What wheelset/tyre combo

Jonesy101

Im thinking of upgrading my wheels on a rim brake Giant Advance Propel 105, it was about 2k 5 yrs ago and would like to have nice shiny carbon wheels on it so it looks faster.

I want it to perform a bit better as well. But there are so many types out there, its so hard to know if a wheel is compatible or not. Wide tyres seem to be the new thing according to articles but its not that obvious when looking at crc etc that its a wider tyre but compatible with regular frames.

I know people have been riding with carbon for years, is it safe if it starts raining halfway through a 3hr ride up the Dublin mountains? How much do i have to spend to see a noticeable difference in performance, 500 each wheel? or more :eek:

thanks in advance!

CantGetNoSleep

Compatibility with rim brakes is not a huge challenge as you only really have one way of attaching the wheels to the bike - quick release (disc brakes is a whole other story).

You have to think about tire choice - tubular (avoid if you need to know what it is), clincher (classic tire and inner tube combination), and tubeless (tire with sealant inside rather than an inner tube).

For tire clearance - the brakes will limit how wide you can go, five year old 105 brakes might not fit 28mm tires which are as wide as you would want to go on a Propel, the frame might not fit them either. So any road wheel will be fine for you in terms of width.

Then material - carbon or alu. Carbon might look better but think of the type of riding you do - rims / brake track can wear out. You also need special brake pads (making it difficult to swap wheels e.g. if you wanted bad weather wheels). Braking in the rain may not be as good either.

And finally depth - deep section wheels (50mm+) might also look better, and they are intended to help maintain speed but at 30 or 35kmh+, but they can be difficult to manage on a windy day.

I would consider what you want to gain from your existing wheels (lose weight, look better, perform better - but depends on the type of riding you do e.g. if your plan is just to go to the Dublin mountains you might want something different, more durable) and decide from there, but I wouldn't be stuck to the idea of getting a set of 50mm carbon rims just because you need to

fat bloke

I was very impressed with Prime's (Wiggle) carbon wheels after seeing them in real life. They'd look great. Another option would be Giant's own SLR wheels. They're about a grand and they'll suit your Propel down to the ground. They often come up second hand too.

Tyres - that's up to yourself really. GP5000's are the majority go-to tyre for fast road riding of all sorts, but there's plenty of choice out there.

Mefistofelino

fat bloke wrote: »

I was very impressed with Prime's (Wiggle) carbon wheels after seeing them in real life. They'd look great. Another option would be Giant's own SLR wheels. They're about a grand and they'll suit your Propel down to the ground. They often come up second hand too.

Tyres - that's up to yourself really. GP5000's are the majority go-to tyre for fast road riding of all sorts, but there's plenty of choice out there.

Giant's current carbon wheel range are have hookless bead seats and are not compatible with GP5000s (or a whole load of other tyres)
https://www.giant-bicycles.com/global/hookless-technology

fat bloke

Mefistofelino wrote: »

Giant's current carbon wheel range are have hookless bead seats and are not compatible with GP5000s (or a whole load of other tyres)
https://www.giant-bicycles.com/global/hookless-technology

Are they ALL gone that way now? Seems mad to abandon an established standard completely, not to mention a whole swathe of tyre types.

I had carbon clinchers on a tcr a few years ago - nice wheelset.

fat bloke

https://www.giant-bicycles.com/ie/wheelsystems#brake-type=rim-brake&rim-type=clincher

Yeah, so looking at this you can still buy normal clincher SLR's in a variety of sizes.

Mefistofelino

fat bloke wrote: »

Are they ALL gone that way now? Seems mad to abandon an established standard completely, not to mention a whole swathe of tyre types.

I had carbon clinchers on a tcr a few years ago - nice wheelset.

My bad - I should have said Giants tubeless range have gone hookless

byrnem31

I have hunt aero 33s disc for €930 on my defy weighing in at 1347. The pr2s were dirt and wrecked my head. The rear hub was over tightened in the factory and is faulty. Mechanics can't get it off and have broken tools trying to get it off. Giant have admitted on some defy and liv models that rear hubs were overtightened. I have emailed them and got nowhere.

Anyway, go for it. They transformed my bike. Way more comfortable, lighter etc.

byrnem31

byrnem31 wrote: »

I have hunt aero 33s disc for €930 on my defy weighing in at 1347. The pr2s were dirt and wrecked my head. The rear hub was over tightened in the factory and is faulty. Mechanics can't get it off and have broken tools trying to get it off. Giant have admitted on some defy and liv models that rear hubs were overtightened. I have emailed them and got nowhere.

Anyway, go for it. They transformed my bike. Way more comfortable, lighter etc.

I went through 5 giant freehubs in a year , LBS kept replacing them under warranty, said it was a known issue, he didn’t tell me that when I gave him 3k for the bike!! I have given up on Giant and that LBS,

byrnem31

Jakub Zytecki wrote: »

I went through 5 giant freehubs in a year , LBS kept replacing them under warranty, said it was a known issue, he didn’t tell me that when I gave him 3k for the bike!! I have given up on Giant and that LBS,

I had almost given up on my defy but i have it perfect now. It's a beautiful bike that floats along the road. Unfortunately stock wheels on most bike models around the 2/3k mark are dirt. The cube agree/attain stock alu wheels had issues with tyres popping off rims and spokes breaking off.