New Cheapness.
My new 60mm fake carbon wheels showed up today. They're replacing my old 60mm fake carbon wheels.
By "fake", I mean they're a carbon wheel with an aluminum rim embedded. The carbon is structural, and the spokes attach to it. The aluminum part is for the brake track and tire mounting strength. Basically they look like fancy deep section rims, but they stop somewhat better and are a whole lot cheaper. The downside? Well, they are pretty heavy and my old ones could get a little wiggly above 35 MPH. But... cheap. When you think about it, what are teeth when you have the chance to save a few dollars?
These are actually considerably wider than my old ones, so maybe they're better. Maybe they'll get shaky at 15 MPH. Only way to find out is to ride them and see. Maybe I'll wait for the next sunny day. Right now it's threatening to rain. They're too shiny and I just installed brand new tires and cassette. Gooping them up in the rain just seems wrong at the moment.
I also picked up a set of used Zipp 808 tubulars. By used, I mean ancient. Not quite as ancient as the 404 front it's replacing, but older than most of my kids. I was really only looking for a front wheel, but found a deal I thought couldn't pass up. In retrospect, I probably should have. These probably lived their lives on a TT bike and were only used on race days. The tubulars looked nearly new until I rotated the rear and found the panic skid that took the casing down to the tube. I have plenty of tubulars, so no big deal there. The rear bearings feel a little gritty, so I guess I'm replacing those as well. The front wheel looks fine and the tubular is affixed well, so I'm just going to throw it on the TT bike and see how it rolls. I'll get around to rebuilding the rear sooner or later.
New, cheap Chinese fake carbon wheels or ancient, respectable Zipp carbon wheels. Anyone want to take bets on which set fails first?
By "fake", I mean they're a carbon wheel with an aluminum rim embedded. The carbon is structural, and the spokes attach to it. The aluminum part is for the brake track and tire mounting strength. Basically they look like fancy deep section rims, but they stop somewhat better and are a whole lot cheaper. The downside? Well, they are pretty heavy and my old ones could get a little wiggly above 35 MPH. But... cheap. When you think about it, what are teeth when you have the chance to save a few dollars?
These are actually considerably wider than my old ones, so maybe they're better. Maybe they'll get shaky at 15 MPH. Only way to find out is to ride them and see. Maybe I'll wait for the next sunny day. Right now it's threatening to rain. They're too shiny and I just installed brand new tires and cassette. Gooping them up in the rain just seems wrong at the moment.
I also picked up a set of used Zipp 808 tubulars. By used, I mean ancient. Not quite as ancient as the 404 front it's replacing, but older than most of my kids. I was really only looking for a front wheel, but found a deal I thought couldn't pass up. In retrospect, I probably should have. These probably lived their lives on a TT bike and were only used on race days. The tubulars looked nearly new until I rotated the rear and found the panic skid that took the casing down to the tube. I have plenty of tubulars, so no big deal there. The rear bearings feel a little gritty, so I guess I'm replacing those as well. The front wheel looks fine and the tubular is affixed well, so I'm just going to throw it on the TT bike and see how it rolls. I'll get around to rebuilding the rear sooner or later.
New, cheap Chinese fake carbon wheels or ancient, respectable Zipp carbon wheels. Anyone want to take bets on which set fails first?
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