700c wheel choice?

[Michaelt]

I was just thinking i should have said what i want out of them. I struggle up hills and i am working on losing weight, currently 14 10st, down from 15 10 beginning of the year and i have been told that wheels are the best option to losing bike weight. Also looking to start TTing.

I just did a quick search (http://www.cyclingdeal.com.au/buy/stars-circle-road-bike-wheels-wheelset-shimano-sealed/ZJS170) and found that my current wheels weigh in at around 1.7kgs and the RS80 come in at around 1.5. am i really going to notice the difference or should i just sit on it and put it towards a new bike, which comes with Mavic Ksyriums interestingly.

 

[black'n'yellow]

I was just thinking i should have said what i want out of them. I struggle up hills and i am working on losing weight, currently 14 10st, down from 15 10 beginning of the year and i have been told that wheels are the best option to losing bike weight. Also looking to start TTing.

I just did a quick search (http://www.cyclingdeal.com.au/buy/stars-circle-road-bike-wheels-wheelset-shimano-sealed/ZJS170) and found that my current wheels weigh in at around 1.7kgs and the RS80 come in at around 1.5. am i really going to notice the difference or should i just sit on it and put it towards a new bike, which comes with Mavic Ksyriums interestingly.

Buy some nice, lightweight quality tyres if you want to see a noticeable improvement in ride quality and probably a (small) reduction in weight. Wheels will make no difference to you at all, at this stage - and reducing bike weight when you are (by your own admission, no offence) overweight is largely pointless...

 

[Michaelt]

Fair dos. I have noticed that climbing is a lot easier now than it was at the beginning of the year. i shall endevour to lose more weight. Although at 6 foot and naturally big build i don't think that 14,10 is that bad...is it?!

 

[black'n'yellow]

Although at 6 foot and naturally big build i don't think that 14,10 is that bad...is it?!

it's 'over weight' according to the NHS chart, but I'm only picking up on it because you said you were trying to lose weight...so presumably you already realise that..?

 

[Michaelt]

of course, i know i could do with losing at least another stone, no offence taken!!

 

[Andrew_P]

Saving a few grams on wheels won't make a hell of a differece going up hill, but I did notice a nice difference to the overall feel of the bike and a nice whossshing sound when out of the saddle when I put some Fulcrum Racing 3's on my bike, not an over techical review! Over budget though @ £300-350 a pair. Nice clicky freewheel too.

As suggested by others tyres might give better value, I moved from Specialized Roubaix 25mm to GP4000 23mm and I am pretty sure I felt the difference.

 

[The Brewer]

14.10 for 6'feet is slightly overweight, I feel ill under 15stone, but muscle does weigh more than fat

 

[black'n'yellow]

but muscle does weigh more than fat

last time I checked, a pound of muscle weighed exactly the same as a pound of fat...??

 

[The Brewer]

last time I checked, a pound of muscle weighed exactly the same as a pound of fat...??

It takes up more area giving a false impression

 

[PpPete]

I dont have anything to add i do however have the same question.

i am currently riding a Fuji Team 3 ('11) with factory rims and i dont know what they are but i have a budget upto £400 and am looking at Shimano RS80 C24 or Mavic ksyriums. Any opinions on which ones are better and why, and any other wheels i should think of?

Thanks

Have a look at the Hope Hoops range.
I've been mightily impressed with the Hope Pro 3 hubs in my handbuilts (admittedly these are 32/36 spokers so not directly comparable) but they roll exceptionally well (or maybe that's the momentum of my 85+ kgs).

 

[lejogger]

I've been pondering about wheel upgrades for probably 2 years, but still haven't taken the plunge. Unless you're doing serious climbing and need something rigid and light, or serious time trialling and need something aerodynamic, stock wheels will not be doing you any harm.
I competed in my first time trial a few weeks ago supported by two local clubs and out of over 20 riders I posted the fastest time averaging 25mph. This was on a Boardman Team Carbon with the standard Ritchey Pro wheels that don't even have bladed spokes. If I had something deep section and carbon with Zipp written on the side and costing the best part of £2k, what could I expect to increase my average speed to? 25.5mph? 26mph? I doubt there would even be that much of an improvement. There were guys on Felt and Ribble dedicated TT bikes with 80mm carbon deep section rims and teardrop aero helmets, and they finished over half a minute back. They looked good, especially at the start, but not so much at the finish!

What I did do however is upgrade my tyres from the stock Conti Ultra Sport to Conti GP4000S. They roll so much better, and around the corners at speed especially they grip so much better. That's where my money would be going.

There's absolutely no problem upgrading your wheels if you have the cash and you want your bike to look a bit flashier, but if it's for weight and performance gain, I can't see it making any difference.

 

[black'n'yellow]

^^^ probably the best post on this topic (or any similar topic) that anyone on here will ever read.

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

I've been pondering about wheel upgrades for probably 2 years, but still haven't taken the plunge. Unless you're doing serious climbing and need something rigid and light, or serious time trialling and need something aerodynamic, stock wheels will not be doing you any harm.
I competed in my first time trial a few weeks ago supported by two local clubs and out of over 20 riders I posted the fastest time averaging 25mph. This was on a Boardman Team Carbon with the standard Ritchey Pro wheels that don't even have bladed spokes. If I had something deep section and carbon with Zipp written on the side and costing the best part of £2k, what could I expect to increase my average speed to? 25.5mph? 26mph? I doubt there would even be that much of an improvement. There were guys on Felt and Ribble dedicated TT bikes with 80mm carbon deep section rims and teardrop aero helmets, and they finished over half a minute back. They looked good, especially at the start, but not so much at the finish!

What I did do however is upgrade my tyres from the stock Conti Ultra Sport to Conti GP4000S. They roll so much better, and around the corners at speed especially they grip so much better. That's where my money would be going.

There's absolutely no problem upgrading your wheels if you have the cash and you want your bike to look a bit flashier, but if it's for weight and performance gain, I can't see it making any difference.

Haha, that is a quality ride but i think you are taking too little credit. The TT bike, aero position and aero wheels will all make a noticeable difference to a time trial. You are just clearly very fast/fit. There are many people who will never get to as fast as you have gone in that race regardless of bike. Where the opposition are more your level then every little counts.

To the OP. It depends on how good your stock wheels are? Something like Shimano Rs30's or Fulcrum 5's might serve you well and be in budget but you won't be riding a wheel that will make a huge difference. If they are a bit lighter they may climb slightly better. As the price of wheels go up, the weight tends to come down.
As previously posted, decent tyres will make a noticeable difference as it's the first point of contact with the road.

 

[fenlandpsychocyclist]

As the original poster my apologies for not getting back sooner!
I think i'll go with tyres first, i've seen a couple of "older" tyre comparison charts showing load vs watts-of-drag and pro2's seem to come out
highly ... i think someone mentioned pro 4's?
The gatorskins i use have double the drag of pro2's by the way ... and i only fitted them to both my road bikes to try and reduce punctures. (No Change).

I will upgrade the wheels on the trek soon, probably putting the old bontrager rims on my steel-forked coyote road bike. (For those winter rides).

 

[Nebulous]

Well I'm not an expert - and have never tried expensive kit, but I would disagree with the posts saying you wont know any difference. I have a spesh allez, which came with unbranded hubs, mavic cxp22 rims and cheap tyres. After about a year the freehub died and I bought these from Merlin. I paid about £110 but I got a pair of Michelin pro 3 tyres thrown in with them. Now I definitely noticed a difference in changing the wheels and tyres, and the wheels have stood up to my weight of just over 13 stone and are running smoothly, despite a relatively low spoke count.