[Closed] Roadietrackworld - carbon wheels

No experience of any of the above but I've got set of LB MTB rims that I've run for about 6 years and they are still going strong. If I had the money to upgrade the wheels on my road bike I'd be after these:
https://www.lightbicycle.com/Road-bicycle-rims-28mm-wide-46mm-deep-aero-clincher-road-rim-brake-available.html
I priced up a pair with Carbon Ti hubs and it was about £600.

Have a look at Farsports they were great to deal with, I'll be ordering again

Thanks! I’ll check out LB and Farsport. Good to see people have had good experience.

If you have the budget then I’d go for Zipp 303 NSA.
I’d also recommend having a look at Edco. The 2020 48 wheels might be worth a look. 48mm deep so actually gaining aero advantage and 1530 grams, 21mm internal as well. I have a set of their 50mm wheels, 1570 grams. Very impressed. I also have 65mm carbon wheels and my view is that approx 50mm is a good depth for aero and lightweight.
I’ve also had Hunt Aero, Zipp 404 (older model) and Mavic Cosmic (SLE I think, but 40mm). Zipp have the bling and they do look good.
I don’t see the point of 40mm rims, either go aero or go light. I don’t think there’s a halfway house, and I’ve got 40mm vision Metron wheels.

When buying my Edco wheels it was a toss up between Zipp 404, Edco and Light Bicycle. I went with the Edco as I had good comms with them, heard good things from other folks and thought the weight was acceptable. Delivered within a couple of days, Weight was a tad lighter than advertised as well.

DOI: I've messaged the OP as I am just moving on some Hunt 50s at the moment but I agree with w00dster. Go aero (50mm is a good compromise whatever wheels you decide to get) or just stick with a light weight rim. Ive own the Hunt Aeros and 50mm clinchers, have ridden the 30 Carbons and have Zipp 404 discs on another bike. The 50mm clinchers have it everyday.

Farsports were great to deal with.

Bought a cheep pair of 38mm deep carbon wheels (~1500g) a few years ago and have been faultless, apart from some loose epoxy inside one rim when they first arrived that was a bit tricky to get out of the spoke holes, since then they've been great. Only use them on the nice bike over summer.

I'm just awaiting delivery of a set of Hunt alloy wheels, great value and should be a bit nippier than the dull, cheap, made-from-cheese standard wheels that came on the 2020 Roubaix. I messaged Hunt asking a few questions and within a couple of hours the father of the owner rang me back for a chat, which quite impressed me.

Farsports wheels are very good, not even considering the price. Lightbicycle are another brand worth checking out. Do some research on the Carbon Ti hubs, as although very light, they're not quite as fit and forget as DT350 or DT240.

Roval CL50 might be another option worth considering, DT hub internals and they likely have a great warranty. The only thing to consider is the width (they're wide), with regards to tyre choice and frame/brake clearance.

If you want to spend all your budget though, then I'd recommend Campagnolo Boras, better than any wheels I've ridden, and I imagine the latest model will be even better.

I’ve got the Mavics (though not the SL) 28mm version.

Pros: Look good. Comes with decent tyres and a tubeless setup that works first time. Freehub sounds like a swarm of angry bees.

Cons: Freehub sounds like a swarm of angry bees.

Tyre pressures are surprisingly low for road tyres, 55psi for me. MyMavic app works out exact pressures for you. Mavic’s live chat is staffed by people that actually understand and know their products.

My wife's got the Zipp 303s (2018 version); they are very nice and she is noticeably faster on them. The braking is very good even in the wet, which was not the case on the older Zipps.
If your Supersix is an early model like mine the rear tyre clearance will be very tight with the 303s though as they are wide. I did a test fit with my wife's wheels in my frame and there was <1mm clearance at the chainstay with a 25 mm tyre.

This is one of the best websites I've seen explaining the carbon wheel marketplace, some very useful insights and reviews - and the information is not just the usual baloney but seems experienced and based on what ride feels you're going to trade for your dollar...

worth a rummage around the different articles aimed at differing price points & climbing vs aero...

intheknowcycling

Zipp 303's would be answer...some great deals on later generation models - just check the width fits your chainstays ok, the rims bulge in the centre beyond the brake track ...can be close on older models.

....

And I would add Fulcrum Speed 40C to your list - underrated wheels around same price, get great reviews but more importantly not super wide if width is a problem (it might be based on above...I know I can't fit 303's on my SL4 Tarmac) - not tubeless though but light and 40mm, other Fulcrum models are tubeless...gets confusing in their range.

Some really awesome food for thought there. Thank you everyone!!!

Clx50’s definitely worth a look.

There’s a LOT of positive noise about 303’s and also the Farsport/LB wheels, no smoke without fire so I’ll have a look.

It’s a 2019 supersix evo, last one before they went dropped chainstays so should be good on clearance I think. But a really good point I will check!

Yeah newer model Supersixes are fine. I hold the last model with the tight clearances, 2014 I think.
Performance wise, I don’t think there is a massive difference between Zipp and the other brands, but Zipp look the nuts in my opinion. If you have the money then that’d be my shout. When I bought my wheels a couple of weeks ago my preference was Zipp but it was way easier getting £650 past the Finance Director!

I've got Zipp 303 and they're brill. Was an ultra extravagant purchase but now I've go them I'm pleased with them..the best upgrade I've made to the bike (and the most expensive)...far better than any chainset upgrade. Replaced the stock wheels my bike came. Lighter but the biggest thing I noticed, especially going back to my old wheels which I use over winter, is the stiffness of them. Really improves the ride much more noticeably than the weight saving.

Are supposed to be tubeless and ready to go tubeless with tubeless valves included but I run tubes.

The rim brake versions are optimised (from an aero perspective) for 25c tyres and disk braked version (which I have) is optimised from 28c.

Hey
I have a super six (albeit an older one with tighter clearances) and have Mavic ksyriums on there which are fine. I did have a pair of the R-sys slrs which I’d borrowed which were brilliant and suited the bike really well. These would be on budget I think.

I’ve got some royal cl50s on a spec tarmac which would be another option, but personally on the supersix I’d go for a lighter shallow wheel set

If you’re moving to full carbon wheels from an alloy rim braking surface, just take it easy at first.....

Just Riding Along Mahi Mahi 45mm, I've just got the 40mm disc version and I'm happy. Nice and wide, decent weight and price, plus easy to get spares for.

My nice bike has some 32mm roval wheels this will be the 3rd summer I’ve used them and not really touched them apart from a little pre summer bike service each year.

Dt 240 based hubs

Only issue is if you get caught in the rain carbon rim brake wheels are shocking

To the OP

I race with a 202 on the front and a 303 on the rear. The advantage of Zipp wheels is that you can buy them separately and not have to commit to a ‘wheelset’. I went with this combo after getting advice from another racer who used them and I’m glad I did. The 202 isn’t really effected by crosswinds at all but it’s still very fast, but I’m light so I could be blown off the road easily.

303 on the rear feels lovely and like others no problem with braking. Edit; the 303 is about 45mm and the 202 is about 35.

Another wheelset I’d be looking at if I were you is the Campag Bora. They roughly fit your weight and price.

Id go Campag Bora ones, 35mm or 50mm

Clinchers come in at 1405 grams for the 35mm ones and they can be had for £1300 if you shop around

They spin forever due to the ceramic bearings, they have the AC3 brake track for better braking in wet conditions

I have the 35mm Tubular versions, they weigh 1215 grams, i was lucky and bought mine for £800 2nd hand and they had only been used as race day wheels for 3 races, Ive not had to touch mine in the two years Ive had them and they get used at least twice a month in the spring, summer and autumn

Reynolds Attack wheels are also worth a look, i had a disc brake set and was impressed with them

Another vote for farsports here 🙂

Currently running 2 sets of giants slr wheels 30mm on one bike and 42mm on another. Both very good and can be had around £800-£900 for set.

https://www.rutlandcycling.com/components/wheels-wheel-parts/giant-slr-1-carbon-42mm-road-bike-rear-wheel_458268?currency=GBP&chosenAttribute=350000152&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIu9zChuTy6AIVme3tCh2OJQJvEAQYASABEgIFZPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Watch Hambini for his analysis on aero wheels. It may help with choice. Myself run a set of Roval CLX 50 awesome wheels for acceleration and rolling along with little resistance.

Bora's are worth a look. that was my first choice but I was not after the much more expensive Ultra's with the ceramic bearings and carbon hub body, but the standard model with the alloy hubs and conventional bearings. But I like Campag wheels as I had a pair of Zonda's on a previous bike which were great wheels. Unfortunately I couldn't find a set of disk clinchers at the time so went for the Zipp's that were on offer from Chain Reaction at the time and mainly on the recommendation of my brother who is running a set of Zipp's too and rated them, so why take the risk if you're spending that sort of cash.

Think when you get to that level of wheel they're all as good as each other on balance...just as much about personal preference. The Hambini thing is interesting but I didn't find it useful in deciding on the choice of wheel set - just an academic exercise really. So many variables and in different scenario's different wheel sets will be slightly better than others or all the manufacturers would have exactly the same design. The differences between the wheel sets are so marginal anyway...the biggest difference is the jump from conventional bog standard alloy wheels (assuming that is what you're coming from) to something like this. The rest is marginal gains at the extreme. And in anycase I don't notice or feel the aero benefits (I'm sure they are there)....but I do feel the benefit of the rim weight reduction, but mostly the stiffness. They're lush. No way in the world you can justify the price...but that's the magic of interest free credit.

Is there any love for the Prime wheels in CRC/Wiggle?

The standard Prime wheels tend to be rather narrow but the Black Edition ones may be a bit wider.

Carbon speed cycle

These carbon speed cycle ones are what I ran on my giant propel for 4000 miles before selling the bike.
They were faultless and only needed a £10 bearing change in that time.
I've now got 2 sets of light bicycle rims. one for off road and one for road bike. both been great so far.

Genuine question as I am looking at new wheels myself at the minute. For ~£350 I can get some <1400g aluminium wheels with 30mm profile, or I can spend £800 and get some 50mm carbon wheels which will be >1600g and not be as good at braking.

What am I missing that carbon gives you other than looking good, and if you are capable of maintaining >22mph they are great (I don’t know many people who can maintain 22mph)

Anything over about 15mph and aero is king, although dropping your stem and fitting narrower bars will make a bigger difference.

What am I missing that carbon gives you other than looking good

I have carbon wheels on all 3 bikes I own. I am a ponce, but also got them half price. The biggest benefit on all bikes, road or mtb- is that once installed I've not had to touch them for truing at all in something like a combined 30 thousand miles which is quite extraordinary but not surprising when you realise how much strength and stiffness the rim has. A lightweight alloy rim may get near the weight but will have the consistency of emmental in comparison. The other big benefits are that on a road calliper brake you don't get that messy black gunk residue from the brake surface...and the brake tracks last a lot longer than Alu, so keep the hubs sweet and the wheelset can last a long time.

Never minding all that though, they do just look super pimp, and style is everything...

@Funkydunc, I’ve got lightweight carbon 50mm, 65mm and also alu lightweight “climbing wheels”. I prefer my 50mm, 1580 grams which cost me £650 (Edco wheels) The 65mm are double that price and weigh 1750 grams (Reynolds). They don’t like the wind but the Edco ones are fine. The alu are Hunt Aero, £380 I think and just under 1500 grams.
I guess a lot of it depends where you live, around here it’s reasonably flat (Buckinghamshire/ Bedfordshire border), there’s a good few long sections where I’ll average way higher than 22mph.

As an example, here’s today’s ride. Nothing special, but if you look at some of the segments you’ll see that there are a number of flat segments for a few miles. In reality they are typical rolling countryside, but flat enough. Even the hills are at a gradient where aero trumps weight (but not necessarily today as there was quite a wind so not going quick enough at times to get an aero benefit)

https://strava.app.link/nB2OMuEqO5

I’d use my 50mm carbon wheels if I was going to mountains. In fact last year in Girona I used 65mm. But as someone else admitted, I’m also a ponce and like the look and sound of deep carbon wheels!

By the way, in the dry, carbon rims are absolutely fine. I wouldn’t recommend only having a single set of wheels, always worth having a cheaper alu braking track wheel for wetter weather.

Woodster - I am directly looking at those Hunt wheels. How will my bike feel different if I dined double the money?

To be honest I didn’t notice much difference but my Hunt wheels replaced a good set of wheels, lightweight wheels do climb well, but it’s seconds in a 10 minute climb. If you climb at threshold it’s still hard. A lightweight wheel may save a small amount of watts, but climbing is always hard!
I’m 70kgs so don’t really stress wheels or braking, I very really hit high watts. I’ve not noticed any flex, I’ve had no problems with the hub or spokes, but being tubeless they are a bit of a bugger to get tyres and tubes in (I don’t get on with tubeless on my road bike).
The Hunts replaced a pair of Bontrager XXX 1450 gram wheels, they were about £800 from memory, this was on a Trek Emonda SLR, so quite a light bike.
Going from stock wheels you may notice a small improvement in average speed over a rolling countryside ride, but it will be fairly minimal. But the Hunt were no worse than a pair of wheels double the price of them.
I’d always recommend going to 50mm deep if you can. Unless you live in the high mountains or it rains a lot. You can get UK supplied carbon wheels at similar price point to imported wheels (with Customs paid).
I don’t notice the extra 100 grams when I’m climbing on local rides, but I do notice (or think I do) notice the aero benefit of deep wheels.

Unless you are really quick I would save the money and go aluminium at lower weight, and less upsetting when they wear out in two years.

That's the point though.. what's going to wear out in two years? If you get a good wheel set with reliable easily user serviceable hubs, you'll find that the rim stiffness helps maintain the spoke tension and the brake tracks on good rims last a very long time indeed - as long as you don't ride them into something solid and nerf them there's no reason they won't last a lot longer than Alu. I have Reynolds carbon rims/ sapim X-ray on King R45 hubs that I service myself yearly, they're 8 years old and look and run the same as the day I bought them - and I do take them outside and spank them regularly...

Don’t the rims wear out?
If not I retract my former statement.

For my next rim brake set I'll be looking at a set from Light Bicycle with their grooved graphene brake track. DT Swiss 240 hubs or Carbon Ti.

Farsports do a similar rim now too.

My experience has been good so far but may just be lucky admittedly...I've worn out Mavic Ksyrium brake tracks in same timespan that my carbon tracks show zero wear.

The biggest risk element is to be aware of not overheating the brake surfaces on descents on my early style rims (modern rims should not be a problem like this at all), have seen a few cheap Chinese rims fail this way with the resin melting then tyre pressure pushing the leading edge out, but it would take a heavy guy dragging the brakes all the way down something like Wrynose to do that in practice.

I’ve never worn out a rim, carbon or alu. But I tend to have options, I won’t use my carbon rim on a hilly ride in the wet. For crit racing in the wet I used to use a deep carbon rim with alu brake track.
My 2 year old Reynolds brake track looks brand new.
I’ve rode carbon rims for close to a decade now (different rims obvs), the braking has improved massively as has the cross wind performance.

Alloy rims tend to wear out much quicker, generally because they'll be used over winter. I've done wheelsets in months under normal winter use, switched to disc brakes (for winter) years ago so I no longer have to worry about it.

The brake pad compound also plays a part. I currently use the cheap Lifeline carbon pads from Wiggle, they're very soft and wear quite quickly, without causing wear to the brake track.

OP - did you make a choice in the end?

I looked at those Edco’s which are now out of stock.

Zipp 303 NSW look amazing but silly silly money at the minute.

Specialized’s Roval CL50 look good for £1k but no reviews !?

Then it’s seams difficult to go passed Campag Bora One’s for £1,300 but they are now a relatively narrow rim by current standards.

Light bicycles etc appear to be about £800 when you factor in duty. Hunts get some mixed reviews.

You can get the 303 Firecrest at a much more palatable price from a number of places - they updated the rims on the Firecrest from the original and its got that latest brake track...they still sell it alongside the more spendy NSW.
firecrest CR

Alloy rims tend to wear out much quicker, generally because they’ll be used over winter. I’ve done wheelsets in months under normal winter use

How?? No criticism, just genuinely amazed. I got a year out of a set of aluminium rims when I was mountainbiking with V-Brakes in the Pentland hills, not famously dry...

I've got 4500km* on a couple of different alloy rimmed road bikes, one summer/turbo use only but one heavy duty winter use, and neither is showing any real wear to the rims. Makes me believe the hype about Swissstop BXP pads, although maybe I'm just blessed with a traffic/junction free commute.

*not suggesting this is big mileage b.t.w.

I have a theory to the above - Have you noticed how with an alloy rim, if you inspect the brake pads you will find tiny shards of alloy material embedded in the brake block, once there they continually accelerate the wear of the brake track. I used to check my pads often and one could always pick out these shards. This is one thing that doesn't happen at all with carbon rims/pads. Some very lightweight alloy rims have very little material on the brake track and this kind of scouring can kill a wheel set prematurely in hilly terrain.

tbh. Not trying to justify spending twice as much on carbon for this issue alone...just an observation.

I actually had another reason for following this thread, I'm always looking to upgrade the Fulcrum Racing 3s on my good bike, but not really sure if there's any point, I could save at best 150g on the wheels by going carbon, and possibly also get some aero benefits, but I'm worried about heat dissapation!

I run latex tubes so just wondered how real a danger overheating carbon rims on long Alpine descents might be. I could run butyl tubes but then I've effectively re-gained the weight I've saved on the lighter wheels. I could run tubeless but I honestly just really don't want to go there on my nice bike, I swore my days of messing around with sealant were over.

I descended Rococorba on a 35C day last year, latex tubes but alloy rims. There's a prolonged 10% section which is also quite bumpy so you don't really want to let the speed build up, so I was on the brakes a lot. Obviously I lived to tell the tale. Is carbon much more prone to overheating?

You can get the 303 Firecrest at a much more palatable price from a number of places – they updated the rims on the Firecrest from the original and its got that latest brake track…they still sell it alongside the more spendy NSW.
firecrest CR

£1,500 for a set of wheels that can’t be made tubeless is mad in my book.

I rode rococorba on carbon clinchers with no problems, also lots of other steep descents within the same area. I overheated on the way up, but the wheels were fine. A lot of that downhill is pretty flowy so don’t actually remember needing to worry about any overheating.
I’ve ridden them just about everywhere, including some north wales very steep and sketchy downhills and had no problems with overheating.

Not being tubeless is a huge benefit for enabling easy roadside repairs in my opinion, never had a problem with normal tyres one can pop off the rim with bare hands - Happy to run tubeless on the mtb's but curiously have zero interest on a road bike due to excess milky faffage, is this now a minority opinion?

but curiously have zero interest on a road bike due to excess milky faffage, is this now a minority opinion?

I share that opinion, but also don't like discs so suspect I am very much the voice of the minority!

A lot of that downhill is pretty flowy so don’t actually remember needing to worry about any overheating.

Ug, not my memory of it, seem to recall some steep sections pitched in concrete with joining seams and nasty lumps and bumps. Did not encourage a brakes off approach! Do you use latex tubes also, apparently more susceptible to heat although mine are 80g Vittorias not the 50g scary-lites... 😁

I am very much the voice of the minority!

You're not.

Also in the market (seems everyone is.....lockdown boardness?)
Looking for 50mm carbon with decent hubs and limiting myself a grand.
Rule out the big names which isnt an issue.
short list seems to be...

Hunt 50 Carbon Areo 1,537g 26.6/20 width @£840
Scribe Aero Wide 50 Carbon Disc 1,438g 26/19 width @ £870
Just Riding Along Mahi Mahi 50 1,500g 27/22 width @ £850

Hmmm??

I've always like hunt but after taking a close look at the market I leaning towards JRA.

An extra £150 and you could be looking at a set of Roval cl50s....
I think I’d spend the extra in all honesty and don’t think you’d be disappointed

Totally agree re tubeless. It just seems like extra hassle. I’ve tried it and won’t be trying it again (on the road)

Road tubeless got old for me the day I cut a front tyre on a lump of metal, and got a Stan's facial.

My fave (tub) wheelsets have been Corima 34s and the current Mavic CCUs which are 2013 I think. Stunning wheels.

Interested to note how wide all these modern rim options are - do rims that wide work if you're still running older rim callipers? I have Dura-ace 7800 callipers from the 10spd generation and have a sneaking suspicion they'd be at the limit of the pads opening far enough, anyone tried this?

Probably won’t just be the caliper, the tyre on a wider rim May well rub the frame. A 10 speed gruppo would have been designed probably with 23c tyres max designed in mind (and run at 120psi!)

Obviously this is if you are running the 10spd groupset on a frame of similar vintage

I have been running tubeless for the past year and 6000km. I will not go back to tubes. No punctures despite hitting the odd pothole/drain cover that I think would have punctured a tube. It feels better too (might be snake oil). I see no reason why you wouldn't go tubeless.

The tubeless thing - so if you're out 50 miles from home and get a puncture that the sealant won't seal and need to put a tube in, are you confident you can get the tyre off with small levers then reseated just with a mini pump? My experience with latest Mtb wheelsets like Mavic is that getting tyres on/off is full on workshop 20mins of cursing, 4 tyre lever snapping, thumb squishing sweatfest as they seem to be making the interface so tight to limit bead slipping - then tyre seating requiring Airshot 300psi - or have people found road tubeless tyre/rim combo's that are more forgiving?

I've had issues with pad spacing and wide rims, but only on Avid canti brakes with stupid proprietary pad holders. They actually offer aftermarket pad holders for wider rims but surprise surprise for SRAM, they're ridiculously over-priced.

Swissstop do their Evo pads which are just normal pads but 0.75mm thinner, e.g. you're paying more for pre-worn pads! 😁

The tubeless thing – so if you’re out 50 miles from home and get a puncture that the sealant won’t seal and need to put a tube in, are you confident you can get the tyre off with small levers then reseated just with a mini pump?

Definitely, have even tried it in the garage to be sure. Yes its not as easy but still not too bad.
DT Swiss rims and Conti GP500 tl tyres.
Making sure the bead of the tyre is sitting in the centre of the rim at its smallest diameter is the key.

or have people found road tubeless tyre/rim combo’s that are more forgiving?

I run Roval CLX32 rims and Sworks Turbo RapidAir 26mm tyres and Orange Seal, they go on/off by hand and pump up with a track pump from unseated no problem. They would most likely seat with a C02 also, but in 2500 miles I've not had a flat, so haven't had cause to take them off and try.

Hi!!!!

Sorry for radio silence. I did make a choice in the end..... think I’m actually going to break the bike down.

Groupset on to my RX9, which needs a new group, sell the frame, forks, seat post and bars and then buy a new, disc brake bike. Almost certainly a Supersix! I just can’t get my head around the big money for a set of rim brake carbon wheels!

How?? No criticism, just genuinely amazed

There were a lot of steep (25%), winding descents where I lived at the time.

303 firecrest are tubeless ready. They come with a tubeless valve and already taped up ready to go. Can't justify the price but hey....you pay your money and take you chance. Heard about plenty of issues with Chinese rims over the years..granted they're probably alot better now than they were, but they're not the bargain they used to be either. Still looking at the thick end of £1000 and just over £1000 for branded Chinese bog standard carbon rims like Hunt for example, so only a few hundred quid saving over 303's.

I'm not convinced about road tubeless. The sealant has to corragulate as it is blown through the restriction/hole...works most times at 25psi on a mountain bike wheel in mine and friends exeperience but nowhere near reliable enough to leave tubes at home, so I'm not convinced that at 90 psi it will work so well on a road bike wheel...the much higher pressure will just blow the sealant through before it gets a chance to corragulate. Happy to be proven wrong but even less chance of it happening than with MTB tyres and its nowhere near a 100% reliable system. And there is the bit about getting a tyre on and off...spent a good hour with a mate on my MTB wheel once trying to get a tyre on and off to replace a puncture. Alot of this is the rim/tyre combo granted.

I went with a set of Scribe 38/50's, pretty light with enough of an aero effect but as I live in south lakes it gets very gusty and is quite hilly so didn't go with 50's.
Been very happy with them and I am faster than with Hunt light aero's fitted (although you would expect that)

Is there any love for the Prime wheels in CRC/Wiggle?

So... I've fitted a pair of the 38mm DISC versions of the V2 rims. Yeah, at 16.5mm internal they appear narrow on paper, but have stuck some conti 25c gatorskins on there and they look and feel fine. No bulge, no 'rim step' etc...

Not the lightest at about 1780gm (I think) but it's hard to get a thick wodge of carbon to be uber light at £400...

Have done a few rides on them (kinesis tripster, with aero bars...and a pannier rack..what a bastard of a bike!)... I'm on teh windy south coast so opted away from 50mm+ due to the hefty winds we can get...the 38mm feel fast, but TBH, I just wanted the bling appeal of deep carbon!

DrP

I’m really struggling on making a decision here!

I’ve found the Edco Maloja wheels in Germany for £540. All good, cheaper than you can get them in the UK. But then I can get zipp 303’s with a bit of hassle (2 different places for £1,150.

The last wheels I bought were £180 so it wasn’t a difficult decision but I am struggling with this. Evidently the Edco are nice rims, but probably let down by very average no brand hubs.

I am struggling to justify £1k + to me, let alone the wife, however not sure if I will regret spending £550 on the Edco’s. Their own wheels with nice hubs are nearer to £1k

I’m loving my Edco’s. Overall I’d say they are no slower than my Reynolds 65mm carbon wheels or my Bonty Aeolus Pro which RRP at £1300 more.
I’ve done around 800 miles now, mainly rolling roads, some decent climbs but typical English short kickers rather than long drags. They are a decent weight, slightly under the advertised weight (1580 for mine). I’m not running them tubeless, but still nice and easy to get clinchers on, a very welcome bonus over some carbon tubeless setups.
I’ve only ridden them in the dry, braking performance is very good.
Best of all, they look really good and sound great when you’re going at speed.
As I’ve said previously, if money was no object I’d get the Zipps, but like you I was being mindful of the price difference. I accept that they are really just Far Eastern imports, but apart from very high end wheels, the majority are. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed, as long as you don’t expect to start getting pro level speeds! They’re nice looking wheels that perform very good for the price.

let down by very average no brand hubs.

If you do a decent bit of mileage then cheap unbranded hubs just aren’t worth the hassle. Some of them have strange or uncommon bearings that are very hard for shops to get - same goes with spokes. Worth keeping in mind that’s it’s a lot easier to get in spare spokes for the main brands if you need one from your lbs.

Just something keep in mind. I bought new training wheels last week, decided to go with Mavic Kyseriums instead of cheapo ones on CRC which on paper looked more attractive until I dug deeper. Mavic Cosmic carbons worth looking at...on sale for well under 1000 at a few places right now.
Mavic just work, very reliable and parts easily available.

Did you bite the bullet OP?

Hi Michael. Yes and no. Can’t get my head around zipp money. Decided I’ll probably upgrade to a disc supersix later in the year or next!

Come next month the Zipp 303s will be in stores, they look a good bet for the money. 1500 odd g's, less than a grand retail, tubeless 23mm internal rim width, 45mm deep.

Funkydunc, here’s a link to the 303s mentioned by Northernremedy.
Might be an option if you return your front wheel to Germany.

https://road.cc/content/tech-news/zipp-targets-versatility-new-303-s-tubeless-wheelset-273197

Those 303s are disc only though?

I can’t see anything about a rim brake version ?

Just been out for a ride on my new Zipp 303's.

This is after having been using wheelsets in the £200-£300 bracket since starting road riding 40 ish years ago! Latest wheels were Cero AR24's

Initial thoughts in order of brilliance.

Comfort- I wasn't expecting comfort, but they absorb so much of the imperfection in the roads its almost like having suspension. This could be in part caused by the bigger volume of the tyre, but whatever the difference is astounding

Speed - Acceleration, they just go. What you put in goes forward, they feel torisonally very stiff. Whenever I looked at my speedometer my speed was anywhere between 1-3 mph quicker.

Confidence - Again I assume this one is partly due to the larger volume of the tyre, however I could feel more of the road, something my last wheel set lacked. This makes it feel like there is more grip in the corners, and there probably is more grip.

Braking - The power is great, way better than my old alloy rims, modulation is improved too.

Downsides (being very picky!) - I did notice slightly different straight line handling due to the deeper rim (not quite as flickable), but by the end of the ride I was almost used to it.

Brakes - Its like the noise you get putting a mtb tyre on a turbo trainer, but at least people know your coming!

Speed - They want to go quicker. Where as my old wheelset at the top of the pedal stroke would sap energy away, these almost run away from you so you have to keep spinning your legs to stop slack in the freehub. (yes it means I was being lazy before)

Cost - I still shudder at how much they cost, more than the cost of the complete bike in the first place. However I knew it was a good frame, and to be honest the package together is amazing.

Nice. You missed:

Pretty - they say Zipp in big letters and look cool.

That's a glowing endorsement and they look awesome!

I really need to test ride some, had convinced myself that there wouldn't be enough improvement over my 1550g, 30mm deep Fulcrum 3s, decided I was better saving 300g weight on fancy shoes and new cranks...

1-3mph increase in speed is amazing!

Lovely, nice. I agree with the comfort factor, whether that’s because of the wider volume / external rim width or the carbon or both, I’m not sure. I have the 303 rear and 202 front as I’m a lightweight and would possibly be racing in high winds.

Do any of the manufacturers discussed in this thread do demo wheels?

I'm just about at the point, where on a good day, a set of 50mm-ish wheels may make a difference (I can manage a bit over 18mph average for 30 miles/3300' of vert, but as I do next to no flat stuff and a lot of climbing/descending, I'd like to actually see what the difference is before spunking that much cash on marginal gains. I'd be adding at least 100g compared to my current summer bike wheels, and as we're talking rim brakes - possible braking performance issues too. (although its very rare to ride that bike in the wet).

I did have a brief demo spin on a bike about 6 years ago that had 50mm carbon tubs on (Planet X N2A), and it was incredibly quick - a proper thrash your brains out job; however it was also brutally stiff - every spec of grit on the road getting smashed unmercilessly up my jacksie. I'd be bleeding in under 10 miles... Frame, wheels, tyre pressures - don't know, but man it was harsh. And fast!

Alloy rims tend to wear out much quicker, generally because they’ll be used over winter. I’ve done wheelsets in months under normal winter use, switched to disc brakes (for winter) years ago so I no longer have to worry about it.

This. Usage completely determines wear - summer wheels can, quite literally, last forever, but 300 miles a month in the depths of winter can trash a set of alloy rims in a season without any difficulty at all.

FWIW, now use discs in winter too - new rotors cost next to nothing by comparison with a set of even half-decent wheels and you no longer need to worry about whether it will rain on a given ride because you don't want to wear your best wheels. TBH, combined with more consistent braking performance, the wear issue is at the top of my "why discs are awesome on road bikes" list.