# Dura Ace/Open Pro upgrade



## JeffN (Sep 19, 2006)

I have a 2007 LeMond Sarthe that came with Bontrager Race wheels. These wheels get very poor reviews on RBR. While I have not had any of the problems listed by reviewers, I am still interested in upgrading the wheels. I am intrigued by the affordability, durability, and smoothness of the Dura Ace/Mavic Open Pro combo. I have a pair of Mavic MA40s on my old Trek, and I always thought they were great. I know there are plenty of options to choose from these days, but the bang for the buck of the Dura Ace hubs combined with the Open Pros seems like a great choice. I was curious to hear what others thought. It might help to know that I don't race, I ride about 60 miles/week on rural roads, and I try to do a few 100Ks and 1-2 centuries per year. Thanks!


----------



## Oldteen (Sep 7, 2005)

Combo of either DA or Ultegra hubs laced 32-3x to OP rims makes a solid combo for training/general use. Not flashy, light, or aero, but well-built they should give many thousand miles of reliable service. I have over 3k trouble-free miles on my Ult/OP's over fairly rough Midwest roads & they are still as solid as the day I got 'em. (My set weighs around 1860g). Ultegra hubs may be the better bang for the buck, but DA is not a bad choice either.

BTW- It's not a bad thing to have a spare wheelset. No reason you couldn't get a set & keep your Bontragers as "event wheels".


----------



## JeffN (Sep 19, 2006)

Oldteen said:


> Combo of either DA or Ultegra hubs laced 32-3x to OP rims makes a solid combo for training/general use. Not flashy, light, or aero, but well-built they should give many thousand miles of reliable service. I have over 3k trouble-free miles on my Ult/OP's over fairly rough Midwest roads & they are still as solid as the day I got 'em. (My set weighs around 1860g). Ultegra hubs may be the better bang for the buck, but DA is not a bad choice either.
> 
> BTW- It's not a bad thing to have a spare wheelset. No reason you couldn't get a set & keep your Bontragers as "event wheels".



Thanks Oldteen. I would certainly keep my Bontragers around for other uses. Even though the DA/OPs are slightly heavier, is it possible they would feel faster because of how smooth they can be? That was certainly my experience with my old MA40s. They were not light or aero, but they always rode like a dream.


----------



## Oldteen (Sep 7, 2005)

Feel is hard to quantify, and tires (type, size, & inflation pressure) also have an important influence on ride quality & rolling resistance. No question that a rougher ride can make take its toll on a long ride.
Assuming well-built/adjusted wheels in good repair using identical tires, I've always thought that power required for a given roadie speed (say >17mph) depended on aerodynamics, weight, and hub drag in that relative order. During significant climbs at lower speed (say 6+% at under 10-12 mph) weight may become more important. For modern hubs, bearing drag does vary but is generally much lesser effect than aero or weight. Many feel that weight at the hub is less important than weight at the rim (esp. for accelerations), but others dispute this. Forum & web searches will yield some very interesting discussions on this. The Zipp wheels website also has some interesting technical info.
Bottom line seems to be that compared to a standard 32-spoke box rim, the best aero wheelsets ($1000++) may add perhaps 1/4 or 1/3 mph at 20-25 mph (perhaps 4-6min on a century ride). Intermediate cost wheels (e.g.30mm rim height with 16-20 aero spokes) may provide much (but not all) of that advantage. Important considerations for racing or TT's.
As a recreational rider, though, reliability is probably more important than all of the above. Breaking a single spoke on a 32-spoke Ult(or DA)/OP wheel will still let you ride home. Break a spoke on a 16-spoke aero wheel & you're likely stuck. 
BTW- Besides my Ult/OP's I also have some Neuvation R28aero's (27mm rim, 16/20 bladed spokes). I like both wheelsets alot & ride both regularly on my Cannondale CAAD5 (Al frame). The R28's are slightly faster, although the Ult/OP's have a bit smoother ride (using same tires & pressure).


----------

