Carbon Clincher Wheels??

quietobserver

Whats the general opinion of Carbon Clincher Wheels? I bought a set on EBAY as they seemed like a bargain at €760, only 3 months old, ive recieved them and theres nothing wrong with them. Whats peoples opinions of carbon clinchers over carbon tub rims. If weight is the only difference then not so bad. The wheels in question i got were reynolds dv45

Any good or bad feedback on carbon wheels in general. Thanks

E@gle.

If i was buying a set of Carbon wheels i'd go for the tubs,

Carbon wheels are great but dont use them for everyday use

Quigs Snr

The general consensus is that Carbon rims should be tubs, otherwise they usually work out to be pretty heavy which kind of defeats the point...

On the other hand, they look great, make a groovy noise are more practical and roll well, so just go enjoy them.

Chips Lovell

I'll qualify this by saying I don't own carbon wheels, but I'm shopping around for next year, so been reading up a bit.

Most carbon clinchers are fairly heavy, usually because they're actually half aluminium (rim and braking surface) and half carbon. Then again, the main advantage to carbon wheels (at least with the deep dish ones people usually go for) is that they're more aerodynamic. Weight is a secondary consideration.

Having said that, technology is moving on and many manufacturers have managed to make an all carbon rim strong enough for clinchers. Your Reynolds are a case in point.

It then really comes down to whether you want clinchers or tubulars. And for racing, most people would take tubs any day.

If I was buying, tubular rims would be my first choice. But a lot of the clinchers these days are a bit more affordable and, given the Irish weather, an aluminium rim might be better for those wet days, which means I haven't ruled them out yet. Then again, if you're racing, braking isn't really a big priority.

quietobserver

thanks el tonto very helpful.

well as i say twas from Ebay and tub wasnt available, always raced on tyre and tube, always found id no trust in tubs even though ive glued many for others.
as you say these are just carbon no aluminum involved and feel light.

I was told in a bike shop before that your body weight would have an effect on the depth of rims you ride. I had two blow outs in a race last year shortly after the start. Recieved two of the cosmic carbon wheels (alu brake surface) and nearly died during that race, felt like i was going around with two bars pressure in each wheel. When i mentioned this in the bike shop was told my weight may have effected this? Dont know what that BS. Any knowledge out there on this? Im 62kgs. 5ft8.

oh yea il let you know if i see carbon tubs on ebay

Chips Lovell

quietobserver wrote: »

well as i say twas from Ebay and tub wasnt available, always raced on tyre and tube, always found id no trust in tubs even though ive glued many for others.
as you say these are just carbon no aluminum involved and feel light.

If they're lightly used it's a great deal.

quietobserver wrote: »

I was told in a bike shop before that your body weight would have an effect on the depth of rims you ride. I had two blow outs in a race last year shortly after the start. Recieved two of the cosmic carbon wheels (alu brake surface) and nearly died during that race, felt like i was going around with two bars pressure in each wheel. When i mentioned this in the bike shop was told my weight may have effected this? Dont know what that BS. Any knowledge out there on this? Im 62kgs. 5ft8.

I've no idea about this. You mean you're so light that the wheels made the bike feel overly sluggish?

quietobserver

yea it just felt like a dead ride, was a hilly race in donegal and besides the terrain it was on all sorts of roads that it felt sluggish

Raam

Are tubs reccommended for normal training use?

Chips Lovell

Raam wrote: »

Are tubs reccommended for normal training use?

Most people would train on clinchers. Tubs are a pain if you puncture.

Raam

el tonto wrote: »

Most people would train on clinchers. Tubs are a pain if you puncture.

I've read that you need to glue the tube on. What happens in a race? I know the pros have a helpful chap in a car who gives 'em a new wheel, but at a club race are you going to have the same?!

Chips Lovell

Raam wrote: »

I've read that you need to glue the tube on. What happens in a race? I know the pros have a helpful chap in a car who gives 'em a new wheel, but at a club race are you going to have the same?!

Well, chances of puncturing in a race are slight, but there's always people around and you're never too far from the finish line. You can also ride a punctured tub, unlike a punctured clincher.

Lumen

HED Ardennes are an interesting concept in the context of the tub vs clincher debate.

Not exactly cheap though.

Tackleberry

quietobserver wrote: »

yea it just felt like a dead ride, was a hilly race in donegal and besides the terrain it was on all sorts of roads that it felt sluggish

I bought a pair of clincher Zipp 404's from ebay about 3 years ago and they're still going strong, I've never tried tubs, not my cup of tea, but as far as I'm concerned if you get a lightweight tire, block, skewers and have it at high pressure I've always found they've performed very well, good solid wheels - in my humble opinion a clincher carbon wheel would seem to be stonger and more durable than a tubular, proof of this is they've carried my fat ass around for three years without complaint!

I consider carbon tubulars to be pure racers wheels, used for races for low weight, carbon clinchers seem more solid and robust and can be used all year round, sure you add a few kilo's but like someone said above its the aero benefits you're really after, not pushed about weight savings

blorg

Lumen wrote: »

HED Ardennes are an interesting concept in the context of the tub vs clincher debate.

Not exactly cheap though.

£499 isn't exactly expensive for a good wheelset in that weight range, even disregarding the additional "tubular-like" quality they are meant to impart.

Chips Lovell

From that HED review:

The one downside we can think of is that the C2 rim could create some problems in competition. We had to set our brakes much wider to accommodate the Ardennes and even had to reset the pad angle for proper contact.

Total pain in the ass if you have more than one set of wheels.

Tackleberry wrote: »

...in my humble opinion a clincher carbon wheel would seem to be stonger and more durable than a tubular, proof of this is they've carried my fat ass around for three years without complaint!

Actually, I'd say that pound for pound, tubular rims are more robust. Clincher rims have to support the tyre bead and 100psi+ of pressure, all against a relatively narrow wall. That's why you can make tubs lighter, since the rims don't have to deal with all of this.

Tackleberry

el tonto wrote: »

I'll qualify this by saying I don't own carbon wheels, but I'm shopping around for next year, so been reading up a bit.

You sure have

BH2008

just a quick point. all carbon rims require a special brake block, as far a I know this should not be used on a normal wheel as well, as bits of metal caught in the block may damage the carbon....pain in the ass if you want to switch between carbon and normal wheels regularly

Bambaata

I've just scraped the money together for a set of zipps. probably going to go 606's (it'll be for a tri bike that i hope to have by January/February). I've been reading lots about the clincher v tub debate and most point towards getting tubs, particularly as i'll only be using them for races.

The only problem i have, and as one bike shop guy said to me, i'm a novice to bikes and i have 0 knowledge on what the hell i would have to do to glue on the tubs!! Is it a difficult process? What happens if i mess up?! This is the only reason i have for going clincher. Is it something that is easily learned or is there much that can actually go wrong anyway?

Chips Lovell

Bambaata wrote: »

The only problem i have, and as one bike shop guy said to me, i'm a novice to bikes and i have 0 knowledge on what the hell i would have to do to glue on the tubs!! Is it a difficult process? What happens if i mess up?! This is the only reason i have for going clincher. Is it something that is easily learned or is there much that can actually go wrong anyway?

There's a bit of skill to it, but nothing that can't be learned. A badly glued tub will risk rolling off, which is never good. Some people use tape, which is a bit cleaner but there are numerous debates about which is better. A bike shop of course will glue them for you, but I wouldn't trust most shops to be honest.

Bambaata

this is one reason why i think ill go with the LBS for the tri bike i'm getting. would it be within reason to ask them to do it first time and to talk me through it as they do it? woudl 1 time viewing it beign done be enough even?

Chips Lovell

Bambaata wrote: »

this is one reason why i think ill go with the LBS for the tri bike i'm getting. would it be within reason to ask them to do it first time and to talk me through it as they do it? woudl 1 time viewing it beign done be enough even?

I don't think that's unreasonable alright. I'm sure there are plenty of people who ask them to show them how to mount clinchers. Mounting tubs is a bit more time consuming though, so they'll probalby be just talking you through most of it rather than showing you.

penexpers

Bambaata wrote: »

I've just scraped the money together for a set of zipps. probably going to go 606's (it'll be for a tri bike that i hope to have by January/February). I've been reading lots about the clincher v tub debate and most point towards getting tubs, particularly as i'll only be using them for races.

The only problem i have, and as one bike shop guy said to me, i'm a novice to bikes and i have 0 knowledge on what the hell i would have to do to glue on the tubs!! Is it a difficult process? What happens if i mess up?! This is the only reason i have for going clincher. Is it something that is easily learned or is there much that can actually go wrong anyway?

Just follow the snob's guide here

http://bikesnobnyc.blogspot.com/2008/04/makin-it-stick-how-to-install-tubular.html

Bambaata

i'll be sure to give you some of the energy bars i make while mixing up some glue to thank you ;-)