Upgrading the bike - Chinese Style

[Monsieur Remings]

One thing to bear in mind, that most people don't notice until they've got there, is that for good braking efficiency you will want to use different pads for carbon wheels (e.g. Swisstop Yellows). This presents an obvious problem if you're planning to switch between alloy and carbon wheelsets regularly. This is in fact the main reason I use alloy wheelsets for training AND racing.

This is true but both Planet X and Mavic both use aluminium braking surfaces as opposed to a lot of the others, including the Chinese ones, that don't. I was actually more reluctant to buy the all carbon Chinese wheels because of this more than any other factor.

What's the point in having a top groupie with top braking when it's let down with crap pads.

 

[rollinstok]

Many factories in the far east do "runs" so their products are sold to various brands and end up with different colour schemes and badges despite being essentially the same item.
I have experienced this many times with hand and power tools in particular, where the big name brands have a higher retail value than the budget equivalent even though its the same tool from the same factory.
The wheels may seem a bargain to you but to the manufacturer it is a premium price as he wouldn't get anywhere near that price by selling to the big bike brands.
Having said all that, there is always a risk involved in buying an item this way. If you had a problem, it would not be easy to get it rectified.

 

[rollinstok]

ps.. if he was selling these wheels to the big brands at £200 a pair, you would be paying well over a £1000 a pair over here.

 

[VamP]

This is true but both Planet X and Mavic both use aluminium braking surfaces as opposed to a lot of the others, including the Chinese ones, that don't. I was actually more reluctant to buy the all carbon Chinese wheels because of this more than any other factor.

What's the point in having a top groupie with top braking when it's let down with crap pads.

I believe that some of the PX range have aluminium surfaces, and some don't. I could be wrong, but it's worth looking out for.

 

[TheSandwichMonster]

I've been considering the same issue around wheels recently. Having now started to race and therefore being surrounded by bling carbon every weekend, it's easy to hear the call of the shiny-shiny kit gremlins. I don't want all of the other boys to point and laugh when I turn up on my triple-equipped Cube. Similarly, I don't have a fortune to spend, so want to maximise my pounds.

My thinking was simple-ish. My first upgrade will be to get a set of wheels - instantly useable and one of the biggest and easiest upgrades. Following that, I'll change my chainset and shifters from 105 compact triple to Ultegra standard double - slight weight reduction, more available speed. Finally, I get myself a carbon frame/forks and transfer all the remaining components - slowly upgrading to full Ultegra as the months go by. Seemed like a no-brainer.

Then I started looking into it (and believe me, I've looked in some depth!). Either the cost is prohibitively expensive, or the marginal gains are really so marginal that I'd be better spending the money on coaching to make myself better, and to stop blaming the bike. All of the cheap carbon that I can find offers no real gains (at least from a weight perspective). My Fulcrum 7's, that came with my bike, are 1849g for the pair. If I buy a pair of the standard Planet X carbon clincher wheels, they come in at 1796g - a paltry 53g weight saving. I could buy the Pro Carbon Wheelset, which comes in at 1455g, which is the start of a proper weight saving, but then they're tubs, which means that they're only going to be used on race days and do I really want to spend £450 on something that's only going to get used two or three times a month. Some of the cheap Chinese wheels are actually HEAVIER than my alu Fulcrums. Sure, there's the aero side of things, but I think I'd rather spend the money on eating more healthily and reducing MY aero profile!

Secondly, the cost of buying things piecemeal is prohibitive. A Planet X Carbon frame is £299. A nice frame, don't get me wrong, and light too - but it's just the frame. Add the forks and the headset and you're in the region of £420. Add the carbon clinchers, and we're already up to £820 without adding anything new - so I've (in effect) got a shiny new carbon bike and will be equipping it with a used 105 triple drivetrain. To upgrade the chainset to Ultegra - best I've seen is ~£70-ish 2nd hand, worst is around the £200 mark brand new, then add a bottom bracket, then don't forget that we need to change the shifters to double and you're looking at close to another £200. Ultimately, whilst it would be a labour of love, it would cost more to build than it'd be worth. I'd be better off shoving £100-£200 a month into a shoebox under my bed for 18 months and seeing what full bike I could afford at the end. Canyon have just announced and aluminium-framed Ultegra Di2 bike for under £2k. A 2 grand bike, with a £1500 groupset?!

When I'm knocking on the door of placing top-10, that's when these marginal gains will come into play. When I'm not contesting the sprint and finishing in the bunch, then I'm better off eating less and training more!

 

[zizou]

You only get the aero benefit of deep section wheels when riding above about 25 mph - below that you are compromising on performance (poor in cross winds, a worse ride and particularly at the budget level weight). It costs a fair bit to get a light pair to take away the weight problem so IMO if you are looking to spend about £400 or less you would be better off getting a nice pair of handbuilts. Wont look as 'pro' but they will be better to ride.

 

[RecordAceFromNew]

You only get the aero benefit of deep section wheels when riding above about 25 mph - below that you are compromising on performance (poor in cross winds, a worse ride and particularly at the budget level weight).

+1. When I looked at it recently, even a Zipp 808 front will only cut your power requirement on level ground by 2.2% at 50kph compared to a basic set of Aksium, i.e. offering a measly 0.7% speed advantage for the same power output (since speed is proportional to the cube root of power at such speed), and that is assuming no negative crosswind effect. I think sandwichmonster is spot on re what some superior alternatives might be if quick is the principal objective.

For the current scenario, there is also the question how an unnamed X0mm profile wheel might compare to the best in the business in terms of aerodynamics.

 

[secretsquirrell]

Just built this;