telebianchi

TL;DR

Opinions on these two wheel sets?
HUNT 4 Season Aero: https://us.huntbikewheels.com/collec...33272330354733

Fulcrum Racing 4 C17: https://www.probikekit.com/bicycle-w.../11815031.html

Full story:

After about five years and 11,500 miles I busted my Bontrager Race X Lite rear wheel beyond easy repair. I smacked into a series of potholes at 25 mph (they were hidden by shade, there was traffic to my left so I couldn't swerve around once I saw them). Only a single broken spoke at the time but two shops agreed that other in the same area were likely also damaged and the rim was probably too out of true to be safely pulled back in. If I knew how to build good wheels I might try to fix myself but it's not worth paying someone else to try only to still have it be unsafe to ride.

So new wheel time!

As another thread here mentioned, available stock on a lot of items is low to non-existent. A shop thought they could get me a DT Swiss 1800 Spline for under $300 ( I get a race team discount), but it turns out that was not actually in stock at their distributor. Next step up is $420. Which got me looking on the interwebs and saw several full wheelset option in that same price range, although I may have to wait a bit for delivery.

The frame is a 2017 Trek Domane with direct mount caliper brakes. Tires are 700x28 clinchers. Front wheel is a base Bontrager Race with about 19,000 miles on it (rear had been replaced and upgraded under Trek warranty). So if I add some grams on a new rear wheel I'd probably get that back on a new front wheel. 95% smooth paved roads, although I do occasionally take the Domane on some local gravel roads just for fun and to connect up routes. The rider, me, is currently 175 lbs but (and I'm sad to say) I have been up as high as 210. Don't want to go there again but you never know.

These are the two wheelsets I'm currently looking at:

HUNT 4 Season Aero: https://us.huntbikewheels.com/collec...33272330354733

Fulcrum Racing 4 C17: https://www.probikekit.com/bicycle-w.../11815031.html

The Hunts are probably the better wheel, but I wonder if the Fulcrums are essentially good enough for me without compromising.

Hunts are wider (19mm to 17mm internal); Bontragers currently are 17.
Hunts are lighter by 146 grams/ third of a pound.
Fulcrums are deeper and "maybe" more aero (35mm vs 28 mm)
Fulcrums are cheaper by $138 including shipping costs.
Hunts can be set up tubeless, although so could my Bontragers and I've been perfectly happy with clinchers.
Fulcrums are available now; Hunts won't be built until late November (I do have an older Ultegra wheel as a spare)
Hunt has a 3-year standard warranty; Fulcrum is two years.
Both ship from England but Hunt has a USA based office for warranty repairs; Fulcrum would need to ship back to England at their (or probikekit) cost.
Hunt has a $49 crash replacement policy. If my Bontrager had that it would have paid for my new wheel now. (This would be on top of the $138 difference mentioned above).

Thanks in advance for any experience with these wheels. Would also be open to others in similar price range and availability.

DaveSSS 

A racing 3 would be a significant step up, with the hubs having Campy's caged ball hubs, rather than cartridge bearings. That's what makes the Campy zonda such a steal. I've got two bikes with zondas for over 2 years now. Both have been flawless.

If tubeless is needed, zondas won't fill the bill.

telebianchi

Thanks. The Racing 3 are within just a couple $$ of the Hunts. Two year warranty and would have to be shipped back to England for repair (although ProBikeKit said they would cover the shipping cost for warranty work).

And the online chat person at ProBikeKit just said he would highly recommend the Hunt wheels as he has used them for a number of years.

Road tubeless is really not that big of a deal to me. I get the benefits from being tubeless on my gravel and mountain bikes. But I've had no real issues running clinchers. My last on-road flat was 2016 and that nail would have taken out a tubeless tire just as easily. My current tires have probably 500-1000 miles left on them and I've got a second new set sitting on a shelf. Clinchers are still less expensive compared to similar quality tubeless. All that said, it doesn't hurt to future-proof if there's no real cost involved.

Thanks again.

Racing Dan

The Racing 5 are cheaper and lighter than the Racing 4. Id go with the R5.

caloso

I can't speak to those specific Fulcrums, but I've been riding on a set of S-4's which were specced on my Tarmac. I think they're 3 rims on 5 hubs or the otherway around. Anyway, they're great daily wheels. Not super light, not super aero, but bombproof and reliable.

ericcox

Very different, but I bought a set of these earlier this summer. They arrived in 7 days. I got them based on the recommendation of a friend. I've got about 1500 miles in mine, including some rough roads and a little light gravel (about 3 miles of one of my out and backs is on gravel trails). I've been really happy with them, though the rear hub is quite loud. A friend had an issue with one; they shipped a replacement. That said, I can't imagine the same kind of support as more established wheel builders.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CJNDEQC...p_mob_ap_share

telebianchi

Those are interesting. But I'm not looking for carbon. I'm not the best descender but do hit some big hills (3 to 7 miles; friends hitting 40 mph average while I'm happy with 27-29 mph on the descents). Even some of the name brands recommend not using their carbon wheels on big descents if you'll be using the rim brakes. Wet weather is another issue for my only set of wheels, but I've been reading that that is not quite the issue with carbon as it used to be thanks to improvements in the brake track. Of course, not sure if that includes sub-$400 carbon wheels.

That said, If I drive about two hours east it's really flat and some more aero wheels could be a lot of fun over their.

Thanks!

ericcox

I'm not sure how I'd feel with these on long descents, but brakes are also my next upgrade due to some issues with mine that predate these wheels (new Ultegra brakes arrive Sunday).

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​​I have done a few wet rides, and they were fine. In terms of weight, they are lighter than what came on my bike, but no, they aren't super light. If you ever want to try aero on the cheap, I'd recommend them.

telebianchi

Very interesting. Unfortunately, can't find them in stock anyplace.

delbiker1 

I cannot comment on the Racing 4 or the Hunts specifically. I only post this because of two previous posts. I love my Fulcrum Racing 5 and my Zondas are outstanding. I was looking at the Fulcrum 4, but saw the 5's and liked the specs and the fact they were lower cost. The Zonda I purchased because I all the 5 star reviews, the specs and they were on sale from PBK, at that time less than $300 USD shipped. I got the Fulcrum 5 from PBK on sale also, just under $200 at that time. Prices have gone up a good bit since then.

Branko D

I rode 7000 km on Fulcrum Racing 4 DBs (that's the disc brake version) before replacing them with Light Bicycle R45s, now they get used as spares.

They are good wheels, sturdy and ride well. I rode them on road and some light offroad on 23/25mm GP5000 tire combo and they are as true as they were on day one despite not being
​​​​​​really pampered. Somewhat aero, too. Bearing adjustment on the hubs is easy and the hubs are super smooth.

Caveats, they are somewhat aero with a 23mm GP5000 front tire which sits almost flush with the rim, the 25mm bulges out some and that basically ruins the aerodynamics, and a 28mm would predictably bulge out a lot (5000s are also pretty narrow tires) where it would be unsightly, even. Secondly, it is twichier in crosswinds due to V shape than a, say, 45mm U shape rim or a shallow alloy rim. You notice it, it's not terrible but it's felt.

It's also a bit on the heavy side, but it's what also makes it sturdy if you are a wheel destroyer. It feels like a very rigid wheel. I'd recommend it as a budget wheel, for sure (although with discs there's not much reason not to go for carbon): it would be pretty awesome if they had put bladed spokes on it.
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telebianchi

Thanks again for all the comments.

I ended up grabbing a used set of Oval Concepts 733 wheels with about 2500 miles on them. (if you don't know, Oval is the in-house brand for Fuji and a few others) I haven't set up tires on them yet, but they are spinning true and round. Also haven't weighed them yet, but based on reviews, specs and my non-calibrated arm the rear should be a touch heavier than the Bontrager RXL that I busted, but the front will be lighter than my current Bontrager Race on the front (I've read total weight from 1480 to 1560 g). So likely a net no change or possibly shave a few ounces that I will never, ever notice. The Ovals can be set up tubeless and have a 17mm internal width (same as my current wheels). Also, the rim depth goes is 33 mm vs approx 22 mm on the Bontragers. Theoretically a little bit more aero (knowing that rim shape, etc. goes into that too) with hopefully no big difference in cross winds.

Downside to the Ovals is that the labels are blue & white whereas my Trek Domane is satin black with dark red accents. Oh! Will the fashion gods ever forgive me!!

Hopefully these Ovals will keep me happy for several years at least, but if not I was zeroing in on the Hunts or Pacenti Forza wheels. I liked the specs and reviews of the Fulcrums that have been talked about, but the warranty on the Hunts was better (3 years vs 2) and both Hunt and Pacenti have US-based warranty service centers.

Thanks again!