# Mavic aksiums vs fulcrum racing 5 evo



## pRoto (Jun 17, 2007)

+,-, your oppinion which are better, or recommend wheels in this price range..

Fulcrum Racing 5 Evo Wheelset Nominal weight - 776g (front) and 980g (rear) £159.99	

Mavic Aksium Wheels 2009 front wheel: 870g rear wheel: 985g	£144.99

thx


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## sscooterguy (Jun 20, 2008)

Have never been on the fulcrums, but the Aksiums are absolutely bomb proof, at least for me (went from 179 lbs to 150 lbs on one these wheels during a cross USA ride). I went over 2000 miles on them over all types of roads, 80-100 miles a day, and have never needed to true them. 

However, to answer your question, I guess we need to know a little more about what you want to use them for. Training, daily riding, all around wheel, racing? What's your weight and riding style? 

These factors may help you better decide on wheel choice. I got mine at cost from our sponsor, so it was much more worth it for me. In hind sight, I would have paid retail for them. However, I wasn't racing, and after riding lighter wheels, will keep my aksium's for training/daily use and reserve the lighter wheels for trips, big climbs, and hopefully races.


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## pacificaslim (Sep 10, 2008)

FWIW, i just got the aksiums from probikekit and the rear is 1035grams, without skewer. They actually screwed up and sent me two rears and the other one was 1042. I haven't received the front yet so I can't verify that weight for you. They look great though and the spoke tension was solid and I'm looking forward to riding them when they send me the damn front wheel!


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## alexb618 (Aug 24, 2006)

the 'lowly' racing 7 rides better than the askium, so i imagine a racing 5 would feel even better again


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## niteschaos (Apr 19, 2002)

*+1 for the Aksyums*

I wore out my 2005 Ksyrium Elites and switched to the 2009 Aksyiums (almost same weight) and I'm very pleased so far (500 miles testing).


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## pRoto (Jun 17, 2007)

ok, thank you all so both wheels are good, im thinking on fulcrums..


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## MarvinK (Feb 12, 2002)

The Fulcrums are very reliable--I have the 3s and my son has the 5s. They are ultra reliable (Quick Step used the 5s for training wheels until Specialized started providing wheels), and aren't as heavy as the Askiums. In my book, the Askiums are for people who wish they had Kysrium wheels and are more worried about show than performance. Many better choices at similar prices.


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## pRoto (Jun 17, 2007)

I bought ksyrium elites i dont know why, but they are better then evo 5 i think.


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## pacificaslim (Sep 10, 2008)

MarvinK said:


> In my book, the Askiums are for people who wish they had Kysrium wheels and are more worried about show than performance. Many better choices at similar prices.


Well, in my case, I got the Askiums from PBK shipped to my door for $140. I don't think there is *anything* at a similar price.


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## Kerry Irons (Feb 25, 2002)

*Value proposition*



pacificaslim said:


> Well, in my case, I got the Askiums from PBK shipped to my door for $140. I don't think there is *anything* at a similar price.


Not to dump on your wheels, but you got inexpensive wheels for an inexpensive price. Hand built wheels with low cost components are pretty comparable, but hardly anybody is playing that gig anymore. It used to be that every bike shop worth a dime could deliver something at least as good, but now you have a challenge just finding the low cost components. At a minimum, Nashbar, Performance, and QBP do have low cost wheels in their lineup.


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## pacificaslim (Sep 10, 2008)

Nobody is saying they are great wheels. But at that price i didn't see any better options. I'm not racing with them of course - though they may end up being backup cyclocross wheels next winter. Of course there are better wheels, but they cost more: it's silly to recommend $500 wheels when the OP of this thread is asking about Askium vs. Fulcrum 5.


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## wankski (Jul 24, 2005)

@ that price point i would def say fulcrum racing 7. Forget the specs - they are all the same at this price. 

BIG ADVANTAGE goes to the fulcrum 7 for using J bend straight gauge black 2.0mm spokes. replacement cost is what? a buck? Overall a nice build quality for the price.

good luck with the Mavic wheels when it comes to spokes. Just not worth it for nil advantage. Fulcrum 5 evos use bladed straight pull which are a bit harder and more expensive to find at just any LBS.


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## pRoto (Jun 17, 2007)

*wankski* so u saying that fulcrum racing 7 is maybe best wheels for training yeah? Cheap replacement and good quality? Then il broke ksyrium maybe il think to buy some )))


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## wankski (Jul 24, 2005)

i think so. Factory wheels tend to be good value at the lower end of the market. I simply cannot build wheels @ racing 7 prices.

Again, easily replaced spokes make them some of the most repairable out there.

I bought my 06 ventos when they were bottom of the barrel - campy simply don't put out crappy products IME. 25000(kms) and i haven't touched them. Hubs still smooth even though they are the cheaper cartridge bearings, not record's loose ball.


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## pRoto (Jun 17, 2007)

Have u tryed mavic's? Many people tryed fulcrums and said that they are good, hmm.. Big difference between 7,5,3,1 and zeros? I mean in performance?


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## PlatyPius (Feb 1, 2009)

The Fulcrums ride better and have a stronger freehub, IMO.

Aksiums go through bearings more frequently than other wheels, the spokes are expensive - if you can find them (We stock them at my current shop - $9.99 each), and they aren't light at all.


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## wankski (Jul 24, 2005)

pRoto said:


> Have u tryed mavic's? Many people tryed fulcrums and said that they are good, hmm.. Big difference between 7,5,3,1 and zeros? I mean in performance?


i've ridden aksium, K SL, and campy vento, khamsin, zonda, and eurus (and old school boras with the alu brake track)....

The mavics do their job, as do the campy stuff. The biggest difference i've found b/w the top of the range and the bottom is weight. The lighter ones feel more responsive but its not a tremendous change. In terms of performance i've not tried to TT 2 sets of wheels back to back for a comparison. Then again i'm not that consistent - certainly looking down at my speed on very familiar routes i see little if any speed difference - and that is going from 1.88kg ventos with a low aero efficiency of around 30w @ 50km/h compared to custom AC rims which are 1.52kg and fairly aero for aluminium at around 25w @ 50km/h.

they were all stiff enough for me not to notice hitting the brake pads, but i'm not that heavy (nor powerful!) to have a problem there.


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## FORT-Cyclist (Jan 19, 2003)

Some more weights to consider:
rims of Fulcrum Racing 7 -> front/rear 531/536g 
(rims are separately available as spare parts, very stiff rims to build your own wheels)

rear rim of Mavic Aksium -> 562g


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## pRoto (Jun 17, 2007)

wankski how much u weight? Im ~~162 pounds.. 73 kilos so. Do u feel much difference between 1.88kg ventos and 1.52kg wheels, in low and high speed?


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## wankski (Jul 24, 2005)

about 170lbs (77kg) at the moment - no i don't think there is much difference - once up to speed - wheel weight is meaningless anyway.

as for spin up, i wanna say they feel more responsive, but its probably in my head. The ventos ride more harshly and they used the exact same rubber (i swapped the tires over) - but that has more to do with the narrower tire bed and different design most likely IMO.


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