is a carbon wheel set worth it?
 

Hey guys,
I have a 2009 Cannondale Super Six where I have upgraded the gears to 105 and ultegra mixture. I am wondering if a carbon wheel set will be a worthwhile upgrade? I cycle around 10-15 miles on the road at a time for around 50 miles a week for now. The roads here in Clarksville TN are hilly so any help in hill climbing would be beneficial to my ride. I am signing up for a 34 miler that is coming up in two months so i'm looking for anything that can help with speed. SO for those that have bought carbon wheels was it worth it? Also, what wheel sets do you recommend? My budget is around $1400.

my first thought would be no. a good quality alloy rim with good hubs would serve you equally as well for half your budget.

Only like a piece of jewelry.

Oh the 41.

Save the $1500 , and ride more. This will make you faster than any wheelset purchase that doesn't include a motor.

Take a look at Boyd. You don't have to break the budget for Zipp or Enve or MadFiber

For 15 miles at a time with a big 34 miler coming up? No, I don't think carbon wheelset would make a difference for you over decent alloy. What wheels are on it now? Probably don't need an upgrade at all.

But now that madfiber is out of business you may be able to find a pretty sweet deal on a set...and they come with a lifetime warranty :twitchy:

The first upgrade I would make is a time trial helmet. SRSLY.

I love mine, and they're in the quoted price range. I'm 99% certain we're being trolled, though.

Question cannot be answered. From a pure cost-benefit perspective, probably not - how much money are you going to make with the carbon wheels vs your current wheels? What is the payback period? Since I only ride for myself, and I'll never make a dime from riding, the payback period is infinite. Now if you take other factors into consideration, such as personal enjoyment, or giving you an incentive to ride, or even aesthetic considerations, then, well, only you can make that call.

The current wheels are shimano wh-rs10? The previous owner put Columbiere Maxxis tires. I'm not sure about the spokes or anything else. I have a Giro helmet that I'm using that is pretty nice so now I'm looking to upgrade the wheels if it is worth it. My bike is only 10 speed btw.

Are time trial conehead helmets legal to use during road races? Because they offer greater speed benefits than aero wheels (according to those time trial tests), I figured they weren't allowed or many people doing road races and crits would get them. Or maybe in a pack the wheels have a better advantage than the helmet, but not certainly worth the cost.

Inflation runs rampant in the BF.

If the current wheels are true and evenly tensioned, you are probably fine. You'd see a slight difference with a lighter alloy set with wider rims (RS81?). But I'd say that's not likely worth it. Carbon is throwing way too much $$ at this (IMO). Best wishes.

Based on your posted mileage, I don't see any reason to spend money on new wheels, let alone carbon rims.

I was including the taxes on the $1400 purchase. ;)

Ride what you have. You're no where near pushing them to their limit I can guarantee given your mileage.

#1 Ride more
#2 Ride harder
#3 Sit back and learn more about cycling and the equipment
#4 Go somewhere awesome with your new fitness and the money you saved on wheels and do an epic ride on those perfectly useable Shimano's.

As someone who grew up near Clarksville, if you think those are hills, wait until you see some actual climbs. There's no way I'd see that you could get much of a gain from a CF wheelset biking that kind of terrain. Plenty of cycling enthusiasts I know near there can bike almost 100 miles without gaining even 2,000 feet. That's not what I call hilly.

Ride more, troll less.

I had rs10 wheels on my first bike. Okay wheel and fine for low mileage. They are a bit heavy and if you are itching to upgrade get rs80/rs81 (the x1 series is for 11 speed but they work with 10 speed and are maybe more future proof). Significantly lighter and really nice riding wheels (came on my new bike) with an alloy/carbon mix. Deep carbon isn't going to help you climbing but something like these might.

This...plus, you can probably get a lighter wheelset thats not carbon for far cheaper.

So no, you don't need it and it probably won't improve much about your riding.

That said, if you want carbon rims, get carbon rims. It's your money. I didn't "need" them either, but bought them anyway. I like the way they look, the way they ride and it makes me excited to ride my bike. If they're not going to break the bank, then why not. Spending money makes the economy work.

Sales tax in the OP's area is 9%+ so $1500 still won't cover it. :thumb:

Thats why you buy online with no sales tax or shipping charges!

Nevermind, I mean, support your local bike shop.