I know the Dura-Ace C35’s get recommended a lot on this forum and I have read good things. I was seriously considering ditching my chinese carbons for a pair, just for all-rounders… until I did some research and found a cross section. I have come to believe it is just carbon marketing at its finest. These things are great performers because they are aluminum!

Laminated aluminum rims? They say the aluminum portion is shaved down, but the weight savings are .35 lbs per wheel compared to something like the bulletproof cheap Shimano R500 wheels that came on my bike (and some of that weight savings has to be coming from the hubs). Not to mention the R500’s cost $125 for a set vs. the C35s running $1600!

I’m not a believer. I think these wheels are pure marketing bs.

Huh? They are "great performers" because they are relatively light for a wheel with an aluminium brake track at that depth.

That’s exactly what I’m getting at… they aren’t really that light.

1488g for a clincher wheel at 35mm with an aluminum brake track isn't all that bad. What are you comparing it to?

i'm not a fan of proprietary spokes.

They do? News to me.

Me too. I can think of a few that are.... Psimet, Boyd, and November come to mind... but not C35s.

Yeah, and various roll-your-own options, including bdop's. Frankly, I'd never heard of the C35s until this thread... maybe this is some not-so-clever marketing?

I wouldn't say that DA CF/Al rims are recommended here, but they are mentioned from time to time. Their weight is attractive compared to Al rims that deep and many CF ones, but it is not world beater. It is hard to fault the rims considering it appears that the spokes are attached to the aluminum. There are some brands/models that aren't, and that is a recipe for disaster.

I mostly recall seeing a lot of positive reviews on the dura ace c-24 wheelset.

Outside of the recently C24 thread and the article linked recommending the C35s as "best in breed" that's the first time I've ever seen a recommendation for them on BF.

Probably didn't need a new thread about it.

The whole subject of bike wheels is mind numbing at times. Which brand, which material, spoke counts and all the rest of it. That being said I think that cyclists today have many great options out there. Just have to find what is best for you and your application. I do think the C35 wheels are a good set. They seem to be a pretty robust build and Shimano usually does nice work. The only draw back may be down the road when proprietary parts may be hard to find.

Well those are the C24s on the left, so if the OP doesn't like the C35s for the reason stated then he isn't going to like the 24s either.

So you should have no issue with these wheels since they use fairly standard straight-pull aero spokes and alpina style nipples that can easily be replaced with DT Prolock nipples.

This is exactly like HED, Flo, and Swiss Side carbon wheels. All the braking security of aluminum, with the aero benefit of a deep carbon rim. No, they're not particularly light (and I'd go with one of the other options instead), but they're after aero weenies. If you want light wheels, there are tons of options.

1450g is pretty light for a pair of wheels with 35mm depth rim. Hell, full carbon Zipp 202 clinchers are only about 50g lighter for the pair and everybody knows those hubs suck compared to a Dura-Ace hub and with these you don't have to worry about carbon issues under heavy braking or needing special brake pads.

That's actually a fantastic weight for something that (edit) deep with the benefit of an alum brake track. This thread actually makes me want to get a pair of C35's now.

I was thinking the same thing. And the perfect depth for something that deep.

I have had the Shimano C50s for a while, and I really like them. I am deeply sceptical of the C35 however. It has to do with the mostly aluminum construction and the fact that I'll rather ride shallow wheels or 50mm wheels. Anything really less than 50mm to about 35mm really does not appeal to me. 30mm or less and 50mm or 55mm is where I dwell.

Your paying for the da hub... Mint!!!

I got a full set of C35 clinchers for free as warantee replacements when my original (2006) DuraAce aluminum rear wheel got hairline cracks 2 years 11 months 10,000 miles. It was a spoke tensioning issue, and the LBS was supposed to keep on top of that.
No complaints here about the C35's.

I have a C35 rim sitting next to me. It weighs 440.4g. For a 35mm deep rim with al brake track, that is an excellent weight. Although it is a narrow rim by today's standards.

The relatively high mass of the C35 wheel set is because they use 2.0/1.8/2.0 spokes vs the 2.0/1.5/2.0 spokes of the C24 and of course the DA hub set which is no lightweight at 255R/132F.

Hope this helps.

Aluminum brake track? Ewwwwww. How last decade....

anyone that pays full retail for anything Shimano, ESPECIALLY wheels, is a complete moron. you can find them for under $1100 if you actually look around...

Bike24 - Shimano Dura Ace WH-9000-C35-CL Carbon-/Aluminium Wheelset - black