Dimpled vs Non-Dimpled
06-13-07, 02:21 PM
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Dimpled vs Non-Dimpled
I'm looking at getting a Zipp 303 wheelset and can get a non-dimpled one for a pretty good deal, is it worth the extra money for the dimpled ones? Do they make that much of a difference with resistance?
06-13-07, 02:26 PM
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Originally Posted by DRLski
I'm looking at getting a Zipp 303 wheelset and can get a non-dimpled one for a pretty good deal, is it worth the extra money for the dimpled ones? Do they make that much of a difference with resistance?
Honestly, the real reason is that dimpled equals new equals you get a warranty and a 5-year crash replacement discount. And you save a couple watts.
But here's a little snippet from their site:
Originally Posted by zipp.com
The beauty of the 1-4 watt savings is that the shape of the wheels and the dimples have really allowed us to fine tune the drag profile of the wheels such that the peak energy savings occurs in the 10-20 degrees of yaw condition, which account for 80+% of the real world conditions, this means that 80% of the time the savings is closer to the 4 watt figure and even in the worst case is still roughly 1 watt more efficient than the previous generation.
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06-13-07, 02:59 PM
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i've had undimpled 303's dimpled 303's, undimpled 404's and a PT wheel with a dimpled 404 rim. I can't say I can tell zipp differnece.
06-13-07, 03:02 PM
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Originally Posted by merlinextraligh
i've had undimpled 303's dimpled 303's, undimpled 404's and a PT wheel with a dimpled 404 rim. I can't say I can tell zipp differnece.
I think a lot of the bad rap that Zipp gets is that people think that because they can't feel/notice a difference it's not real. It might be real, but none of us mere mortals are prime physical specimens for whom tenths or hundredths of a second mean the difference between being on the podium and not, or for whom those 4 watt savings add up over the course of a grand tour.
But it's fun to ride the same wheels they do.
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06-13-07, 03:03 PM
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Neither the dimples on my cheeks nor my ass seem to increase my speed appreciably. I sincerely hope YMMV.
06-13-07, 03:08 PM
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Originally Posted by DrPete
Yeah, I haven't plugged the numbers in to figure out what 4 watts actually means in terms of speed on the flats, but it's measurable in the lab.
06-13-07, 03:09 PM
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I have dimples and people say I am cute. So I say go for it!!
06-13-07, 03:10 PM
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Originally Posted by merlinextraligh
And every little bit helps. Ceterus peribus I'd rather have dimples, but I wouldn't pass up a killer deal on non dimpled.
I still like the warranty/crash replacement that comes with buying new...
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06-13-07, 07:25 PM
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DrPete already provided the info on the delta between non-dimpled and dimpled iterations of our rims. This has been confirmed by numerous independent tests (Tour Magazine has done several), though these have dealt primarily with the differences between our 404 wheels and the Ritchey/Easton/etc. wheels that use our older smooth rims. Also, note that we added 6 mm of depth (an increase of nearly 16 percent) in conjunction with the redesign in which dimples were added to the 303 wheelset. I don't have all our data handy at this point, but I've included a lousy chart showing the changes from our v-shaped 404 to the torroidal 404 and subsequently the dimpled torroidal 404.
I can't really help you with whether this incremental changes are worth it for your purposes, but at least wanted to add my two pesos.
I can't really help you with whether this incremental changes are worth it for your purposes, but at least wanted to add my two pesos.
