illusiumd

I bought a Soma ES recently as a kind of road/light touring hybrid. I've had this bike for a couple months, am big guy and am having problems with the wheels the LBS put on this (I posted all about that in a different forum- sorry if this is double posting):

Dimension Road 36h 700c - Shimano Tiagra - Mavic Open Sport Silver.

I'm a newb at this and looking for suggestions on rims/wheels that will fit this bike and support great weight! The LBS says they want to keep the front the same but upgrade the rear to a Chukker rim. Viewing wheels at aebike.com I get a little overwhelmed.

Newb questions: So the "hub" here is the Shimano Tiagra correct? And the rim is Mavic Open Sport correct? I assume they're just buying this from QBP correct? I also assume that these are "machine" done - which is not as strong as hand done correct?

When the LBS says they want to upgrade the rim, are they then taking apart a machine done wheel - keeping the same hub - and now hand doing the wheel?

They initially suggested a DT tk540 but then they thought that maybe that was too wide. What is too wide? What width should I be looking for?

Would this wheel fit/be good?
[h=1]Quality Wheels Pavement Front Wheel 700c 36h XT M756 / DT Swiss TK540 / DT Compeition All Black[/h]Any hand holding appreciated here.

mdilthey

Hey newb! I was a newb once.

Universal Cycles builds wheels by hand and ships them, and I had them do my wheels. It lets you get just the parts you want, and they walk you through each option to make sure you get something you really want for the bike. Don't buy factory-made prebuilt wheels if you can help it- get them handbuilt with the hubs, rims, and spokes that are best for you.

You don't have to copy me, but I got Mavic 719 rims, 32 spokes front and 36 spokes rear, with Shimano XT disc hubs. The rims are near-indestructible (I broke one once, so *near*) but the minimum tire width is 28c. But seriously, these rims are built for mountain biking and they'll definitely hold up. You can even go higher spoke count, but you'll need new hubs. Your current 36 spoke hubs work fine with these rims, and should be strong enough if they're handbuilt.

Handbuilding wheels is an art. If your LBS doesn't do them regularly, look elsewhere.

Hope this helps!

illusiumd

What version of the XT hub did you get? Thanks!

fietsbob

QBP has their own wheel building department .. too ..

I have a wheel builder under my cap.. so the mid tour touch up truing is DIY.

bikemig 

The rear hub spacing is 130mm so that is the key dimension. As FB pointed out, Quality Bikes has a very good wheel building department. I've bought two sets of wheels from them and both were first rate.

First, if you're having some issues with the wheels, run a fatter tire. The Soma ES can take a 28c with fenders and can take a 32c as well but you'll probably have to forgo the fender. Second, think about high spoke count rim (say 36 hole) and a stout rim. A stout rim, high spoke count, and a fat tire will give you a very strong wheel.

If you like mavic rims, the A319 and A719 are fine choices. Velocity makes some pretty stout rims as well (the dyad comes to mind). These are rims that are suitable for touring and so they are designed to take some weight.

Another possibility would be to get a little wider road rim that is a bit more performance oriented like the velocity A23 or the h plus son - tb14 rims. You could for example pick up something like this wheelset with shimano 105 hubs, 36 spokes and the velocity A23 rim built by Quality Bikes: Quality Wheels 700c Rear Wheel - 105 Hub Laced to Black Velocity A23 - 36H in Tree Fort Bikes Wheels (cat113)

I have a pair that I use on my salsa casseroll which, like your Soma ES, is a road bike with long reach brakes. They're sweet wheels and pretty tough. If you shop around you can find them on sale for a bit less.

mdilthey

I got the version that is the correct spacing for my bike, which may be different from your bike. I also got the disc brake version, which may or may not work for you depending on your brakes. Hard to recommend a specific one because your bike may not be the same as mine, but the Mavic 719 rim should be perfect for you as long as you don't mind 28c being your minimum tire size. If you want to run thinner tires, get a narrower rim (I wish I had a recommendation, but I don't).

FWIW, I do charity rides with the $4,000 Cervelo crowd and my steel rig with 28c tires isn't THAT much slower. I just push harder.