Thanks to you all I have decided against the Mavic R-sys and decided to get a pair of Ksyrium ES's. They are a slight upgrade from my 2004 ksyrium SL's. My question is... will I notice much difference other than the bling aspect? Thanks for all your advice on the R-sys... that really helped.

I wouldn't do it unless the others are worn out.

As far as I know the SL and ES are the SAME wheel except for the carbon hubs.

White Ind. H1s , sapim cx-ray spokes, aerohead rims = <$800 , <1450g, more aero, and easier to repair that ksyrium wheels. will probably last longer too.

+1. Having said that I sold my first Elites just to buy a net set that was black to match my bike.

Yeah I know, I know.... but sometimes you just need some new bling on the old steed. Is there anyone who would tell me to pull the trigger? Or should I just be practical and keep running my old SL's. That red spoke has magical powers!

Be practical...keep running the old SLs.

Use the money for another wheel with another purpose...

Race wheels? Carbon aero wheels? You could even pump that money into a nice used n+1 bike!

That red spoke has magical powers![/QUOTE]

Yes it does, and I ride the brand of the single red spoke....it truly is magical.....and if you use the 20% off at Performance on Christmas it's cheaper too! Pull the trigger on this one and enjoy as I do!

I am going to upset a lot of you but all these "Named" Branded wheels are not as good as you think. True they are a good wheel but for what they are- They are overpriced. A set of hand built wheels are a far better buy and providing you choose the right builder- You will be able to get a better set of wheels for less.

I do not know the US builders- But I have two that I use. Their quality is superb- Prices better and in comparison- they build a better wheel. That was proved to me when I put a pair of stock wheels into one of them to tweak. Ultegras and the builder loosened off the spokes- retensioned and trued the wheels. It was a different wheel to the so-so set I sent him. On a pair of Mavic Aksiums- he rebuilt the hubs and the things rolled better. and his pair of training wheels have proved indestructable after a year and 6,000 miles.

Only problem is that they will not have the bling of a highly expensive off the shelf wheel. But they will do the job better.

Don't forget the red spoke!

It does, oh grand poobah! Hope Santa brings you a set...I do like mine a lot, but then, they were an upgrade from the Aksiums.

I have a set each of SL, ES, and R-SYS. I definately notice the difference between the R-SYS and the ES, but not so much between the ES and the SL. I recommend you keep the SLs and save your money.

Edit: I just got my front R-SYS back from mavic. $65 to replace 3 spokes.

I ride the sl's, I like them a lot. But I would not upgrade to the es's unless I thrashed the sl's, they really are not much of an upgrade except for price. If you were using a lower set of that line, like aksium, I would say go for the upgrade. You can get some lighter race/climbing wheels or some aeroo wheels as has already been stated.
Good luck.

Agilis, allow me to expound a moment upon the merits of Bling for blings sake.



BTW I have 2 sets of SL's and if I could get away with a set of ES's, I would. Good luck deciding.

Some SLs actually weigh less than some ESs. They are both great wheels. The only "performance" difference is the bling. How much $$ is that worth to you?

When I got my bike, I wanted the ESs because the black and red went better with my bike but I couldn't justify the extra cost at the time. However, when I was hit by a car and my SLs had to be replaced, I only had to pay the difference so I went for it. The irony is that when those wheels were damaged in another car accident (yes, I'm bad luck), I got the R-SYS to replace them and their color scheme is even more different than my bike. Silly "citron" nipples.

So the bottom line is that the ESs go better with my bike but they are probably the most common wheels around town. My R-SYSs get a lot of "nice wheels" comments. BTW, don't overlook the usefullness of the wheel bags that come with the ESs and not the SLs. Of course if you already have SLs, you can just buy wheel bags...

Or you can buy SLs that DO have the wheel bags included. (Mine had them.)

Get some new Fulcrum Racing Zeros instead (you know, the black rimmed, red spoked ones!)