# Upgrade for Roubaix . . . Advice please



## PL56 (Jul 11, 2013)

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I usually ride about 110 - 120 miles a week with the longest being about 65 miles with an elevation gain of about 4000 feet.

I don’t race. I’m just looking for some wheels to help with the hills that will still be comfortable!

Thanks
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## Typetwelve (Jul 1, 2012)

Well...ill suggest what I went with, ROL Race SL. They ride extremely well, rated extremely well by reviewers, are well made with high quality components and are quite affordable.

I suggest you at least look into them and read for yourself.


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## 4slomo (Feb 11, 2008)

A custom wheel set might best meet your needs.



PL56 said:


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> I usually ride about 110 - 120 miles a week with the longest being about 65 miles with an elevation gain of about 4000 feet.
> 
> I don’t race. I’m just looking for some wheels to help with the hills that will still be comfortable!
> ...


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## PL56 (Jul 11, 2013)

What would you recommend?


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## bikerector (Oct 31, 2012)

My team is sponsored by velocity so I usually stick with their stuff, but it's good stuff. Check out the A23 comp build. Should weight around 1600-ish grams with 24/28 spokes. They can build them to spec also, I have them build all of mine with extra spokes because I'm a big sprinter racer at 220. Wheels hold up to a good amount of abuse too.

The wider rim also allows some increase in comfort, especially if you run 700x25's.

I think a cheaper version of the wheel can be had from handspun (QBP's builders) with shimano hubs, which are time tested to be nice rolling and long lasting they just require occasional maintenance and are heavy.

HED belgium/ardennes are roughly the same as the A23's but use a little different allow in the rim and cost a bit more. I've heard many good reports about them as well. There are really tons of options out there, a custom build is great as the wheel is built to your needs instead of you finding something that might fit your needs. Psimet is a good person to have your wheels built from (there are others, he's just a no BS kind of guy which I like).


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## tednugent (Apr 26, 2010)

PL56 said:


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> I usually ride about 110 - 120 miles a week with the longest being about 65 miles with an elevation gain of about 4000 feet.
> 
> I don’t race. I’m just looking for some wheels to help with the hills that will still be comfortable!
> ...


your Zertz dampened bike already takes out a lot of the buzz from the road. That being said, despite people complaining about the stiff ride of the Mavic Ksyrium Elite... I don't notice it on my bike. But this forum hates proprietary spokes.... so they'll be quick to not recommend it. (as well as Shimano Ultegra tubeless ready)

does your LBS build wheels? If so, talk to them.


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## Zen Cyclery (Mar 10, 2009)

Go to your LBS and see if they have a wheel builder on staff or one locally that they could recommend to you. I think that's going to be the best way to maximize your dollars. 

Be sure to emphasize to them that your looking for a *wheel builder*. Not a mechanic who builds wheels. There's a big difference.


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## dcgriz (Feb 13, 2011)

@PL56

You are not stating your weight so lets assume you are between 165 and 180 lbs; if you weigh less, fatten up and if you weigh more loose some weight.

Your current wheels are "custom" made by Specialized using budget grade DT Swiss sleeved 19mm rims and cheap rebadged hubs. I am not sure on the spokes but my gues is they are straight gauge. Weight most probably is in the 2kg range.

You are indicating in your post the desired outcome of "......I’m just looking for some wheels to help with the hills that will still be comfortable!"; unfortunately no wheel will make the slopes flatter. A light and laterally stiffer wheel will feel more responsive, will accelerate faster and overall feel more solid than what you got now BUT will not give you more than that.

A rider between 1605 and 185 lbs is fortunate to have a lot of choices, both in factory made and handbuilt wheels. Each has pros and cons.

The top shelf factory wheels tend to have hard to beat weight to lateral stiffness ratios. They, however, use somewhat hard to find replacement parts (depending where you live), use lesser quality hubs than you could have bought for the same money and are more expensive overall. What I personally consider the main drawback of these wheels, for the non-racer like yourself, is the lack of reliability because of the low spoke count they come with. If you happen to break a spoke, you may have to walk home because the wheel may be unridable. The heavier you are, the more pronounced this will be.

The handbuilt wheels can be made to be a joy to ride. A competent wheelbuilder could dial in the component selection for what you need the wheel to do for you, give you a high quality built and deliver a durable, reliable and trouble free wheelset optimized for your needs. The cons of this appoach are to find the competent wheelbuilder; unfortunately there are way more mediocre than competent builders out there. It is paramount to do your homework and get references prior to selecting the wheelbuilder to build your wheels.

If you decide to go the handbuilt approach, a 23mm wide rim together with 25mm tires will give you a lot of the comfort you are looking for.

The following may be good candidates for you:

HED Belgium C2 rims with Ultegra 6700 hubs laced 3x. This will be a very conservative built. The Ultegras will need 32 spokes front and rear and this may be considered unfashionable from some but it will make a wheel reliable enough to do anything with it. The Ultegras are about 130 grams heavier than the light variety hubs and the extra spokes will add a bit more weight. 

A lighter variation of the previous wheel is replacing the Ultegra hubs with Novatec or Novatec like hubs and reduce the drilling to 32h/28h or 28h/24h. Still 3x for the rear and 2x for the front. DB spokes, 14/15 ga.

A less expensive rim choice of very similar attributes is the H+Son Archetype at about 60% of the cost of the HED. The main difference is that the brake tracks are anodized. The anodizing will eventually wear off due to the brake pads rubbing against it, but until it does you may not like how it looks and how it breaks when wet. The HED rim has machined sidewalls so your brake track is bare aluminum.

Hubs wise you have more choices with way more expensive hubs than what mentioned above but I feel for your application, higher price tags hubs will give you diminishing returns. However, if hub bling is in the cards for you, then White Industries T-11, Chris King R-45, DT Swiss 240 are the mainstay of the boutique hubs most commonly used.


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## Mike T. (Feb 3, 2004)

You left out two important pieces of info, as most people do -


Your weight.
Your budget.


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## PL56 (Jul 11, 2013)

180 lbs
$1000 hard cap


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## PL56 (Jul 11, 2013)

I know there is no wheel that will flatten out a hill I'm looking for something that will roll better and have a better transfer of power i.e. I believe stiffer. However, I don't want something so harsh that I lose the smooth ride of the Roubaix. 
Hand built sounds interesting. I am concerned as to whether I can find a true wheel builder as opposed to someone who builds wheels.


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## [email protected] (Sep 12, 2008)

I'm 175 lbs and have been riding Dura-Ace C24's for going on 3 years now... must have around 15k miles on them and they've been fantastic... i'd highly recommend them.


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## NJBiker72 (Jul 9, 2011)

Have you considered custom? I had a custom set built for my Tarmac and could not be happier. Chris King hubs and Pacenti rims. I wanted sturdier but also stiffer and no weight gain from the stock wheels. I am about your weight.


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## Mike T. (Feb 3, 2004)

PL56 said:


> 180 lbs
> $1000 hard cap


You can get just about any custom wheelset you can dream up (no "good" carbon rims though) for that kind of cash. I'm having fun myself right now with my own wheelset.


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## dcgriz (Feb 13, 2011)

PL56 said:


> I know there is no wheel that will flatten out a hill I'm looking for something that will roll better and have a better transfer of power i.e. I believe stiffer. However, I don't want something so harsh that I lose the smooth ride of the Roubaix.
> Hand built sounds interesting. I am concerned as to whether I can find a true wheel builder as opposed to someone who builds wheels.


What I suggested previously for you I believe will fit exactly what you are looking for. 

As far as finding a true wheel builder I share your concern. If you post which part of the world you are from we may be able to steer you the right direction. Otherwise, there are a couple of online reputable builders that I would not hesitate having them build wheels for me. Ergott is from the East Coast and WMW (rruff) from the West Coast.


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## PL56 (Jul 11, 2013)

I'm in Atlanta, GA


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## dcgriz (Feb 13, 2011)

Not from your area and my info is not first hand.

There is an outfit by the name of The Bicycle Doctor in Norcross that consistently gets good reviews; the owner, Scott, has built wheels for some of the members here. Member GA1911 had a wheelset built there last year. You may want to PM him for feedback on how the wheel is holding up.


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## PL56 (Jul 11, 2013)

Thank you!


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## changingleaf (Aug 20, 2009)

Definitely go with some of the newer wider rims, such as Velocity A23, Pacenti SL23, HED, Archetype, even the DT Swiss RR440 is wider than most. A wider rim will benefit you all around.


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## Suspect4119 (Jun 3, 2010)

Running Boyd Vitesse w/ Conti 4000s 25mm on a 11' Roubaix Elite Apex SL2. Was huge upgrade from stock and roll smooth and fast. Very happy after 2500 miles so far

Highly recommend....


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## PL56 (Jul 11, 2013)

I thinking about Shimano 7900 hubs and HED Belgium Rims with SS spokes.
Comments please


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## Mike T. (Feb 3, 2004)

PL56 said:


> I thinking about Shimano 7900 hubs


Love 'em. I'm building a set up now as we speak. The bearing adjustment system is genius.



> HED Belgium Rims with SS spokes.


I have no knowledge on those rims (except that I know they're expensive) and it would be hard to find (good) spokes that aren't SS.


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## dcgriz (Feb 13, 2011)

PL56 said:


> I thinking about Shimano 7900 hubs and HED Belgium Rims with SS spokes.
> Comments please


The Durace 7900 are excellent hubs. The HED Belgium C2 rims are one of the best rims in the mid-depth category as far as trueness and finish are concerned. 
The combo is top notch. I would suggest to go with the machined walls version.
Lace them with a sensible type and number of spokes and you will have a heck of a wheelset.


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## Social Climber (Jan 16, 2013)

I'm running a set of HED Ardennes and love them. The wider rims allow you to run lower pressure, smoothing out the ride. So if you want to go custom I would think the HED C2 rims (which are the ones used with the Ardennes) would mate very well with your Roubaix.


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## PL56 (Jul 11, 2013)

Received them Friday. They ride like a dream.
Already sold my DT Swiss.


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## rruff (Feb 28, 2006)

PL56 said:


> I am concerned as to whether I can find a true wheel builder as opposed to someone who builds wheels.


Lots of guys who post on this board do it for a living. 

I've seen too many local shops do an incredibly bad job. One even told me it was impossible to get even tension on a perfectly straight carbon rim. He left it with a massive 35kg variation and overall tension was too low. Took me about 10 minutes to reduce that to less than 5kg. But then I had to stress relieve it several times because he'd failed to do that also. And this was a wheelset they charged nearly $3000 for! 

dcgiz gave you some good suggestions for rims. Another good one is the Pacenti SL23, which is probably the top performance rim you can get. Wide, very aero shape with 23mm tires, light at 450g. Those with White Industries hubs and CX-Rays would cost <$800 and weigh <1500g.


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## rruff (Feb 28, 2006)

dcgriz said:


> ... and WMW (rruff) from the West Coast.


New Mexico, actually.


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## rruff (Feb 28, 2006)

PL56 said:


> Received them Friday. They ride like a dream.
> Already sold my DT Swiss.


Doh! Guess I should have looked at the dates on this thread...

Which wheels did you end up with? If custom, pics and specs?


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## Mike T. (Feb 3, 2004)

rruff said:


> I've seen too many local shops do an incredibly bad job. One even told me it was impossible to get even tension on a perfectly straight carbon rim. He left it with a massive 35kg variation and overall tension was too low. Took me about 10 minutes to reduce that to less than 5kg. But then I had to stress relieve it several times because he'd failed to do that also. And this was a wheelset they charged nearly $3000 for!


It's a pity that the only necessary credentials for being a Wheelbuilder are access to a spoke wrench and opposable thumbs.


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## PL56 (Jul 11, 2013)

rruff said:


> Doh! Guess I should have looked at the dates on this thread...
> 
> Which wheels did you end up with? If custom, pics and specs?


I went with the Shimano 7900 hubs, HED Belgium C2 rims with DT Comp double butted SS spokes. Conti Grand Prix 4000s


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## lawndart (Oct 4, 2004)

how are your wheels holding up? where did you get them built?


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## Trek_5200 (Apr 21, 2013)

Riding upgrade will help a great deal more than riding upgrades. Nothing beats training more and losing fat. But I do understand the desire. The emotions say buying better wheels will help and logic says it won't. A lighter wheel might shave a few seconds on a tough hill but not much more. How much faster do you think better wheels will make you?


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## PL56 (Jul 11, 2013)

Trek_5200 said:


> Riding upgrade will help a great deal more than riding upgrades. Nothing beats training more and losing fat. But I do understand the desire. The emotions say buying better wheels will help and logic says it won't. A lighter wheel might shave a few seconds on a tough hill but not much more. How much faster do you think better wheels will make you?


These wheels are great! They are relatively light, corner fantastic, stiff on the climbs, and they seem to roll effortlessly. They are so much better than the stock DT Axis wheels. I’m a little over a ½ mph faster on my regular rides.


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## onemoreshot (Jul 23, 2013)

Who did you have build them? Approx much more did they set you back if you don't mind saying?


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