Wheels

[mauisher]

Hi,
I'm going on a supported cross-USA bike ride on my road bike. I currently have Easton (Velomax) Ascent II wheels with several thousand miles on them and am considering a new wheelset. What would you recommend considering I want light weight and ease of repair (in small town bike shops)??? Thanks in advance for your advice!

[kermit]

I don't know how light you want to go but I just got Easton EA90SLX's for my bike. The price was right(ebay) and they are sturdy but light.

[Mr. Bloom]

How many sets of wheels will you have as backup?

[aicabsolut]

It'd be really easy to find a place that could service Mavic wheels, and they are pretty bombproof. Plus, if anything happens, they have a no-questions-asked replacement policy (which is insurance you buy at the point of purchase--i.e., not on ebay--and it costs 8% of the price of the wheelset). Of course, to get lightweight wheels it'll cost some $$. I mean, Shimano wheels are bombproof, but until you get at least DuraAce hubs, you are looking at some weight.

The Eastons are lightweight and pretty reliable. The SL's have more spokes (24, I think) than the SLX, so that could give you some more security in case one were to break.

For budget wheels that are pretty durable and light, look into some custom builds or some mixed builds at Performance or Excel where you might get a Shimano/OpenPro combo (not superlight but cheap) or go with lighter rims like DT Swiss. You may have a higher spoke count, but light rims will spin up quickly, and they may be lighter than some affordable Mavic options (but probably not as light as Eastons).

Other than this trip, what would you be using them for? Do you want a high performance race type wheel, or is durability and ease of service the most important but that you want to avoid some low end bricks?

[ridebikeme]

If you are looking to ride xc, are you riding self contained or with a tour group? If you are going self contained, then I would look for something with 32 spokes and perhaps a Mavic or Velocity rim. Mavic wheels are very durable, however if you are in a small town, then there's a good chance that a shop might not have any of their spokes.... if they aren't a Mavic dealer then it will be hard to get replacements. I would be more concerned about durability then weight... if you should break a spoke on a light weight wheel, it affects a larger section of the wheel... and you could potentially be looking for a whole new wheel as opposed to a spoke.

AS someone who rides, tours, and is also a mechanic and wheel builder, my opinion is go for something with more spokes. I have been on the road as a mechanic in a small town, and was unable to find the correct spoke length.... If you insist on lightweight wheels, then carry extra spokes with you.

[SadieKate]

It'd be really easy to find a place that could service Mavic wheels . . .

Something tells me that Austin, Nevada isn't going to be able to help. It's a bit different here in the wild, wild, west where towns are far apart and not very big. It could be hundreds of miles depending on the route.

It never hurts to have a few extra spokes and nipples for your wheels in your luggage. They don't take up much space.

[Fredwina]

Having to wait for specail spokes from mavic - I would recommend finding somebody to custom build you a set of wheels - you really don't give up anything as far as price, strength, or weight - mine got an ran over by a car and they're still true enough that you could leave the brake Q/r on