So I have a late-'90s LeMond Buenos Aires, all Shimano 105 8-speed, and the wheels are Mavic CXP21 aeros on 105 hubs. I am looking at upgrading the wheelset, possibly as part of a full 9-speed upgrade as well (but that is for a different discussion) and my wheel budget is $350 or less. Here's what I have narrowed it down to so far;

- Mavic Ksyrium Equipe: 24 radial spoke front, 28 2X spoke rear: $349.90/set from ExcelSport

- Mavic Cosmos Black: 24 radial spoke front, 28 2X spoke rear: $319.90/set from ExcelSport

- Custom-built Mavic CXP33/Ultegra: 28 radial spoke front, 32 3X spoke rear: $289.62/set from ExcelSport

- Custom-built Mavic OpenPro/Ultegra: 28 radial spoke front, 32 3X spoke rear: $289.62/set from
ExcelSport

I am 6'2.5" and 220 lbs (falling). I ride for fitness/recreation/fun and currently average about 75-100 mi/week. I ride on trails and on the road and durability/reliability is a major concern. The pre-built Mavics are certainly cool and are undoubtedly lighter but I don't know that they are really worth the price for my needs. Plus, I think there is some advantage to buying hand-built, as opposed to factory machine-built, wheels. I think that I am leaning toward the custom CXP33/Ultegra wheels from ExcelSport, but I want to hear your opinions and experiences.

Thanks!

Correction: the custom OpenPro/Ultegras are actually $280.62/set.

The CXP33s would be the most bulletproof. But are they actually hand built?

Check Colorado Cyclist, they have Open Pro/Ultegra's for $225. I forget what the CXP33's cost, but I believe it's cheaper than you mentioned already.


PJ

Well, they are built to order. It would seem to be cheaper/easier to hand-build them to order than it would be to machine-build them order. Of course, I have no idea what goes into machine-building a wheel, so I may be off-base on this.

$233 for the CXP33s with straight-guage spokes. I specified 14/15 spokes when I configured the wheels from ExcelSport, and CC says these are available for an extra charge. Still would likely be cheaper than ExcelSport.

Thanks for the info!