need advice on custom wheels
8
Member
42 days
upsidedown posted 5 weeks ago.
I think the advantages of one over the other are overblown, whichever way you look at it. J-bend spokes may be more widely available at the LBS, but I find more and more are carrying straight-pull spokes as well.
Go with whichever type spoke works with the hubs of your choosing.
I prefer DT Swiss hubs since I've yet to find anything better and use J-bend spokes as a result. Add some Edge Composites rims and you'll have a set of wheels that can't be beat.
63
Member
182 days
silverchair posted 5 weeks ago.
Cool as i mentioned "Also it turns out spoke choice is more important that weight of the bike!"
So i will make sure i am getting the best spokes.
This is a stupid question but i'll ask anyway, if the spokes were sharp as knives wouldnt they cut the wind easier? so should we all get out a file and go to work on the front edge of our spokes???
so it would seem the best spokes are on, spinergy, hed, carbon rims and the likes. Disks are flat but too heavy for say criterium, but a hed or similar tri/quad-spoke is going to be the fastest, they are light carbon and looking front-on (where most wind and pressure will be coming from) you cant see any spokes as there is no angle they are straight/flat spokes.
Which makes a different question, why are zipps the best and the benchmark? throw it beside a hed/spinergy and with front on wind alone the later should win hands down. zipps have spokes going out on angles to hubs the other hed/spinergys dont.
kind of getting off the topic as i am looking for regular alloy bomb proof training rims, but just worth the thought. Maybe some of you have tested both.....
8
Member
42 days
upsidedown posted 5 weeks ago.
I definitely wouldn't want to ride a tri- or quad-spoked wheel or a disc in a strong crosswind. I believe they are not legal for mass start cycling events because of this, so one wouldn't be able to use them in a crit anyway.
Being aerodynamic in a straight line isn't the sole indicator of a good wheel. You need a wheel that handles crosswinds, corners, and high-speed descents well, too.
Sapim and DT Aerolite spokes are both great, but they are expensive when compared to standard butted spokes. If you're just looking to build strong training wheels, standard 15 gauge spokes may be the best choice.
63
Member
182 days
silverchair posted 5 weeks ago.
yeah i think this guy uses DT spokes, as long as his hubs are good it should be a good buy.
But the spokes are best to be thin and bladed, not round ones. I guess that is aero straight on, but what about side winds, are blades still better?
I always wondered why no one ever had deep rims in crits.
674
Member
309 days
jsk85 posted 5 weeks ago.
silverchair wrote:
yeah i think this guy uses DT spokes, as long as his hubs are good it should be a good buy.But the spokes are best to be thin and bladed, not round ones. I guess that is aero straight on, but what about side winds, are blades still better?
I always wondered why no one ever had deep rims in crits.
From my understanding (which is minimal)...deeper rims and bladed spokes and other aero upgrades from that standpoint are faster than non-aero counterparts regardless of the wind conditions. You tend to feel cross winds more with aero gear and if you don't have a high comfort level with your control of the bike, you will go slower b/c you can't ride straight or b/c you slow down your output or change position to make you feel more in control.
I'm assuming deep section wheels aren't used in crits for 2 reasons:
1) less room for error in control of your bike...little swerves make a big difference in a pack
2) tradition...crits are filled with hardcore road riders to a large degree who think all the crazy cutting edge toys triathletes like to call bikes are borderline ridiculous. I'd imagine it has some to do with putting forward the right image
63
Member
182 days
silverchair posted 4 weeks ago.
so sharp spokes like knives would be fastest?
would dont we have them?
hello,
i have a custom wheel builder that i am going to get some wheels from.
He is telling me that j-bend spokes are better than straight pull spokes?
Is this correct? i have some Mavics and they have straight pulls so i thought they were of a good quality and better than j-bends. He says straight pulls are cheaper for the mass market. I would have thought it to be the other way around my old mountain bike has j-bend spokes.
Zipps have straight pull spokes. Also it turns out spoke choice is more important that weight of the bike!
http://www.roadcyclinguk.com/news/article/mps/uan/792
found this on google
"The straight-pull Zipp/Sapim spoke has no elbow at the hub which is usually the weak point for a spoke under considerable tension, so they can be tighter and stronger than a standard spoke.