looking for light, comfy, fast wheel - 353nsw?

[mikehhhhhhh]

Josh Poertner, who knows a thing or two about wheels and who has tested many wheel/tyre combinations, has publicly stated that 32 mm is the minimum width of tyre that he feels comfortable running on hookless rims. In other words, a respected and experienced industry insider, who used to be a head engineer at Zipp, will personally not ride road hookless because he thinks his safety is compromised. That's good enough for me.

I read this article. I found it super interesting and he discusses it well.

His argument is clearly from your average consumer point of view. He acknowledges that someone savvy enough to understand the interaction between bead width and tyre width, conscious of tolerances of rim/tyre sealing (he himself discusses adding tubeless tape to ride his favourite hookless combo) will likely have a different experience to joe bloggs that doesn't know what a PSI is.

I've checked every tyre combo I've put on my 303s for how it sits on the bead and up to 85psi overnight for first seating.

I agree though, I don't think hookless (or tubeless for that matter) suits those who can't figure these things out, or won't pay someone to do it for them.

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Well, pulled the trigger on a set of 353NSW this morning.

Managed to find them a bit cheaper too! Sigmasports have them for a little over £2600 if you buy them individually. I shall report back once I've ridden then

Ahem.

Enjoy the wheels fella. Do post up and let us know how you find them. I'll look out for you on the lanes too! What colour is your Tarmac?

I'll be on a black SL7 or green SL8 depending on how wet/muddy it is. How about you?

A white SL7 mate, with white decal rapides or alpinists. Maybe a black Aethos in the near future too. I'll only be out when it's dry though!

[mikehhhhhhh]

A white SL7 mate, with white decal rapides or alpinists. Maybe a black Aethos in the near future too. I'll only be out when it's dry though!

That's lovely, they look so good in white! I wanted the white SL7 when I got mine but it wasn't in stock and I was too impatient

I shall keep an eye out

These are my two;

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very nice mate. can't ever go wrong with a black bike and that green loks super nice! looks like quite the stable there. what else you got? i try to explain to my wife (non-cyclist and not into sport at all) bikes are like shoes, you need different ones for different occassions

incidentally, how do you find your sl8 compared to the sl7?

[mikehhhhhhh]

very nice mate. can't ever go wrong with a black bike and that green loks super nice! looks like quite the stable there. what else you got? i try to explain to my wife (non-cyclist and not into sport at all) bikes are like shoes, you need different ones for different occassions

incidentally, how do you find your sl8 compared to the sl7?

I have a MTB and keep my first ever road bike around for sentimental value!

I love the SL8 - frontend is stiffer, no more out of the saddle disc rub, rear end is more compliant and bb feels stiffer out the saddle.

I also like that it looks a bit more bike-like than the sl7 without sacrificing any aero.

Smiles all around.

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[mikehhhhhhh]

If nothing else, they look great.

If I don't post again after the weekend, you'll know fitting a 28mm tyre on a 25mm rim has led to my demise

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Very nice mate they look tasty! Cycle to work scheme lol. Gotta love it.

Let us know how you find them!

[mikehhhhhhh]

Very nice mate they look tasty! Cycle to work scheme lol. Gotta love it.

Let us know how you find them!

Mounted tyres with sealant last night, happy with how they mounted (needed valve cores out) and then I pumped them up to 90psi overnight to rule out any issues like the video shared.

Tyres are Vittoria Corsa Pro 28/30s which measure 30mm and 33mm.

Got out on them for a quick 30 min ride today. Considering I've been riding on 32s since November, I'm really impressed with the comfort.

They clearly don't have the same volume as 32s so don't remove the full range of bumps like they do, but they round off everything incredibly well. Super comfortable considering I haven't gone really wide. Overall impression is they're just really smooth rolling.

No idea on the aero side, but I can't see them being much, if any worse off than my Rapides with big fat 32mm tyres on.

Can't say I'm thrilled with the freehub sound. On the stand at very high speeds it sounds a bit odd and out on the road it's quiet, although everything is quiet next to my various DT hubs with 54t ratchets

Overall, I'm happy with what I got for what it cost me.

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Very nice mate they look tasty! Cycle to work scheme lol. Gotta love it.

Let us know how you find them!

Mounted tyres with sealant last night, happy with how they mounted (needed valve cores out) and then I pumped them up to 90psi overnight to rule out any issues like the video shared.

Tyres are Vittoria Corsa Pro 28/30s which measure 30mm and 33mm.

Got out on them for a quick 30 min ride today. Considering I've been riding on 32s since November, I'm really impressed with the comfort.

They clearly don't have the same volume as 32s so don't remove the full range of bumps like they do, but they round off everything incredibly well. Super comfortable considering I haven't gone really wide. Overall impression is they're just really smooth rolling.

No idea on the aero side, but I can't see them being much, if any worse off than my Rapides with big fat 32mm tyres on.

Can't say I'm thrilled with the freehub sound. On the stand at very high speeds it sounds a bit odd and out on the road it's quiet, although everything is quiet next to my various DT hubs with 54t ratchets

Overall, I'm happy with what I got for what it cost me.

Sounds good mate. Personally think aero is overrated if you're not a racer or strava-segment obsessive. For me comfort and looks are probably more important.

Yeah heard that about the rear hub. It's that mechanism that reduces drag, right? Guess some people like quite hubs and some like loud. It's get louder at slow speeds though? To warn pedestrians etc...

[mikehhhhhhh]

Sounds good mate. Personally think aero is overrated if you're not a racer or strava-segment obsessive. For me comfort and looks are probably more important.

Yeah heard that about the rear hub. It's that mechanism that reduces drag, right? Guess some people like quite hubs and some like loud. It's get louder at slow speeds though? To warn pedestrians etc...

Well, I was kinda opperating in the middle ground before - aero wheels with big tyres that ruin the aero.

Now I can have more suitable tyres on my aero wheels for when I want to go fast and comfy tyres on these without ruining the aero for the rest of the time.

I love how my DT Swiss hubs can be used in lieu of a bell It does get louder at low speeds, but not loud atm. I guess that'll get louder as it beds in, oil dissipates etc.

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Sounds like a well thought out spread of wheelsets mate. Do fancy a pair myself

[mikehhhhhhh]

Took them out again today as the weather is nice.

Supposedly 25mph winds - this wouldn't bother me with my Rovals either but they were imperceptible today.

I ran Zipp's tyre pressure calc with standard instead of thin casing today giving me 58psi all round and rode some of the worse roads I tend to ride and result is more of the same - close but not quite as comfortable as 32s but they just seem to roll so much better over the rough stuff.

I'm so convinced by these as my goto wheels, I'm thinking I'll put GP5k TT tyres on the rovals for special occasions

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Sounds good mate. They seem to offer the best of quite a few worlds. Is the rear hub getting louder as it breaks in or still too early/no change? Will be interesting to see what the service periods are like for it. I couldn't find much info online...

[xiyuwang]

Well, you know, hookless can be a sucker if you choose to go ENVE or Zipp. I ride my 404 a lot, and I hate and love hookless at the same time. It is comfortable, yet somewhat expensive to keep it running. Whenever your sealant cannot do the job, it means you will need a new tire again, it is not a cheap bill if you stick with tires like GP5000STR. I don't really have a view on the safety issues, my body weight only needs ~60psi of pressure for the wheel to reach optimal performance, so I did not experience blowouts, whatsoever.

Due to the G3 pattern spokes, I won't suggest campy for sure, hard to maintain/true, and not light. WTO 45 is kind of light, but it has a history of cracked rims due to G3 spokes pulling the rim super hard, especially at 45mm depth. They probably improved the quality thereafter, still, G3 pattern combined with disc brake is quite sub-optimal.

I also run a pair of DT arc 1100 50/62 wheels. Good engagement, quick, and comfortable. I'd suggest ERC 1100 or 1400 in your case. 1400 is heavier because of the spokes and the hub, but the rim is the same, worth considering. If you want ultra comfort I admit 303 or 353 are good choices, although I think 303 is good enough for this kind of all-around wheels (the wave-shaped rim on shallower rims seems to be less necessary)

Don't know much about custom-built wheels, no comments on that.