it seems that the new thing is to get the few spoke or deep section wheel sets,, but i really wonder what is the benefit other then rotational weight and perhaps the arro advantages.. slight advantage, but i still think a nice set of 3 cross 32 spoke wheels are about the most best riding thing i have come across. but seems like every bike i see now and days are on straight pull bladed wonder wheels. i guess the old box style wheel did not allow the manufacturer a large enough place to plaster a big sticker or some such.. but then again i think the best looking bikes are the ones with a single panel on the downtube and perhaps some small script on the toptube. guess im retro or somthing. hell i like dt shifters too.. althought i have campy and d-ace ergo and sti.

any one else ride MAVIC OPEN PROS or and the like ..

post your bike with the old school low key standard wheel set.
i would just like to see if any is still holding to the old ways.

I ride on a set of Velocity Aeroheads that I hand built.

My deep section wheels are for racing only

I love my open pro/ centaur wheels....but I love my Zipp 440s more....

Don't have a pic handy, but I ride open pros. I can't imagine them dying out anytime soon. The Ultegra/OP combo seems popular.

open pros on ultegra 9sp hubs on my pacer

I wholeheartedly agree. Aero is good for TT but for just riding around, esp. on a course with many short steep climbs a wheel with lower rotational weight is more fun and feels livelier. While I like the Open Pros I prefer the Reflex as in tubular in a 3X laced to high quality hubs like Record, DA or Phils.
Gerry

Well I dont' ride open pros per say but I do have a set of Mavic Cosmos wheels which use a rim that I think is the same as the OP (or pretty darn near it). I had a great set of DT Swiss RR1.1 rims laced to Speedcific hubs for a while and love my Sun M19A-II rims which have a slight aero shape but are pretty much a box section rim like the OP.

32 spokes only makes sense...you can get away with 28 up front and the only reason I am running the Cosmos which are a bit lower spoke count is that I got them for $200 shipped...beater wheel for sure.

My Marin uses Salsa DelgadoX rims which are box section but a bit wider than OPs...they are a cyclocross rim.

Yeah, I guess you are.

Steel is real.

Thirty two is true?

Just like steel and shag carpet they will always be around, but many people enjoy the look and fell of new and innovative products. With they advances in rim technology many low spoke etc. wheels can be just as dependable and functional as the classic standard.

All I ride.

The 'Shark: Open pro hard anodized. 32/32



The Spectrum: Open pro silver. 36 hole rear because of excessive dish on the Campy Chorus hubs. 32 hole front.

No pic but 32h 3x OP/Chorus on my Casati

'Chopper - The saddle to bar drop on your Merckx is damn near Rivendellish. Bet the ride is spectacular...

I don't think Mavic will retire the OP anytime soon. What I do worry about is getting more OP CD Ceramics. These are my current fav wheelset. OP CD Ceramics w/WI H1s and CX-Rays

That photo came out wierd. It looks like there is rise there but there really was a bit of drop. The bike was changed shortly after as that was a bit too comfortable and not at all aero...I already have a hybrid (the Marin) I don't need two. That said the bike is in the midst of an overhaul and new...much better lighted photos with a new position are forthcoming.

The ride is great though.

Pinarello Sestriere steel with DT RR 1.1/ultegra hubs, 32 3x laced. Look great, climb even better and couldn't care less about potholes.

I train on OPs I built myself. I race on Velomax Orions. I so waaaaaant a pair of Zipp 404's.

Bob

Are you all legs and no upper body?

I bought a set of Ultegra/Open Pro wheels because I have an older bike that would look silly with the latest crop of low spoke count wheels. It helped that I got a spankin' good deal on the Ultegra/Open Pros as well.

I have about 30 miles on them and have had to touch up both wheels. It may be my fault, I'm a new to road bikes and skinny tires. I need to learn how to avoid pot holes. Since I touched them up the first time, they've been fine.

Chris

I ride only open pro's with a PT SL hub in the back. Bombproof wheels for pretty rough roads throughout Japan. I've yet to lose a race because my wheels weren't aero enough.

I have a Powertap SL on the way with a 32H DT RR 1.1 rim, much like Nomad's setup...

I really think the advent of the Powertap has led a surge back toward traditional rims, at least among racer types. Who knows? I might even pick up a DT 240s/RR 1.1 front wheel just to match the neo-retro look in the back.

How many races have you done?

Well, if you take any given rim, and put more spokes in it, it will be more durable. There's no racing or boutique wheel out there that will last a clyde for 30,000 miles on average public roads -- but a set of 32/36h Deep Vs will.

I just got into road biking two years ago and racing last year. That's kinda the point I was trying to make though. There's a great distance between where I'm at now and where the difference between a more aero rim is what will win/lose me a race.

On the flip side, I rode an extremely competitive race last year - average speed 41kph for 2 hours. I placed 11th (for tactical failure) out of a field of 92. There were a lot of zipp wheels behind me.

same—on my training wheels and track bikes.

Sorry for the craptastic camera phone picture...I laced Open Pros onto the stock hubs that came on my Langster. Huge improvement, and bombproof over my commute and training ride roads is a real good thing.