior Member


Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 8,630
Likes: 3,543
From: South shore, L.I., NY
Bikes: Trek Emonda SL7, Cannondale Topstone, Miyata City Liner, Specialized Chisel, Specialized Epic Evo
What are you hoping to gain ?
Many folks upgrade to 1) Save weight. Expensive. 2) Replace a crappy wheel set on a basic bike due to spokes breaking, which is usually the rear wheel in any case, so maybe only a rear wheel needed. 3) Looks. Deep carbon wheels look great. 3) Have a set of racing vs. training/winter wheels. 4) Have a set of wheels with different tires - gravel bike with a set of big dirt tires, vs. a set of 25-28mm road tires.
Defining your goals helps us make a recomendation
Many folks upgrade to 1) Save weight. Expensive. 2) Replace a crappy wheel set on a basic bike due to spokes breaking, which is usually the rear wheel in any case, so maybe only a rear wheel needed. 3) Looks. Deep carbon wheels look great. 3) Have a set of racing vs. training/winter wheels. 4) Have a set of wheels with different tires - gravel bike with a set of big dirt tires, vs. a set of 25-28mm road tires.
Defining your goals helps us make a recomendation
#3
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 23
Likes: 0
From: Singapore
Bikes: 2019 Giant Defy Advanced 2
What are you hoping to gain ?
Many folks upgrade to 1) Save weight. Expensive. 2) Replace a crappy wheel set on a basic bike due to spokes breaking, which is usually the rear wheel in any case, so maybe only a rear wheel needed. 3) Looks. Deep carbon wheels look great. 3) Have a set of racing vs. training/winter wheels. 4) Have a set of wheels with different tires - gravel bike with a set of big dirt tires, vs. a set of 25-28mm road tires.
Defining your goals helps us make a recomendation
Many folks upgrade to 1) Save weight. Expensive. 2) Replace a crappy wheel set on a basic bike due to spokes breaking, which is usually the rear wheel in any case, so maybe only a rear wheel needed. 3) Looks. Deep carbon wheels look great. 3) Have a set of racing vs. training/winter wheels. 4) Have a set of wheels with different tires - gravel bike with a set of big dirt tires, vs. a set of 25-28mm road tires.
Defining your goals helps us make a recomendation
#4
#5
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 23
Likes: 0
From: Singapore
Bikes: 2019 Giant Defy Advanced 2
#6
Senior Member
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 1,090
Likes: 14
From: Upstate NY
Bikes: CAAD 12, ROS 9+, and some others
I read a bunch of wheel reviews on-line back in December over the holiday and was getting ready to buy a set of big brand wheels. Before pulling the trigger I emailed Robert over at Psimet. A few emails and a phone call later I ordered a set from Psimet. Think I did better there than I would have elsewhere. Super knowledgeable guy.
#7
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 23
Likes: 0
From: Singapore
Bikes: 2019 Giant Defy Advanced 2
I read a bunch of wheel reviews on-line back in December over the holiday and was getting ready to buy a set of big brand wheels. Before pulling the trigger I emailed Robert over at Psimet. A few emails and a phone call later I ordered a set from Psimet. Think I did better there than I would have elsewhere. Super knowledgeable guy.
#8
Senior Member

Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 9,158
Likes: 1,743
From: Lebanon (Liberty Hill), CT
Bikes: Canyon Aeroad, CAAD 12, MASI Gran Criterium S, Colnago World Cup CX, Guru steel & Guru Photon
Mavic USTs will cost under $500 and include tires. Faster, smoother and more comfortable. And, of course, major flat protection.
#9
https://www.merlincycles.com/en-us/f...19-149739.html
or DT Swiss R23 Spline Disc Clincher Wheelset for $259
https://planetcyclery.com/catalog/pr.../category/676/
Last edited by noodle soup; 02-06-20 at 10:01 AM.
#11
Pointy Helmet Tribe
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 4,338
Likes: 629
From: Offthebackistan
Bikes: R5, Allez Sprint, Shiv
Lightbicycle has some pretty good wheels at very reasonable prices. Reputable company and good after-sales support. I just got a 1412gm / 36mm deep wheelset from them for a hair over $600. Dont have enough miles on those wheels to have an opinion on quality yet, but given the positive reviews they get, i dont expect any issues. Cosmetically, they look amazing.
My experience with Fulcrum has been meh. I have a pair of Racing Zeros with perhaps 4000-5000km on them and no major pothole impact, and they are out of true. By comparison, my Psimet wheels ran for years and years with zero fuss and zero truing issues. As an alternative to LB, consider opening a Shop'n'Ship account and getting wheels from him - you'll pay around $50 in shipment, and his wheels are flat-out amazing.
My experience with Fulcrum has been meh. I have a pair of Racing Zeros with perhaps 4000-5000km on them and no major pothole impact, and they are out of true. By comparison, my Psimet wheels ran for years and years with zero fuss and zero truing issues. As an alternative to LB, consider opening a Shop'n'Ship account and getting wheels from him - you'll pay around $50 in shipment, and his wheels are flat-out amazing.
#12
#13
Senior Member

Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 9,158
Likes: 1,743
From: Lebanon (Liberty Hill), CT
Bikes: Canyon Aeroad, CAAD 12, MASI Gran Criterium S, Colnago World Cup CX, Guru steel & Guru Photon
#14
Senior Member

Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 9,158
Likes: 1,743
From: Lebanon (Liberty Hill), CT
Bikes: Canyon Aeroad, CAAD 12, MASI Gran Criterium S, Colnago World Cup CX, Guru steel & Guru Photon
I bought a set of rim brake wheels w/tires for under $500. That was about 6 months ago.
#15
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Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 8,297
Likes: 11,386
Bikes: Colnago, Van Dessel, Factor, Cervelo, Ritchey
#16
#20
I wouldn’t consider either of these options because of issues with the hubs. A little searching will find many complaints about the hubs on Hunt wheels, and the Neugent hubs use a poor geometry that requires an insanely high DS tension.
I’m not a fan of Mavic wheels, but I’d give Mavic another try before buying Hunt or Neugent.
I’m not a fan of Mavic wheels, but I’d give Mavic another try before buying Hunt or Neugent.
#21
Senior Member

Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 2,100
Likes: 811
From: Seattle
Bikes: Specialized Roubaix, Obed Boundary, Canyon Inflite AL SLX, Ibis Ripley AF, Priority Continuum Onyx, Santana Vision, Kent Dual-Drive Tandem
I've never had an issue with the hubs on my Hunt Aero Light Disc wheelset, they're on my rain bike and get plenty of abuse. In fact, I quite like them, they spin very well and have a high engagement rate for the price. I've only heard about these supposed hub issues here, hardly what I would call many complaints.
#22
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2019
Posts: 1,115
Likes: 364
From: Portland
I wouldn’t consider either of these options because of issues with the hubs. A little searching will find many complaints about the hubs on Hunt wheels, and the Neugent hubs use a poor geometry that requires an insanely high DS tension.
I’m not a fan of Mavic wheels, but I’d give Mavic another try before buying Hunt or Neugent.
I’m not a fan of Mavic wheels, but I’d give Mavic another try before buying Hunt or Neugent.
#23
Senior Member




Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 29,526
Likes: 13,529
From: In the foothills of Los Angeles County
I wouldn’t consider either of these options because of issues with the hubs. A little searching will find many complaints about the hubs on Hunt wheels, and the Neugent hubs use a poor geometry that requires an insanely high DS tension.
I’m not a fan of Mavic wheels, but I’d give Mavic another try before buying Hunt or Neugent.
I’m not a fan of Mavic wheels, but I’d give Mavic another try before buying Hunt or Neugent.
#24
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 23
Likes: 0
From: Singapore
Bikes: 2019 Giant Defy Advanced 2
Im currently leaning towards getting a DT-Swiss 350 32 holes hubs (front and rear with 36T ratchet) together with DT-Swiss RR481 or R500 rims to go with a pair or Schwalbe Pro One TLE..
I see that DT-Swiss has rims with rim height of 21mm, 23mm, 25mm and 32mm, personally prefer the mid-range (thus RR481 and R500). Also because they can support weight of 130kg which im quite close to..plus they are quite light too, 485g and 495g respectively..
Waiting to hear what price my local bike shop here in Singapore can offer..
I see that DT-Swiss has rims with rim height of 21mm, 23mm, 25mm and 32mm, personally prefer the mid-range (thus RR481 and R500). Also because they can support weight of 130kg which im quite close to..plus they are quite light too, 485g and 495g respectively..
Waiting to hear what price my local bike shop here in Singapore can offer..
#25
I'm not surprised that you like the Neugent wheels better than your old Mavic wheelset. Those were boat anchors, so the weight difference is very noticeable.
The new ones use traditional straight-pull spokes, and the hubs were redesigned to use a splined ring gear similar to DT.
I'm not a big fan of Mavic wheels, but I'd rather try their new ones than either Hunt or Neugent.
(edit) after looking at the Mavic website I see that they still use proprietary spokes on their wheels. For this reason I will never recommend their wheelsets.
I sill love the old Open Pros laced to 8 speed Record hubs on my Guerciotti, but even OPs quality declined in the later years.
Last edited by noodle soup; 02-07-20 at 09:14 AM.




