Ok so I am looking for a new wheel set and don't want to break the bank. Also I am a heavier rider (currently 220 down from 250) so strength is important. Mavic Open Pros with Ultegra hubs seem to be the direction I am headed or maybe Cosmos. The ALEX ALX 400 seems similar yet a bit lighter but I can find no reviews on the web and nothing has really been said here. I have seen people complaining about other ALEX rims so it begs the question: are ALEX wheels just plain garbage?

Anyone riding or have ridden the ALX-400?

weight is irrelevant.

I can't comment on the 400, but it seems like Alex specializes in budget wheelsets. If you can get the mavic/ultegra for ~$200, then just get 'em.

The Alexrims AT400 are standard equipment on my 2005 Bianchi Pista and they seem very strong. I ride the Pista through Baltimore City, Fells Point cobbles and they remain true. I also rode the Tour of Hope and around Wash. DC on the Pista without a problem.

I also own two sets of Mavic Cosmos wheels are they are very strong, reliable wheels.

I prefer Mavic wheels but I am impressed with the Alexrims AT400

I think that sometimes a little more weight can be a good thing. An important part of the strength of a bicycle wheelset is contributed by the rim.

I'm in agreeance.

see this thread for my opinion of alex so far https://www.bikeforums.net/trash/74615-issues-alex-da22.html

i've got about a 1000 miles on the alex wheelset(320's) that came with my bianchi and i haven't had any probs. i've done a couple cyclocross races on em(16sp front, 20 rear) and they're still true. i looked into upgrading and to get a significantly lighter wheelset it would be too costly(for me). i forget the weight offhand but they're pretty light.

Yea the 400s are like 1680 with skewers which is pretty light for the cost.

Larue - yea I have read your post which was one of the reasons for my post. I think the DA line is lower end in their wheels but your problem should never have happened either way. My wife's Specialized has DA16s and they seem fine so far but the bike doesn't have a lot of miles on it so who knows.

yeah they are definitely low end, but Felt has sent an upgrade today so yeah Felt, can't wait to get them.
low end or not though it's definitely tainted my view of Alex, plus they never responded to my email about the problem.

Yea that is pretty shoddy CS. Maybe LO is right and I will just get a set of Open Pro/Ultegras and be done with it.

Oh and FWIW IMO Felt owes you a bike not just a set of wheels. They are lucky you didn't get seriously hurt and aren't filing a law suit.

I'm not quick to file suits but yeah I can't disagree with that argument, my lbs thinks the same thing as there were two wrecks caused by the wheels that messed up my bike a bit. it's not too bad though, the only thing that broke was my bar ends which my lbs is replacing for free even though I didn't buy them from him.

That's what I did. ~ $220 shipped from Performance (32 spoke versions.) I wanted some nice, strong, long lasting wheels for a backup to the Ksyrium SSC's. I haven't had a chance to ride them yet, but did manage to mount lunar light tubes / Vittoria Rubino Pro tires. Hope to get some miles on them this weekend, but the weather is getting a bit chilly (for me at least.) Who knows, I just wanted to have them on hand.

Just for the record, mine weigh in at 1861g with Velox rim tape installed (no skewers) on my scale. They're no where near the weight most list them at (1682g.) Nice wheels none the less.

Jim

Hey Jim - Yea 1865 was the weight I had heard on the OP/Ultegra combo. So I am looking at saving 180g for that set or ~380 on the ALEX ALX400. Pretty big difference. Maybe the FSA RD200 is a better choice.

I have the 290's which came with one of my bikes. I have over 2000 miles on them and have had no problems.

John,

Don't let the numbers make your decission! These wheels are really, really nice. They may be a bit heavier than you "think" you want, but everyone I've ever talked to & the online reviews say they're not only bulletproof, but stay true forever and a day. Something to think about for brand new built wheels in the $200-$250 range.

Like I said, I haven't had a chance to evaluate them in comparison to the SSC's, but I'm sure they'll do great. Maybe a bit heavier but the ride will probably be just as nice, if not better (i.e. less road shock.) I have the same tubes & tires on both sets of wheels to really give myself a good feel for the differences. Hopefully this weekend.

Take care,
Jim

I haven't heard or read many good things

I own a Raleigh Grand Prix with AT 400 rims. Well I took a tumble recently the rim I thought was toast. It trued out and still rides like a dream. It's a beautiful rim to ride on and feels better than Mavic rims on my old Schwinn Le Tour.

They are much maligned but my 290's have been fine. Get Mike Garcia to build you what you want, his prices look very reasonable.

I had ALEX ALX220 wheels on my Felt F65 and they were garbage. They aren't lightweight and they are very flexy. I had problems with the freehub making strange popping noises as I was pedaling and my LBS had to replace the freehub in the first 150 miles. The wheels are not very smooth spinning when you turn them by hand you can feel they aren't smooth. Almost as though the bearings were rolling around on sand paper in the hub.

I have a set of Mike Garcia wheels on my bike now. They are about 200g lighter and they are stronger and stiffer. They also only cost me $330 delivered.

I had Alex rims on my bike for a while, they came stock. They were horrible; it seemed like any bump in the road would knock them out of true.

I've since replaced them with Mavic CXP23s, which seem to be heads and tails better.

hey grassc, my 1 month old Alex 260 seems still good to me. The bearings, aren't smooth like butter but it's still good. I like the low spoke count somehow...

Why do you like the low spoke count? You are giving up a few grams but gaining nothing. In fact, you lose stiffness and these wheels aren't lighter than many 32 spoke wheels. The ALX220 wheels my bike had were 20 spoke front and 24 spoke rear and they are at least 200-300 grams heavier than the 28/32 spoke Mike Garcia wheels I'm riding on now.

Wow bring out the dead. For reference I never got ALEX wheels or rims. I went with a custom mades set of DT Swiss RR1.1 rims laced to SpeedCific hubs made by Mike Garcia at oddsandendos.com and they have been totally bulletproof AND are lighter than the ALEX wheels I was looking at.

I know, I wish I knew that b4 I bought my wheels together with my bike..

But I think it aint that bad. I don't really need high quality wheels. These wheels I have now would last me a long time as long as I don't damage it by accident. I weigh about 128lb.. should be fine.. I hope.

I have put a couple thousand miles on the DA22s that came stock on my F90 and have had no problems.