# Are Campagnolo Neutron Ultra's much better than Neutrons?



## miurasv (Jun 4, 2010)

Are the Neutron Ultra's noticably better than the standard Neutron? My brother would like to know as he needs to get a set of wheels this week for his recently acquired Colnago EPS. He doesn't want Shamals or Eurus as he finds the ride too hard and they are outside budget atm anyway. His understanding is that the Neutrons will be more forgiving but which one should he get, the Neutron or Neutron Ultra and is the Ultra worth the extra money? Thanks in advance for any replies.


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## miurasv (Jun 4, 2010)

I'd also like to ask if these wheels are reliable and durable or is one moreso than the other? Thanks again.


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## orange_julius (Jan 24, 2003)

miurasv said:


> Are the Neutron Ultra's noticably better than the standard Neutron? My brother would like to know as he needs to get a set of wheels this week for his recently acquired Colnago EPS. He doesn't want Shamals or Eurus as he finds the ride too hard and they are outside budget atm anyway. His understanding is that the Neutrons will be more forgiving but which one should he get, the Neutron or Neutron Ultra and is the Ultra worth the extra money? Thanks in advance for any replies.


The Neutron is very durable. I have one (not Ultra) with 4 years' worth of riding on them. I also have the Shamal, which you are correct is harsh. But the comfort level between a Michelin Pro 3 clincher-tubed Neutron at 100 psi, and a Hutchinson Fusion 3 tubeless Shamal at 85-90 psi, is indistinguishable to me. 

The Neutron front wheel is a touch soft and flexes a bit. I do not know if the Ultra version has the same problem. I like the Shamal much better but without the tubeless it is quite harsh.


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## Bianchi67 (Oct 16, 2005)

I thought the only different is the Ultras have carbon hub bodies and standard has aluminum. Saves something like 30 grams each wheel.


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## Nielly (Sep 21, 2009)

I have the Neutron Ultras and they have been pretty good so far. I believe the spokes and rims may be different as well. I had a spoke break on my rear wheel (on the drive side) early on, while it was sitting in my apartment. I had it sent in to Campy USA and they didn't want to fix it under warranty as they "don't cover spoke breakage". However my LBS guy convinced them otherwise. Then I was hit by a car and it knocked the rear wheel out of true. I had the LBS true it but eventually another rear drive side spoke broke (can't really blame the wheel here). By the way, the rear wheel is completely unrideable with a broken dive side spoke. I had to order a set of replacement spokes (the kit comes with 2 of each types of spokes) which cost ~$60 from Campy USA. I could not find an online source for these although they did seem to have the standard Neutron spoke kits out there, which lead me to believe there is some difference. The LBS replaced the broken spoke and the wheel has been fine for the last couple of seasons since. I've only seen a couple of sets of the standard Neutrons out on the road but the feedback from the owners was that they were trouble free. I doubt you'd notice much difference in the weight between the two as most of the weight savings is in the hub, as was pointed out.


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## Bobbin-Man (Oct 1, 2008)

Neutron Ultra has a "scalloped" rim to reduce the material between the spokes and theoretically save weight. Neutron does not.


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