# Disc Brake Wheels for road not CX. Whatchya got?



## Special Eyes (Feb 2, 2011)

Like them or not, disc brakes are coming to road bikes. Not too many yet, and some wheel manufacturers are already offering choices. Some are not. I'd like to discuss disc brake wheels specifically for road bikes, not cyclocross. I just took possession of a disc brake road bike and looking at wheel upgrades. High end builders are equipping disc road bikes with OEM wheelsets, mostly made by DT Swiss at this time, who also market their own disc wheelsets. What do you have and what would you like?

I DO NOT want to discuss the merits of discs or their value to racers or anything argumentative. If you want to rage on about what you hate or will never do, there are plenty of threads for you already going strong.


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## Randy99CL (Mar 27, 2013)

Is your rear hub 130mm wide or 135?


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## Special Eyes (Feb 2, 2011)

Mine is 135, as I think most newer road disc frames are. Here's my ride:


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## changingleaf (Aug 20, 2009)

For the high-end Enve already has a disc specific SES 3.4 Clincher rim set. The disc specific clincher rims are 50g lighter per rim than the rim-brake 3.4 Clincher set. So, without the extra material need for heat build-up at the braking area they've subtracted a significant amount of weight. 

It doesn't look like the aluminum disc specific rims are getting any lighter, possibly because removing material there makes the rims too weak and less dent resistant. The aluminum rims are more aero without the need of a brake track.


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## ManxShred (Mar 6, 2009)

I've got the DT Swiss RC28C DB wheels on my Volagi. I'm very happy with them. The weight is about the same as the Zipps, but at a much lower cost.


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## November Dave (Dec 7, 2011)

changingleaf said:


> For the high-end Enve already has a disc specific SES 3.4 Clincher rim set. The disc specific clincher rims are 50g lighter per rim than the rim-brake 3.4 Clincher set. So, without the extra material need for heat build-up at the braking area they've subtracted a significant amount of weight.
> 
> It doesn't look like the aluminum disc specific rims are getting any lighter, possibly because removing material there makes the rims too weak and less dent resistant. The aluminum rims are more aero without the need of a brake track.


The lack of weight loss in alloys is as much to do with keeping the tire on as it is denting - we've done a bunch of research into that. 

We just spent many thousands of dollars to once again learn the fallacy of making assumptions about aero - until it's tested and proven, it isn't more aero. Not taking a poke at you at all. It's just that the internet has been sure that rim "x" is the absolute aero leader, despite rim "x" never having been tested. We just tested rim "x." The eyeball wind tunnel is a crappy wind tunnel. 

There are a million great options for road disc wheels. Stan's 340 or 400 non-machined (all black) rims, HED Belgium all black, Pacenti SL23 all black. WI CLD hubs are fantastic and go down to 24 hole drilling for both front and rear, and with higher spoke counts you have great choices from DT, CK, and tons more. Spokes is spokes, use the best your budget allows.


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## Special Eyes (Feb 2, 2011)

Good stuff, Dave, thanks for participating.

Manxshred, I just ordered a set of those RC 28C DB's I really needed to cut some weight from the bike. I run 303 Firecrest on my S-Works SL-3 and wanted the new Zipp 202 Disc version for the new bike, but the cost was way out there. Besides the DT's are 110 grams lighter. And I kinda like the center lock system. I spent considerable time researching hubs and rims for custom builds, and available built wheelsets, and couldn't find anything that beat the RC 28's.


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## bikerector (Oct 31, 2012)

I have velocity aileron wheels for my CX bike for road riding. Supposed to be aero optimized for 25mm tires though I have no idea if they did testing for that. I run 28mm tires since my cx bike is my wet weather and gravel road race bike for the spring and summer.


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## expatbrit (Oct 16, 2013)

My CX bike is my only bike, and I'm in a similar boat to bike rector; Aileron rims , WI CLD hubs. Not as light as the Splines, but I'm not light either!


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## changingleaf (Aug 20, 2009)

Yes, I agree, a certain amount of material is needed on the sidewall so that it is strong enough to withstand high air-pressure. I did mean to include that as part of a what can be a weak area.

I also should have said that a lack of a vertical protruding brake track may lead to more aero-rims. If this benefit can be gained then great. But even if some newer rim designs can be shown to result in less drag the drag from the caliper and disc hub needs to be accounted for.

I agree, there a lots of options for disc road wheels.


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

Special Eyes said:


> Manxshred, I just ordered a set of those RC 28C DB's I really needed to cut some weight from the bike. I run 303 Firecrest on my S-Works SL-3 and wanted the new Zipp 202 Disc version for the new bike, but the cost was way out there. Besides the DT's are 110 grams lighter.


Where did you get them and what do they weigh? I looked at some CLD rotors and wheels, it looked like the additional weight for rotor and nut at least made up for the lighter hub, am I off on that?


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## Special Eyes (Feb 2, 2011)

I ordered from my LBS, but I have seen some online, though not easy to find many sources. If we are gram counting, I think the CL rotors and hubs would not weigh more than the conventional flange mount setup, and probably more aero (to a tiny degree).


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## GasX (Jul 7, 2013)

Grail

The Grails just went live on the Stan's website so they are now an option for road tubeless disc bikes.

Looking forward to reading a review or two...


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## wgscott (Jul 14, 2013)

Chris King, last one on the list here: Wheels | Chris King Precision Components

I've only had this since the end of May, but very happy. (Shimano hydraulic road discs).


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

GasX said:


> Grail
> 
> The Grails just went live on the Stan's website so they are now an option for road tubeless disc bikes.
> 
> Looking forward to reading a review or two...


Nice video on their site - love the air hose at the tire change!


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

Just got a set of Reynolds Stratus Pro Disc wheels , took a month for them to get here. 1590 grams plus or minus. 28mm deep, 22 wide outside, 17 inside, tubeless ready. They are on my rain bike.


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## AndrwSwitch (May 28, 2009)

I ended up just lacing a CXP 33 to a disc hub.

For now, I'd probably just do something along those lines again - choose a road rim and a disc hub I like, and make a wheel out of them. If I could get it in non-machined sidewalls, it'd be a plus. But I don't care that much.


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## 4slomo (Feb 11, 2008)

My personal road disc set use Velocity A23 tubeless rims. I've been having too much fun riding my mountain bike on the road with them!



Special Eyes said:


> Like them or not, disc brakes are coming to road bikes. Not too many yet, and some wheel manufacturers are already offering choices. Some are not. I'd like to discuss disc brake wheels specifically for road bikes, not cyclocross. I just took possession of a disc brake road bike and looking at wheel upgrades. High end builders are equipping disc road bikes with OEM wheelsets, mostly made by DT Swiss at this time, who also market their own disc wheelsets. What do you have and what would you like?
> 
> I DO NOT want to discuss the merits of discs or their value to racers or anything argumentative. If you want to rage on about what you hate or will never do, there are plenty of threads for you already going strong.


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## Special Eyes (Feb 2, 2011)

My requirements have got more specific as I research and learn about them. I cancelled my order for the DT Swiss RC-28 DB's and decided to custom build a set around the Reynolds Attack rims and the White CLD hubs. I want to stick with the center lock system. THEN I talked to the guys at Reynolds and found out they have a new wheel set coming out in October that is just what I want. Made with Attack rims that are disc specific and their new (not available yet) CLD hubs, total should be around 1440 grams. I can wait for that.


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## TricrossRich (Mar 26, 2014)

Here is my Specialized TriCross Elite Disc that has basically been converted to full road use.

I am running Yoeleo road disc wheels.. 50mm deep by 25mm wide. I've put over 1200 miles on them so far with no issues. They're strong and light and they seem to spin forever compared to the stock axis wheels that came on the bike.


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## LateSleeper (Feb 17, 2014)

Roval Rapide CLX 40 disc wheels here. Decent mid-depth carbon rim, center-lock, DT internals in the hubs. Only down-side is inside nipples. Bought these because the Enve offerings were too pricey. The disc version wheels are $400 cheaper than the caliper brake version.


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## skinewmexico (Apr 19, 2010)

I had a set built at Bicycle Wheel Warehouse that have been great so far. Not sure which wheel it was;, it wasn't listed on the web page, but it was wider than the others. Wheelset came in at 1600g without skewers or discs. With the discout on the web site, they were a phenomenal value.


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## expatbrit (Oct 16, 2013)

expatbrit said:


> My CX bike is my only bike, and I'm in a similar boat to bike rector; Aileron rims , WI CLD hubs. Not as light as the Splines, but I'm not light either!


Oh, and dgaddis1 at Southern Wheelworks did a great job building them for me!!!


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## willstylez (Sep 15, 2011)

I'm running White Industries CLD with H+Son Archetypes (32 F / R) on my Moots.


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## Special Eyes (Feb 2, 2011)

willstylez said:


> I'm running White Industries CLD with H+Son Archetypes (32 F / R) on my Moots.


Are you riding the Vamoots DR?


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## willstylez (Sep 15, 2011)

Special Eyes said:


> Are you riding the Vamoots DR?


No, a PsychloX....built-up for road & medium weight touring. From what I gather, it's similar to the Vamoots DR, but a bit burlier. I opted for the 450mm chainstays and rack/fender mounts.


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## deviousalex (Aug 18, 2010)

Special Eyes said:


> I'd like to discuss disc brake wheels specifically for road bikes, not cyclocross.


What makes a disc wheelset specific for road?

That being said I did pick up a pair of HED Ardennes FR disc but it looks like I'm gonna get a cross bike with thru axles not QRs so I'll probably have to sell these.


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## pushstart (Feb 5, 2012)

I have a few wheelsets I have used for road disc. I built these all myself, since I tend to distrust factory wheels -- especially when disc-brake forces get involved.

- LB U45 rims with no brake surface laced to Novatec XD711/D712 hubs. 9mm thru-bolt in front. These are my main road wheels and they are awesome. 28h f/r -- I am not quite comfortable with only 24 j-bend spokes, as many vendors are doing.


- Used a set of H+ Son Archetype rims on BHS disc hubs. Those worked well for 12k+ miles -- sold them recently since I switched over to thru-bolt. The Archetype rims are really nicely finished and built up easily -- a great value. 28h/32h

- Just built a set of Flo30 rims on DT Swiss 240s front hub (9mm thru-bolt) and Hope Pro 2 rear hub (10mm thru-bolt). Eclectic mix of parts, but it is for my commuter, so I don't mind. These are nice solid (heavy) rims, but hard to mount tires on. And both rims had a bit of a hop at the weld. Not sure I would recommend them from a build perspective, but they are nice and wide (19.1mm internal) -- and wind-tunnel proven, if that is of value. They do ride really nicely and sound great at speed. 28h/28h


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## Special Eyes (Feb 2, 2011)

Great reports, everyone.

I guess what I originally meant by 'road bike' disc wheels are wheels strictly for pavement. There is a sort of new class of bikes starting to show up referred to as 'endurance', 'comfort', or 'gran fond', that is more what I'm talking about. Even some race bikes, such as the Spec Tarmac and Colnago's C-59 have disc options now. Of course, CX wheels can do all that nearly as well, but I should have more specifically said wheels for road only, that are lighter and probably not going to be over 25mm wide. I'm keeping my choices to approx 1500 gr/set.


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## pushstart (Feb 5, 2012)

It should probably be noted that a number of aero road wheels are over 25mm wide these days, though inner widths of more than 18mm tend to be less common on rims designed for 23mm tires. The Flo30 and Hed C2+ are exceptions that come to mind. (But people are also running 25mm tires commonly on these enduro road bikes.) And it is true that many cx wheelsets really do work just fine for pavement use -- and vice versa. E.g. I am building a Stans Grail wheelset that I will use for off-road, but it is also designed for road tubeless -- so I might very well run road tires on it occasionally.

1500g is definitely doable. My U45 wheelset was just under 1600g and built with budget hubs.


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## framesti (Jan 26, 2009)

*disc wheel*

Quesiton: Is there more than 1 kind of hub? (iso, centerlock)?
What's difference between thru-axle & quick release? Will thru-axle be the standard?


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## Orfitinho (Oct 20, 2012)

Another rim option could be: 
Ryde Pulse Comp Disc, 30 mm deep, 330 grams,



framesti said:


> Quesiton: Is there more than 1 kind of hub? (iso, centerlock)?


There are frames for disc brakes build for hubs with 130mm or with 135 mm OLD.



> What's difference between thru-axle & quick release? Will thru-axle be the standard?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_y8Rn9WINPs
Thru-axles hold the wheel better in place.


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## 4slomo (Feb 11, 2008)

There are both ISO and CL disc hubs. There are more ISO discs available than CL discs, but this may eventually change with more common use in road bikes.

Through axle (TA) and quick release (QR) connections must match your fork and rear dropouts. It may be best to select hubs that are convertible between mounting formats. 

DT Swiss has RWS rachet skewers, 9mm front and 10mm rear, that thread into nuts on the opposite side and can be used with existing road bike dropouts. There is anecdotal experience that the RWS system may provide marginal increase in stiffness.



framesti said:


> Quesiton: Is there more than 1 kind of hub? (iso, centerlock)?
> What's difference between thru-axle & quick release? Will thru-axle be the standard?


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## msala (Jul 17, 2014)

deviousalex said:


> What makes a disc wheelset specific for road?
> 
> That being said I did pick up a pair of HED Ardennes FR disc but it looks like I'm gonna get a cross bike with thru axles not QRs so I'll probably have to sell these.


I would have thought the higher tire pressures required for road would rule out some cross wheelsets.


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## rplace13 (Apr 27, 2011)

Chris King ISO hubs, Velocity Fusion rims with "Halo" finish NMS. While the Gunnar Hyper-X may be a cross bike it is ridden about 95% on the road, with a small bit of gravel on my 24 mile one way commute. Without the bag it is a very capable road bike. Sector 28 tubless tires. It is also my cold weather and wet bike. I have other pure road bikes but if I could only have one this might be it. Very happy with the wheels/tires to date...perhaps a bit heavy for all out, road only riding.


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## mjduct (Jun 1, 2013)

Salsa colossal Ti a little over a year old, I built mine up with campagnolo centaur "red edition" 

Wheelset is DT Swiss 350 hubs center lock with a campagnolo freehub (same as the 240, easy swap) laced the HED Belgium rims.


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## cnardone (Jun 28, 2014)

mjduct,
I love everything about your bike. Beautiful.


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## poff (Jul 21, 2007)

ENVE XC rims on DT 180 CL hubs. Weigh less than 1400gm with rotors.


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## RRRoubaix (Aug 27, 2008)

deviousalex said:


> What makes a disc wheelset specific for road?
> 
> That being said I did pick up a pair of HED Ardennes FR disc but it looks like I'm gonna get a cross bike with thru axles not QRs so I'll probably have to sell these.


I'm in the same boat, lol!
Was hoping to add them to a hot-shot carbon CX bike, but that will have to wait until next year. I'm a big believer in thru axles and by then, all/most of the top notch CX bikes (at least) will be thru axle.


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## tidi (Jan 11, 2008)

mjduct said:


> Salsa colossal Ti a little over a year old, I built mine up with campagnolo centaur "red edition"
> 
> Wheelset is DT Swiss 350 hubs center lock with a campagnolo freehub (same as the 240, easy swap) laced the HED Belgium rims.


can you say the c/s length and is it 130 or 135mm axle?


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## Bob Dopolina (Nov 1, 2008)

I think these fit the bill.

Target specifically at the grand fondo rider but also good for XC or gravel grinders.


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## BhSimon (May 9, 2011)

TricrossRich said:


> Here is my Specialized TriCross Elite Disc that has basically been converted to full road use.
> 
> I am running Yoeleo road disc wheels.. 50mm deep by 25mm wide. I've put over 1200 miles on them so far with no issues. They're strong and light and they seem to spin forever compared to the stock axis wheels that came on the bike.


Interesting: the 23mm wheels still have the brake track profile, even if it is untreated. The 25mm have a special shape without the brake track. I've been trying to figure this out for ages.

Great looking bike. Droool.


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## TricrossRich (Mar 26, 2014)

BhSimon said:


> Interesting: the 23mm wheels still have the brake track profile, even if it is untreated. The 25mm have a special shape without the brake track. I've been trying to figure this out for ages.
> 
> Great looking bike. Droool.


I'm not exactly sure how you've come to that conclusion....but if that's true, great. In my case, I purchased these wheels and simply asked to have no brake track. I have the 25mm width, 3K weave, matte finish, Novatec D711/712 hubs w/ CN aero 424 spokes.


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