Ritchey DS/OCR Pro wheels
 

My Raleigh bike came with Ritchey wheels, DS Pro in front, OCR Pro in rear. Rim designation is ETRTO #622-14, 6061 T-6 Alloy. Just wondering how low in the wheel food chain these sit, i.e., how much benefit I can expect to get from better wheels. I guess the model must be several years old, because I can't find all that much information online. Any insights appreciated.

I recall compaints about cracked spoke holes on the rims due to overtensioned spokes, but if yours aren't experiencing that, they're ok and I would just check every week for fatigue. As for the performance, they are your typical aluminum aero wheel. Not too light and not too heavy, not too aero but more aero than box rims. If you want a reason to upgrade, you can easily go lighter with a modest budget (under $500), and the wheels you have don't seem to sell for much on the used market, but if they work they work.

Would these be a significant upgrade?
http://www.neuvationcycling.com/product311.html
http://www.neuvationcycling.com/product310.html
I haven't weighed my current wheels (I should remember to do so next time I change my tires), so I've no idea how much if any weight advantage I can gain without going to carbon.
Or would I be better off going with the aero versions:
http://www.neuvationcycling.com/product308.html
http://www.neuvationcycling.com/product309.html
I like climbing, but I think my hard-effort performance in fast group rides and races may be more limited by aerodynamics than weight.

That's interesting plantrob, because I just bought a used Kestral 200SCi that has the EXACT same wheelset. But my seller basically threw-in a set of relatively high end wheels (HED Jet C2's 6/9 700's). I did a lot of research on that wheelset and it is apparently fairly high end, very light, yet very strong, and very fast, but doesn't have usual problems with the wind or steering. They also sell for $900-$1,200 used. Mine were apparently never used, so they should bring the higher end of that range. So I'm trying to decide if I want to sell them, or the Ritchey wheels. But I'm running into the same problem you may have. I can't find much info on our Ritchey wheels, including comparable sales. So it seems the other poster on this thread was right: there doesn't seem to be much of a market for them, so they probably won't bring much money if I do find a buyer.

All that to say, have you made any progress with your situation, found a buyer, or can you offer any thoughts at all? Perhaps we can benefit from each other's experience since we seem to be in the same boat. Thanks.

I have a rear wheel built on a Ritchey OCR rim that was bombproof for the couple years I used it. I'm normally hard on rear wheels.
The offset makes for a stronger wheel.

Unless you get aero (i.e. carbon) wheels its unlikely you can get a measureable performance increase. Even then it won't be a significant increase unless you're losing races by inches.

stay away from Neuvations... Have a buddy in DC that STILL can't get them trued. And yes, he's going to a good shop.

I'm using Neuvation M28X for just more than 2000 miles, its has been true since day one. I only needed to true it after a crash around at 1600 miles of use. Great wheels for the money.

Veeman, I'm still riding the Ritcheys, which have held up just dandy for the 5000 miles I've put on them. Just put in an order for Neuvation R28 SLs (couldn't pass up the deal on the PowerTap wheel), but even when I get those, I won't be selling the Ritcheys - I don't have a spare wheelset right now, so those should serve that purpose nicely.
Trek760, I hope your friend's experience was an anomaly - Neuvation seems to have a good reputation, and it sounds like they'll stand behind their products. I'll find out for myself soon...

I have a pair of the Pro wheels. For what they are, they're fairly fast. No, they're not carbon 58mm deep rims so they're not going to be *that* fast, but they're nicer at speed than your typical Open Pro/32h wheels.

If you're racing crits, they're not going to be something you'll cry over if/when you go down on em.

...and if you do... They're built with normal spokes in a normal lacing pattern. Fixing em is easy. My rear wheel started breaking spokes after 3-4 years of fairly heavy use. Rebuilt em with CX-Rays and kept on going. Still use em for the Wednesday Night Worlds rides.

The WCS version was 16/20 spokes. Pros: 20/28.

As a note: if the OP is talking about a 'normal' wheel built with Ritchey rims, IIRC they're Velocities (or copies) AFA 'upgrading' depends on what you're looking to accomplish. I have another 32h rear wheel with a Ritchey offset rim that's a wheel. Nothing hugely different about it other than it says Ritchey on the rim. :dunno

I train on 32h Open Pro-style wheels for 90% of my riding. The wheels go round and round. If there's an upgrade to round, I don't know what that is.

M